SUFFIELD [2016 Spring/Summer]

SUFFIELD SPRI NG/SUMMER 2016

ART & DESIGN DIRECTOR Tobye Cook Seck ’88, P’16

SUFFIELD ACADEMY BOARD OF TRUSTEES CREATIVE DIRECTOR Hillary Rockwell Cahn ’88, P’18

EDITORIAL STAFF Hillary Rockwell Cahn ’88, P’18 Linda Colo Charles Cahn III P’18 Tobye Cook Seck ’88, P’16 Thomas Foote Kris Halpin Jonathan Medwid ’96

PHOTO CONTRIBUTORS Hillary Rockwell Cahn ’88, P’18 Tobye Cook Seck ’88, P’16 Highpoint Pictures Jonathan Medwid ’96 Risley Sports Photography Alexandra Tremaine ‘03 Alison Vigneau

CONTRIBUTORS Charles Cahn III P’18, David Celentano ‘69, Heather Collins Raymond ‘88, Will Cooley ‘08,

Frederic B. Powers III ’83, P’14, President | Greenwich, Connecticut Jackson W. Robinson ’60, Vice President | Boston, Massachusetts Charles Cahn III P’18, Headmaster | Suffield, Connecticut

Susan W. Autuori P’06, ’08, ’10, ’13 | West Hartford, Connecticut Nancy A. Brooks ’87 | Boston, Massachusetts Cindy M. Burke P’13, ’15, ’17, ’19 | East Longmeadow, Massachusetts Jared D. Carillo ’00 | Glastonbury, Connecticut Andrew C. Chase | Deerfield, Massachusetts Kate O. Cleary ’88 | Cambridge, Massachusetts Michael J. Daly ’59, Trustee Emeritus | Charlotte, North Carolina George B. Daniels ’71 | New York, New York Matthew P. Fine ’95 | Riverside, Connecticut Samuel S. Fuller ’41, GP’04, ’05, ’06, ’08, ’09, Trustee Emeritus | Suffield, Connecticut Dr. Michael Gingold P’16, ’18 | West Hartford, Connecticut Valisha Graves ’81 | Brooklyn, New York Walter Harrison | Hartford, Connecticut Kathy G. Hoffman P’13 | Avon, Connecticut Christopher M. Houlihan P’05 | New York, New York Christopher T. Jensen P’07, ’09, ’11 | Riverside, Connecticut Andrew Kotchen ’90 | Irvington, New York

Bella De Simone ’16, Ben Diep ’87,

Kenneth H. Landis P’16 | New York, New York

Brad Gooch, Bud Hancock ‘74,

Philip Mactaggart P’17 | Millbrook, New York

Donna Hayden ‘78, Michelle Kaminsky ‘84, Baek Kang ‘16, James Krueger ‘16, Dany Lennon Montague P’13, Betsy McComb P’04, ’06, Jonathan Medwid ’96, Harry Melendez III ’07, Maggie O’Shea ‘16, Chrissie Patillo Pape ‘84, Annabelle Pape ‘16, Caroline Pape ‘16, Colin Pittorie ‘16, Sarah Raymond ‘16, Phil Riegel ’87, Jane Shipp (The Suffield Observer), Sara Yeager Copyright© 2016 Suffield Academy, Suffield, Connecticut 06078

Jeffrey K. McElnea ’67, P’12 | New York, New York James P. Michel P’12, ’17 | Bloomfield, Connecticut Patricia Q. Moore P’09, ’14 | McLean, Virginia Tracy Orr O’Keefe ’85 | Westfield, New Jersey Ali R. Salehi P’12 | Westfield, Massachusetts Monica Shay P’18 | Southborough, Massachusetts Hope G. Smith P’12 | Locust Valley, New York Daniel R. Tisch ’69, P’02 | New York, New York John M. Tremaine ’66, P’03, Trustee Emeritus | New Canaan, Connecticut Suzy B. Vogler P’11 | San Francisco, California Jeffrey White ’65 | Westport, Connecticut

SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG

SUFFIELD is published by the Marketing and Communications Department of Suffield Academy for alumni, parents, and friends of the school. All publications rights reserved. Contents may be reproduced or reprinted only by permission of the editor. Opinions expressed do not reflect the official position of Suffield Academy. Comments may be addressed to Marketing & Communications at marketing@suffieldacademy.org SUFFIELD is printed by Allied Printing Services, Inc. About Allied FSC Certified, EPA Partnership & ISO 9001. The fundamental principle of Allied’s environmental policy is to minimize any negative impact to the environment, while conserving natural resources. Using educational and administrative controls, we continuously assess our processes and practices to identify areas for education in energy, waste, and emissions.

SUFFIELD S PRI N G / SUMM E R 201 6 ON THE COVER One of many magnificent suff-sets (Suffield sunsets) over Bell Hill.

FEATURES 2016 Commencement

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Suffield’s 183rd graduation The Not-So-Secret Life of Bees

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SUFFIELD looks at a unique interest of Jake Mnich ‘16 Alumni Leadership Awards

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David Celentano ‘69, Ben Diep ‘85, and Michelle Kaminsky ‘84 are recognized for their contributions and leadership

CAMPUS NEWS 02 04 Campus News & Events 22 Headmaster’s Column College Destinations

New Trustee Andrew Kotchen ‘90

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Bella De Simone ’16 in The New York Times

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32 Winter & Spring Chapel Recap 39 The 2nd Gooch-Vincenti Scholar 46 Leadership Program Projects

Tigers in Review: Winter & Spring Athletics Performing Arts

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Mason Nye: 1930-2016 Alums in the News

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PROFILES Alumni Will Cooley ‘08: A Whole-Systems Design Bud Hancock ‘74: Dairy Cream Class Agent

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Trustee Valisha Graves ‘81 Legacy

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Chrissie Pattillo Pape ‘84, Caroline & Annabelle Pape ‘16 Donna Hayden ‘78 & Colin Pittorie ‘16 Heather Collins Raymond ‘88 & Sarah Raymond ‘16

CLASS NOTES News from the Classes of 1940–2015

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Mission Suffield Academy is a coeducational, independent secondary school serving a diverse community of boarding and day students. Our school has a tradition of academic excellence combined with a strong work ethic. A commitment to scholarship and a respect for individual differences guide our teaching and curriculum. We engender among our students a sense of responsibility, and they are challenged to grow in a structured and nurturing environment. The entire academic, athletic, and extracurricular experience prepares our students for a lifetime of learning, leadership, and active citizenship.

Non-discrimination Suffield Academy does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship, physical attributes, disability, age, or sexual orientation. We administer our admissions, financial aid, educational, athletic, extracurricular, and other policies so that each student is equally accorded all the rights, privileges, programs, and facilities made available by the school.

Headmaster’s Column

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sat behind the Suffield bell at our recent Commencement, listening to Dany Lennon Montague’s P’13 talk about reality with my eyes on our graduates and the majestic 162-year-old Memorial Building in the background. While focused on the moment, my mind also wandered a bit on this May day. I thought of Suffield’s distance traveled and our goals for the future. I took in how people surrounded the new buildings in our academic quad and how Memorial will soon be a modern academic center with breathtaking western views of the Connecticut River Valley. Thanks to the generosity of many in Suffield Academy’s community, we are in striking distance of making this $17 million project a reality.

Charles Cahn III

Memorial is the next part of a plan that has led to massive investment in the school and a campus that stands as one of the gems in American education. Memorial rests in the town’s historic district and dates back to 1854. When it was originally dedicated as “Middle Building,” Memorial featured a chapel, classrooms for English and science, and 34 dormitory rooms for students and teachers. Around 1900 it was closed due to declining enrollment of boarding students, and classes and chapel services were held in North Building (now known as Fuller Hall).

Enrollment increased by 1908, and Middle Building was renovated and rededicated.

Lights and running water were added to the ground and first floors, and the fourth floor rooms (previously a library and “society room”) were converted into dormitory space. A central staircase went all the way to the fourth floor.

Memorial is the next part of a plan that has led to massive investment in the school and a campus that stands as one of the gems in American education.

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In 1950 the Connecticut Baptists offered the Academy a grant for the rejuvenation of Middle Building, which had become the anchor of campus. Two side staircases were added, the faculty room was moved to the first floor, and dorm rooms were converted into classrooms. In honoring the financial assistance, the building was renamed the Connecticut Baptist Memorial Building.

Sixty-six years later, Memorial Building now remains largely the same and in need of modernization. As with all of the expansion projects we have embarked on in the last five years—Brewster Hall, Holcomb Science, Hoffman College Counseling—we spent considerable time analyzing program needs and goals, finding efficiencies, examining various architectural ideas and renderings, and fundraising. Like the other buildings we have constructed over the past decade— from those mentioned above to Tisch Field House, Rockwell Hall, the Guttag and Williams Music Centers, and the Balance Barn—Memorial will combine traditional and modern architecture. The exterior will look timeless and blend into our academic quadrangle, but the inside will feature a 21st century academic center with flexible, bright classrooms and fully integrated technology. It will house not only the English and Languages departments but also provide ideal space for our Academic Support Program, which assists talented students with atypical learning styles. In short, the new Memorial Building will make our school even better.

So, for all of us involved with Suffield’s recent Commencement (students, parents, faculty members, and trustees) I proudly report it was a day of celebration for the journeys we have taken and for the mysteries and beautiful moments that lie ahead. As another successful academic year concludes we send best wishes and thanks to everyone in the extended Suffield Academy community.

Existing west side of Memorial Building

Architectual rendering of the west side after the renovation and expansion of Memorial Building

Located in Suffield, Connecticut, The Observer is a non-profit newspaper established in 1999 and published ten times each year. Its mission is to build a sense of community throughout the town of Suffield and provide a forum where issues may be addressed. The June 2016 edition included a feature on Suffield Academy Headmaster Charlie Cahn.

An Effective Headmaster by Jane Shipp Charlie Cahn came to Suffield in 1992 straight out of the University of Michigan to teach English and to coach lacrosse at Suffield Academy. He had sent his resume to several boarding schools, sight unseen, because he believed in the mission each one represented and wanted to work with young people. Suffield Academy was the lucky school to get Charlie, and it didn’t take long for the powers that be to recognize what a treasure they had. In a few short years Charlie served first as teacher, dormitory head, advisor, and coach; then as Director of Admissions, Director of Development, Dean of Faculty, and Associate Head. In 2004 he became Headmaster succeeding his mentor David Holmes. By that time he had acquired a wealth of experience in many areas of independent school life, which was enormously beneficial as he took the final step to the headship.

The list of Charlie’s achievements as Head of School at the Academy is too long to reproduce here but, in their totality, they are impressive. Some of the work he has spearheaded has to do with the school’s facilities, and that we can all see, but

more important work has been done behind the scenes—both in academic areas and in extracurricular opportunities. College counseling is a case in point and a great strength of the school; its many outstanding academic programs provide a strong preparation for any college a student may choose. Charlie is proudest of the nurturing atmosphere the school has always been known for, but which has flourished and developed further under his leadership.

The Cahns live in the old Gay Mansion across the street from the school; Charlie’s wife Hillary, herself a Suffield Academy alumna and the daughter of longtime Academy teacher, is also a faculty member. She is a ski coach, the school photographer, and a leader of the school’s Marketing and Communications Department. Their daughter attends the school, while their son is a student at Suffield Middle School. This is a family rooted in our community and representing an institution which has been part of Suffield since 1833; their presence and the work they do adds to the quality of life in our town.

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COLLEGE BOUND

A SAMPLING OF SCHOOLS THE CLASS OF 2016 WILL BE ATTENDING: BABSON COLLEGE BATES COLLEGE BENTLEY UNIVERSITY BOSTON COLLEGE

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY BROWN UNIVERSITY BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON COLLEGE OF HOLY CROSS CONNECTICUT COLLEGE DICKINSON COLLEGE

ELON UNIVERSITY LEHIGH UNIVERSITY NEW YORK UNIVERSITY NORTHEASTERN

MEMBERS OF THE CLASS OF 2016 WILL HEAD TO 76 DIFFERENT COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES IN THE FALL OF 2017.

THEY SUBMITTED MORE THAN 1,000 APPLICATIONS TO NEARLY 300 SCHOOLS. A GREAT RANGE OF CHOICES IS REFLECTED IN THE LIST BELOW, FROM LARGE STATE SCHOOLS TO SMALLER COLLEGES AND ART SCHOOLS.

PARSONS SCHOOL OF DESIGN PRATT INSTITUTE QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SKIDMORE COLLEGE STEVENS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY TUFTS UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA UNIVERSITY OF PUGET SOUND UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

VASSAR WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY WILLIAMS COLLEGE YALE UNIVERSITY

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; 50th Night

HE 50TH NIGHT ANNUAL DINNER IS ONE OF SUFFIELD’S GREAT TRADITIONS, AS SENIORS AND FACULTY SPEND TIME REFLECTING ON THE DISTANCE TRAVELED TOGETHER AND PLANNING FOR THE FINAL WEEKS OF THE ACADEMIC YEAR. APRIL 8 MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE FINAL 50 DAYS AT THE ACADEMY FOR THE CLASS OF 2016.

Headmaster Cahn opened the evening with a warm welcome to the graduating seniors, noting that 50th Night formally starts the march to Commencement. “Tonight is meant for us to stop and reflect, and to enjoy each other’s company as we head into the final six weeks of the academic year,” he said. “We have an intentional goal in everything we do at Suffield, and it is about encouraging you to embrace life by helping you build a firm foundation that consists of ethical decision-making, and being accountable and compassionate.

One thing you will find as you move forward is you never regret being kind to others.”

Following the meal, class co-president Nick Pellegrini ’16 addressed his peers about the rapid passage of time, lamenting on the cliché of already missing the sunsets over Bell Hill. Speaking of the close-knit ties in the Suffield community, Nick commented, “College will be different. I am not looking forward to becoming less connected to my teachers. Be sure to enjoy all the final moments of this special place we are lucky enough to call home.” A video was then presented by Art & Design Director Tobye Cook Seck ’88, P’16, a montage of the senior class celebrating the many special moments of their time at Suffield.

View the 50th Night video at suffieldacademy.org/commencement

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Cum Laude Society Founded in 1906, the Cum Laude Society honors scholastic achievement and leadership. Selections are made

by Suffield’s Academic Committee and only the students ranked in the top 10% of the class are eligible.

2016 Inductees Joohyun Kim | Simon Park | Baek Kang | Maggie O’Shea | Kevin Doten | Ally Dimauro | Niklas Hess | Megan Williams Adriana Caceres Ruiz Diaz | Hunter Newman | Kaitlyn Nigro | Olivia Stanley

The Torch Society The Torch Society dates back to 1928 and honors students whose service and spirit make a profound difference to the school. Inductees are selected by current members and voting must be unanimous.

2016 Inductees Seniors Oyikwan Asante | Adriana Caceres Ruiz Diaz | Billy Cordes | Isabella De Simone | Aya Ishikawa | Miles Johnson | Jim Krueger | Kaitlyn Nigro Nick Pellegrini | Will Robidoux | Catty Seiler Juniors Laura De Los Santos | Amelia Hern | John Kuzmeski | Jason Louro | Ryder Mosby Ashley Sarris | Garrett Stephenson | Ben Toczydlowski | Max Toczydlowski 7

Baccalaureate

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Baccalaureate

Director of Development Phil Riegel ’87 shared comments at Baccalaureate, reflecting on his journey as a Suffield alum and on some ideas he wanted the Class of 2016 to be mindful of as they head forward.

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’m sure some of you (most of you) lost perspective during the college application process. We all get caught up in ranking colleges and universities, losing sight that all of these institutions are the envy of the world. Every one of you leaves here headed to an “elite” school with tremendous opportunities. There are so few high schools in the world that can make that claim, and sadly so few teenagers who are sitting where you are today.

In The Blessing of a Skinned Knee, Wendy Mogel’s book on raising resilient children, she wrote, “A key concept in Hasidic thought expresses the idea of balance: Keep two pieces of paper in your pockets at all times. On one write, ’I am a speck of dust.’ On the other, ’The world was created for me.’” This is a valuable perspective. Be humble, and don’t take your place in this world for granted, but know that you are in a position to take full advantage of everything this world has to offer. Let’s put into perspective where you as a class fits into this world. p In 2012 there were 650 million high school-aged people in the world. Of those, there were 26.5 million high school students in the US alone. p Only 68,000 students were in boarding schools in the US. That’s fewer than .003 percent.

Of those, 415 students were here.

p Tomorrow 117 seniors graduate from SUFFIELD and join a small proud tribe of just 5,800 Suffield alums.

I ask that you try to internalize these numbers because no matter how you got here, all of you have won the education lottery. You are at the tip of the spear for people your age when it comes to opportunity and social capital. With this education, hard work, and some humility, there is no limit to what you can accomplish. And accomplish great things you will, I have no doubt.

This school has been here for a very long time and has produced some impressive alumni, but it is my belief that it will be Suffield’s youngest graduates who will make this school the proudest in the years to come.

Your generation has yet to be officially named. You’re called “Generation Z” or the “Homeland Generation,” in reference to 9/11.

Some call you the “Digital Natives” or the “Founder Generation.” By whatever name, I see imaginative, funny, sophisticated, slightly cynical (in a good way), and most importantly kind young adults.

I know that the Class of 2016 takes pride in Suffield. What you need to leave here knowing is how much pride Suffield takes in you. The theologian William Shedd famously said, “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” It’s time for you to go, but please know the memory of your younger self will be kept safe here, and you can come back and visit him or her anytime. Thank you.

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Baccalaureate

Seniors Baek Kang and Maggie O’Shea spoke on behalf of their classmates at Baccalaureate. Baek focused on the deep bonds members of the class have formed, and Maggie highlighted the importance of being thankful for the experience of attending Suffield.

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few years ago we all stepped into a new threshold, excited about meeting new people but also anxious and unaware of the needed adjustments that lay ahead. We were new to mandatory study halls, sit-down lunches, dinner check-ins, and of course, the four-hour detentions. But soon we realized that these weren’t what defined our lives here at Suffield Academy. It was the annual Tiger Games, the late night suff-sets (Suffield Sunsets), the football or swimming championships, the spicy tuna rolls from Pacifica, and so many more events that only we Suffield students could experience. But more importantly, it was the people, ones sitting next to you right now, who have been a tremendous part in defining your three or four years of high school. It’s your friends, teachers, and coaches who have taught you the value of integrity, made you stronger individuals, and brought incessant laughter to your lives. Now we are ready to move on, but don’t forget all that you have achieved and all the memories we have created. Those will forever stay with us. Until we reunite and relive our glorious moments together, keep pushing yourselves and try new things. But most importantly, always carry your inner Tiger and remember that your classmates are there for you.

Thank you so much for an amazing journey. To the Class of 2016, congratulations, and to 185 North Main Street, see you soon.

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hank you. It is a phrase we hear often. We even have an entire holiday in this country dedicated to giving thanks…But when was the last time you made sure to express your gratitude to those who truly shaped your life experience? Many of us are waiting to leave this place and “move on” with our lives. We have been looking ahead for far too long. Stop. We must take these moments to instead reflect. For four years we have been exposed to incredible people and have been so lucky to share our high school with all of them. Henry David Thoreau once said, “The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” Countless individuals have given you so much of their lives to make sure that you are successful, that you are happy. If the true value of something is the time exchanged for it, each and every one of us owes this community so much. Suffield has given us four years—over 700 days of learning, of nurturing our growth—that we will never be able to truly repay.

So as we walk down Stiles tonight, I urge you to think of those who have helped you. Fill yourself with gratitude for these wonderful individuals and all that they have done for you. The 2016 school year has come to a close, and in a few hours we will be shaking Mr. Cahn’s hand and leaving our second home. We must use these final moments on this campus to show our appreciation for all that we have become because of this community, and say thank you.

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Baccalaureate

Academic Dean Sara Yeager and Assistant Director of Development Beth Bailey P’13, ’16 were the advisors to the Class of 2016. Sara Yeager shared some words with the seniors and their parents at Baccalaureate.

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n late winter, I saw Ryan O’Neill and Ali McGraw perform in the play Love Letters. It is about two people who take very different paths in life but still maintain contact through letters for more than 50 years. I’ve always loved writing letters and getting letters. One thing that scares me about technology is that we’ve lost the art of writing letters, notes, and cards.

Recently, I rediscovered a shoebox full of letters in my childhood room’s closet (seniors—if you have anything in your closet that you don’t want rediscovered in 35 years—move it now!). I thought I’d share some of them with you tonight: First, from my brother, seven years younger—written the fall of his freshman year in college—thanking me for advice about how to deal with our parents: I really did appreciate your taking the time out to talk with me and give me some good advice—just always agree with what Dad says, nod, smile, thank him, but don’t speak, you can just ignore what he says, but pretend you’re listening and agree…

Another letter, from my older brother, written in 1983. This letter, tougher subject—in it my brother tells me that he is gay. Understand that in 1983 it was a very different time.

In any case, I’m glad the air is cleared to a certain extent because “secrets” have a way of driving wedges between people that should never be between us. I don’t really need to discuss it with you unless you need to discuss it with me—does that let us off the hook somewhat? I just want you to be as comfortable as possible, not uneasy, because I love you very much.

In other words, don’t worry, I’m me, not a “gay” person (and I hate that word). We are descending, I change planes in Dallas and I will mail this there while I still have the courage.

Last letter, written by my father, the day I left for college: The house is too quiet without you—we miss having you here. By now your field hockey season should be underway—good luck—we expect a state, New England, world title. How are your classes? If you are going to be the first woman senator, you better do well in government. In case being a senator doesn’t work out, take enough history courses so you can teach. We miss you and love you. As I have said before, Sara, no daughter ever had more proud parents.

Much love, Dad So, as you move to this next stage of your life, likely away from your family—bring back the art of letter writing. These sentiments, the truth, the emotion, couldn’t have been captured in a text or email—something would be lost. On this night of family and of joy, think of someone to write a letter to. Go buy some lovely paper and share in your words, in your own handwriting, what they mean to you.

Send a letter and love and appreciate each other. In closing, think of three things you’re grateful for, not three things you’re worried about. We do that too often—think about things we’re worried about, not things we’re grateful for. Best of luck to you all; you are a great class.

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Baccalaureate

Headmaster Cahn closed the Baccalaureate service with words to members of the Class of 2016.

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his is always an interesting, complicated moment for our faculty. These people are the heart of Suffield Academy, carrying forth the values and history of our school—from 1833 to today. They have taught you, motivated you, laughed with you, and given of themselves to help you grow and prosper. They have embraced our emphasis on the distance traveled by each student during their years at Suffield. We watch you tonight with wonder and even a little awe as we think of all that lies ahead for you. You are going.

We are staying. We will keep up this important work of encouraging and inspiring talented young people like you. All of us have so much to look forward to.

So as you head out to seek a newer world and to face the challenges ahead, I again ask that you thank those who made this experience at Suffield possible for you—your parents, your families, and your teachers.

You will start to see things differently now as Suffield’s structure is removed and you head to the next part of your lives. You will have a different perspective.

So how will you change? I once heard that as you get older you will not be as smart as you are today. The young are smarter than the old. Just ask them. Today you are smarter than you will ever be. Next week or so you will begin to have some doubts. By the end of college, even more doubts.

By thirty, lots of doubts and by forty and fifty, you’ll be certain you know very little.

Another thing you will realize as time unfolds is that kindness is hard. Writer George Saunders noted that kindness gets slightly easier as you get older, as life knocks you around. It gets a bit easier when you have children, because you genuinely care more about what happens to someone other than yourself. That’s one reason your parents are proud and happy right now—because you have accomplished something challenging and of value that will make your life better.

A vital item we have tried to emphasize at Suffield—and we hope you will take with you as you move forward—is to err on the side of kindness. For better or worse, regret and failure come with human existence—feelings of our being less than we want as people—but being encouraging and kind make up for many of these regrets. As Henry James wrote, “Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind.”

Headmaster Cahn with Class of 2016 advisors Beth Bailey P’12, ’16 and Sara Yaeger

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Suffield Academy

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183rd Commencement

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2016 Commencement Speaker

Dany Lennon Montague P’13 Dany is founder and president of The Creative Register, a talent management firm that combines facets of agenting and representation and focuses mostly on talent in the media, communications, and marketing fields. Dany’s career began as a copywriter and art director in London, and she came to New York when she noticed a void in creative representation.

The Creative Register now represents accomplished creative makers and thought leaders worldwide. Headmaster Charlie Cahn said, “Dany is fascinating and funny.

People like her. She is also a passionate fan of Suffield. Dany’s candor, sense of humor, and concern for others led me to ask her to share this special day with us.”

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ello, graduates of 2016! Congratulations to all of you on your incredible achievement. You actually made it. Bet you were not that sure you’d all be standing here today, or maybe you were, but your parents were not! Whatever, I want you to know that you should lap up every moment you have left on this fantastic campus where you’ve been sweetly coddled by one of the finest and most inspirational faculties in the country, not to mention your inimitable headmaster, and a community that you are going to find extremely hard to replicate so collectively in your favor ever again! Mark my words. This be true.

Congratulations to your parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, cousins, dogs, cats, or even your pet hamster, because they have provided you with this thing called "unconditional love,” “unconditional belief in you,” “unconditional support,” (financial included, you are going to miss that) and “unconditional patience!” So, families, rest knowing that the next four years your very grateful son or daughter may well be in debt up to their eyeballs, or they may not, but whether they are or are not, they are going to be preparing for the the ultimate event! It’s called REALITY.

So who am I? I am that person you will be meeting for the rest of your life. I am that person you will be watching out for hoping that when the phone rings, it’s my voice you hear. I am the person that can potentially make your dreams come true. I am also the person that can equally crush them. I am that person that provides opportunity for ambitious career mongers in the multiple worlds of communication, entertainment, music, fashion, publishing, advertising, public relations, design, and technologies. But what am I? I am in the representation and talent management business.

That means to you, I build careers. I help highly talented people find positions in multi-disciplinary worlds, and I stay with them and help build their trajectory for their future. Some call me an agent, some a headhunter, some a search consultant, some a coach, some a troublemaker! I have been in all of those roles for over 30 years in the USA within my own company that I built with the sole purpose to make a difference to people’s lives and create opportunities to affect change. Yep, I am pretty old as bling. But please note my young friends, I am actually still standing here, very relevant, powerful in my industries (important for you to know), influential, and I seriously do make stuff happen. A bit like your headmaster, Mr. Cahn—smart, progressive, diverse, creative,

Above Photo Headmaster Cahn, Dany Lennon Montague P’13, and Board of Trustees President Fred Powers ’83, P’14

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daring, unconventional leader. Need I say more? Headmaster Charlie Cahn and I share the meaning of what those words are meant to represent. Mr. Cahn has put those words into action here at Suffield Academy. Are you getting my drift? Please think extremely hard about it because you all have been utterly curated by it. And you are taking this with you to college.

Let me clarify: Suffield Academy is a smart environment. Suffield Academy is a progressive educational establishment in that it stands for what it believes in. It does not follow others; it follows itself. Suffield Academy is a diverse community. Suffield Academy promotes creative thinking at all times and the expression of creativity through individuality. Suffield Academy is daring in that it does choose to defy convention when needed and appropriate.

Suffield Academy is an unconventional leader in the field of education and boarding schools in particular. Did it get there overnight? God no! It got there through a lot of soul-searching, angst, bravery, courage, development of philosophy, and sticking to one’s guns without being swayed from side to side by influence.

Mr. Cahn is a fine example to you of someone, with his dynamic faculty, that has spent multiple years thinking about what is right versus what is wrong, better still what is honest and what is fair, and how best to guide all of you to the best place you can be.

That is your own independent comfort zone in who you are, not who someone else may want you to be.

So, when you put this together, it didn’t actually seem too crazy to me when Charlie called and asked me if I would talk to the graduates of 2016. He wants to make a statement that shows all of you he cares about the future. He cares about your futures and that when you leave this “feathery nest” you realize that the world out there is not as kind, not as generous, not as nurturing, nor as caring as Suffield Academy. It’s actually full of people like me that are going to tell you, “You need me, so play the game. What are you bringing to the field?” Yes, in my world they say I am pretty scary (orange hair or not). The world at large is scary, too. That, graduates, is what’s so great about these four

gifted years of college that your parents, Suffield Academy, and your furious hard work have blessed you with. You are going to need those four years to acclimate to (let me emphasize again) REALITY. You literally get a gift of four years to work out who you are, what you stand for, what separates you from the next person, time to develop your own ideas about life, your own philosophy, approach, attitude, and mantra. Okay so you might study a bit there too. But the truth is, as great as it is to be given four years to study, four years to make new friends, four years to party your faces off, you have precisely four huge years to work out what separates you from the next person, what identifies you, and how you are going to compete with that person, that very dear friend that is standing right next to you now here at Suffield Academy, and beat him or her to the job you want that will have (I guarantee) at least 3,000 other applications! It’s called REALITY my friends.

Okay let’s talk a tad more about that. Let’s look at what you might be up against post college. Here are three examples of people you will compete with. Look around you as I speak. p The privileged or fortunate applicant who has connections via family, legacy, and such. You know, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Very real, take note! p The applicant with a GPA of 3.8-4.3 (the minority) but often not as engaging because they have relied too much on the GPA alone. Also very real. p The applicant that has worked out somewhat who they are, what they stand for, has a unique, individualized, and confident approach to why they are there, asks questions, is curious, demonstrates an independent clarity of thinking, and wants to make a difference. But hey they might have a GPA of a 3.0 or even lower! Extremely real.

Here’s the surprise: the one that has a good chance of being eliminated most likely is the applicant with just the high GPA. Sad maybe, but true. A GPA does not build a career! An attitude

17

does. A confidence does. An opinion does. A person that has spent time wanting to understand themselves and others around them. A person that asks questions. A person that wants to try to connect the dots. Your parents may loathe me for saying this, but the statistics will probably prove me correct.

Okay, so now we are left with the applicant with connections and the applicant that knows who he or she is and has great clarity.

The good news is both will likely get hired. The applicant with great clarity will actually (excuse my language) save the ass of the applicant with great connections most of the time, while the applicant with great connections will help further the career of the applicant with clarity. This is teamwork in action. This, my friends, is how companies are built. It’s called “teamwork!”

Collaboration is an understanding of complimentary skill sets and how they might benefit from each other. Those two happen to work best together statistically in the workplace. Influence and clarity of thinking equals confidence and production.

For those who are wondering about the person with the high GPA, don’t cry; he or she will, of course, get hired too. But interestingly it may take longer than they expected, or were told to expect, because there is a huge learning curve that they might have missed out on while not utilizing the four years of self-discovery in college that can enhance their academic gifts.

No, life is not fair! Reality...

So while you digest that, let’s move back for a moment to why I am standing here at Suffield Academy. Yes, another story; this time about my son Mack Montague (who is here today). He spent four stupendous years here. How he got here had absolutely zero to do with me, other than maybe a few genes here or there. I was sitting at home one day working at my desk and the phone rang.

“Mrs. Montague?” “Yes,” I answered. “This is Principal Dodie from Staples High School.” Let me explain. Mack attended a

18 SUFFIELD

regular public high school in Westport, Connecticut, called Staples. No one knows who the principal is. No one, trust me!

When he said, “Dodie,” I actually didn’t believe such a name existed. In fact, I thought it was a prank call. But no, it was the principal of Staples High School. He continued, “Mrs. Montague, Mack just came into my office and told me he is leaving Staples High School and going to boarding school.” Geez! This was the first I ever heard of this. I was stumped for words (not a normal trait for me), and I said, “Well thank you for sharing that, Principal Dodie. I will speak to Mack when he returns home. I promise to get back to you.” Mack returned home and strangely I wasn’t even livid; I was secretly proud. I mean, how assertive!

Who does that at 14 years of age? So, I looked at Mack and relayed the phone call and he casually said, “Yes, Mom, I have decided to go to boarding school and have researched six schools.” He reels off his tongue, Kent, Suffield Academy, Westminster, Taft, Avon, Salisbury, and more. I had really (if I am honest with you) never heard of any of them. I was not a boarding school connoisseur!

Mack asked, “How do I get the basketball career I’m passionate about and still get a great academic education?” The journey started. I followed Mack to every school (he was lucky enough to get a few offers) and he chose Suffield Academy, while I chose Mr. Cahn. I mean let’s face it, look at him, who would not? I want you to know the moment we walked out of Suffield Academy, Mack turned to me and said, “This is it.” He returned home and wrote a letter to Mr. Cahn which was in my opinion as much as threatening him if he did not offer Mack a place! That’s how much he wanted it. And he got it: great coaching from Jeff Depelteau, a great education, and a great bunch of friends which resulted in choosing University of Rochester, where he not only has started on their basketball team since his freshman year but also studies financial economics and psychology—all thanks to Suffield Academy. Oh, and entering his senior year he would also tell you he is still continuing his self-discovery journey too, and that it is in a perpetual state of evolution.

So the segue is, how does one work out these things? How did Mack (or anyone else for that matter) get from “I’m in school being programmed through a system” to thinking about how to break the system and think about who I am, what I am, what I could be, what turns me on, what are my passions, and most important, how do I make it happen and make a difference? The answer is four years in college. It teaches you and gives you time to also learn about you. p How to be alone. p How to make a difference. p How to make decisions. p How you want to live. p How to discover your own sense of self and build your own philosophy. Your own mantra. p How to discover things about yourself you might not have known. The things you love. The things you loathe. p How to build relationships. What relationships mean.

Their importance in your now and in your future. p How to accept and embrace diversity. p How to work as a team. p How to be generous. p How to be resilient. p How to live on less. Far less. p How to give more. Much more. p How to share.

The list is endless. I can bore you to tears with the list, but this is what four years of college treats you to. This is what separates individuals from individualistic individuals. There is no such thing as a bad individual in my book. There are only the individuals that choose to live the opportunity they are given to discover who they are and what they can give and bring to this world to make a difference.

I think you get my message. I am telling you, you were gifted here at Suffield Academy and you have been protected. Now as you go out there for four years into the real world it is not only time to protect yourself, but also time to learn to protect the world that you are going to build. You have been equipped, now discover your magic and the magic that you will feel passionate about…I leave you on this note, and the note I started with. I may look like this crazy bohemian British woman with orange hair and seem rather humorous to you and yes, I can rock and roll all night as much as you! But I am one of those people out there who has the power to help you find work, build your career, get somewhere you want to get, coach you, and connect you. I am one of your many fairy godmothers, but I am looking for the type of people that have spent time digging inside themselves and finding out who they are, developing their own opinions, not the opinions of their parents, or the opinions of the most popular kid in college, or the opinion of Dr. Dre, Kobe Bryant, or Taylor Swift. I want your individual opinions and sense of self-awareness and discovery. With that and that only your true and honest journey will begin.

I leave you with this: There’s an open door to my advice, my experience, my wisdom, and more for those who really choose to utilize their four years wisely. Mr. Cahn has the magic number and the magic email. I am old, but not that old. I will still be around and kicking butt in four years’ time! Good luck to all of you. I am jealous as heck. We all are. We want to do it all over again, so please, please don’t waste it. Thank you, and thank you for listening to me! Congratulations, graduates of 2016. May reality kick your butts to bring you success, happiness, and most of all, an understanding of you.

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Jim Krueger ’16, a four-year senior from West Hartford, Connecticut, was chosen by his classmates to speak at the 2016 Commencement.

I

t took me a very long time before I realized that I am not the person I wanted to be. I came to Suffield Academy as a freshman with the tips of my fingers hanging on to my dream of being a Disney Channel’s ideal cool kid, as I tried to keep my true personality as far away as I could. I looked at myself in the mirror a lot in those days leading up to my first day as a high school student. I would talk to myself, telling myself the person I was going to be. “You are good looking,” I would say. “You are good at sports, the girls will love you, you are a complete stud.”

Recently Will Robidoux ’16 told me that there was research that supported that when most men look in the mirror they are doing it to tell themselves how good they look. I tried to be that person. I really did. I talked myself up to everyone. I arrived confident and ready to make my mark on this school as an athlete and class stud. This was the plan. I learned a lot of important life lessons in my first term at Suffield, and the most important was if you try to be someone you’re not, people are going to find out very quickly, especially if you are trying to be a star athlete on a 4ths soccer program.

When I was created it was apparently decided by the man upstairs that I would be the most uncoordinated and unathletic kid. But when you close your eyes and that dream you have of winning the World Series comes crashing down, it’s very hard to let it go.

At this point everything I had and everything I had held on to was

gone. My soul was empty. I had gotten to know a lot of different versions of myself throughout my life, but freshman year Jim had to be the worst. I really didn’t like that guy, to be honest. But luckily for me, change was soon to come.

Just to recap on how my career as a star athlete was going, after 4ths soccer I made 4ths basketball, and riding the bench on the rock bottom tier of Suffield athletics was still not convincing anyone. One day, I made a three-point shot. Running back on defense I took my hands and put them over my eye modeling it as if I were looking through a telescope and yelled the words “scope it out!” To this day, this must have been the dumbest thing I have ever done, but the entire team stopped the practice and broke out in laughter. And for the first time, after years of pushing down my personality, I had done something that could now be known as a classic Jim Krueger move. To my surprise, people liked it. People found it funny and people found me funny.

The “Krueger”as it would be so creatively named later became a popular dance move amongst many of the freshmen boys—I had at this point come to the realization that people liked me most for being who I was.

Little by little, Suffield has allowed me to be happy with who I am. Don’t be afraid to be undeniably yourself. Going forward, you need to realize all you really have in the end is what you think of yourself and who you are. Every single person graduating today has the incredible potential to do amazing things. Take this moment and make sure you remember the people here who took time into making your lives better. These type of people don’t come around so often but this campus is full of them. Don’t take any of them for granted. I am lucky to say I am graduating with people who can change the world for the better. All you need to do is figure out the best you that you can be and don’t let go.

View all Commencement & Baccalaureate Speeches at suffieldacademy.org/commencement

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#1833 21

ON CAMPUS

FULL STEAM AHEAD American Studies Class Researching in a project-based learning environment, this year’s American Studies class investigated the Reverend Daniel Hemenway (1791–1871) and his Select School in West Suffield, Connecticut. The eight seniors bonded into an excellent team of collaborators and made significant discoveries of original history.

The class rehearsed and gave a dynamic presentation during the April meeting for the town of Suffield Historical Society about Hemenway’s connections to the state’s abolition and temperance leaders, as well as his being an early advocate for the women’s rights movement. As a result of their efforts, this great group of students internalized the important research skill of cross-referencing each significant lead, and many subsequent discoveries were established by one classmate building upon another classmate’s research.

While the seniors never discovered direct proof that Hemenway’s school was a stop on the Underground Railroad, this year’s research provided interesting evidence that creates Hemenway as a likely agent who may be the unidentified West Suffield asset referenced in Horatio T. Struther’s seminal work, The Underground Railroad in Connecticut.

THE EIGHT SENIORS BONDED INTO AN EXCELLENT TEAM OF COLLABORATORS AND MADE SIGNIFICANT DISCOVERIES OF ORIGINAL HISTORY.

SERVICE WITH DISTINCTION 2015 CSCA Coach of the Year Suffield faculty member Ricky Warren was recognized as the 2015 Connecticut Soccer Coaches Association Coach of the Year.

The award is given to a high school coach who has served with distinction for a minimum of five years as a member of the CSCA. Length of service, team success, player development, sportsmanship, and service in support of soccer are among the factors that influence the honor. The award was presented to Coach Warren on January 24 at an event where Alex Clarke ’17 and Trevor Lyne ’16 earned All-State recognition. This year’s boys’ varsity team made the New England Class B semifinals, finishing the season with a record of 10-6-4.

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ON CAMPUS

A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY Area Studies Museum Projects The museum projects were a highlight of the Junior Area Studies Program this winter.

Students in Latin American Studies, Chinese and East Asian Studies, and European Studies became experts on their selected topics.

This year’s theme of “West Meets East, and East Meets West” shaped the evening’s presentations.

Posters, PowerPoints, games, specialty foods, and interactive displays engaged many members of the community. History Department Chair Bryan Brissette reported, “The museum project showcase is the capstone of our area studies program. This year’s projects were outstanding, and the history department is proud of the commitment made by our students and teachers to make this event a meaningful occasion on campus.” Visitors who attended the museum presentations were given a chance to vote for their favorites.

BEST in SHOW CHINA AND EAST ASIAN STUDIES Best Overall

Cross Cultural Influences in Animation Vicky Chen ’16, Nora Chen & Sabrina Hang

Most Scholarly

Technology as an Expression of East-West Collaboration Teem Durongkapitaya & Shane Pornprinya

Most Creative Japonisme

Brooklynn Hayes & Eman Wong

LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES Best Overall

Journey of the Atlantic Slave Trade Ameera Moumina & Leyza Okojie

Most Scholarly

Operation Condor Isabelle Ricke & Liz Sacco

Most Creative

The Last Taino Alex Clarke & Jason Louro

EUROPEAN STUDIES Best Overall

Tactics at Waterloo Sam Seo & Nick Yan

Most Scholarly

Women in the French Revolution Laura De Los Santos & Lauren Henzy

Most Creative

The Guillotine Cari Cyr & Noah Cyr

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ON CAMPUS

Saturday Night at Suffield

#SAccepted2016

ADMISSIONS SNAPSHOT | Revisit Day on Campus

S

uffield enjoyed a record-breaking year in admissions. Over 1,000 students applied for 135 available openings. Students will come to Suffield in the fall from more than 20 states and 30 countries.

Aside from being accomplished scholars tackling rigorous classes, these new students have demonstrated commitment and excellence in athletics and the arts, and service to a wide range of organizations and initiatives. They are intellectually curious, community oriented, and eager to be at Suffield. The large number of siblings (60) and legacies (28) are a testament to the loyalty of the extended Suffield community. A central part of the admissions process is the revisit program for accepted students and parents.

The three revisit days included class visits, meetings with current students and Academic Dean Sara Yeager, an activities fair with coaches and program heads, and a “Saturday Night at Suffield” event that offered a sampling of weekend activities that take place throughout the academic year.

Headmaster Charlie Cahn said, “The spirit of our students is so noticeable on these revisit days and really resonates with our guests.”

He continued by commenting, “The overwhelming interest in Suffield is a testament to the dedication of our faculty and admissions staff, our remarkably beautiful physical plant, and a compelling philosophy that blends academic challenge with encouragement.

Suffield is a happy school, and this helps make it a place people really want to be.” The school is grateful to the alumni, parents, and friends who have endowed scholarships to help make a Suffield experience possible for students without the financial resources to otherwise attend. New students will fill 18 of more than 40 endowed scholarships. These include scholarships made possible by the George Alden Trust, the family of Brenton Anderson ’74, the Appleby family, friends and family of Kurt Blackmarr ’67, Stein Erik Hagen P’08, members of the Class of 1958, Alec Coxe ’67, Zeid Sudairi, Fred Ferreira ’61 and the Dodge family, the EE Ford Foundation, Spencer Montgomery Sr. ’04 and Spencer Montgomery ’32, family and friends of Courtney Robinson ’88, Adelaide Root, David Sanderson, friends and family of Thomas Schulz ’86, Samuel and Edward Suisman, colleagues, alumni, and friends of Leon Waskiewicz, the family of Tileston “Ty” Wells ’95, and Jeff White ’65.

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ON CAMPUS

PREPARING FOR THE NEXT STEP | 2016 Senior Seminars Suffield seniors annually participate in a three-part seminar that serves as a concluding aspect of the school’s Leadership Program. The meetings highlight important topics Suffield wants graduates knowledgeable about as they head on to the next stage in their lives.

Led by Headmaster Charlie Cahn, Hillary Rockwell Cahn ’88, and CFO Patrick Booth, this year’s seminars focused on Title IX and sexual misconduct, mindfulness, and financial awareness. The seminar led by Patrick hit on topics including credit scores, types of debt, and credit cards, and then moved to more global topics such as the 2008 financial correction and recession. The goal was to help students understand the connection between the financial markets and the larger culture, and to be responsible about their personal financial footprints. Hillary’s seminar focused on helping students understand what is happening to their bodies when they feel stress and on building strategies to manage these feelings. “We are reminding our seniors that we all have the tools within us to relieve anxiety and be more presently aware—helping us get less caught up in our thoughts.” The group discussed the power of meditative breathing and how it can help bring calm and clarity to our lives. The seminar on Title IX looked at the history of this groundbreaking legislation, its impact on higher education and American culture, and current issues facing students and schools related to sexual misconduct. Headmaster Cahn said, “In many ways this is the most pressing and high-profile issue of this era in higher education. Our students are knowledgeable about the background of topics tied to Title IX, and the seminar helped further important, candid dialogue about conduct and responsibility.”

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ON CAMPUS

2016 AUCTION | Parents’ Association Over 270 people attended the 17th Annual Parents’ Association Auction this spring, including parents, faculty, and trustees.

The evening netted $259,000 in gifts, with proceeds directed to the renovation and expansion of Memorial Building.

Headmaster Charlie Cahn shared auctioneer duties this year with seniors Oyikwan Asante and Andy Bicknell. The winner of the 2016 Audi A3 Cabriolet car raffle was a current parent. Special thanks go to auction co-chairs Kathy Doten P’14, ’16, Janet Rosenkranz P’15, ’17, and Allison Kalill P’17, as well as the many volunteers that helped make the event possible. It served as yet another reminder that Suffield is deeply valued by parents, and there is great pride in the extended school community.

Top row: Dining hall tables adorned with wine bottles engraved with the Suffield Academy seal, a gift hand-crafted by Khadim Diouf ’07.

Bottom row, left: Auction co-chairs Allison Kalill P’17, Janet Rosenkranz P’15, ’17, & Kathy Doten P’14, ’16; middle: Mark and Allison Schmitz P’19; right: Morten and Carolyn Arntzen P’08, ‘16 with Audrey Hoermann P’18.

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ON CAMPUS

NEW TRUSTEE | Andrew Kotchen ’90 Andrew Kotchen ’90 joined Suffield’s Board of Trustees at the winter 2016 meeting. He is a principal and co-founder of the award-winning design firm Workshop/apd and a graduate of Lehigh University (BA) and University of Michigan (Master’s of Architecture).

Andrew’s firm specializes in both luxury home design and high-end commercial development, focusing on innovative solutions and sustainable methods. He earned Suffield’s Alumni Leadership Award in 2009. Andrew lives in New York with his wife Emily and their children, Grace and Will. He is on the Board’s Construction & Maintenance and Long Range Planning Committees. In speaking of his Board appointment Andrew noted, “I am very much looking forward to taking on a more active role at Suffield and participating in the continued success of such a special school. It is exciting to be back on campus regularly and see how impactful the culture and atmosphere are on the students today—much as it was 25 years ago when I graduated.”

PARENTS’ WEEKEND | Spring Spring Parents’ Weekend celebrated the thawing of winter and growing excitement as Suffield neared its 183rd Commencement and conclusion to another academic year. Parents and families of Suffield students were welcomed to campus to enjoy the fresh start to a new season with many fun-filled events. They visited classes; met with teachers, advisors and college counselors; shared fine meals and cheered on Saturday afternoon athletic events. Many parents also participated in Friday night’s 17th Annual Parents’ Association Auction held in the beautifully decorated Student Union and Koo Family Dining Room.

Left: Alessia Martini ’19 with her parents, Stefano and Christina

Right: Eliza Gregory ’19 with her father, Julian

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CALLS that CARED

28 SUFFIELD

By virtue of a school-wide vote, the student body annually selects a charitable organization to support with three campus-wide fundraisers. Circle of Care is a Connecticut-based nonprofit that provides ongoing assistance to many families battling cancer. It has earned a reputation for being a reliable and impactful provider of practical, financial, and emotional support directly to children with cancer and their families.

Streamed live on the school’s website, the telethon was the second fundraising event.

Featuring acts such as music, dance, theater, poetry, science experiments, and magic, the telethon celebrated the many talents of Suffield’s student body while raising money toward a rewarding cause. “The telethon was successful because of the effort and commitment of our students, faculty, and staff,” noted Dean of Students Greg Lynch.

“The event symbolizes what a special place Suffield is, full of remarkable people who want to make a positive impact.” In total, Suffield students raised more than $45,000 for Circle of Care over the course of the 2015–2016 academic year.

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LESS OR MORE THE NEW YORK TIMES PUBLISHES THE COLLEGE APPLICATION ESSAY OF BELLA De SIMONE ’16

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ON CAMPUS

OF

the 1,200 or so undergraduate admission essays that Wesleyan University’s Associate Dean of Admission Chris Lanser reads each year, maybe 10 are about an applicant’s job history. Many of the applicants have very little work experience while those with plenty of money may be afraid of calling attention to their good fortune. And writing about social class is difficult given how mixed up adolescents are about identity. In each of the last three years, The New York Times has issued an open call for application essays written by people seeking a spot in a first-year undergraduate program in the United States. This year they requested essays about money, work, and social class. “We’re trying to find those who dare to drift far from the everyday tales of extracurricular triumph or overcoming academic odds,” writes Ron Lieber of The New York Times.“Instead, we want to read essays about what it’s like to have less or more, taking in trenchant observations about inequality and socioeconomic class.”

Suffield Academy’s Bella De Simone ’16 submitted her application essay and hers (among only a handful of others) was selected for publication. “It is surreal I am being published by The New York Times at the age of 17 and without any professional writing experience,” Bella says. “Initially I was flattered upon hearing it, but the person I wanted to tell the most was my mother. She is the inspiration behind the essay and our Dominican-American heritage.” Below is Bella’s essay:

My small body and head of curly hair trotted over to the refrigerator in search of some butter for my bread. I shifted some cans of half-opened Goya beans and the remnant of a brick of dulce de leche that had seen better days. After much shuffling, I spotted the big brown container of margarine. Carefully placing the tub on the kitchen table and readying for my “feast,” I opened the container. To my dismay, it was filled with arroz con pollo. My eyes tightened and my stomach made Chewbacca noises. Maybe I could mash the dulce de leche on top of the bread.

My finding was not a surprise. Rather it was lesson number 73 engraved within the book of Dominican-bred frugality. Why buy 99 cent storage containers when the products we buy already provide them for free? These lessons came in Spanish with the speed of a bull in a bullring. It is a struggle for immigrant parents to successfully pass on values of frugality to their children while living in a developed country with a perceived flow of plenty. But my mother’s iron will was the perfect match for those incongruences.

For a child, things like magic, fairy tales, and free MacBook offers make it difficult to grasp the value of money and to quantify the struggles that some families face to make ends meet. The collective hope is that through hard work and a miracle, one ends up figuring out how to make five dollars out of five cents.

This fervor to be frugal and purposeful is something that was passed down to me much like some families pass down an obsession with monogramming or Thanksgiving Day traditions. My trailblazing family’s thrifty efforts were legendary in our neighborhood. We started reusing and repurposing way before it was trendy. We made do with what we had and made what we had do more in order to awkwardly swim toward the Dominican American dream.Frugality is a game, or at least we made it into one. A game of who can save the most money by turning off lights, keeping the heater off and going to the library when the apartment got too hot. A game of who could make a skirt out of a short dress or find a scholarship for swimming lessons at the Y.M.C.A. The act of conserving money, the audacity to solve problems no one has thought of before is what set my family apart. Together we share our victories in a little tribe of four Amazon warriors partaking in our own version of the show, Survivor: NYC edition.

The phrase “making do” could evoke connotations of stagnation and despair for some; but for me it is about understanding my situation and being proactive. The values I gained from being able to make do are unparalleled. Making do gifted me with resiliency and gratitude. Making do allowed me to internalize acceptance and to value effort.

Lesson 978 took place last winter. I woke up at home with numb toes. The temperature inside the house was evidently no different from outside. I questioned my seemingly crazy mother to which she replied, “Come cuddle with me.” With closer inspection, I found my two sisters under the covers. The average family can spend up to $1,000 on heating their apartment, but my home is already comforting in its own way. A small bed with too many people in it, arms and legs perfectly intertwined. It doesn’t get better than that on a cold morning.

The laughs we exchange keep me warm, my grandmother’s advice, sigue adelante, or keeping moving forward, resonates with me, the arroz con pollo in the butter container satisfies me, and our love for each other fuels me with drive to excel. We make do everyday and through our doing and making I know in my heart, the best is yet to come.

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m o h o re p o

S

Leadership P ts r oj e c

E

ACH SPRING, MEMBERS OF THE SUFFIELD ACADEMY SOPHOMORE CLASS HELP PLAN AND EXECUTE SERVICE LEADERSHIP PROJECTS ON CAMPUS AND IN SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES. THIS YEAR’S ACTIVITIES INCLUDED A LOCAL CLEANUP PROJECT AT SUNRISE PARK, ASSISTING TEACHERS AT THE ACADEMY’S TIGER SCHOOL, A GREENHOUSE RESTORATION ON CAMPUS, PLANTING A “PIZZA GARDEN” WITH 4TH-GRADERS AT A LOCAL SCHOOL, AGRICULTURAL WORK ON JOHN AND ALLISON MNICH’S P’13, ’16, ’18 LOCAL FARM, AND VOLUNTEER EFFORTS AT THE TOWN OF SUFFIELD’S EMERGENCY AID ASSOCIATION FOOD PANTRY AND LOAVES AND FISHES SOUP KITCHEN IN ENFIELD, CONNECTICUT.

32 SUFFIELD

All of these projects focused around the central theme of service and leadership. Students learned how to work together to accomplish collective goals for classmates and for others outside the Suffield Academy community.

Reflecting on his project, sophomore Leonard Hoermann noted, “We worked hard to create a functional garden to serve our community. Our class learned that by working together and taking initiative we could learn about sustainability.”

Another insightful response to the projects came from Ben Bonavita ’18.

“It was an eye-opening experience to see first-hand immediate desperation and need. All the volunteers at Loaves and Fishes work very hard and dedicate their time selflessly. It was a privilege to help them and alleviate some of the necessary workload. Leadership teaches you to lead by example, be a role model, and act like someone whom others can follow. This was an extremely rewarding experience, and one I will never forget.”

Our class learned that by working together and taking initiative we could make Suffield a better place.

33

the not-so-secret

Life of Bees

by Jonathan Medwid ’96

34 SUFFIELD

35

B ees

It

IS VERY RELAXING, AS HIS BREATH SLOWS DOWN AND HE MOVES SLOWLY ACROSS GROUND DOTTED WITH GOLF BALLS, BUT HE IS NOT OUT PLAYING NINE HOLES.

STEPPING INTO HIS WHITE SUIT, HE LOOKS AWFULLY SIMILAR

TO

AN

ASTRONAUT

PREPARING

FOR

LAUNCH, BUT HIS FEET ARE FIRMLY PLANTED ON EARTH, AND HE IS TENDING TO ONE OF ITS MOST CRITICAL CREATURES. HIS SMOKER RESEMBLES THE TIN MAN’S OIL CAN, YET THERE ARE NO YELLOW BRICK ROADS OR SINGING MUNCHKINS HERE; THERE IS ONLY THE DISTINCT SOUND OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF TINY, YELLOW HONEY BEES BUZZING. WHILE THERE IS NO SHORTAGE OF COMPARISONS FOR THE WORK JAKE MNICH ’16 DOES, THERE IS ALSO NO UNDERSTATING THE IMPORTANCE OF IT. ON THE MNICH FAMILY FARM—A FORMER DRIVING RANGE THAT IS NOW HOME TO CHICKENS, ALPACA, AND FRESH PRODUCE—ON HALE STREET IN THE TOWN OF SUFFIELD, JAKE IS A BEEKEEPER. THOUGH THE SUIT PROTECTS HIM AND THE SMOKER CALMS THE BEES AND MAKES THEM EASIER TO HANDLE, NOTHING ABOUT MANAGING BEES IS EASY, AND ALL OF IT IS CRUCIAL TO OUR SURVIVAL.

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Bees are an integral part of our agricultural system and play a vital role in making food. The honey bee is the only insect on Earth that produces food eaten by man, and honey is the only food that includes all the substances necessary to sustain life, including enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and water. It is also the only food that contains pinocembrin, an antioxidant associated with improved brain functioning. It takes roughly 10,000 bees and about a year to start a hive. Each brood box (managed hive) can weigh up to 60 to 70 pounds. One hive yields up to 30 pounds of honey twice a year. Once he extracts it, Jake sells the honey at local farmers’ markets.

“Most of the honey you buy at the supermarket is either mixed with corn syrup or at the very least boiled to make it easier to work with,” Jake says. “Most people don’t realize that when honey is heated up like that all of its beneficial qualities are destroyed. The honey I produce on the farm comes straight from the hive, is put through a strainer, and then poured directly into jars. I know exactly where it comes from and that it is real, raw honey.”

The honey bee belongs to a highly organized society that acts with intricate cooperation. Its colony is a super organism. “What initially interested me the most about bees and what continues to interest me now are the exact same thing,” says Jake. “The inside of a hive is like an entire civilization. Watching the bees on a frame and seeing how they know exactly what to do, how to do it, and even how to communicate with each other to accomplish a task is incredible. I’d say the most satisfying part about beekeeping is the relationship I’ve developed with my bees. Every time I go into the hives, I get a little more comfortable with them and they get a little more comfortable with me. It’s a relationship built on mutual respect.” Bees deserve the respect of all of us. Author of The World’s Only Perfect Food and Royden Brown’s Bee Hive Product Bible: Wondrous Products from One of Nature’s Most Productive Creatures, Royden Brown notes, “Unique to all God’s creatures, only the honey bee improves the environment and preys not on any other species.” And in his book, The Life of the Bee, Maurice Maeterlinck suggested, “If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live.”

“Nothing about managing bees is easy, and all of it is crucial to our survival.”

But in what has been called “Beepocalypse” and “Beemageddon,” America’s honey bees are dying. The cause is a deadly combination of agricultural pesticides and invasive parasites which easily transfer between bees in the cramped conditions of managed colonies.

The phenomenon is referred to as colony collapse disorder and has been responsible for the loss of 20 to 40% of managed honey bee colonies each winter over the past decade. “I tend to have about a 50% winter survival rate, which is definitely not good longterm,” Jake reports. “The Connecticut average is 47%. This is slowly becoming the norm, but I would not consider it usual at all.

When half of the population dies every winter, there is obviously a problem that needs to be recognized.” Many species of wild bee, butterflies, and other critters that pollinate plants are shrinking toward extinction, and as a result, our food supply is suffering.

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Pollinators play the key role in the production of the entire Earth’s crops each year—from fruits and vegetables to coffee and chocolate. So without them, the Earth would simply run out of food. But this is a problem that can be fixed, and beekeepers like Jake are taking action.

“If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live.”

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Colony collapse disorder roughly doubled the usual rate of bee die-offs in the last decade, but this does not mean that bees are going extinct just yet. According to the USDA, the number of honey bee colonies has actually risen since 2006, from 2.4 million to 2.7 million in 2014, and according to the 2014 statistics, the number of commercially managed colonies is now the highest it has been in 20 years. Jake recognizes, “I have been lucky where colony collapse disorder has not affected my hives.

The few hives I’ve lost were mostly caused by unlucky weather. We do not use any pesticides on our farm. At first it was just because we had some background knowledge of how pesticides affected the environment as a whole. Now we are even more careful because of the bees. If they were to land on a flower with pesticides and bring those chemicals back to the hive, it could cause birth defects and weaken the colony.”

Jake puts on his suit and tends to his bees once or twice a week. He checks to ensure the queen is laying eggs and that the population is healthy. He discovered interest in honey bees while attending the Hamden County Beekeeping Booth at The Eastern States Exposition (Big E) during his freshman year and began his first hive by the time he was a sophomore. For his work and dedication in this field, Jake received the Robinson Environmental Award at Suffield Academy’s 183rd Commencement.

“To get that recognition and see my work with the bees pay off is great,” Jake commented. “I was not expecting it at all because I generally keep my bees to myself, and not too many people know what I do with them or the honey. Mr. Cahn speaking about it for a few minutes at Commencement caught some attention and probably raised a bit of awareness about the importance of sustaining bee populations.

After taking the environmental science class at Suffield, I became more aware of their impact on the environment, but I started building hives because I thought it was something different and unique to take part in.” Much like a hive, Suffield Academy is a highly organized society that acts with intricate cooperation, and each individual member is vitally important to the strength of its whole. Moving forward, Jake will attend Boston College in the fall. He is quiet, calm, and moves very slowly when tending to his bees, yet the importance of his work is anything but a secret.

CHAPEL

AT

a higher level of consciousness, your attitude toward practicing balance has a tremendous effect on success. Because being busy has become such a deeply ingrained practice, you may have forgotten that it is, in fact, a choice. It is a common routine to be disconnected from the present moment and allow distractions to create and control an unbalanced life. In the high-paced infrastructure at Suffield, it is easy to ignore what day of the week it is and lose touch with individualism and self—where you come from and who you are. One of the ways that Suffield prepares its students for success in the rigorous realities of work and life is by acknowledging the value of its family, friends, health, and spirit. This year’s school theme recognizes that balance is both a noun and a verb, a state of being, an action, and on-going process requiring constant attention and care.

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CHAPEL

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY THE DUTY OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE Suffield recognized the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday by examining how Dr. King’s dream has evolved in the twenty-first century, touching on issues of race, gender equality, and religion. Faculty members Liz Warren and Tanya Andrysiak shared remarks about equality and injustice, decency and honor, and overcoming stereotypes and hatred. GSA leaders Maia Doerner ’16 and Katie Madrak ’16 spoke about identity and gender while Yasmin Geradeau ’16, Tristen Moore ’16, and Claire Diao ’16 embraced diversity and culture.

...You see, 50 years ago the great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream and it’s funny because last night I had one too.

And so did you and you.

But in mine your skin didn’t have to be a certain color to be cool.

Or safe.

I could sing every word to my favorite song and not have to keep my hood down while walking in the street.

I could turn the corner and not have another cop looking at me.

You might be saying to yourself this doesn’t happen or he didn’t have that dream last night.

And you’re right. About that second part.

Because I didn’t just dream it yesterday but every night and every morning and every moment I close my eyes.

Excerpt from Tristen Moore’s ’16 poem orated in the style of “spoken word”

If I can help a person live a more balanced life, a more stable life, then I will.

TANYA ANDRYSIAK HOME IS WHERE HER HEART IS “I believe that if I can help a person live a more balanced life, a more stable life, then I will,” said English Department Chair Tanya Andrysiak as she shared photos and stories from her work with Habitat for Humanity in Honduras and Anchorage, Alaska. “We live in a world where we want fast and instant results,” she said, “but it is amazing what you can do with a stick, a square, and a pencil.” Tanya spoke about Habitat for Humanity’s mission and values and noted that periodically getting outside of her own life helps balance it. The experiences are grounding and remind her of what an extraordinary lifestyle she, her students, and colleagues live as citizens of the Suffield community.

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CHAPEL

You will have learned how to win and lose, and most importantly you will have learned how to be on a team.

CHRISTINE BRENNAN THE WORLD AWAITS YOU “The world awaits you and this is your launching pad,” said Christine Brennan as she addressed the Suffield community. Christine is a sports columnist for USA Today; a commentator for ABC News, “PBS NewsHour,“ and National Public Radio; and the best-selling author of seven books. She was also the first female sports reporter hired for The Miami Herald in 1991. She focused on the legacy and impact of Title IX and on the value of athletics. “Playing a sport is empowering,” Christine said. “Whatever you are going to be when you grow up, you will be better at it because you played sports. You will have learned how to win and lose, and most importantly you will have learned how to be on a team.”

I never think of something as an obstacle in my way. I just think about how I am going to get something done.

LAURA SLOATE A MINOR IMPAIRMENT Laura Sloate is a managing director and portfolio manager at Neuberger Berman in New York City, and she is blind. At age six, detached retinas caused Laura to lose her eyesight, yet she feels “not seeing is a minor impairment.” Laura learned early on how to become a problem solver. She accomplished her schoolwork with readers, tapes, and oral exams. Resilient and ambitious, she followed her interests and accomplished goals. She loves going to the movies and is passionate about classical music and sports. Her words offered an invaluable perspective on education, career, and a balanced life. She reflected on successes and failures by saying, “You can only be as good as you are today, and you are going to make mistakes. Learn from them.

Study them. Let them make you better tomorrow.” She added, “Wall Street is very competitive. You fail a lot, often many times a day. You learn that you are going to make bad decisions, and when you are wrong you instantly know it. But you also know that you have to get back up and try again. I never think of something as an obstacle in my way. I just think about how I am going to get something done.”

Nothing is real. Everything is an illusion.

VOLKER KRASEMANN TO SEEM RATHER THAN TO BE “Nothing is real. Everything is an illusion.” Science Department Chair Volker Krasemann encouraged the Suffield community to reconsider its perception of reality. Demonstrating optical illusions and referring to the 1999 movie The Matrix, Volker traversed through the cognitive abilities of the brain and identified its limitations. He said that while Suffield’s motto is Esse Quam Videri (to be rather than to seem), from the perspective of science, it is impossible to decipher what is real.

Highlighting advancements in video games and virtual realities, Volker also called attention to digital animations—synthesized simulations—and noted that sensation and perception are powerful abilities of human consciousness.

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CHAPEL FACULTY SABBATICAL PRESENTATIONS A BROAD LOOK AT HUMANITY

Weaving old political values with current ones: a look at history in modern theater MOLLY VIANNEY P’12, ’14 Molly Vianney has been on the Suffield faculty since 1988 teaching American History, various electives, AP US History, and AP Government & Politics. She coaches field hockey and lacrosse and is an annual reader of Advanced Placement exams. Molly discussed how study of theater and visits to landmarks from the Civil War and Colorado helped her teaching of history. Her passion for teaching and the exploration of history were highlights of her talk. Molly is also a relative of the infamous Aaron Burr, the man who shot and killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. In April she attended Broadway’s groundbreaking production Hamilton and commented, “The creator (Lin-Manuel Miranda) is in my opinion brilliant. He conveys complex and contradictory visions of the Founding Fathers in an engaging way, weaving old political values with current ones.” Recognizing the cultural impact Hamilton has made on and off the stage, Molly spoke about diversity on Broadway and other unique aspects of this award-winning musical. It is a story about America, told by a diverse cast and with diverse music.

Family life in Dakar: an evolving documentary TOBYE COOK SECK ’88, P’16 Tobye, Suffield’s Art & Design Director, discussed how a trip to Dakar, Senegal in West Africa helped her build on her passion for documentary filmmaking. She talked about stereotypes and misconceptions of this beautiful land and its people. “I was surrounded by people with beliefs similar to my own,” she said.

“Every day we ate together as a family, with all meals cooked by my sister-in-law. I experienced the warmest hospitality, a renewed appreciation for the small things, and a powerful family bond.”

Showing a portion of her still-evolving documentary, Tobye shared an intimate look into her experience meeting her husband’s family in Dakar. The film highlights a trip to the House of Slaves on Gorée Island; Ngor Island, known as Senegal’s best surf spot; and a day spent in Thiès at SEEDS Academy (Sports for Education and Economic Development: seedproject.org) where the NBA’s Masai Ujiri and Luol Deng helped lead a basketball clinic.

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CHAPEL

I experienced the warmest hospitality, a renewed appreciation for the small things, and a powerful family bond.

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CHAPEL We should unleash the power of politics.

BILL CONNELLY THE ANSWER IS YES TO BOTH Suffield’s Grandparents’ Association sponsored William F. Connelly, Jr., professor of politics at Washington & Lee University. His discussion focused on American politics, James Madison and the challenges of self-government, and the many contemporary echoes of the ongoing debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists. “Madison thought human nature was good enough to make republican government possible, yet bad enough to make it necessary,” he argued. “Where you sit influences what you think since institutions influence behavior. Moreover, Madison thought it important to bridge the divide between theory and practice. We should unleash the power of politics.” Following his lecture, Professor Connelly took time to answer questions from the Suffield community and meet individually with students and faculty.

My message is about self-esteem and confidence, and having strength to recognize that being yourself is enough.

CHRIS HERREN UNGUARDED & OFF THE COURT A former NBA basketball player from Fall River, Massachusetts, Chris Herren is the author of Basketball Junkie and was featured in the 2011 documentary Unguarded. For much of his basketball career Chris struggled with substance abuse. Drug and alcohol-free since 2008, Chris now puts his family and sobriety above everything else. Besides running player development programs, Chris speaks to a variety of groups about his experience in overcoming addiction. At Suffield he focused on what it takes to be a leader and role model. “I’m here to talk about more than the dangers of drugs and alcohol. My message is about self-esteem and confidence, and having the strength to recognize that being yourself is enough.”

Learn, laugh, and remember to breathe. This is how to live with less stress.

JANET FONTANA LIVE WITH LESS STRESS Janet Fontana provides practical methods to incorporate stress management techniques into active lives. Inspired by the benefits she gained from her personal practice of yoga and meditation, Janet is certified as a yoga and meditation teacher. She is also a certified clinical hypnotherapist. Janet’s talk was a great fit for Suffield since school initiatives in the Balance Barn focus on yoga, meditation, and other mindfulness practices. Given that the average American’s attention span is currently only seven seconds, Janet acknowledges how easily our minds tend to drift from one thought to the next. She suggested that 99% of all stress is emotional rather than physical, and, in fact, 70 to 75% of all thoughts are negative. To combat these negative stresses, Janet promotes strategies and healthy habits to integrate into everyday life. Instead of thinking about what causes stress, she asked the community to redirect their consciousness to consider what makes them happy, what brings them pleasure, what fuels their passions, and what gives them purpose.

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CHAPEL First step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one. -The Newsroom KENT-DAVIS SPEAKING COMPETITION The Kent Prize is awarded to a student who presents the best original speech, and the Davis Prize goes to the student presenting the best adaptation of an original piece of writing authored by someone other than the speaker. This year’s Kent Competition participants were Emma Tryon, Kaitlyn Nigro, Maggie O’Shea, Yasmin Geradeau, and Susan Le. The Davis speakers were Baek Kang, Angela Vecchiarelli, Callie Platt, Dan Bennett, Adriana Cacares Ruiz Diaz, and Tristen Lorenzo Moore. Angela Vecchiarelli delivered an excerpt from Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom and won the Davis Oratory Prize. Honorable mention went to Daniel Bennett, who presented part of Connor Franta’s Life Doesn’t Wait. Yasmin Geradeau won the Kent Prize, speaking powerfully about losing her cousin amidst senseless gun violence.

KENT PRIZE

Selection from Yasmin Geradeau’s Original Speech

I would call your phone hoping that you’d answer, text you even though I knew you could never respond, I Googled articles about your death, and watched slam poetry for hours. I needed something to distract me when I failed at staying focused on the present. Growing up I was told to say, “See you later” and to never say goodbye because goodbye is forever, I spent hours trying to remember if the last time I spoke to you I told you goodbye. When someone was shot and killed I knew about it and each time I hurt more. You weren’t in a fight, you weren’t selling drugs, you were just on your way back home from going to the store for your sister. I tried to understand how this was fair and wished it was anyone else but you.

For some reason gun violence was running rampant back home. The police had gotten trigger-happy and this cycle of unbearable pain seemed to be never ending. No matter how much I vented or cried no one could ever understand what I was going through because I could barely understand it myself. I began to lose faith in my religion, in humanity, and I became immensely paranoid. But now, in just three words, I can explain it all: I am scared.

DAVIS PRIZE

Excerpt from The Newsroom, presented by Angela Vecchiarelli

Can you say why America is the greatest country in the world? It’s not the greatest country in the world. That’s my answer. There are some things you should know.

One of them is: there’s absolutely no evidence to support the statement that we’re the greatest country in the world. We’re 7th in literacy, 27th in math, 22nd in science, 49th in life expectancy, 178th in infant mortality, 3rd in median household income, number 4 in labor force and number 4 in exports. We lead the world in only three categories: number of incarcerated citizens per capita, number of adults who believe angels are real and defense spending, where we spend more than the next 26 countries combined, 25 of whom are allies. So when you ask what makes us the greatest country in the world, I don’t know what you’re talking about!

First step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one. America is not the greatest country in the world anymore.

VIEW ALL CHAPEL PRESENTATIONS AT SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG/CHAPEL

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Building on Creativity The Gooch-Vincenti Scholarship

T

he arts at Suffield elevate the creative culture of its community. The GoochVincenti Scholarship was established through a generous gift from longtime educator and faculty legend Brad Gooch. It provides tuition to a rising senior who demonstrates outstanding ability, drive, and a passion for the arts.

The 2016 scholarship was awarded to Amelia Hern ’17, a four-year student from West Hartford, Connecticut.

Amelia is a remarkably skilled musician who plays the flute, saxophone, piano, and guitar. She is also a talented vocalist. Tom Gotwals, the Bradford C. Gooch Chair in Music, commented that Amelia is “one of the top musicians we have had at Suffield in my 20 years here. Flute is her main classical pursuit and sax her main jazz pursuit, but she is willing to use either instrument in any genre. She shares her knowledge and ability generously, seeking out every opportunity to perform, collaborating with fellow musicians, and encouraging other musicians by prodding them and leading outright.”

Brad insists the scholarship is not meant to be a “bestof-the-year prize,” but rather its intention is to honor a student “whose talent and passion knock your socks off, whose work gives off that special frisson of wonder and delight.” The gift also pays tribute to the work of Mario Vincenti, Suffield’s esteemed visual arts teacher from 1954–1994. Nominations are made by the chairs of the visual and performing arts department, music faculty, and teachers of art history and creative writing.

This spring Brad came to Suffield to meet Amelia and see the Kent-Davis Oratory contest, which he advised for 25 years. We asked him to write a piece about Amelia and what his recent visit showed him about the growth of the arts at Suffield. The following is what Brad had to say.

Photos (left) Brad Gooch (center) with the scholarship recipients, Amelia Hern ’17 and Oskar Kvaternik ’16; (right) Brad, Amelia, and Tom Gotwals, the Bradford C. Gooch Chair in Music.

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She is absurdly talented: a flutist, a pianist, a saxophonist, a singer, guitarist, and all at an extraordinarily high level. It’s no wonder that junior Amelia Hern was given the Gooch-Vincenti Scholarship for her senior year, which in turn gave me a chance to feel like a family making a “revisit” admissions trip, although I didn’t need to worry about a 10–1 acceptance rate. What I did receive was a renewed sense of the power of the Charlie Cahn era of Suffield Academy.

The last item on the quick Sunday to Tuesday trip was a request by Phil Riegel ’87 for an article on the arts at Suffield, but I had to politely decline since I had seen no dance or theater productions nor read any creative writings nor seen any student photography. But I did visit Tremaine Art Center both Sunday and Monday when it was in full operation and vibrant with activity. I walked through the Senior Art Exhibit with its loads of clear talent, seeing some neat architectural models of bridges and several highquality ceramics (like the nestled cups with gorgeous floral cover) and the knockout and powerful paintings of one Daria Kovaleva ’17.

Her painting as you come down the stairs looking into the main gallery is a large tondo which simply explodes with exuberant and unusual but brilliant colors (not-quite-reds, not-quite-oranges) in geometric designs with squiggly purple-ish rays zapping from the center, the whole surrounded by a gray/white alternating patterned rim calmly framing the interior drama. It is a powerful work! In its drama, it is matched by a wide range of other subjects (a smashing portrait, for example) and techniques from oil paintings to mixed media and some nearly sculptural paintings with written messages, in Russian, since she is from Moscow. In short, what I can report is that the arts are more amazingly alive than you older alumni would ever believe unless you, too, returned for a revisit.

But what I really want to note here is something quite different than just the vigor of the arts, as full of vitality as they clearly are, (e.g., the Theater program winning 12 HALO awards in the last three years). I want to make a few personal observations based on our two visits to present the Gooch-Vincenti Scholarship, last year to Oskar Kvaternik ’16 from Slovenia, a brilliant bass guitarist, composer, and pianist, now off to his first choice New York University and the opportunities and challenges of the Big Apple. These remarks are aimed mostly at those alumni of my era, from 1960–1996, and especially at those of you who have not yet made your own revisit; you really should.

The school has taken on an entirely new look yet is tied nicely to its traditional past. You would have no difficulty recognizing Legare Library, Memorial Hall, and Fuller Hall centering the façade of the school. The biggest change is in the closing of Stiles Lane, which bisected the campus and is now a wide brick walkway, tree-bordered, elegantly and colorfully paved, and when you look up from the lower end, rises to the dramatically columned back of the fully renovated Brewster Hall. On the left side are now a whole set of dorms laid out on a graceful sward, a new Music Building (vs Glee Club rehearsals in the basement of old Holcomb Hall), and on the right side are the renovated glass-paneled walls of the rebuilt swimming pool in the Appleton Seaverns Athletic Complex, a striking and beautiful structure. The whole campus looks rather more collegiate than like a preparatory school.

That basic concept of removing Stiles Lane was the dream of Charlie Cahn,

and he has fulfilled that dream beautifully. There is far more to tell the older generation of alumni about the physical side of the school, but I urge you to go back and see for yourself; the living wall in the upgraded Holcomb Hall, the student union (a knockout design) with its lovely patio outside of Brewster, and on and on. Go see!!

Yet, that alone is not what struck Mary and me. It is the people! Both Oskar and Amelia impress as people as well as superb musicians. Character, maturity, and civility are not part of the qualifications for the Gooch-Vincenti but are integral to the Suffield Academy culture, and both Oskar and Amelia exhibit all three traits; they are just wonderful kids to talk with and be around.

They were totally at ease with us and were a pleasure to have as dinner companions, with their advisors (Tom Gotwals for Oskar last year, Beth Bailey for Amelia this year) and in Amelia’s case, with her mother Margaret Figueroa Hern ’82 and dad. Margaret was as thrilled with the Gooch-Vincenti as Amelia; she has been wholeheartedly supporting her daughter’s musical career since the age of five. When we first met briefly on Sunday evening, Margaret immediately called the scholarship a “life-changing” event, which thrilled me because that is exactly the kind of impact I hope the GoochVincenti makes.

I like to recall re-meeting Dave Kasanowski of the physical plant, who willingly and graciously took the time on Sunday evening to install the (unofficially named) “Drinker Gooch” (Mary, teacher ’78–’81) emergency railing to the guest cottage, which was much needed and so helpful for us 80s folks. I also think fondly of Beth Bailey, who dashed out for my ice cream dessert (which never did come at the restaurant) because we had to get Amelia back to the Athletic Awards since she is much into track, running in the 400 meter, the 800 meter, and the 4x400 meter events at each meet; or Charlie Cahn taking time to join us for dinner before hurrying to another appointment; or Hillary Rockwell Cahn ’88 carving out special time before the Athletic Awards to take a historic photo of the first two Gooch-Vincenti winners after that special dinner; or Tom arranging a personal concert for me, also attended by Hillary and Charlie (where does he get the energy for this?). For that intimate soiree, Amelia played “Mountain Dance” by David Benoit, a roller-coaster of moods with dazzling technique of thunderous bass notes and quick-silver runs, making that small piano sound like a Steinway Grand. Then she played a flute piece, Concerto No. 1 by Mozart, pulled off with outrageous virtuosity equal to that you might hear on the national radio show, “From The Top,” plus a jazz work, “I Mean You” by Thelonius Monk, with Oskar on bass guitar, Kevin Doten ’16 also on guitar, Tom on drums, and Kaitlyn Nigro ’16 on saxophone. Amelia’s jazzy riff on saxophone exhibited an equally highlevel skill even if in a genre rather foreign to me. In sum, there’s just that je ne sais quoi about Suffield’s students, faculty, and staff from the top on down which makes it so very special. I am indeed proud to be a part of this amazing school and to have a chance to return as long as there is a winner of the Gooch-Vincenti Scholarship, and I shall for as long as I am around.

Bravissimos to the two Gooch-Vincenti Scholarship recipients thus far, Oskar and Amelia (may there be many more for us to attend) and equal bravos for our host, Phil Riegel and Headmaster Cahn. On the last page of the Suffield Viewbook for prospective students in large script it is written, “You’re going to love it here.” Absolutely true! Revisit, you older alumni.

Senior Artists

“The exhibit symbolizes the prolific artistic talent at Suffield. These students are exceptionally dedicated, and it was nice for our community to see their talent on display.” Bill Butcher, Visual Arts Department Chair

DARIA KOVALEVA ’17 The paintings of Daria Kovaleva ’17 were featured in a recent exhibit in Tremaine Visual Arts Center. Daria is from Moscow, Russia, and she has distinguished herself as an artist of exceptional quality during her time at Suffield. Her large paintings feature vibrant color and unique texture. A guest of the recent art show approached Daria about purchasing some of her work. Daria agreed to sell two pieces and decided to donate the proceeds to Suffield Academy’s visual arts department. “I am very grateful for the help and support I have gotten at Suffield from everyone in the department, particularly Mr. Butcher and Mrs. Fuller. After talking with my parents about this, we all felt this contribution would symbolize my gratitude and appreciation. I am happy to help make the department even stronger.”

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The artwork of 10 Suffield seniors was featured in an exhibit in the Tremaine Visual Arts Center this spring: Cecilia Arntzen, Kyra Foley, Emma Landis, Susan Le, Susan Mellekas, Kiersten Ness, Sarah Raymond, Jeannette Tran, Emma Tryon, and Haven Williams.

The exhibit showcased a diverse body of work, from paintings to mixed medium to photography and pottery. Several of the students will pursue study of the arts in college, including Jeannette Tran and Kyra Foley who are headed to Parsons School of Design.

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by jonathan medwid ’96

design

A WHOLE-SYSTEMS

will cooley ’08

Will

Cooley ’08 is originally from Lyme, Connecticut. He attended Suffield Academy for four years as a boarding student. He enjoyed playing sports (soccer and lacrosse) and the adventures of the SOLO program and rock climbing led by mentor Dave “Rocky” Rockwell ’58. He also had passions for photography, woodworking, and science. Some of his fondest memories at Suffield include his senior spring, Bell Hill, friends, and a Frisbee.

After Suffield, Will attended St. Lawrence University (Canton, New York) for two years but soon realized what he wanted to pursue was not offered there. South of Eugene, Oregon, he discovered Aprovecho Sustainability Education Center. He would spend the next two years earning a permaculture design and natural building certification. “Permanent agriculture (or permaculture) is,” as Will explains, “obtaining a yield from the land while giving back to the land as much as you are taking away from it.” It is a whole-systems method of design that organizes strategies and techniques from agriculture, appropriate technology, natural building, economics, and similar disciplines into a pattern of mutually supportive relationships that help create sustainable places to live. Aprovecho’s permaculture programs are the longest running of their kind in the Pacific Northwest. The emphasis is hands-on application of design and establishment of whole-systems based farms, forests, homesteads, and businesses.

Aprovecho, which means “I make best use of” in Spanish, is a non-profit organization located on a beautiful 40-acre land trust outside of Cottage Grove, Oregon. Its mission is “Living, Learning, Organizing, and Educating to Inspire a Sustainable Culture.” Will calls it a “living laboratory.” Offering college-accredited programs in organic agriculture, sustainable forestry, appropriate technology, permaculture, natural building and hands-on training in aquaponics, earthen plasters, renewable energy, organic gardening, rainwater harvesting, humanpowered machines, animal husbandry, woodlot management, and much more, Aprovecho teaches a holistic approach to the methods of homesteading and sustainable living.

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After completing his certification, Will relocated to Telluride, Colorado, for three years, snowboarding frequently while working in a restaurant set at a higher elevation than any other restaurant in the country. He then moved to a farm in northern California where he dwelled in a traditional nomadic yurt for almost a full year. The experience at Aprovecho sparked Will’s natural interests and fueled his passions for sustainable living. After driving across country several times and visiting all 50 US states and every national park, Will is now putting the skills he learned at Aprovecho to good use—building timber-framed barns and cabins with his brother Ben. Unlike conventional structures, which are built with machined equipment and two-by-four boards nailed together, timber-frame structures (also called post-and-beam) use beams cut on the premises to fit together like puzzle pieces. “Timber-frame structures typically last for hundreds of years,” Will says, “in a way more modern-day construction rarely does because the use of high-quality and locally harvested beams are custom-fit and piece snugly together.

The structures we build take more time, but they are built with lots of care and respect to their natural habitats.”

The brothers completed their most recent project for Yale University’s 136-acre Landscape Lab on the school’s West Campus. The barn itself is timber framed, a very old-school method of building also known as notch and peg or mortise and tenon. “Basically, the joints are connected with wood pegs, so not a lot of hardware or metal is used in the frame,” Will explained. Designed by his brother Ben, the barn features a hammer truss, which allows the barn to feel very open and roomy. It has a metal roof to allow for water catchment and will later include solar panels. The doors are massive and swing or slide open to allow natural light and air to enter the space. The frame was raised with just a few people by a hand crank and forklift (no cranes were used in order to minimize the impact on the land). The most intriguing aspect of the project is that all the wood came from Yale’s own Urban Farm. The structure is built entirely from local materials. “We integrate natural building materials in our work. We use straw-bale insulation with natural plaster whenever we can. It’s earth as structure,” Will describes. “Cob is an old building method which utilizes a mixture of sand, straw, clay, and water. It is an incredible substance we use to build our walls; a lot of work but sustainable. We harvest wood locally and mill it ourselves. Building like this is about being closer to nature. It’s a lifestyle choice that has special meaning to our environment.”

The timber frame barn will serve as an outdoor hub for many of the Landscape Lab’s activities and for classes and programs such as the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. Inspired by long-standing barns found throughout New England, it allows for the traditional timber-frame design and Yale Forest-sourced wood to shine. Its final form is, however, not necessarily fully traditional. It is designed to allow for a variety of uses and activities and to facilitate further experimentation—right in line with the Landscape Lab’s mission.

The friendships I made here at Suffield are amongst the best I have. Suffield’s family is a whole-systems design.

When Will returned to Suffield most recently, he saw a campus that continues to change and a landscape that continues to evolve. The buildings on campus are very unlike the ones he now constructs. The size, shape, materials, and methods of construction may in fact be entirely different, but the character and care which lines each wall is very much the same. Perhaps Will now prefers a mixture of cob and sand, but he may agree the mission is quite similar. Suffield is built upon a foundation of tradition, kindness, and structure. It is a place where traditions are nurtured and foundations are laid solidly, lasting lifetimes and generations. Both processes represent sustainable living by teaching and carrying on the concept of giving back what you have received. Coming from Connecticut himself, Will could be considered a locally farmed material that became a part of Suffield’s tradition, yet Suffield’s influence also reaches worldwide. Sustainable living is a respectful way of treating our Earth with dignity and ourselves with a future. “Being on campus brings back a lot of fond memories,” Will said.

“The friendships I made here at Suffield are amongst the best I have. Suffield’s family is a whole-systems design.”

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Alumni Leadership Awards David Celentano ’69 R Ben Diep ’85 R Michelle Kaminsky ’84

The Suffield Academy Alumni Association created the Alumni Leadership Awards to honor Suffield graduates who have displayed notable leadership in their professional careers or in a humanitarian endeavor. The award selection committee is comprised of alumni, students, and members of the faculty. This year’s committee members were Ed Kaplan ’77, David Rockwell ’58, Phil Riegel ’87, Harry Melendez III ’07, and seniors Katie Burns, Kyra Foley, Susan Le, Trevor Lyne, Ralph Koo, Dante Sacco, Emma Tryon, and Daisy Vallely. The awards were presented to David Celentano ’69, Michelle Kaminsky ’84, and Ben Diep ’85. The recipients were honored and shared remarks in Tisch Field House. David, Michelle, and Ben all spoke about their careers and how their time at Suffield gave them the confidence to pursue their passions in life.

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R 14th Annual Alumni Leadership Awards

David Celentano ’69

Charles Armstrong Chair of the Department of Epidemiology Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health David is a noted epidemiologist and professor who has made significant contributions to the promotion of research on HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections. “I haven’t been on campus in 47 years,” David declared. “Wow, you look really different than my class; it was all males.”

Discussing his work in public health, David addressed the community with humility and humor. Referring to his colleagues as “disease detectives,” David stressed that success in public health takes a team and is never accomplished alone. “Make people feel like they are part of the solution and that they are valued,” he said. “You have an amazing number of opportunities ahead of you. Most of you have probably never even thought of public health, and hopefully some of you will be bitten by the public health bug. But remember that it is your team that accomplishes success, not you.”

Ben Diep ’85

Founder/Owner of Color Space Imaging & Square Peg Gallery Ben is a master photograph printer who collaborates with fine art photographers and artists. In 2015 he and his wife opened Square Peg Gallery to nurture and promote the next generation of artists. “When I think of Suffield there are so many memories of important people in my life,” he commented. “I did not realize at the time that those experiences would stay with me through to my adult life, that I would apply them every day to my professional life.” Ben discussed his work in the field of art and photography and the importance of open dialogues. “Other artists trust me because I present myself to be truthful to myself and therefore I am truthful to them. The most important lesson I’ve learned from all these years is that we must do something in our life that is important and significant to someone else. I learned this from watching the faculty here at Suffield who dedicate themselves to the life of teaching. I hope to continue doing that, for my children to do that, and that you will, too.”

Michelle Kaminsky ’84

Chief of the Domestic Violence Bureau District Attorney’s Office Brooklyn, New York Michelle’s bureau annually investigates and prosecutes over 10,000 cases of intimate partner violence. She has published books which focus primarily on domestic violence against women and the laws, judicial biases, and inflexible prosecution policies she feels prevent meaningful change for battered women in the criminal justice system. “I feel like I’ve come full circle from when I graduated from Suffield in 1984,” she said. “I remember Mr. Lowe taking our class to see a murder trial in Hartford. While it was fascinating, I had no idea this would later be my career.” As she further explained how she got to where she is, Michelle reflected on the value of her Suffield experience.

“Whether or not you know what you want to do with the rest of your life,” she said, “I can tell you right now you all are the next generation of leaders in whatever field you choose to go into.”

54 SUFFIELD

SOFT SERVING SINCE 1954

cream ALBERT “BUD” HANCOCK ’74

BY PHIL RIEGEL ’87

55

THE

opening day of Dairy Cream—on Ella Grasso Turnpike, just 2.9 miles south of Suffield Academy—always marks good things to come: the end of school, graduation, warm weather, and being outside. It has been a favorite spot of mine since moving to Suffield 18 years ago. I go there with my children, advisees, and even alone late in the evening when I know I shouldn’t be eating soft serve but just don’t care because it’s that good.

There is something old school about the place. The neon sign, the cool cars parked out front, and the competent, friendly service… all bring me back to when I was young. And yet all this time I was having my little love affair with Dairy Cream, I had no idea that a Suffield Academy family owned it. Dairy Cream is a local story with a long family history.

Albert “Bud” Hancock ’74 was born and raised in Suffield and ended up at the Academy in a rather unique way. He attended the town of Suffield’s public high school through his junior year.

By his own admission, he was doing well enough but was looking for the fresh start and academic rigor that Suffield Academy offered. While playing tennis with his lifelong friend Paul Sanderson III ’74, Bud mentioned he was struggling. Paul recommended Bud speak to his father, then Headmaster

56 SUFFIELD

Sandy Sanderson, and after a serious discussion he applied to be a one-year senior. Bud recalls, “It was hard because I was behind academically. Allen Hoffacker gave me an F on my first paper. Eventually, Allen, Gordy Glover, Mason Nye, Rocky, and many others brought me up to speed. I received a lot of help (especially from my new classmates) and gained confidence and a foundation to build on. I look back now and know that I use the skills developed at Suffield every day in my business and personal life. My niece (Rachael Kawasaki ’11) attended Suffield and graduated with honors. She received good grades and saved the family reputation!”

After Suffield Bud went on to University of Vermont. He also worked for two summers for Sandy at ASSIST (American Secondary Schools for International Students and Teachers) carting

A LOCAL STORY international students around New England for orientation. Bud credits this experience with expanding his view of the world, which ultimately led to a master’s degree from the Thunderbird School of Management in Arizona. Bud commented, “I retired last year from a career in finance spending nearly the last 20 years with Voya Investment Management (formerly ING Investment Management) in New York. Throughout my career I had an opportunity to work both domestically and abroad in a variety of assignments, beginning my career at Manufacturers Hanover (now JPMorgan Chase) in the International Division. I managed investment portfolios for the largest companies globally. It was a good run.”

WITH A LONG FAMILY HISTORY

Bud’s mother Margaret grew up in Windsor Locks where she attended Union School and graduated from Windsor Locks High School, Class of 1944. She worked with the Air National Guard at Bradley Field for 35 years before her retirement. Her parents operated a farm on Spring Street for many years through good and bad times, including the Great Depression. Bud’s father and late uncle Frank operated Frank’s Restaurant on Route 75 in Windsor Locks from the early 1950s through the mid-1960s. His

57

dad was later employed for 22 years as a food inspector by the Connecticut State Department of Consumer Protection.

Bud’s father and late uncle Frank started Dairy Cream on Route 75 in 1954. It has been a permanent fixture in the Windsor Locks business community and was originally located on a site two miles north before moving to its present location. Since then it has consistently provided both soft serve and later hard ice cream to loyal customers, along with granting employment to countless kids, many of whom are now third-generation employees. Anecdotally, the story behind the introduction of hard ice cream came out one day when a few of the local nuns of St. Mary’s Church arrived for their weekly ice cream. When Bud’s dad noticed that one of the sisters stayed behind in the vehicle, he curiously asked her why she was not eating ice cream. Her response was that she preferred hard ice cream to the soft variety, and so Dairy Cream soon began serving hard ice cream, too! It has since become a big part of the business, so much so that they will begin producing some of their own craft flavors for the 2017 season.

BUD CURRENTLY LIVES IN JACKSON HOLE, WYOMING, WITH HIS WIFE SUSAN.

Bud remembers, “I began working behind the counter when I was 15 years old, but my informal training began much earlier.

As a young boy I always accompanied my dad on daily and evening visits to the shop. I recall one warm summer evening after our 11 p.m. ritual of closing the shop. My job was to collect the cash drawers from the registers, organize the leftover change, and place it in the car. For some reason I left the drawer on the roof of the car.

You can imagine our surprise as we turned out of the parking lot

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heading home hearing the loud thump of the cash drawer hitting the road spilling change, cash, and the odd invoice throughout the warm summer air. It was an expensive and quiet ride home. I think we picked up loose change for a week!”

The original concrete building has been through a couple of iterations prior to its current modernization. In 1979, a tornado touched down violently on Route 75 just east of Bradley International Airport. The airport’s weather station recorded a wind gust of 87 mph as the tornado passed nearby. The force from the tornado tore the roof off Dairy Cream, and the glass in the front was completely blown out. Employees took shelter in the large walk-in freezer in the back of the building as the storm passed.

Bud’s father passed away in 1995, and his mother stayed active in the business until her death in 2004, after which Bud and his wife Susan informally ran the business remotely from Manhattan. Bud commented, “It was important to both of us to try and keep the business in the family, but we began to realize ultimately, as many smaller family businesses do, this is a difficult endeavor. The challenge of hiring managers and staff and tending to temperamental equipment, in addition to our careers caused us to begin thinking about selling the business in early 2000. Fortunately, my brother-in-law Joe arrived from Chicago to the rescue. He lives locally and is now our partner, running daily operations and helping us think about the future. With the new, now completely modernized building, we look forward to many more years of serving the community.” This is excellent news for Suffield, Windsor Locks, and the surrounding towns. Dairy Cream is a local treasure, and I for one am pleased it has such a dedicated and committed family running it.

TIGERS IN REVIEW SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG/ATHLETICS

winter

ALPINE SKIING Maggy Skaugen ’17 and Zach Mooney ’17 repeated as New England Class A slalom champions and won both the giant slalom and slalom at the Brigham Ski League Championship. With a season record of 8–3, the team will say goodbye to captains and graduating seniors Maura Eagan and Maggie O’Shea. Many underclassmen competed for Suffield and will be returning to the program next year: senior Ben Marciano; juniors Sam Cuda, Anton Davydenko, Katherine Kelley, Taro Makihara, James Mignone, Arianna Saxton, and sophomores Olivia Alfano, Chris Campbell, Jason Choi, Eliza Gregory, Jack Henderson, Dylan Litt, Charlie Park, Emma Phillips, and Savannah Tompkins. Photo: Maggy Skaugen ’17

BASKETBALL BOYS’ Boys’ varsity basketball completed a successful season with an overall record of 19–7 and a spot in the Class A tournament semifinals.

Led by senior captains Elijah Wilson and Ellis Christmas, this year’s team included six additional members of the Class of 2016 (Ben Bailey, Miles Johnson, Nick Pellegrini, Tahj Herring-Wilson, David Longstreeth, and Miye Oni). The season was highlighted by defeating MacDuffie at the Basketball Hall of Fame, besting Wilbraham & Monson at the National Prep School Invitational, and upsetting higher-seed Kent in the quarterfinals of the New England Class A Championship. Class A player of year Miye Oni set a school record and tied the National Prep School Invitational record by scoring 52 points in a single game.

Photos: Elijah Wilson ’16 (left), Miye Oni ’16 (right)

GIRLS’ For the first time since 2012, the girls’ basketball team qualified for the New England tournament. Seniors Angela Vecchiarelli (captain) and Kaitlyn Nigro helped Suffield to a 14–7 record. En route to notching the team’s highest win total since 2008, the Tigers recorded wins over Williston Northampton, Choate, and Deerfield. The Orange and Black also captured the St. George’s Holiday Classic title by sweeping the competition. Next year’s Tigers will have several returning players: Casey Kaplan ’17, Alayna Miller ’17, Bridget Carey ’18, Bailey Hyland ’18, Susannah Johnson ’18, Dana Mills ’18, Lexi Mnich ’18, Kate Rookey ’18, and Molly McGrath ’19.

Photos: Bailey Hyland ’18 (left), Angela Vecchiarelli ’16 (right)

60 SUFFIELD

SQUASH BOYS’ The boys qualified for the New England Class A Tournament for only the second time in program history and finished 14th.

Senior number one player Shams Safwat ended his season in 5th place, the best finish by any player in the history of boys’ squash at Suffield. Key successes were victories over Loomis, Tabor, and Westminster. Captained by Jerry Carrasquillo ’16 and Andrew Bicknell ’16, the team also benefitted from solid performances by seniors Save Boonsoong and Baek Kang, completing the season with an overall record of 14–4.

Photo: Jeremy Carrasquillo ’16

GIRLS’ The girls leveled out their season with a 7–7 record and finished 11th in the Class B New England Tournament. Senior captain and number one player Emma Tryon placed 2nd, while sophomore Tori Tryon Repka earned 3rd. Co-captains Annabelle Pape and Caroline Pape join fellow senior Katie Kuzmeski in the graduating Class of 2016. Returning players include Hannah Arthur ’17, Ryder Mosby ’17, Hattie Bauchiero ’18, Sedley Benitz ’18, Caroline Gingold ’18, and Tori Tryon Repka ’18.

Photo: Emma Tryon ’16

RIFLERY The eight-time Western New England Riflery League Champions took aim at another successful season and finished 8-1. Losing a match for the first time since 2010, the Tiger shooters finished 2nd in the Connecticut State Championship. The team’s nine seniors had a dominating 29–1 dual meet record over their four years, earning 2nd place and three 1st place finishes in the state championships. The top shooters were senior captains Jake Mnich and Meg Williams. Other graduating seniors include Chris Choi, Billy Cordes, Derek Dai, Aya Ishikawa, Joohyun Kim, Susan Le, and Chandler Parker.

Photo: Susan Le ’16

WRESTLING Led by new coach Ted Banks and many fresh young wrestlers, the wrestling program found itself in a year of transition. Nine wrestlers filled nine weight classes: Mac Dickerson ’16, Matt de Haan ’17, Norman Cotteleer ’18, Milo Marcus ’18, Matthew Moryto ’18, Mike Robidoux ’18, Peter Thrall ’18, Nick Foley ’19, and Luca Pirondini ’19. Eager to compete with enthusiasm and accountability, Mike Robidoux ’18 received the coach’s award, while the most outstanding wrestler award was earned by team captain Mac Dickerson ’16. Dickerson finished second in the Griswold Invitational Tournament, while he and teammate de Haan both qualified for New England’s postseason tournament. Photo: Mac Dickerson ’16 61

SWIMMING & DIVING BOYS’ The boys’ swimming and diving team finished third in the Class A New England Championship. Ralph Koo ’16 had a stellar day, setting a pair of school records en route to capturing titles in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly. Koo was also a part of two champion relay squads, along with Quinn Egan ’16, Cam Auchinachie ’17, and Brandon Liao ’17. The quartet won the 200 and 400 freestyle relays, setting New England records and recording top ten nationwide times in both. In diving, Sam Henderson’s ’17 4th-place finish led a strong crew. Egan and Koo graduate, as do Dan Bennett, Niklas Hess, Carl Mellqvist, and Max Teitelman.

Photos: Quinn Egan ’16 (swimming), Sam Henderson ‘17 (diving)

GIRLS’ The girls’ swimming and diving team finished third in the Class A New England Championship. Eva Crouse ’17 (100 breaststroke) and Sydney Winters ’19 (100 freestyle) were individual event winners and were joined by Kiersten Ness ’16 and Shaun Johnson ’18 as part of a school-record 400 freestyle relay team. Ness, Johnson, Devina Bhalla ’18, and Brooklynn Hayes ’18 also enjoyed success across a range of events. During the dual meet season, Crouse, Johnson, and Winters all set individual records in helping the Tigers to key wins over Andover, Choate, and Deerfield. In addition to Ness, the team graduates Cecilia Arntzen, Nina Maggi, and Julianna Lamm. Photos: Sydney Winters ’19 (swimming), Julianna Lamm ‘16 (diving)

62 SUFFIELD

TIGERS

IN SPRING

BASEBALL Playing against tough competition, the varsity baseball team remained in postseason contention until the last weekend of the regular season. Although the team did not reach their playoff goal, many underclassmen earned meaningful playing time, which bodes well for the future. The team was led all season by Trevor Lyne ’16 and David Longstreeth ’16, while underclassmen Brandon Qiu ’17, Ben Bonavita ’18, Ricky Offenberg ’18, Carter Cousins ’19, and Jackson Pentz ’19 made valuable contributions as well. This group showed toughness and resilience all spring and should be proud for overcoming adversity this season. Postseason accolades went to the following Tigers: Longstreeth (First Team All-League); Pentz (Second Team All-League); and Bonavita and Pentz (Underclassmen All-Star Game). Photo: David Longstreeth ’16

SOFTBALL Suffield’s softball team completed another winning season in 2016 with an overall record of 8–6. Junior hurler Julia Murphy led the way, pitching every inning of every game to batterymate Ally DiMauro ’16. The Tigers reeled off wining streaks of three and five games in mid-season before having their playoff dreams derailed in a thrilling 4–3 extra inning loss to Kingswood-Oxford on the last day of the regular season. The Tigers will miss senior tri-captains DiMauro, Kaitlyn Nigro, and Shannelle Watson, but Murphy heads a strong group of returners for the 2017 season.

Photo: Carlin Molander ’18

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LACROSSE GIRLS’ The girls’ varsity lacrosse team finished the 2016 season with a 6–7 record. Senior captains Angela Vecchiarelli, Lauren Bonk, Katie Kuzmeski, and Sarah Raymond led the way, scoring a combined 31 goals and earning the 2016 Coach’s Award. Raymond and Bonk were strong attackers; Kuzmeski was a true asset in the midfield; and Vecchiarelli anchored the defense. The Most Valuable Player award was shared by leading scorer Bridget Carey ’18 and goaltender Katherine Kalill ’17. Isabelle Ricke ’17 earned the Dedication and Improvement Award. The team had a few close one-goal games, including three exciting wins against King School, Ethel Walker School, and Hopkins School. Photo: Lauren Bonk ’16 BOYS’ A young boys’ lacrosse team finished with a 7–8 record that included dramatic one-goal wins over Cheshire Academy and Kingswood-Oxford. The Tigers were anchored by a strong defense backstopped by All-WNESSLA goaltender John Kuzmeski ’17, with defenders Hunter Newman ’16 and Kevin Kuzmeski ’18 and attackman Jake Selbst ’18 joining him on the All-League team. Newman was also honored as an Academic All-American. Suffield graduates Newman, Ben Bailey, Conor Keough, Kyle Reddish, James Turner, and Haven Williams, but a bright future awaits this Tiger squad.

Photo, from left to right: Will Burke ’17, Haven Williams ’16, Hunter Newman ’16, Jake Selbst ’18

64 SUFFIELD

TRACK & FIELD BOYS’ The boys’ track and field team finished with a 7–6 record. Highlights included seniors Tahj Herring-Wilson earning All-New England in three events (100m, 200m, 4x100m) and Ellis Christmas winning the New England championship in the high jump. Other notable achievements were Kyle Barrett ’16 earning All-New England in the 100m (4th place), Westley Bartlett ’18 earning All-New England in the 300m hurdles (6th place), and the relay team of Herring-Wilson, Barrett, Christmas, and Tim Bell ’19 earning All-New England (3rd place) while breaking the school record in the 4x100m relay. This team had a terrific group of seniors that included Herring-Wilson, Barrett, Christmas, Henry Albright, Kevin Doten, Tiquan Ewell, Chandler Parker, and Edwin Wallis. Photo: Tim Bell ’19 (left), Kyle Barrett ’16 (right) GIRLS’ Depth and consistently strong performances led the girls’ track and field team to an 8–5 record. The team improved throughout the year, culminating in 13 personal bests in the New England championship meet. Senior Kiersten Ness ended a fantastic career by earning All-New England honors in the 1500m. Bailey Hyland ’18 also earned All-New England with a 5th-place finish in the triple jump. The team will miss the leadership provided by seniors Ness, Adriana Caceres Ruiz Diaz, Yasmin Geradeau, Elena Gullo, Melissa Malley, Caroline Ricke, and Jeanette Tran. The future is bright for the team as a strong core will return. Photo: Hannah Arthur ’17 (left), Niah Samboy ’19 (right)

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CREW Suffield Academy’s crew team had a wonderful season, full of excitement and new chapters. Suffield traveled to the Mayor’s Cup Regatta in Providence, Rhode Island, as well as an away race against Thayer Academy and Marianapolis Preparatory School at the Thompson Dam in Northeast Connecticut. This was bolstered by races with crews such as Holyoke, MacDuffie School, and Eagle Hill School at the Sue Ellen Panitch River Access Center in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Suffield Academy’s home base for its crew program. Several new students joined the sport this spring, while the team graduated four of its seniors: Billy Cordes, Derek Dai, Aya Ishikawa, and Andrew Li. The crew team also gave a warm send-off and salute to head coach Thomas Salamone this season.

Photos, from left to right & top to bottom: Boys’ crew | Billy Cordes ’16, Jason Choi ’19, Spencer Macchia ‘18, Pat Cordes ‘18 Girls’ crew | Liz Sacco ’17, Katherine Kelley ’18, Kirsti Kokko ’17, Anna Wilson ’17

GOLF Posting 17 rounds below 40 this season, Captain Naoki Takahashi ’16, Bryan McLennan ’18, Phakorn Chansrichawia ’17, Graham Shannon ’17 and Poom Sriorathaikul led Suffield’s golf team through an expanded schedule and earned a 9–11 season record highlighted by a signature win over Williston. With the team-low stroke average of 39.2, McLennan shot a first-ever bogey free round (35) at Suffield Country Club. Takahashi finished 5th in a field of 72 at the Inaugural Western New England Prep Golf Invitational held at Bull’s Bridge. The team enjoyed their best finish (12th) in several years at the Kingswood Invitational, where McLennan tied for 15th out of 120 players. McLennan and Shannon are the newly elected captains and will lead a returning group of five players. The team looks forward to hosting nearly 10 schools at the Inaugural Suffield Invitational next season.

Photo: Naoki Takahashi ’16 66 SUFFIELD

GIRLS’ WATER POLO This spring was a rebuilding season for the girls’ varsity water polo team after losing four seniors from last spring’s New England finalist team. However, the Tigers, led by captains Alli Hayden ’17, Brookylnn Hayes ’17, and Isabella Pesaresi ’17, competed with a lot of enthusiasm throughout the season and finished with a record of 4–10–1. Highlights of the season included two strong wins over rival Williston and a sudden-death overtime defeat of Exeter. Brooklynn Hayes was the team’s leading scorer with 27 goals, and goalie Isabella Pesaresi was the MVP, accumulating 227 saves this season.

Next spring all 10 players will be returning, and the team will once again look to challenge for the New England final four.

Photo: Devina Bhalla’18

TENNIS BOYS’ The boys’ varsity tennis team clawed their way to an 8–5 season and the Class B New England Tournament Quarterfinals, the school’s strongest finish since 2008. Led by senior co-captains Save Boonsoong and Andrew Bicknell, the Tigers notched early wins against Class B perennial leaders Cheshire Academy and Avon Old Farms and held their own in Class A competition against Loomis and Taft. Peter Kelley ’17, Sasha Derby ’18, Baek Kang ’16, Ben Bonavire ’19, and Leonard Hoermann ’18 competed hard up and down the ladder, giving the team solid depth in both singles and doubles. Losing three senior leaders will make a great impact on next season, but reaching the tournament has taught this group they can compete with any team in New England.

Photo: Save Boonsong ’16

GIRLS’ The girls’ tennis team welcomed a large group of newcomers to the varsity squad this season. Though inexperienced, the team competed hard and improved a great deal during every match. Kate Rookey ’18 emerged as the team’s leader and number one player. She earned the Joyce Wilson Award given to the team’s most outstanding performer. Highlights of the season included a convincing win late in the schedule over Wilbraham & Monson and a 4th-place finish in the season-ending Suffield Invitational Tournament. The most exciting aspect of this team is that they will lose no seniors and will return the entire group next year.

Photo: Kate Rookey ’18

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SPRING PLAY

ONE MAN,

TWO GUVNORS

THE HILARIOUS COMEDY ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS FEATURED INSPIRED INSANITY, HIGH-LOW ANTICS, AND QUICK WORDPLAY—ALL BACKED BY LIVE MUSICIANS PAYING HOMAGE TO 1960s ENGLAND. THE CHARMING AND IDIOTIC FRANCIS HENSHALL WAS PLAYED BY JIM KRUEGER ’16, AND MORE THAN 20 STUDENTS WERE IN THE CAST. FRANCIS FINDS HIMSELF WORKING FOR TWO BOSSES WHO ARE CONNECTED TO EACH OTHER IN WILDLY IMPROBABLE WAYS; HE JUST HAS TO KEEP THEM FROM DISCOVERING EACH OTHER. THIS WAS A CHALLENGING PLAY FOR SUFFIELD BECAUSE OF THE PACE OF THE SHOW AND THE ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS LIKE MUSIC AND IMPROVISATION, NOT OFTEN SEEN IN A NON-MUSICAL. EACH PERFORMANCE WAS DIFFERENT, AND THAT KEPT THE MATERIAL ENGAGING FOR BOTH THE ACTORS AND AUDIENCE. THE AUDIENCE WAS VERY RECEPTIVE TO THE PERFORMANCE; THERE WAS AN ENERGY IN THE THEATER THAT PROVIDED A WONDERFUL EVENING OF ENTERTAINMENT. “I AM ESPECIALLY PROUD OF THIS CAST FOR TACKLING SUCH A LARGE SHOW IN THE MIDST OF THEIR BUSY SCHEDULES,” SAID PERFORMING ARTS CHAIR TOM DUGAN. “THEY WORKED SO HARD ON PUTTING THIS SHOW TOGETHER, AND IT WAS CLEAR THEY TOOK PRIDE IN THEIR WORK.” CAST DAVID GINGOLD ’16, JOE ISLAM ’16, MILES JOHNSON ’16, JIM KRUEGER ’16, MAGGIE O’SHEA ’16, COLE ROGALIN ’16, DRAKE MUTH ’17, ASHLEY SARRIS ’17, MEG DURHAGER ’18, DANA MILLS ’18, MAC KEATING ’18, JACK PUMPHRET ’18, AND MICHAEL SATTAN ’19 BAND WILL ROBIDOUX ’16, KATHERINE KALILL ’17, RILEY MILES ’17, AMELIA HERN ’17, GRAHAM SHANNON ’17, OSKAR KVATERNIK ’16, MATT MORYTO ’18, AND JEFF GIGLIO STAGE MANAGER LAURA DE LOS SANTOS ’17 LIGHTING DESIGN SIMON PARK ’16 SOUND DESIGN DAN MITTELMAN ’17

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13TH ANNUAL

CONNECTICUT HALO AWARDS THE CONNECTICUT HALO AWARDS IS A FUN-FILLED EVENING WHERE SCHOOLS IN CONNECTICUT GET TOGETHER TO CELEBRATE THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS IN THEATER. THIS YEAR SUFFIELD’S THEATER PROGRAM WAS HONORED WITH TWO AWARDS PRESENTED BY THE SEVEN ANGELS THEATRE IN WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT.

BEST INCIDENTAL MUSIC “THE CRAZE BAND” IN ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS

FEARLESS AWARD FOR SPRING AWAKENING AWARDED TO A PRODUCTION THAT TACKLES CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS, ASKS TOUGH QUESTIONS, AND MAKES BOLD CHOICES.

“IT WAS A GREAT HONOR FOR SUFFIELD TO WIN THE FEARLESS AWARD. WE ARE PROUD OF OUR PRODUCTION OF SPRING AWAKENING AND ARE THRILLED IT RECEIVED THIS RECOGNITION. FOR THE STUDENTS, THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THEIR WORK IS AN INCREDIBLY POSITIVE EXPERIENCE—THERE IS NOTHING LIKE HEARING YOUR NAME OR THE SCHOOL’S NAME CALLED AS A HALO AWARD WINNER.” TOM DUGAN, PERFORMING ARTS CHAIR FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS VISIT SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG/PERFORMINGARTS

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DANCE COMPANY

“IN ADDITION TO PREPARING FOR THE DANCE SHOW, THE STUDENTS HAD THE OPPORTUNITY DURING THE WINTER TERM TO PURSUE AN ARTIST MASTER CLASS IN LYRICAL AND CONTEMPORARY STYLES FROM COLLEEN FITZGERALD AND A CIRCUS SKILLS CLASS IN THE NEW ENGLAND CENTER FOR CIRCUS ACTS. IT WAS A WONDERFUL AND REWARDING WINTER FOR THE MEMBERS OF SUFFIELD ACADEMY DANCE COMPANY.” GIS-XI NAHMENS, DANCE COMPANY DIRECTOR

THE ANNUAL WINTER DANCE SHOW FEATURED A VARIETY OF DANCE STYLES INCLUDING LYRICAL, CONTEMPORARY, JAZZ, JAMAICAN DANCE HALL, TAP, LINE DANCING, TRADITIONAL WEST AFRICAN, AND CIRCUS ACROBATICS. DIRECTED BY GIS-XI NAHMENS, WITH AN ORIGINAL SCRIPT WRITTEN BY HER HUSBAND CARLOS PLAZ, THE LITTLE SHOP OF DANCES CENTERED ON A TEENAGE GIRL SEARCHING FOR AN ACT TO PERFORM AT SUFFIELD ACADEMY’S WINTER TELETHON. THE SHOP OWNER (MONSIEUR RENÉ L’ÉQUILIBRE) WAS PLAYED BY DAVID GINGOLD ’16 AND THE TEENAGE GIRL (MARIA VON PIROUETTE) BY ASHLEY SARRIS ‘17. SPECIAL APPEARANCES WERE MADE BY SOCCER PLAYERS ALEX CLARKE ’17 AND KYLE BARRETT ’16, EXPERT JUGGLER WILL ROBIDOUX ’16, AND THE ADVANCED VOCAL TECHNIQUES AND STAGING CLASS. CHOREOGRAPHY WAS PROVIDED BY ALLY CZERNIAK, MATT WIGGIN ’06, FACULTY MEMBER BROOKE DEPELTEAU, AND SEVERAL DANCE COMPANY STUDENTS. 2016 WINTER DANCE COMPANY JUNIORS: CARI CYR (CAPTAIN), KAELENA DANIELS, LEYZA OKOJIE SOPHOMORES: ISABELLA ATTIANESE, CALEIGH HORRIGAN, HALEY MELENDEZ, JUHI RAYONIA, SAMANTHA WARREN, MIA WHITE FRESHMEN: BECCA MATALON, ALESSIA MARTINI, ERES PORTMAN

PERFORMING ARTS SHOWCASE SUFFIELD’S SPRING PERFORMING ARTS SHOW FEATURED PERFORMANCES FROM THE WOMEN’S CHOIR, CHAMBER SINGERS, AVTS, CHAMBER ENSEMBLE, AND BEGINNING AND ADVANCED JAZZ BANDS. THE CHAMBER ENSEMBLE SPLIT INTO TWO GROUPS PLAYING MOVEMENTS FROM MAJOR WORKS BY FRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN. THE FIRST GROUP PLAYED THE VIVACE ASSAI FROM THE SECOND LONDON TRIO. WITH A DOUBLED FLUTE ADDED TO THE ORIGINAL GROUP, IT BECAME A QUARTET THAT PERFORMED THE FIRST MOVEMENT OF HIS QUARTET IN G MINOR, OPUS 20, NO. 3.

THE BEGINNING JAZZ BAND PLAYED “LOVER MAN” AND “BESSIE’S BLUES.” THE FIRST SONG WAS PERFORMED AS A WALKABOUT ROUTINE WHILE HAVING THE HORN PLAYERS DELIBERATELY WALK OFF STAGE AND RETURN IN TIME TO PLAY THEIR SOLOS. THE ADVANCED JAZZ CREW PERFORMED “STORMY WEATHER,” FEATURING KATIE MADRAK ’16 ON VOCALS AND A CHARLIE PARKER BLUES TUNE CALLED “RELAXIN’ AT CAMARILLO.”

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GUITAR SHOWS

“THIS YEAR’S GUITAR SHOWS WERE VERY SUCCESSFUL. MONTHS OF PREPARATION AND PLANNING WENT INTO THE PERFORMANCES. WE HAD GREAT SET LISTS WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF MUSIC.” AMELIA HERN ’17

WINTER„ MCS: EVA HAFNER ’18 & CASEY KAPLAN ’17 | PERFORMANCES FEATURED SENIORS KEVIN DOTEN ’16 (GUITAR), CARLOS SALGUERO ’18 (KEYBOARD, VOCALS), AND JUNIORS KATHERINE KALILL (VOCALS), COLIN PITTORIE (DRUMS), AMELIA HERN (KEYBOARD, SAXOPHONE, VOCALS, UKULELE, GUITAR), RILEY MILES (VOCALS), EMAN WONG (BASS, GUITAR), GRAHAM SHANNON (GUITAR), AND JEFF GIGLIO (GUITAR).

SPRING„ MCS: GARRETT STEPHENSON ’17 & GRIFF KORNAKER ’17 | PERFORMANCES INCLUDED SOME HOT RIFFS FROM EMAN WONG ’17 AND GRAHAM SHANNON ’17, AND VOCAL STYLINGS BY SUFFIELD’S JUNIOR FEMALE TRIO AMELIA HERN, RILEY MILES, KATHERINE KALILL. THERE WAS A SPECIAL GUEST APPEARANCE BY JERRY MOORE OF SUFFIELD’S PHYSICAL PLANT STAFF. OTHER MUSICIANS INCLUDED ALEX FLUG ’16 (VOCALS), CARLOS SALGUERO ’18 (KEYBOARD, VOCALS), MATT MORYTO ’18 (DRUMS), NICK MAYO ’17 (GUITAR), BILL BUTCHER (DRUMS), JEFF GIGLIO (GUITAR), AND TOM GOTWALS (TRUMPET). THE EVENING ENDED WITH AN ASTOUNDING RENDITION OF THE POPULAR CARLOS SANTANA SONG “SMOOTH.”

VIEW GUITAR SHOWS & DANCE SHOW AT VIMEO.COM/CHANNELS/SAPERFORMINGARTS

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PROM 2016 SUFFIELD’S 2016 PROM TOOK PLACE AT THE CONNECTICUT SCIENCE CENTER IN HARTFORD. WITH A ROOFTOP GARDEN OVERLOOKING A BEAUTIFUL SUNSET ON THE CONNECTICUT RIVER, STUDENTS AND FACULTY ENJOYED SEVERAL FLOORS OF ENTERTAINMENT, FINE DINING, MUSIC, AND DANCE.

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PHOTO BOOTH PROM

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VALISHA GRAVES ’81 TRUSTEE and CLASS AGENT | by BETSY McCOMB P’04, ’06

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HEN HER PARENTS DROPPED HER OFF AT SUFFIELD ACADEMY THAT AFTERNOON IN SEPTEMBER 1978, SHE DID NOT KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT. BUT VALISHA GRAVES QUICKLY FELL IN LOVE WITH THE NEW ENGLAND CHARM AND THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE HOMES AND BUILDINGS. “THE CAMPUS WAS BEAUTIFUL. I LOVED THE DIVERSITY OF THE STUDENTS AND THE EXPERIENCE OF HAVING A ROOMMATE.”

from the dedicated faculty. Treat your time here as a life-changing opportunity where you can make lifelong friends and relationships.”

As a student in an academic enrichment program at her junior high school in Cleveland, Ohio, Valisha was given an opportunity to apply to Suffield Academy through the scholarship organization A Better Chance. From the moment she entered Suffield as a sophomore, Valisha was immersed in all the school had to offer. She was eager to experience new activities and sports, meet people from all over the world, and learn as much as she could from the wide and varied curriculum.

Suffield further developed her existing potential by giving her greater academic focus, as well as her first introduction to economics and computer science.

Faculty members were very invested in Valisha’s success and were extremely supportive. “They always had an open door policy,” Valisha recalls, “Geometry was my worst class, but Mrs. Wilson encouraged and worked with me, and I made it through.” She also has fond memories of classes with Mr. Glover and Mr. Connors, and the guidance from Mr. DeSalvo, Mr. Currier, and Mr. Hilyard. Mrs. Kinne was like a surrogate parent to her while at Suffield. Valisha also said, “Dave Rockwell broadened my perspective on life with his classes in history and sociology.” These teachers had mutual respect and praise for Valisha. They referred to her as “highly motivated”...“possessing exceptional integrity”… ”among the most respected members of her class”…”ambitious, responsible, and independent.” Valisha played soccer, basketball, and softball at Suffield. She said, “I had leadership opportunities to supervise others as a dormitory proctor and admissions tour guide leader.”

SUFFIELD TODAY IS A REAL GEM AMONG NEW ENGLAND BOARDING SCHOOLS & MAKES ME PROUD TO BE AN ALUMNA

Valisha’s advice to current students is “to take full advantage of all this incredible experience has to offer. Make friends with your classmates from all over the world. Learn as much as you can

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After Suffield, Valisha earned a BA in government/international relations from Cornell University and an MBA from Columbia University. She now lives in Brooklyn, New York, and is an executive director in the Enterprise Infrastructure Group within the Technology Division at Morgan Stanley. During her tenure at Morgan Stanley, Valisha has been a product manager focused on the development of FinTech applications for internal and external clients. She previously worked at several financial institutions, including Lehman Brothers and National Westminster Bank in strategic planning, treasury, and finance roles. She also had a brief stint at an e-commerce startup. One of Valisha’s lifelong passions is education, and she currently teaches a Corporate Treasury class at the New York Institute of Finance and is developing a FinTech class that she plans to teach at the college level as an adjunct professor. She has been a mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters, was recently elected to the President’s Council of Cornell Women, and is on the Board of Cornell Mosaic.

A member of the Suffield Academy Board of Trustees since 1988, Valisha has been a class agent for more than 30 years. “There is a genuine commitment from the trustees, alumni, and school leadership that Suffield be true to its mission as a community that develops the whole student in academics, athletics, leadership, and citizenship. As a trustee and class agent, I enjoy sharing news about the progress of the school with my classmates. The Class of 1981 is loyal and has stayed connected. I know that we will have a great turnout for our 35th reunion, as we always do. Each time my classmates return to campus they are in awe of all the developments.

Suffield today is a real gem among New England boarding schools and makes me proud to be an alumna.”

SUFFIELD LEGACIES CHRISSIE PATTILLO PAPE ’84, CAROLINE ’16, ANNABELLE ’16

DONNA HAYDEN ’78 COLIN PITTORIE ’16

HEATHER COLLINS RAYMOND ’88 SARAH RAYMOND ’16

SUFFIELD LEGACIES

“SUFFIELD HELPED ME IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE. THE FACULTY MADE SUFFIELD FEEL LIKE MY SECOND HOME.”

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HEN WRITING ABOUT SUFFIELD, WE OFTEN USE REPETITIVE WORDS. WE DESCRIBE THE SCHOOL AS CHALLENGING AND INNOVATIVE. WE PAINT ITS LANDSCAPE AND PHYSICAL PLANT AS TRADITIONAL YET STATE-OF-THE-ART. ITS FACULTY ARE NURTURING, KIND, WELCOMING, SUPPORTIVE, AND DEDICATED. WE REFER TO THE DIVERSE CULTURE AS

A COMMUNITY AND FAMILY, WHILE ITS STUDENTS ARE FRIENDLY, ENGAGED, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY HAPPY AND SAFE. THESE WORDS ARE USED REGULARLY BECAUSE THE SPIRIT OF SUFFIELD HAS REMAINED UNCHANGED. IT EXISTS TODAY AS THE SAME SCHOOL IT WAS A GENERATION AGO. IN THIS ISSUE OF SUFFIELD, WE INTERVIEWED THREE LEGACY FAMILIES AND ASKED THEM TO DESCRIBE THEIR EXPERIENCES AT SUFFIELD ACADEMY. THESE ARE THE WORDS THEY CHOSE.

“Suffield has always been a part of my life, even when I was younger,” Annabelle Pape said. “I remember visiting campus as a child with my parents, and I finally understand the amazing experience they had and what we now all share. Faculty and friends were readily willing to guide and help me succeed to the best of my ability. Living among such a variety of people showed me how to cope with people and their differences. I learned to be a leader and developed a passion for helping others. Everyone here wants to see each other blossom. Although I was only in Mrs. Sweeney’s advisory for one year, I feel I have known her my entire life. She is a role model and friend, always there to support and encourage me to succeed.” “Suffield helped me in every way possible,” said Annabelle’s twin sister Caroline. “I’ve become a better student, athlete, and artist. I’ve created so many friendships with people all over the country and world. I’m now more independent and well prepared for college. I heard so many great stories about Suffield from my parents, aunt, and uncle while growing up. I remember my revisit so clearly, being treated as if I were already accepted. The faculty made Suffield feel like my second home all in one day, so it made it very easy to decide where I wanted to spend the next four years of my life. It’s a huge honor to be part of a Suffield legacy. It’s been a great experience for me, and I hope to someday share it with my own children.” The twins’ mother Chrissie remembered, “When I was in 8th grade, my parents brought me to campus for an interview and tour. I immediately felt at home and knew this was the place for me.

Everything I needed was right there on campus: academics, sports, community, and friendships. As a day student, I felt I had the best of both worlds. I spent my days being part of a wholesome community, and in the evening I still had the support and guidance from my family. My favorite place on campus was always the lobby in Brewster Hall. This was the central location where everyone came together on a daily basis. As a freshman I was always anxious about the table assignments and discovering who I’d be sitting with. The ever-changing seating arrangements gave us the opportunity to spend valuable time with other students and faculty. By the end of the year I knew almost everyone and believe they all knew me, too. The countless relationships I formed are definitely what I remember the most. And of course, Suffield Academy is also where I met my best friend and late husband, Andrew.

I am so pleased that Annabelle and Caroline were able to be a part of this special school.”

PATTILLO / PAPE

“I KNEW ALMOST EVERYONE & BELIEVE THEY ALL KNEW ME, TOO. THE COUNTLESS RELATIONSHIPS I FORMED ARE DEFINITELY WHAT I REMEMBER THE MOST.”

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SUFFIELD LEGACIES “Even though my brother graduated from Suffield eight years earlier, I was not pressured to attend the Academy,” said Donna Hayden. “I loved the warm feeling I received when I visited. As a 14-year-old girl facing the prospect of living at boarding school, I was extremely nervous but immediately felt safe and secure. My favorite place on campus always was and continues to be Brewster Hall. It encompasses the great sense of community that is Suffield Academy. When one is heading to Brewster it is for positive reasons: to eat and gather with friends. Now beautifully renovated, the building still respects the stately architecture of its past, while also representing a state-of-the-art dining hall and student union. Closing Stiles Lane has transformed that portion of campus, and the view from Brewster’s balcony is breathtaking. I’m so pleased Colin’s graduating class had this academic year to enjoy these major additions to an already beautiful campus.” Donna’s son Colin explained, “It is an enormous honor to be a legacy at Suffield. I hope to pass it on to my own children one day as I know they would also have a great adventure and many of the best moments of their lives. Suffield has given me a different outlook on education. I always thought of high school as an intellectual meat grinder, where students were forced to conform to a norm, but the faculty here encouraged me to follow my own interests and develop my own self.”

HAYDEN / PITTORIE

“SUFFIELD HAS MADE ME A BETTER STUDENT, BETTER TEAM LEADER, AND A MORE OUTGOING AND POSITIVE PERSON.”

“I chose Suffield because when I visited I immediately felt it was a warm and welcoming atmosphere,” explained Heather Collins Raymond. “I could not believe how friendly everyone was. I liked the size of the school and thought the campus was beautiful. My two older sisters went to a much larger boarding school, and I knew that the smaller environment and family feel at Suffield was a better fit for me. Academically, of course, Suffield affected my life because I felt very well prepared for college. Beyond that, I think the kindness and the support I felt while at the Academy impacted my life in a positive way. It is such a warm and caring environment, and while high school years can be really tough and even awful at times, I was really lucky to be in such a special place. The close friendships I made are really what has stuck with me the most. My favorite place on campus is Bell Hill. It is such a beautiful view, but it also holds great memories for me.

I remember rolling down the hill with my field hockey team after ringing the bell to celebrate our win. When I came to watch Sarah’s first home soccer game, I saw her team do the same thing. It has been just amazing for me to see Sarah have two fantastic years at our school. She has accomplished a lot, and I am so very proud of her.” Sarah responded, “Suffield has made me a better student, better team leader, and a more outgoing and positive person.

When I first arrived I was overwhelmed with the large amount of change, but faculty members like Ms. Samenuk ’09 really helped me feel more comfortable and step outside my shell far more than I would have ever expected. We became extremely close through the advisor program, and she was very supportive when it was difficult not seeing my family very often throughout the academic year. Being part of my family’s legacy at Suffield makes me simply want to further the tradition. I love how my mom would come back to campus and still know many faculty members and also see several of her own classmates visiting with their children. This just proves how great a school it truly is. I believe that Suffield Academy leaves a lasting impact on everyone who passes through.”

COLLINS / RAYMOND

“THE KINDNESS & THE SUPPORT I FELT WHILE AT THE ACADEMY IMPACTED MY LIFE IN A POSITIVE WAY.. THE CLOSE FRIENDSHIPS I MADE ARE REALLY WHAT HAS STUCK WITH ME THE MOST.” 77

Mason Nye 06.29.1930 – 06.03.2016

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ASON NYE PASSED AWAY ON JUNE 3 IN FLORIDA. HE HAD BEEN LIVING IN PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA FOR 20 YEARS. MASON WAS A FACULTY MEMBER FOR 37 YEARS (1958–1995), AND HIS DEDICATION TO HIS STUDENTS AND LOVE FOR THE SCHOOL PERMEATED THE CULTURE OF SUFFIELD.

Mason graduated from Brown University. After serving in the Air Force for four years and earning his master’s degree at Wesleyan, he was hired by Headmaster Ap Seaverns in 1958. Mason was known for the trust and belief he showed in his students and for the conversational, encouraging, and inspiring style of his teaching. Mason spent many years as English department chair. Early on he worked with Gordon Glover to revamp the English Literature curriculum. Later he became director of studies and assistant headmaster, serving as acting headmaster in 1990–1991. He taught at Salisbury Summer School for many years, eventually becoming director of the program. Mason loved coaching (especially ice hockey) and being a dorm head. He was particularly fond of teaching poetry, saying in a 2013 interview that “poetry delivers basic fundamental truths of culture in a beautiful and memorial way. A good teacher is able to help students experience reading carefully and slowly. Poetry can reach the imagination in a way prose will not.” Joe Alsop ’63 endowed the Mason Nye Teaching Chair at Suffield to support great teaching and thank Mason for his teaching excellence. “English class with Mason was as much learning about yourself as about literature,” Joe said. “It was not about trying to guess what the author was thinking but about looking at readings from our own perspective. It was a voyage in self-discovery.” Headmaster Charlie Cahn was an English department colleague of Mason’s from 1992–1995. He said Mason was a wonderful man and a true master teacher. “Many, many alums have told me he helped them believe more in their ability,” Charlie commented. “What could be a better legacy for a teacher? Mason used to talk with me about finding the key for each student. His style of providing challenge and encouragement shapes Suffield today.”

Mason is survived by his wife of nine years (Joy Comstock) and four children (Mason Jr. ’73, David ’75, Rebecca ’77 [Loomis-Chaffee], and Lillian ’81. He is also survived by his five grandchildren (Daniel, David, Galen, Zoe, and Henry). His wife of 50 years (Mary Ann Burrows Nye) passed away in 2004.

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Alumni Section 80 | Alumni News 82 | Class Notes 90 | 1970s Decade Council 91 | In Memoriam 110 | Weddings 111 | Engagements 112 | Births

ALUMS in Adam Greenberg ’98 Crowned at Food Network’s Chopped Champions On April 26 Adam Greenberg competed in the final round of the Food Network’s fifth season of Chopped Champions. Adam was up against four other chefs in pursuit of the $50,000 prize. In this final battle, the chefs all brought their best, focusing on every last detail. Adam came into the round with the goal of taking risks and showcasing his knowledge of ingredients and techniques. He melted a blue cheese lollipop into a cream sauce for his lamb ragu with penne pasta, which helped him secure the title and prize money.

Julian Fletcher ’09 Bermudian 100BR Record Broken Julian Fletcher ’09 posted a time of 1:02:47 in the 100m breaststroke at National Stadium in Bermuda on May 21. The time broke the Bermudian record and is an Olympic B-Standard time.

Frederick S. Marty ’63 Honored as Distinguished Pro Bono Lawyer Fred Marty ’63 was nominated as the Distinguished Pro Bono Lawyer for New York State on May 3. Fred retired from Hiscock Law Firm (now Barclay Damon) in 2012 and now volunteers for various programs, including ones sponsored by the Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP) in Central New York. He created VLP’s Estate Planning Program, which offers legal advice and document preparations and recruited other attorneys to operate the program. The luncheon took place at the headquarters of the NYS Bar Association in Albany.

Taylor Jett ’12 Delivers Emerson College’s Undergraduate Commencement Address Taylor Jett ’12 delivered the 2016 undergraduate Commencement address at Emerson College on Mother’s Day. Graduating from a leading arts and communications school and thanking the faculty who supported her, Taylor encouraged her fellow “Emersonians” to find and use their own voices. She noted, “It’s important to continually stay grounded in your ideals so that when the opportunity presents itself we still have something worth saying… It is your allies who support you that make the difference.” Embarking on post-graduate years, Taylor inspired her class to dream big towards their future.

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the NEWS Trina Zide ’95 Skate Park Development Teams Up with Tony Hawk On June 4 hundreds from Burlington, Vermont, came together at a local skate park to honor the memory of a well-known local DJ, Andy “A-Dog” Williams, who passed away from cancer in 2013. Trina Zide ’95, owner of Maven Skate Shop, hosted the event and was one of the original visionaries for the skate park, working closely with Burlington Mayor Mario Weinberger to make this a reality. Professional skateboarder Tony Hawk and others surprised the locals when they showed up for the dedication. The park received $10,000 from the Tony Hawk Foundation in 2010 and is the 500th THF-assisted skate park to open.

Alison Moncrief Bromage ’97 Receives T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry Alison’s book of poems Daughter, Daedalus won the T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry and will be out in September from Truman State University Press. The T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry is awarded by the Poetry Book Society (UK) to “the best collection of new verse in English first published in the UK or the Republic of Ireland” in any particular year.

Kenny Yongkiettakul ’01 Kavant and Sharart Jewelry

Tom Greene ’87 Author of If I Forget You Thomas Greene ’87 released his fifth novel, If I Forget You, in June. It traces a chance encounter of two former lovers on a New York street. Told from altering points of view, the story explores lasting love and secrets we carry. Tom earned Suffield’s Alumni Leadership Award in 2014, the year his best-selling novel The Headmaster’s Wife was released. He is president of Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Kavant and Sharart is a Thailand-based design house led by Kenny Yongkiettakul ’01 and wife, Shar-linn Liew. The couple has earned two Centurion Emerging Designer Awards, a JCK Jewelers’ Choice Award, a Gemological Institute of America Student’s Choice Award, and recognition from the Cultured Pearl Association of America.

Kavant and Sharart’s designs have been featured on the covers of Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire, and celebrities including Katy Perry, Gabrielle Union, Kristen Stewart, and Adriana Lima have been photographed in their luxury jewelry. Their design styles merged when they married in 2007.

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Class Notes

View of Suffield’s Main Street shopping block and old town hall in the 1960s, where Kent Memorial Library and Webster Bank currently exist.

1940

1951

Betty McDonald This spring I will be moving into a 700-square-foot cottage that is being built on my granddaughter’s property in Shoreline, Washington. This after 40 years in a high-rise condominium in Seattle.

I’m set for the rest of my life!

Sam Marks

1942 Tom Martinelli I’m still practicing law in Springfield, Massachusetts, and enjoying it most of the time. Last weekend I took my daughters for a stroll through the campus of the old school. Quite different from when I was there in the early ‘40s! Very beautiful, in fact. I roomed in North building with Jim Breeze, and later at college roomed with Pete Morse and Wolcott Hamblin. All four of us were members of the Class of ’42. I noted that the Bell is still there, a reminder of when Suffield was called Connecticut Literary Institute. I have very happy memories of Suffield, and I am glad and proud to see that it has expanded into one of the premier independent schools in New England.

1948 Gene Spaziani Bob Bashevkin I am semi-retired. My wife and I have three children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. We are enjoying life in the Berkshires of Massachusetts.

1950 Lee Miller Fred Gedney Eighty-two years old and still feeling okay. Thank you very much for the fall magazine—boy, the school has come a long way!

Jason Pearl I lost my wife Helen to cancer after a beautiful 56-year marriage.

Sam Marks Still alive and kicking at 83. I have regular contact with Ralph Cole and would love to hear from anyone from Class of ’51. I am still in the sales business, representing Hoffman Diamond Products from Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, in Connecticut.

1954 Gus Crombie We celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary this year. We went on a river cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg, Germany. We spend winters in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

1956 Peter Olin | John Taylor Dave Jellison I continue to live in Highlands, North Carolina with my wife, Mary Butler Jellison.

I work part-time for the Town of Highlands at the civic center and for the police department. I am also enjoying some volunteer work in my spare time.

Jon Klarfeld I continue to teach at Boston University College of Communication, working to impress upon students that accuracy, good writing and careful editing are essential in journalism, no matter the platform on which it is delivered. One recent student was Suffield alumna Whitney Tuthill ’09, who proved almost as excellent as a student as she was a softball pitcher.

John Stubbings After graduating from Suffield in 1956, I attended the University of Virginia, eventually earning three degrees. My life has been an incredible adventure since then. I was assistant superintendent of schools in Alexandria, Virginia when T.C. Williams High School won the state football championship in 1971, and 30 years later those events led to the movie Remember the Titans. It was an exciting time to be there. Six years later, I took a cross country motorcycle trip of 13,300 miles and visited 26 states, as well as Mexico and Canada.

Later in life, I moved to the Outer Banks

of North Carolina, became enthralled with sailing and ended up taking my sailboat to Key West, Florida, and back. I have been able to travel to England, France, Italy, Spain, and all over the Caribbean. In 2004, after eight years of competing, I won the “Ernest Hemingway Look Alike” contest at Sloppy Joe’s in Key West.

We return every year now as a judge!

In 2006, my life partner Beverly Shields and I were fortunate enough to spend a week in Cuba for the Havana Jazz Festival.

We now enjoy traveling in our RV with our three dogs. What a journey this life has been. Thank you, Suffield Academy, for a great beginning!

1957 Ralph Jennings Ed Guyer Retired from orthodontic practice in 2014.

Just had the first of two knee replacement surgeries. Doing well. My wife and I are planning SCUBA trips to Wakatobi, Indonesia and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef later this year. Many fine memories from Suffield.

Jack Locke I have two grandchildren graduating in May from UNC-Wilmington and Appalachia to become elementary school teachers.

Poverty by choice.

1958 Mike Sheridan Robert Lewis I retired from 3M sales in May of 1996. My wife Maureen and I have three sons, Bob, Bill and Greg.

1959

Paul Grimmeisen Barry Chappel I’m still doing deals; racing sponsorships, food distribution, media, and cosmetics, but I’m most proud of son Leo ’84. He is the assistant coach at the University of Akron, a Final Four team in the 2015 Division 1 NCAA Soccer Tournament.

Class Notes 83

Fred Farnham I retired from my Code Enforcement job last summer and rejoined with my former wife Debra in Santa Fe, New Mexico. We live in a casita (little cottage) and care for four horses and take care of the grounds for the owner. My two-year stay at Suffield was challenging, but it gave me an experience that has served me well throughout my life.

Though somewhat tattered and worn, I still cherish the Webster dictionary given for the Faculty Award on June 7, 1959.

Rich German Semi-retired, and I go on a mountain hike every day in Big Sur overlooking the Pacific.

I also ride my Indian motorcycle, loving life with Holly. My daughter Lauren German is the lead actress on Fox TV’s Monday night series Lucifer.

Ray Jodoin I presently live in New Jersey, but I still have family in the Springfield, Massachusetts, area. When I visit them, I always drive by the campus. Very nice memories of Suffield!

Dave Kelly My wife Barbara and I have seven grandchildren now. They range from ages six to eight, and our eldest is 25.

They are our pride and joy.

Eliot Mag Some exciting news for the Mag family.

On October 18, 2015 we welcomed Isabela (Bela) Faith Mag into the family. She was tiny at birth (5 lbs 2 oz.), but is now a thriving, happy and healthy 14 lbs! Our daughter-in-law Bekah Goldman Mag is a Reform Rabbi and was ordained in June, and recently named successor to Howard Herman at Farmington Valley Jewish Congregation in Simsbury, Connecticut, as Senior Rabbi. Post-retirement from the retail business, I am still volunteering at Hartford Hospital and work as a mentor at SCORE, the SBA-sanctioned organization that helps small business owners with all manner of issues from accounting to marketing.

Jack Plotkin Susan and I celebrated her birthday with a June trip to the Galapagos, preceded by some birding around Quito. In September we made our third visit to a language school in Verona, Italy. Living for two weeks in Verona was a real treat. We got to know our neighborhood and speak lots of Italian.

We finished our European stay with a bike and barge trip on the Seine, followed by three nights in Paris.

1960 David Holmes Hunter Brown Tillie and I spent most of April in South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia. I challenged myself again in June by running in the Litchfield Hills Road Race—a 7.1-mile hilly course. Not even a half-marathon, but not easy. Not much else of general interest to report. I must take this moment to compliment the Suffield team for the fine work you do on the school magazine.

The Fall/Winter 2015–2016 issue of SUFFIELD was superb.

1961 Jerry Kargman | Mike Menzies Tom Walker Still working part time for the New England Patriots in Foxboro, Massachusetts in the VIP Sales Department. I’m working all game days and all concerts in the Putnam Club, which is their private club for members only. I get to meet with former players, cheerleaders, and coaches for each game while working, which is a great opportunity.

I’m hoping for another great season.

If you’re attending any home games, please look me up on the east side in the Putnam Club.

Tom West I recently signed a contract for my third book to be released in 2017. The working title is Seeing What Others Cannot See. In my first two books, I dealt with the hidden talents of dyslexics and the broad impact of increasingly powerful computer graphics and simulation technologies. After realizing there is a much bigger story, I have been invited to provide presentations for scientific, medical, art, design, computer, and entrepreneurial business groups worldwide. In my spare time I like to sail the Corsica River and Chesapeake Bay. I look forward to receiving lessons on the finer points from my former Suffield roommate, Nelson North. I look forward to seeing everyone in the fall at our 55th Reunion.

1962 Paul Connor | Andy Spector John Cox I am back in Connecticut’s northwest corner after 22 years in Hong Kong.

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Tony Hull Just arrived at the European Space Agency Summer School at Poltu Quatu Sardinia where I will deliver the three-hour keynote address and several other lectures. All this is about going to Space. We are on the verge of Space 2.0, and our old habits are not so useful anymore. I’ve also just been asked to consider doing a TED Talk on what I learned from doing the mirror suite of the James Webb Space Telescope, sequel to Hubble but 100x as powerful for understanding the early universe. I’m finding that although the technology is mind-boggling, so much comes down to human factors. It is nice to think that we still play such a personal role. I retired a few years ago from Industry and NASA. I also consult extensively and serve as adjunct professor of physics and astronomy at the University of New Mexico. Thinking of growing up in Suffield where John Tinker and I terrorized the town with rockets of our own design. One could not buy rocket kits then. I continue to engage in both theoretical and field archaeology and am co-chair of a conference this fall. I’ve also led several recent history projects to collect information on the hippie fluorescence of architecture and communal life here.

Amazing stories. Trying to preserve them.

I’ve also been an activist in support of the wild horses, while there are some that want them destroyed. We have formed a partnership with the Pueblo of San Felipe to protect the horses and manage herd size. I’ve bought a second property with a friend, where we have horses and rescue dogs and experimental growing areas and a large shop. Quite wonderful! I will go to Boulder to hear the Dalai Lama just before going to Edinburgh in June for a space telescope conference. I would love to hear from anyone from Suffield. My email is tonyhull@unm.edu. Hope to have visitors to Northern New Mexico. It is a different world!

By the way, Suffield’s training in writing has been my biggest success factor in the world of science and technology!

1963 Sandy Prouty Dick Anthony Moved to Naples, Florida, in December, a great place to live. Sam is living with Erica in Brooklyn and has a son, Bodhi, now 20 months. Liz is in Darien with Andrew Wild and two children, Finn and Georgia. Life is good all around. Susan and I traveled to Weekapaug, Rhode Island, for the summer.

We recently returned from a Mississippi River cruise and took a trip in June on the Rocky Mountaineer across the Canadian

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01 | Tom Walker ’61 and wife Jean with New England Patriots Super Bowl Trophies 02 | Tom West ’61 before speaking at Pixar with Woody and Buzz Lightyear from Pixar’s Toy Story 03 | Jack Locke ’57 during annual Caribbean research trip in February

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04 | Mike Menzies’s ’61 twin granddaughters Madeline and Amelia 05 | Honorary Jeffrey R. Merrill ’63 (retired 2013) 06 | Hobie Truesdell ’66 reading with one of his grandchildren 07 | Butch Fuller ’65 and wife Jenn before renewing their vows, celebrating 50 years of marriage

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Class Notes 85

in 2014. Through Noreen, I’ve adopted Ireland as my second home. Noreen is from the Irish midlands, and like Noreen, I have dual citizenship and carry both EU and US passports!

1964 Jon Booth | Ned Smith | Nat Stevens Tom Webster

Tom Hart ’67 living in Paris, giving a tour of Hotel Talleyrand, pictured supplicating Madame de Pompadour

Rockies. I still follow the economic scene and politics; both give me heartburn.

Bill Breslau After 43 years at Kahan, Kerensky and Capossela, I have accepted a Senior of Counsel status at the law firm and look forward to time to travel and enjoy family.

Jeff Merrill Completed my last 10-year term as Syracuse City court judge at the end of 2013, and retired after 46 years in criminal justice, having served as a deputy sheriff, assistant district attorney, and 30 years on the Syracuse City court bench. Jeannie and I are now living in Jamesville, New York, south of Syracuse. I’m an active member of the Jamesville Volunteer Fire Department and serving on the board of the Syracuse Zoo. Enjoying life in general!

Denis Moonan I have become a SOB (“sail others’ boats”).

Sailed to Ireland in May and returned in August for my son’s wedding, then off to Lisbon. I should be home early December for skiing at Sugarloaf.

David Schulz Noreen and I will be celebrating our 40th anniversary next November. One son has given us two beautiful grandchildren, Caleb (7) and Audrey (4). We also have a daughter. We lost a second son to illness

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Ned Smith Dear Charlie, As you know, I have been involved with Suffield during some of its best and worst times. After receiving the new SUFFIELD magazine, my heart swells with pride. I have always believed Suffield is either different and/or a cut above most other independent secondary schools, because of the concern for others in the administration and faculty, and in the student body itself—from the repetitive hellos between classes to the reunion of students who have graduated— the closeness and respect goes deep. I have been most fortunate to gain a best friend in my own class since graduation.

But during last year’s Reunion, an alum from another class revealed how apprehensive he was to return and encounter a classmate who had harassed him when he was a student.

It brings tears to my eyes when I remember that same classmate came up to him directly and apologized for his behavior from years ago. This, to me, is clear evidence of how deep the friendships run at Suffield.

The fall magazine, with its highly professional presentation on the cover, exudes the closeness of the Suffield community, which truly exists: from the trustees, to the head of school, to the current students, to the faculty, and to the newest and most vibrant members, the parents. This group, despite paying a record amount of fees for a Suffield education, has gone above and beyond the call for Suffield’s future. I continue to be impressed with parental contributions individually, like the college counseling center to collective effort like the Suffield Auction. Good work, parents!

Hard work is the other aspect of Suffield that separates it from other schools, and at this time the work ethic seems extremely strong. The work program, engineered by one of my great mentors, shows students how much it takes to keep Suffield alive and beautiful. This practical work ethic extends most obviously to the classroom, as evidenced by the colleges and universities that are seeking Suffield graduates.

Hard work is obvious also in the athletic

success that Suffield has had recently, the new addition to Brewster Hall, and the substantial increases in giving, motivated in no small way by parental contributions.

Kudos to Headmaster Cahn with great leadership by you and your staff. It has ignited the spark for a wonderful Suffield community experience. I know I’m not alone in singing your praises. “For friendships formed at old Suffield,” I am a proud member of the great Class of 1964!

1965 Tim Hemingway | Bill Kelly Gerry Ellis Hello and thanks to our devoted Class Agents, Bill and Tim. Best wishes to all of my former classmates and teammates.

Butch Fuller Jenn and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary by returning to the church in West Jefferson, North Carolina, where we eloped May 5, 1966. We had not been back since our wedding day. The church, minister, and congregation helped us celebrate by having us speak at the Sunday service. We then had a reception followed by the renewal of our wedding vows in the sanctuary. All of our children joined us. Our two sons walked Jenn down the aisle, and our granddaughters were the flower girls.

Larry Hyde Spent a few days with Tim Hemingway and his wife Anne in mid-July.

Peter Kinnear Retired after 40 years working for FMC Technologies in Houston. We provided oil and gas production equipment to all the major oil and gas producers worldwide.

The industry is pretty depressed, given the low oil and gas prices. Living on a 120-acre ranch outside of Houston full of animals: horses, cattle, donkeys, dogs, and cats.

Life is good.

Jim Lo Dolce I retired from family medicine at the end of April. I continue to work part time in an urgent care center, as well as develop a new teaching program through St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse. This teaching program will train new physician employees who have recently finished residency how to efficiently practice in the real world of medicine. It should be interesting. I am taking three months off this summer, and Donna and I are planning to do a lot of sailing on Lake Ontario.

Left Greg Putnam ’69 and Carl Miller ’70 connect in Palm Springs, California, for a day of golf Right Leo Letendre ’71 celebrating 35th anniversary at Pfizer

Ron Martinez Our daughter Cecilia graduated from Lincoln School in Providence this June, and our daughter Marina graduated from Swarthmore on May 31. Our daughter Liliana has an internship this summer and will be studying in Ramallah on the West Bank as part of her graduate work at George Washington University. My wife Mary just acquired a mahogany Steinway & Sons model M (built in 1958) and is very happy with it.

blessed with two grandchildren: Charles Evans Claggett Heinzel (13 months) named after me and my father, and William Cullen Banda (two months) named after Katie’s great-grandfather. We are having fun now!

Tom Sweeny My retirement is a failure. Bucket list is in shambles. Stumbling on. Looking for divine guidance (waiting for some time now). All suggestions welcome.

Fred Doepke The Class of 1966 is reuniting for their 50th Reunion October 14–16! All class members are encouraged to join in the celebration... Lots of fun activities planned throughout the weekend. See how incredibly the school has evolved since the ’60s. Your fellow classmates don’t want you to miss this!

Todd Zimmerman Sorry to have missed Reunion. Eventful year: Laurie and I were awarded the Seaside Prize; two grandchildren: a California girl and a Brooklyn boy. Much joy in both.

1966 Charlie Claggett | Bruce Fletcher | Chris Frost Charlie Claggett Many of our classmates and I have been working hard for months to contact all members of the Class of 1966 for our 50th Reunion. As of July, 33 classmates are coming and hopefully more will join. An exciting weekend is planned by us and by Suffield to reconnect with each other and the school. My wife Katie and I have been

Bruce Cohen I think the last time I was at the school was about 30 years ago on a trip to Maine. I am sure there have been many changes over the years,and I look forward to returning for our 50th Reunion this fall.

Ali Ladjevardi I am committing to attend 50th Reunion.

In fact, I am very much looking forward to seeing old classmates, many of whom I have not been in contact with since graduation day.

Bill Lefferts I am retired and living in Woodstock, Connecticut, in a log home in the woods.

Pam and I are doing great. Between the two of us, we have five children and twelve grandkids. We love to travel and have visited all 50 states. Wishing the best to all my fellow classmates.

Hobie Truesdell Greetings, class. I’m looking forward to

seeing you again at our 50th Reunion this October. Fifty years is a long time, and I haven’t been good about keeping in touch. I’ve ignored pleas from our intrepid Class Agent Bruce Fletcher and the school to write a note, so here it goes.

I’ve been married to my wife Nancy for almost 46 years. We have four daughters, ages 31–38. Three are married, and we have seven grandchildren, ages 1–10. We expect more additions sooner or later.

I’m semi-retired now and hope to be fully retired by next year. I’ve spent the past 29 years managing bankrupt companies.

I managed a large agribusiness in eastern North Carolina for 14 years prior to that.

We’ve lived in Riverside, Connecticut, since 1987. I wouldn’t have forecasted any of this in 1966, except perhaps our wedding.

I feel fortunate. The only thing I wish had turned out differently is my spine, which is a mess. I had a botched lower disc surgery in 2007, which led to five radical surgeries over a two-year period. So my mobility is compromised and I have chronic pain. Always looking for possible fixes or therapies. That is all for now. See everyone in October!

1967 Chris Harlambakis Scott Schroeder My daughter Allison graduated from FSU in August. My other daughter Emily is still at UCF in Orlando with a couple more years to go. Interesting that they and so many of their friends who are native born

Class Notes 87

Floridians with Northeast transplant parents are planning to move out of state upon graduation. Enough of a good thing? There are a lot of biomedical companies that have established a presence down here, but that doesn’t seem to interest them enough.

Maybe it is the allure of the big cities or just a change of scenery. Who knows... wanderlust? I suppose I am somewhat similar because I am all “boated out” and kind of drifted away from windsurfing and refuse to take up golf down here, so I shipped one of my motorcycles over to Heidelberg and plan over time to goof around the Black Forest for a bit; then into and around the Alps, and down to the French Mediterranean, where I have friends where I can stay for free and store the bike for free (still have daughters to support for a while so no Ferraris in Monaco for this boy, just an old Suzuki Hayabusa and sleeping on my friends’ floors). Another year will be the 50th Reunion (can that really be true?) Wow.

1968 Tyler Bumsted | Tom Christian Machado Mead As a day student I worked on farms in Suffield for summer jobs, including Tom Christian’s father’s tobacco farm. Almost 50 years later, I’m still farming, and I direct the Pfeiffer Center for biodynamic farming in Chestnut Ridge, New York.

Seth Whitaker I’m still enjoying retirement, bicycling and wine tasting in the Sonoma County, California wine country.

1971 Pierre Genvert | Leo Letendre | Doug Rebert Pierre Genvert All is well here in Maryland. Hard to believe that I have been with my urology group for 30 years. I have sure seen a lot of changes in medicine over that time! My daughter Margot ’07 was married this June in Bermuda. Will send a picture for the next issue. Looking forward to my 45th Reunion this fall. Best to everyone in the Class of 1971.

Leo Letendre In January, I celebrated my 35th anniversary of working for Pfizer—well actually for Pfizer and the companies they bought to get me. I am still working and leading a

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group involved in a relatively new area of oncology therapies called antibody drug conjugates. The group designs the manufacturing processes for these drugs and will hopefully be bringing one or more of them to the market in the near future. I am looking forward to seeing my classmates at our 45th Reunion this fall!

1972 Chip Spear | John Therriault John Adler For better or worse, I am working as hard as ever as the CEO of two start-ups in Silicon Valley (California). I like to think it is keeping me young!

Pancho Cole I’m currently the network administrator for a small department store up in Northeast Harbor, Maine, and I’m getting ready to prep my sailboat for the summer racing season (I built a 36-foot-long boatshed for it as I was tired of winter damage and wanted to work on the boat in bad weather). In my spare time I hike with my dog here in Acadia National Park and help out in trail maintenance on the large series of private hiking trails on Mount Desert Island.

Peter Montgomery I am the owner of Montgomery Gardens in Warren, Connecticut. I recently gave a presentation to help guide Friends of the Eric Sloane Museum to develop an orchard on their property.

Joe Shaw I had a great visit with Bob Byrne skiing together with my twin sons at Lake Tahoe. I also attended the NCAA wrestling finals in New York City, reminding me of Suffield.

1973 Jody Cranmore | Jim Knight Matt deGarmo Life has been good to me. I’m still “playing” with cars after all these years. I recently celebrated my 30th anniversary of being in the vintage car business, and I feel so blessed to be able to do something every day that I am truly passionate about.

The business has me dealing with some wonderful people and traveling to some great places, as well as driving some of these old cars on vintage rallies with like-minded car nuts. It’s beyond fun. I have stayed in regular touch with John

Woodruff. In fact, he and his wife Diane came for a Thanksgiving celebration last fall and will likely come again this year!

Ned Higgins At a recent meeting, six members of the Class of 1973 gathered at Suffield to defend the decade of the ’70s. Much praise for the decade was bantered about. It was generally concluded it was a glorious time to attend Suffield Academy.

Jim Raporte My daughter Julie ’20 is very excited to be going to Suffield as a freshman in the fall of 2016. The combination of an exceptional leadership team, superb teachers, impressive building upgrades, and happy students make it a great time to be at Suffield!

Chris Richter My wife Pam Small and I were married September 23, 2012, in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where we have a house and occasionally spend time. We met while skiing with mutual friends in Cervinia, Italy, in January 2010. Pam is truly the love of my life, and I am far better for having taken that ski trip. We live much of the year in Vienna, Austria, where my language skills have left me with only the ability to “get by.” But ordering food, wine and beer is sufficient for me, so I will not waste away.

Mr. Compton knew what he was doing after French II when he suggested I need not take French III. Fortunately for me, Pam’s language skills across multiple languages more than make up for my shortcomings. If anyone is coming to Austria, and Vienna in particular, please look us up. I can provide tourist service assistance and share a visitor guide I pieced together for friends and family. Vienna has been ranked the “Most Livable City” seven years running

by Mercer Consulting, and it is quite a city, with something for everyone. I hope this finds everyone well. A number of our former classmates from the 1970s recently got together to probe what we can do to help spread the good work done at Suffield since we left. Some of what we were shown went far beyond what those of us from the early 70s would recognize, both in the classroom and the student body. Clearly Suffield has taken a path that is certain to ensure its continued success.

John Woodruff I am still very active in architectural photography (in fact, I photographed the new Brewster Hall project for the architect) and I am still loving the pharaoh hounds.

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01 | Class of 1973 graduates Jim Raporte, Jim Knight, Chris Richter, Ken Turnbull, Jody Cranmore, and Ned Higgins gather at Suffield for the 1970s Alumni Council 02 | John Woodruff ’73 with his two pharaoh hounds Juno and Jack lah Blach 03 | The lineup of vintage cars with Matt deGarmo ’73

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04 | Chris Richter ’73 and wife Pam in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where they were married in 2012 05 | Craig Benedict ’72, Martin Sbriglio ’74, Coach Frank Peraino, Tucker Benedict, Thomas Flagg ’74, Aaron and Craig Benedict, and Bill Shipley ’74 06 | Pancho Cole ’72 on a hike in Arizona in February

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DECADE COUNCIL INSIGHT ON OUR SCHOOL TODAY

1970s DECADE COUNCIL | LEFT TO RIGHT

Peter Moritz ’72, Paul Moritz ’70, Jim Raporte ’73, Bob Hildreth ’75, David Litman ’70, Chris Richter ’73, Bill Aldrich ’74, Bob Stanley ’79, Stephen Gazillo ’72, Lisa Palomba Deni ’79, Ed Kaplan ’77, Kit Warner ’70, Mark Teed ’75, Ned Higgins ’73, Tom Leonard ’74, Jim Knight ’73, John Bishop ‘70, Jody Cranmore ’73, Charlie Alfano ’77, Ken Turnbull ’73, Leo Letendre ’71

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uffield Academy convened a 1970s Decade Council this winter. The primary goal was to hear feedback from alumni about decisions the school is making related to programs, enrollment, and physical plant. The group discussed Suffield’s progress and areas of focus to reengage alumni who have been less actively involved in recent years. An interesting portion of the discussion centered on what it feels like on campus today compared to the 1970s. Enrollment was much smaller and all male until the middle of the decade.

“The 1970s Decade Council was a pivotal juncture in my 17 years at Suffield,” said Director of Development Phil Riegel ’87. “Having this group back to experience the Academy as it is today helped me better understand the decisions we have made and direction we are headed. The insight they brought to our work was powerful, and I was struck by the clarity with which they remembered the smallest details about their own tenure here. It was instructive to the administrators in attendance to recognize that all the little things we do—that might not have meaning to us in the moment—can actually change the course of a student’s life. I would especially like to thank Chris Richter ’73 for proposing the idea for the meeting and Bob Stanley ’79 for co-chairing the meetings with Chris.”

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1974

In Memoriam

Blair Childs | Bud Hancock | Tom Leonard Elmar Noeth I will be spending quite a bit of time in the US this year. I’ll be working at a summer workshop in Baltimore from June 13–August 5. Then I’ll be a chaperone for 12 high school students from Erlangen in our sister city Riverside, California, until August 17. Finally, I’ll attend a conference in San Francisco from September 7–12. So, let me know if you are close to any of these locations.

Steven Peer On April 23, in a snowstorm in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, Blair Childs and I skinned up Empire Pass near Park City, where we both have homes and skied the Daily Chutes. Both of us were Suffield ski team members, and while Blair was still faster on the way down the Chutes, I was faster on the hikes up.

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1975 Carey Fiertz | Jim Plante | Fred Stevens | Mark Teed Pia Bungarten We have not been back to Suffield recently; being back in Germany makes it much harder, unfortunately. My husband Tom Baker returned from teaching in Seoul, South Korea last June and continues his research in information science, focusing in particular on linked data and how it can contribute to global food security. Our son Anton is now a fourth-semester student of mechanical engineering at the Technical University of Aachen, on the German-Dutch-Belgian border.

A great internship at a Swedish company has triggered his interest in Sweden. He is learning Swedish, hoping to spend a year studying at Lund University. I am now the head of the Ebert Foundation’s scholarship program, the oldest “wing” of the foundation which celebrated its 90th anniversary last year. The scholarship program supports students financially and with an extensive program of seminars to help them explore their interests and develop their talents. Furthermore, it encourages them to “lead a political life,” (i.e., to get engaged politically and to build and maintain a viable democracy in Germany). My ASSIST scholarship, which allowed me to attend Suffield over 40 years ago, has made me very aware of what it means to get support that opens up new opportunities. The current international and domestic challenges in and around Germany highlight how much we need dedicated young people who get involved and contribute to political solutions of many current problems—from the refugee crisis to the daunting tasks such as ensuring the survival and renewal of the EU.

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01 Lee A. Boynton ’72 | April 24 02 Chester K. Hale ’40 | April 13 Not Shown

2015 Stacia Zera Carlton ’39 | December 24 Jack J. Lane ’46 | October 27 Martin S. Reader ’74 | October 7

2016 Anna Mary Sullivan ’36 | May 25 Sadie Pankowski Bazyk ’37 | May 8 Charles T. Alfano Sr. ’39 | February 14 John M. Robb ’46 | January 18 Albert W. Redway II ’55 | May 27 Paul D. West ’57 | January 12 Former Faculty Member David B. Sawyer P’67 | February 11 Morin M. Scott ’68 | January 12 Charles R. Gallucci ’70 | January 11 Stephen M. Falkowski ’73 | May 3 Former Trustee Lafayette Keeney P’76 | February 18 Former Trustee Donald P. Richter P’73, ’77 | January 25 Class Notes 91

1976

music festival in Live Oak, Florida. It was fantastic to reunite with Tom Skeele and listen to some fantastic music for three days.

Ralph Adler | Scott Craig David Baker Hello to all my “old” Suffield friends with a 40-year update! Doing great in Millis, Massachusetts, just west of Boston. Married to my amazing wife Carol for 26 years. Our oldest son David is in medical school in New York City. Our daughter Katie is at Boston College and will be staying for her masters. Jon is a junior at Boston College and plays football (#77). We enjoy going to his games in the fall. Go, BC Eagles! Go, NE Patriots!

1977 Charlie Alfano | Bob Clark | Ed Kaplan Jim Baker I am living in Ridgefield, Connecticut, with my wife Diane. Our two daughters are in New York City and Baltimore. Our oldest daughter Carolyn, who lives in Baltimore, was married last October. I retired after 32 years at Unilever, and I am now working for a privately owned company in Guilford, Connecticut. I will definitely be at our 40th Reunion.

Chris Cardone Moved to The Villages, Florida, and working from home. I’m in my 16th year with New York Life Insurance Company doing corporate sales.

Tom Skeele After 20 years in the field of land and wildlife conservation, in 2010 I shifted my focus from the US Northern Rockies to an international context with a focus on human communities. Since 2010, I have lived and gained a variety of practical work experiences in Central America, Ecuador, Washington DC, New York City, western Colorado, and western Oregon. In late 2015, I landed in Santa Cruz, California, thus fulfilling a recently-emerged desire to live in a coastal community. As for my late-career shift, I am presently serving as the communications and development director for a rural community development nonprofit called Trailblazer Foundation, which is focused on Cambodia’s Siem Reap province (home to the world famous Angkor Wat complex of ancient religious temples).

Rick Smith Ran into an old classmate that I have not seen since graduation day in 1977 at a

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1978 Lisa Longo | Ed Palomba Ed Palomba Things are going great! I am looking forward to being a grandfather in August 2016.

1979 Matt Cartmell | Ruth Kennedy Renee McDaniel Margolis Lisa Palomba Deni | Bob Stanley Stephen Dutcher Nothing too exciting going on down here in sunny Florida. I’m busier than a onearmed paper hanger with sales. Buying 30 acres up in the mountains of North Carolina. Went to Panama in May and attended the World Congress for FIABCI, which is the largest and oldest international real estate organization in the world. Other than that, any and all alumni are welcome to come visit Stuart, Florida. I live in a resort community on the east coast of Florida, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the mile-wide Indian River on the other side.

Nancy Follansbee I work in the Immigration Department of Cohen and Gigsby in Pittsburgh. Someday, I will come to a reunion. It certainly is a gorgeous campus.

Jim Meyer Wow, that was the fastest 36 years of my life! I hope all my classmates are well. I am still on 7th Avenue in the fashion world. My oldest just graduated from Penn State, and my daughter graduates from Alabama in May. That leaves one in college. My wife Carly and I are actively looking to get out of New Jersey and will be relocating south to Charleston, South Carolina. I will be walking my dogs on the beach drinking eggnog in December. Please look me up if you are coming to town (like I need an excuse to have fun). Might be time for another graduation party; be well my friends. Life is short, because now we are considered old!

Regards, JM. Bob Stanley Our youngest daughter Olivia is a member of the Suffield Class of 2016 and is headed

to George Washington next year. Eldest daughter Jordan ’13 is a rising senior at Elon University. Our affiliation with Suffield since the fall of ’75—I as a student, Anne and I as faculty members and as parents— has been a gift that keeps on giving.

Fred Tolsdorf All is great in Louisville, Kentucky. My daughter Alexandra graduated from Centre College and is heading to graduate school.

My son Wesley is a sophomore at Rhodes College in Memphis.

1980 Jim Hagan | Mary Carroll Graham Lewis | Joe Palomba Bruce Burdge Still living in Tampa, Florida, where we moved in 1992, and continuing to run a business investing in commercial real estate. My wife Katherine and I are about to be empty nesters! Our son Spencer (18) has been recruited to row for Stanford University, the same college where our daughter Taylor (22) was also recruited to row four years earlier (she graduated this spring). We cannot believe we have four more years of traveling to Palo Alto, California, for college visits, but being empty nesters, the travel will be easier!

We still spend the summers in Mystic, Connecticut, so look me up if you are in the area. Last year I saw Jeff Randall and Craig Poller ’81 at our Skidmore College reunion.

Tucker Killam Michelle and I are thrilled that we are able to enjoy the Suffield Academy community as our children Thomas ’19, Kate ’19, and John ’18 are members of the sophomore and junior classes. Living so close affords us the opportunity to enjoy all that Suffield has to offer parents and alumni. Watching games and attending events brought back so many great memories of my days at SA! Dan Pease I can’t believe where all the time has gone.

I graduated from Suffield 36 years ago. I plan on retiring in six years. I hope to stop by and visit campus soon. I was hoping to see my study hall friend Bruce Burdge last year but couldn’t make it.

Justin Salvio I hope all my classmates are well. It’s fun seeing how folks are doing on Facebook.

My daughter Maya just finished her second year at Smith, and my son Noah will be starting at Eastern Connecticut State University in September.

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06 01 | Blair Childs ’74 skiing in Utah 02 | Richard Romeo’s ’74 grandchildren Katie and Stella 03 | Scott McEwan’s ’77 sons John and James in Suffield colors 04 | Tom Skeele ’77 at Angkor Wat, Cambodia

05 | Bruce Burdge ’80 and wife Katherine, with son Spencer after the Florida Scholastic State Rowing Championship 06 | 1977 classmates Rick Smith and Tom Skeele reunite at a music festival in Live Oak, Florida 07 | Elmar Noeth ’74 and son Julius on a recent trip to China

Class Notes 93

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01 | Karsten and Grayson, daughters of Stacy Orben Glazier ’85 and husband David 02 | Chris Berger ’84 with children Abby, Jack, and Maggie 03 | Alison Welch ’81 with sons Will and Jake 04 | Barbara Cartmell Howaniec ’81 with husband Tom and two children Jack and Anna on a recent trip to Washington, DC

1981 Susan Goodwin Fera | Valisha Graves Chris Kennedy | Alison Welch Karim Amiryani Hello, Suffield! I hope everyone in the Class of 1981 is doing well. I am currently living and working in Los Angeles as a wealth advisor for UBS. Barbara Cartmell Howaniec I am currently working in my private

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05 | Throwback photo from a class outing to Stratton Mountain, Vermont, in the winter of 1987 (thanks to Mike Nochimson ’87) From left to right & bottom to top: Kristin Guglielmo ‘88, Rich Rotman ‘88, Shelly Reveruzzi O’Neil ’87, Michelle Motta Stewart ’89, Blake Schulman ’87, Mary Royal Little ’87, Cathy deGanahl Costello ’87, Anne Eshelman Allen ’86, Christine Alaimo ’87, Kristin Gugliemo ’88, Betsy Coughlin Tod ’87, Mark Zeytoonjian ’88, Neil McCullagh ‘87, unknown, Ed Kemm ’87, Mike Nochimson ’87, Norman Riker ’88, Milo Terzich ‘87, Gabrielle Griesman Zilkha ’87, Frank Molander ’88, and Phil Riegel ’87

psychotherapy practice in Portland, Maine.

The main focus of my work is caring for young men in recovery from heroin and other drugs. Unfortunately, there is no shortage of clients for me to see. These men, most of them ages 17 to 25, come from all over the country for our services.

It’s heartbreaking what the opiate epidemic is doing to these young men. The work is extremely rewarding, and I am quite passionate about it. My children, Jack (13) and Anna (11), are growing up way too fast. Jack is passionate about music, theater, and skiing. Anna has taken up snowboarding, the trumpet, and swim

team. I am so looking forward to our 35th Reunion in the fall, although I am not sure how we can top our tray sledding on Bell Hill antics 35 years ago!

Alison Welch I am just finishing up my 23rd year teaching French at Lincoln Academy in Newcastle, Maine. I recently returned from a trip to Nice, France, where my students lived with host families, attended French classes each morning, and visited well-known sites along the French Riviera each afternoon.

In addition to teaching, I have recently taken on some administration duties,

serving as a class dean. In the winter, I continue to ski at Sugarloaf as often as I can, and while I no longer own any horses, I am riding and training other people’s horses for them on a regular basis. Will is finishing up his junior year at Camden Hills Regional High School, having played on three varsity sports this year including soccer, ice hockey, and lacrosse. He was recently selected to play for an elite travel lacrosse team this summer that will have him playing all over New England. Jake is a sophomore at the University of Maine at Orono in the civil engineering program. In addition to his studies, he is working as a research intern at the Advanced Structures and Composites Center. Looking forward to seeing everyone at Reunion in the fall.

1982 David Carangelo | Elaine Coombs Holmes Margaret Figueroa Hern | Madeline Phillips Victoria Kotarski Lane Hello to all in the Class of 1982. I am still happily employed by Delta Airlines, and my family and I enjoy those flying benefits. Our youngest is a freshman at Dartmouth

College and is a member of the men’s lacrosse team.

Bob Smith Life is good! Our family spent a week in Mexico with Chris Shaw and his family before the new year. Suffield friendships last a lifetime.

Lee Vardakas We are excited to have our daughter Laurel join Nicholas ’18 to be part of the Class of 2020. We are looking forward to more great years at the Academy!

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at the University of South Carolina. All is well in our seventh year of RomanoBerger LLC Executive Search (romanoberger.com).

Looking forward to reconnecting with old friends and classmates at the next reunion for sure!

1985 Andy Glover | Michelle Hashioka Lord Chuck McGavern | Jack Way Stacey Orben Glazier My family and I would love to see any classmates visiting the Washington, DC area.

Shelley Frazier Pelletier Hossein Pourmand | Scott Owsiany

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Chris Berger A long, long, long overdue note to Suffield!

And I’m sorry to say I’ve missed the last few reunions just due to busy lives. All is well in Old Lyme, Connecticut, with three kids.

Abby and Maggie, both age 16, are busy with their junior year courses along with soccer, basketball, lacrosse, and college tours. Jack (19) is finishing his freshman year

Sean Federowicz | Brinley Ford Ehlers Kristin Hostetter Pandit | Niko Mosko Dave Eckhardt I am very happy in my role as chair of the social studies department and continue to coach soccer, skiing, and lacrosse at St. Johnsbury Academy. The Northeast Kingdom is beautiful and my family is thriving. Summer plans include hiking

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Class Notes 95

part of the Long Trail with Brian Greenho and our sons, catching a concert in Brooklyn with Scott Lewis, and a lobster bake with Bill Phipps and his family up to Maine. I also plan to see lots of Tom and Suzy Harris ’87 and their children while summering in Landgrove, Vermont.

I hope to see more SA alums in the coming months as well.

how I learned the importance of what it means to be a part of something bigger than myself. All the best to everyone!

Want to get in touch? Email me at destlund116@gmail.com.

Brinley Ford Ehlers I was recently appointed the head varsity field hockey coach at St. Luke’s School. I am very happy to be back on the varsity field. My daughters, Lucy and Kathleen, are 7th-graders playing field hockey. The Ehlers family will be spending their second summer on Lake Champlain in Vermont at Camp Kiniya. Class of 1986, please save the date for our 30th Reunion in October 2016.

Hope to see everyone back!

Kate Cleary | Patrick Dorsey Jack Warren | Jenn Yamzon Jordan

Dominique Smookler Estlund Greetings from Portland, Oregon! I am happy to report that all is well in the City of Roses. I have recently transitioned from my work as a fundraiser. Over the past 12 years, I’ve aligned with various nonprofits (The Classic Wines Auction, Special Olympics Oregon, The Freshwater Trust and The James Beard Public Market) to produce large scale culinary-centric fundraising events. Overall, I helped to raise over $5.5 million for the community.

Since my transition, I’ve redirected focus to my love of curating and selling vintage collectibles. I also spend my time enjoying the many splendors of being middle-aged, which include cooking, yoga, playing golf, spending time with my awesome son Scout (21), and traveling with my darling husband Bjorn. He is a technical producer for Pac 12 Networks so I have the good fortune of being able to tag along during football season. I still stay in touch with a few classmates. I had the pleasure of spending time with Donna Fitzgibbon Raymond. She lives nearby in Bend, Oregon, with her wonderful husband Peter and three amazing children Anna, Claire and Alistair. One of our gatherings included the unexpected adventure of seeing Marilyn Manson and going backstage together. It was a trip! I also stay in touch with Chris Ziadie. He teaches English at a private school in Miami. The athletic apple has not fallen far from the tree as, daughter Chelsea attends Harvard and plays ice hockey. I also stay in touch with Fred Hoecker. He and my sister Rachel are in love and live together on his farm outside of Cobleskill, New York. Every day I attribute my years of being a part of the Suffield community as something extremely positive in my life. I especially appreciate

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1988 Frank Molander Had a great dinner with Tom ’88, Aimee Hodgkins ’89 and their son Zane while they were back in town for revisit day at the Academy. Tom and Aimee were sweating it out over dinner having come from a revisit to Berkshire earlier in the day. Suffield Academy came out on top and Zane had a Suffield Academy hat on when I saw him the next day. This gives the administration a good five months to prepare for a Molander (Carlin ’17) and a Hodgkins again on campus.

Jenny Sherer Janisch Shout-out to classmates from 1988. I haven’t made it to the East Coast in years—too cold and too far away. I’m happily, sometimes begrudgingly, struggling (in a good way) with the challenges of parenting and balancing work and life while the years are flying by. Working for Apple for what seems like forever, constantly wondering just how early one could retire early and just do fun stuff with family. Hope everyone is enjoying their life out there. Would love to hear from anyone coming through the San Francisco Bay Area. I love reading about all the cool things others from Suffield are doing around the world.

1991 Julie Paganelli Bodnar | Kim Ames Ide Pat Kennedy Yuki Murata This January, I set aside the work I had been doing in Santa Fe for the last 10+ years (moderngoods.com and residential design) to accept a full-time job with a local non-profit, Creative Santa Fe (creativesantafe.org). I am the new director of design and programs. As the design director, I oversee the design, brand, and image of the organization and the events we produce. As the program director, I am in charge of crafting and developing new programs. While it has been exciting times working for myself and with my husband,

I started feeling that my life and heart’s work needed to be more purposeful and connected to community. Connecting with Creative Santa Fe has given me an inspired sense of direction and hope. We are using art and design as vehicles for approaching challenging and timely topics like nuclear weapons and interplanetary exploration.

New Mexico is uniquely situated to address these topics because of our history with the atomic bomb being built in Los Alamos and the world’s first commercial spaceport, Spaceport America, located in the southern part of the state. While Creative Santa Fe is based in New Mexico, the problems we are tackling are relevant to us all as global citizens, regardless of where we live or what we do. Overall, Santa Fe has been a wonderful place to live and raise a family.

The high-desert climate, dark night skies, rich culture, and easy access to alpine skiing and extraordinary camping keep me grounded here. I am very excited to come back to Suffield this fall for my 25th Reunion (gulp!)—hoping, in fact, to bring my 10-year-old son so I can plant the Suffield Academy seed for high school!

1992 Marigrace Canter Morris | Ntsekhe Moiloa Wadiya Peterson Wynn Marigrace Canter Morris A warm hello to the Suffield community. All is well with my family. It is hard to believe I have children who are 12, 11, and 7. Every year seems to pass by even more quickly!

Hoping to visit Suffield soon and show them what a special place it is.

Nicole Pisapia Doyle Hello, Suffield! Dan Doyle and I are doing well. Our kids, Logan (13) and Caroline (11), are the light of our lives and keep us very busy with their many sports (hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and baseball).

Caroline’s hockey team, the South Windsor Knights Squirts C team, won their state championships this year. It was an exciting time! I recently had the pleasure of meeting up with some SA grads in Worcester, Massachusetts. Marcy Milionis Minogue, Jenny Russo Murphy, Andrea Lembo Ericksen, and I had a blast meeting up over lunch and reminiscing about our wonderful four years at Suffield. It was great to see them, and it felt like no time had passed since we graduated in 1992. I hope the Class of 1992 is doing well. Would love to hear from everyone, and I hope to see lots of faces at our next reunion!

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01 | Brinley Ford Ehlers ’86 with two daughters Lucy and Kathleen 02 | Marius Haas ’86 with Andy Roddick at Dell Match Play, World Golf Championships at Austin Country Club in Texas 03 | Class of 1986 graduates Donna Fitzgibbon Raymond and Dominique Smookler Estlund in Bend, Oregon 04 | Dominique Smookler Estlund ’86 with son Scout, husband Bjorn, and two dogs Macon and Sunny D

05 | Yuki Murata ’91 and mother Nancy at the Creative Santa Fe welcome party 06 | Class of 1992 graduates Nicole Pisapia Doyle, Marcy Milionis Minogue, Jenny Russo Murphy, and Andrea Lembo Ericksen gather in Worcester, Massachusetts, this spring 07 | Yuki Murata ’91 and Bill Seitz ’70 making a random Suffield connection in New Mexico

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1994 Eric Feijo | Alison Kennedy Auciello Scott Sartwell Scott Sartwell Hope all alumni are doing well. I have just started with Summit design and engineering as technical project lead. If you are ever in the Charlotte area look me up.

Ina Schutt Heusgen In 2017 I will return to the US (New York) from Germany. I look forward to seeing Suffield again after 23 years. All the best from Berlin!

1996 Tabitha Bliven Heidorn | Ryan Dowd Fatimah Guienze 01 | Quentin Packard’s wife Megan with twins Brayden and Charlee 02 | Ana Dulce Simoes ’99 with 17-month-old son Pedro 03 | Seamus Durkin ’99 and wife Maddie with daughters Colette and Chloe Berry 04 | Michael ’00 and Katherine Coleman ’01, Kristel Proctor ’99, Katherine Harvey ’99, and Andrew Konopacki ’96 at the Fushimi Inari shrine near Kyoto, Japan 05 | Manny Simons ’00 and colleagues at Voyager Therapeutics ringing the Nasdaq opening bell when they completed its IPO 06 | The Moncrief Family: Alison Moncrief Bromage ’97 Joyce Moncrief McGovern ’95, Kip Moncrief ’02

Rosalyn Davis I am well and hope all of my classmates are doing well. I work for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, supporting training for National Service as a manager. I travel often and love the role. I have recently reconnected with many Suffield friends via Facebook and love the energy we bring to our common experiences!

1997 Amy Blake Cook | Lewis Dunn Brian Hetzel | Danielle Therriault

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Maya Adams I gave birth to my first child on November 3, 2015.

His name is Colin Isaac Adams.

Alison Moncrief Bromage I’m thankful for my teachers at Suffield who played no small part in encouraging and shaping my writing and poetic imagination. Sending warm regards to all!

1998 Mickey Allen | Sarah Fletcher Meaney Sarah Hotchkiss Adam Greenberg Hey Suffield! As you may know, I competed and won an episode of The Food Network’s Chopped back in February 2015. On April 5, I also competed on Chopped Champions Tournament, and was the Chopped Grand Champion, winning $50,000.

My wife and I recently moved to Washington, DC where I am the executive chef of Barcelona on 14th Street. We’ve been lucky to have fellow alum

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George Colli ’97 move down here as well to continue his newscasting career. It’s been an exciting year with the move, Chopped, and plenty more opportunities coming our way. Always love seeing Suffield grow (we did our engagement photos on campus last year before the wedding), and watching the success Suffield has brought many of us years after graduating. I have to admit, I was rooting heavily for Clemson and fellow Suffield alum Christian Wilkins ’15 this past year. Go, Tigers!

1999 Steven Darling | Maura Deedy | Larry Griffin Patrick Stone | Mark Soticheck Ana Dulce Simoes Rabelo de Santana I am still living in Brazil and working as a psychologist. My son Pedro is now 17 months and doing great!

Seamus Durkin Greetings, SA alums. Miss you every day friends! This year we were blessed to welcome a second daughter into our family.

Chloe Berry Durkin arrived on March 18, two weeks early and Colette is very excited to be a big sister (most days). We’re also enjoying settling into our new home in Bermuda, which we settled on late last year. We hope all our Suffield friends are doing well, and if you ever find yourself making a trip to Bermuda don’t be a stranger! Tigers rule.

Katherine Harvey My husband, Andrew Konopacki ’96, and I met up with Katherine ’01, Michael Coleman ’00, and Kristel Proctor for an epic adventure in Japan in February, spending time in Hiroshima, Kyoto, Nagano, and

Tokyo. Highlights included numerous Suffield colored shrines, snow monkeys, hot springs, bullet trains, and a wide variety of amazing culinary experiences.

2002 Sari Biddelman | Alison Carey Lynx LaCroix | Hilary Golas Rouse Erin Orr Ligay Bryan Laverdure Hope all is well. It’s been about 15 years since I graduated from Suffield and what a great experience I have had. I have been out in the Los Angeles area for last 18 months. I am Leyon Azubuike’s business manager. He owns GLOVEWORX and was on the new NBC show Strong in April. You can check out our gym at gloveworxusa.com.

Kellyn McGarity I got engaged to Jimmie Blount in October of last year. We were married on May 14 in

Savannah, Georgia, surrounded by our friends and family. Currently we are living in Raleigh, North Carolina, where I’m a creative director at Baldwin&—a full service advertising agency.

2003 Lindsey Pell | Lydia Pillsbury Lindsay Rousseau | Eric Yale Laura Kessen This year I left the fashion and apparel industry to devote my professional efforts to support those in early recovery from addiction. I currently manage accounts at a medical laboratory focused on this mission and dedicate my free time to furthering an advocacy group I helped found in 2013.

I truly found a passion in helping others transform their lives. I am still living in the Burlington, Vermont area, and love all that life offers me here. Hope all is well with the Class of 2003!

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2004 Kate Braden Mounkhall | Jake McComb Alex Naboicheck | Anthony Rousseau Andrew Scully | William Taylor David Duff I am still living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Joanna and I are planning our wedding for next September. I’m still working for XL Construction as a project manager. Life is great. Go, Tigers!

Bryce Homick Visited campus during spring break when no one was around. The improvements were impressive to say the least. It felt good to be back on campus, even for just a moment. I’m currently living in central Vermont with my brother. We’ve gutted and are renovating a nearly 100-year-old house together, and I’m working as a freelance concept artist and animator specializing in video games. I’m also hoping to set up a sculpture and painting studio in the next year, as well as releasing a virtual reality game I’ve been working on sometime late summer or fall this year.

2006 Kim Autuori | Alison Leonard | Eric Litmer Luke McComb | Gina Petrone Chris Stafford Chelsea Lessard Allison I was recently married in July 2015 and finally graduated from the University of Tennessee in May with a BS in nutrition.

I am applying for graduate school and will do a dietetic internship to become a registered dietitian nutritionist.

Christin Peters Daniel and I were engaged to be married this past spring. We’re very excited! We live/work at tech companies in the San Francisco area, so we won’t be making it back for the 10th Reunion in October, but we wanted to say hi and hope everyone is doing well!

Chris Stafford After a long engagement, my husband Tyler and I finally got married this past October in New Haven, Connecticut. We loved sharing our wedding day celebration with several of our Suffield friends who were able to attend. Those in attendance included Sarah Brislin, Sarah Ellerton, Kristen LaPlante, Matt Wiggin, Britt Rock, and Caitlin McNabb ’07. I also had the honor of having Melissa Carey Fitzpatrick

01 | Drone photograph of Suffield’s campus during the winter months by Frank Sambor ’08 02 | Class of 2008 graduates Garrett Lasnier, Nate Michalewicz, Mike Vallides, Frank Sambor, Chris Yuan, Evan Boyle, Shea Clark, and George Gomez gather around groom Dan Nault in October 03 | Class of 2006 graduates Matt Wiggin, Sarah Ellerton, Kristen LaPlante, Melissa Carey Fitzpatrick, and Sarah Brislin attend Chris Stafford’s wedding 04 | Patrick Harris’ ’09 son Patrick Harris Jr. on his 2nd birthday 05 | Mike DiPietro ’07, Anna Childs ’07, and Chris Childs ’77 enjoy some shooting during late fall in New England 06 | Mike DiPietro ’07 wearing Suffield tie on the Connecticut State House floor 07 | Emily Conklin ’09 in Panama during an underwater lab (part of her Three Seas program at Northeastern University)

by my side as a “groomswoman.” I am still an officer in the Navy Reserve and working in the maritime industry. I recently accepted a new position working for a chemical tanker company in Houston, Texas, and relocated there in June. Looking forward to seeing many more classmates at our 10th Reunion this fall!

2007 Mike DiPietro | Sydney Greenberg Katy Heydinger Doar | Matt Jones Harry Melendez | Catherine Mis Erik Osborne | Meredith Rarus Sarah Thomsen | Rob Zammito Bill Cargill & Bianca Molta We will be tying the knot at the New York Yacht Club in Newport, Rhode Island, in October.

2009 Tom Casey | Liz Monty | Sam Stone Kyle Vigneault | Amy Samenuk Rosemary Chandler Emily Conklin I am currently in my second semester of graduate school in the Northeastern University Three Seas program, and I am loving it. I just returned from ten weeks in Bocas del Toro, Panama at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute where we studied coral reef ecology. We spent most of our time in the water, looking at local oceanic processes and ecological phenomena. I was in Friday Harbor, Washington, studying conservation biology and marine mammals and birds. I was there for eight weeks before returning to Boston to conduct research for the summer with a nonprofit called Women Working for

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Oceans. I am examining public awareness of marine environmental issues and the efficacy of education measures for my capstone work before I graduate in December.

Patrick Harris Sr. Amanda and I are expecting our second son, Brody Paul Harris, on September 4, 2016.

Bridgette Faupel I’ve enjoyed living in New York City for the past few years. I am currently the ad operations specialist at Thrillist. I’m hoping to make a trip to Suffield soon!

2010 Michelle Autuori | Justine de Chazal Mariah Hayes | Tom Leonard Alyssa Palomba | Lucas Traber Annie Nao Hi, dear Suffield family! After graduating from Georgetown University, I currently live in Singapore after spending a year and a half in Shanghai. I would love to connect with any Tigers around the area.

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Jon Yeston I moved to Los Angeles in February and have been working at a Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) clinic for depression treatment at UCLA. Still playing plenty of music out here.

Give a holler if you’re around!

2011 Joe Begley | Serge Derby | Didi McDonald Kachenta Descartes | Colin E. Dowd Karoline Hegbom | Shamier Settle Lester Taylor

01 | Xavier Pollard ’10 during Senior Day at Kent State 02 | Ali DiGiacomo ’11 representing her production company Forza Coppia

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Lorenzo Bernardez Looking forward to seeing all of you this fall at Reunion—I can’t wait! I just want to thank all of you for making my Suffield experience special; from the different bonds I built with you guys and all of the things that I learned from my class. As many of you know, I lost my dad in the spring of my senior year of college, about two months before graduation. He wasn’t physically there that day, but he had a front row seat in heaven. I cherish Suffield even more now because he was there for that graduation from my favorite place. As we move forward in life, know that what’s meant to happen will happen. Accept the good and the bad from life, for there is always something to learn from each situation. Love, Zo!

Ali DiGiacomo After leaving Suffield and moving to Tampa, I discovered my dream of becoming a filmmaker. My boyfriend and I started a production company called Forza Coppia, and since then we have made short films that have been screened at the Cannes Film Festival and Campus MovieFest Finale in Hollywood. We also have been honored with a nomination for Best Florida Film at the Sunscreen Film Festival and have won the Best Picture Award for the Campus MovieFest finale at The University of Tampa. I’ve also worked as a production assistant on Animal Planet’s Insane Pools: Off the Deep End and in the casting department on the film The Infiltrator, starring Bryan Cranston. I moved to Atlanta where I hope to find new opportunities in production! Hopefully you will see one of my movies on the big screen one day! My three years at Suffield were some of the best years of my life, and I can’t wait for the 5th Reunion this year!

Emily Leishman Currently working out in Whitefish, Montana, at Whitefish Mountain Resort as the supervisor of the Kids Center.

Patrick Tolosky I graduated from Bates College last spring.

Following graduation, I traveled to Q’eros Nation in Peru to collaborate with the leaders of this indigenous community to build a Hampi Wasi (Home of Healing in Quechua) or medical clinic. I stayed there for June and July working on coordination of buying and transporting materials along with the physical construction of the building. In September, I traveled to Spain after receiving a Fulbright grant to teach in Madrid for the year. Both travel experiences have been essential in helping my personal growth and solidifying my desire to study medicine in the fall of 2017, which I am currently in the process of applying for. I am excited for a warm summer with family and friends in New England!

2012 Reed Barbe | Katherine Battle Colin E. Dowd | William Evangelakos Jameson Everett | Josh Galant David Huang | Taylor Jett | Connor Kaplan Caroline Leonard | Izzy McDonald Alex Porter | Carly Smith Katherine Battle It seems like yesterday that we graduated from Suffield. I had an incredible four years at Davidson College and graduated with a major in economics and a minor in French.

I began my career this summer with a position at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

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01 | Taylor Walston ’10, Mike Jacobs ’09, Callie Aldrich ’10, Ginny McDermott ’10, and Michelle Autuori ’10 reunite in New York City 02 | Patrick Tolosky ’11 working with leaders of the Q’eros community in the Andean region of Peru, summer of 2015 03 | Jameson Everett ’12, Colin Dowd ’12, Colleen Everett ’79, Josh Galant ’12, and Dominic Fiallo ’12 at annual 4th of July lobster cookout in Rhode Island

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04 | Remington Lyman ’12 poses in riflery uniform 05 | Andrew Jacobs ’12, Will Goodwin ’13, Alex Matalon ’12, Nick Hudson ’13, and Emilio Rocha ’13 in New York City 06 | Dom Fiallo ’12 proudly wears his Suffield t-shirt while volunteering as peer mentor and helping students with disabilities at Oberlin College

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Class Notes 103

Photography by Cole Hills ’13

Ciara Beaulieu In December I graduated from Connecticut College and am currently working as an intimate partner violence research associate at the National Network for Safe Communities in New York. It’s tough work, but I am loving every aspect of being in the big city!

Frank Bolella I am pleased to report that I graduated magna cum laude with a degree in finance and accounting at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, with a minor in economics. Outside of the classroom, I completed my term as president of my fraternity and was able to land a position as a business analyst at Cognizant Technology Solutions. Over the past year, I have maintained contact with many Suffield alumni, including Charles Reeb ’09, Alex Michel, Zac Czikowsky, Connor Kaplan, Emily Mandirola, Alex Apkin, Dan Bailey, and Frederick He ’15. After returning to the Academy for this year’s graduation, I was pleasantly surprised by the improvements and upgrades made to the facilities. In addition, I am proud to see that the Suffield traditions are stronger than ever. Congratulations to the Class of 2016.

Go, Tigers!

Jameson Everett I packed up my Jeep and drove across the country with Josh Galant to stake my claim in the film industry in Hollywood. After a few weeks of sleeping in various venues (mostly my car) I managed to land two jobs: one at a major film studio and the other in TV ad production. Eight months later... I’m finishing up my degree in film & television from the Savannah College of Art & Design, and moving back to Los Angeles. I’m currently searching for finance for my next

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film, Dinner With Romeo, which I plan to direct this year. I’m excited about the future and grateful for all my friends from Suffield whom I continue to see every year.

Remington Lyman I just finished up my fourth year at Ohio State University as a six time All-American.

I tried out for the 2016 Olympics for smallbore rifle; shot well but placed seventh. It was a good end to my shooting career. I plan on continuing to work for JPMorgan Chase. Over spring break I visited the Baileys and they showed me all of the renovations at Suffield. The staff did a great job planning and executing them.

I thought the living wall was beautiful!

Alexis Page My undergraduate career at Endicott College has been such an unforgettable experience. I am sad to say it has come to an end. This past year I completed a semester-long internship teaching in a kindergarten and first-grade classroom in an elementary school in Newburyport, Massachusettes. After graduation in May, I immediately began my graduate career at Merrimack College, where I plan to earn my master’s degree in moderate disabilities, ranging from grades K–8.

During this yearlong master’s program, I will be teaching in the Haverhill Public School district. Although I will not have the opportunity to work at Suffield this summer like I have in previous years, I will continue to visit campus as often as I can.

Molly Stromoski During the spring semester of my senior year at Pratt Institute, I was fortunate enough to have my first photography gallery show “Mending Fences.“ After working on this series for a year and a half,

the end result included an exhibition of an installation piece, video, and photography.

Throughout my senior year, I worked as a photo intern for the New York Observer, where I had the opportunity to assist on celebrity shoots, as well as numerous shooting assignments where my work was credited in print and online publications.

This year, I also completed my first half marathon with my mom in Monterey Bay, California. We have our second half already planned in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and we are in the process of planning our 2017 destination race. I truly appreciate my time at Suffield Academy, and I have fond memories of the time spent there. Thank you to the individuals I met at Suffield who helped complete my senior thesis series.

2013 Georgina Blakeley | Jamie Johnson Andrés Fernández Vílchez | Jay Fields Wynn Mason | Chris McCormick Paul Metscher | Noel Nakamura Jay O’Brien | Jay Prasad | Emilio Rocha Mike Simmons Cole Hills I am pleased to say that I am going into the Entrepreneurship Program at Bryant University in the fall. I have a passion for design and thinking of creative products.

I have many ideas and plan to market in the future. Bryant will help me pursue my dreams as an inventor and entrepreneur.

Recently I have taken up photography as a hobby and would love for you all to enjoy a couple recent images I took (shown above).

Through my photography I have gained a new respect for nature. I hope everyone in the Suffield community is doing well. Love you all. Please reach out to me if you would

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01 | Jack Fay ’13 (Brandeis University) and Mack Montague ’13 (University of Rochester) competing on the hardwood in January 02 | Izzara Ugarte ’14, Javier Fernandez, and Inigo Ugarte ’16 at Bernabeu Stadium in Spain 03 | Ryan Tettemer ’13, Annie Pitkin ’12, Marysa Massoia ’15, and Val Schwein ’13 at the UAA conference banquet in Florida this winter 04 | Cheryl Kuo ’13 with peers studying abroad through Cornell’s School of Architecture Art and Planning program in Venice, Italy 05 | Angelina ’13 and Marysa Massoia ’15 with Val Schwein ’13 and Annie Pitkin ’12 in Florida this winter 06 | Erin Ferraro ’13 and Georgina Blakeley ’13 during the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Watch Party at Villanova University in April

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Left Noel Nakamura ’13 and Jacqueline Autuori ’13 in Copenhagen, Denmark, during Noel’s term abroad Right Alton Sioussat ’13 skiing Mt. Chamonix in Switzerland

like to see more photos or if you would like to collaborate on some fun ideas. A special thank you to Mr. Melendez ’07 for being an important role model to me and many with pushing us to reach for the stars, but more importantly to live in the moment and to live and love everyone with an open heart.

Erin Ferraro Hi, Suffield! I finished up my junior year at Villanova University, and this has been the best semester I’ve had yet. As many know, Villanova won the NCAA men’s basketball championship and our campus is filled with excitement and energy! So many Suffield alumni and faculty members reached out to me after the huge win, and it was fun getting to reconnect with everyone. This year has been busy with school and clinical work, but it is paying off. I was offered an opportunity to work at Georgetown University Hospital in a Thoracic ICU for the summer. I hope to be back soon to visit!

Jay Fields I’m sure that many of you share my sentiment that our college years are flying by much too quickly. As my junior year is winding down, I’m looking forward to enjoying a great senior year at Trinity with some of my fellow Suffield alumni who took their talents to Hartford with me. This past year I was lucky enough to travel to Munich, Germany, for Oktoberfest and

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serendipitously ran into fellow Suffield grads enjoying some of Germany’s greatest beers. I also had the opportunity to take some time to study at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business and travel to Santorini and Mykonos. This summer I will either be working in Stamford or the greater Hartford area, but mostly focusing on studying for the GMATs and applying to grad schools.

To anyone I have not yet seen since graduation, I wish you the absolute best and hope that you have found yourself in a community as great as the one we created for ourselves in our years together at Suffield. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Suffield’s faculty and staff for their persistent drive to better Suffield for future generations of Tigers. Hope to see you all soon and best wishes.

Richie Freckleton I’m a rising senior at NYU studying economics and Chinese.

Victoria Kiarsis I am doing all right; still in Boston. Recently I’ve been shocked by the number of young people ages 18–24 that I know that have been taken from this world because of drugs and alcohol. I’ve been working to raise awareness about drug addiction and changing the stigma attached to this disease.

Cheryl Kuo I studied abroad in Rome through Cornell’s School of Architecture, Art, and Planning program as an urban planning major. We did hands-on urban design work, studied architectural history from the Middle Ages up to the Renaissance and Baroque Rome, and on-site sketching and drawing analysis.

We were also able to go on some field trips around Italy this semester, which were great experiences.

Victoria Page I have spent the past three years as an arts management major with a minor in leadership at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Prior to graduating, I interned at The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, and Massachusetts Cultural Council, as well as others. After graduating in May, I began my career in development at The Clark where I will be working for the next six months before moving on. Although I will be in Williamstown, Massachusetts, I will visit the SA campus whenever I head home.

Jack Patterson Hey, Suffield! Hopefully everyone is doing awesome in college or wherever our Suffield alums are. I still attend Bryant University and am a communications major in what I

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01 | Frederick He ’15 and Frank Bolella ’12 wearing SA memorabilia proudly—both are members of Chi Phi at Boston University 02 | Stephanie Greer ’15 with Frisbee team at spring break in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 03 | Class of 2015 golf foursome of Andrew Chuma, Mike Manoogian, Trent Crossan and Jack Kalmbach 04 | Abby Blyler ’15 with her Middlebury recruiting class last fall 05 | Sam Averbuck ’15 and Juwan Anderson ’15 open league play against one another in January 06 | Kelsey Burke ’15 with Hannah Bellorado ’15 at George Washington University 07 | Stephanie Greer ’15 (middle) with Delta Gamma sisters at the University of Richmond

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Class Notes 107

2015 Nick Alfano | Sarah Apkin | Mike Barit Hannah Bellorado | Abby Blyler Olivia Caligiuri | Rhi Fletcher Brad Gibson | Andy Guo | Owen Hern Pierson Holliday | Gray Johnson Jahi Locke | Emily Lowe | Marysa Massoia Kim Meunier | Endy Morales | Sarah Pickup Kelly Taylor | Ingunn Ukvitne | Ali Veitch Christian Wilkins

Class of 2015 graduates Andrew Chuma, Mike Manoogian, Trent Crossan and Jack Kalmbach at a Yankees game in May

feel like is a world of businessmen. And yes, I am still a faculty child (Will Goodwin). I’ve been out of baseball for a while, but guys like Christian Wilkins ’15 and Brice McAllister ’14 and everyone playing college athletics keep me motivated. I miss everyone from our class and cannot wait to catch up at our next reunion!

Alton Sioussat I was recently appointed to the Board of Trustees at the Kildonan School in Amenia, New York. This makes me the youngest ever appointee to the Kildonan board. The Kildonan School specializes in the education of dyslexic students. I’m entering senior year at Colby College after finishing up last semester abroad in Copenhagen.

Hope everyone is doing well!

2014 Kevin Cournoyer | Julie Doten Sam Feldman | Charlotte Hinrichs Shivang Jhunjhnuwala | Briana Matthews Brice McAllister | Zach McCormick Jono Nelson | Alexis Sarris Denny Smythe | Izzy Thompson Ricky Ball Trinity has been amazing for me thus far and I feel like I couldn’t have picked a better college to attend. Sending everyone my best in the Class of 2014.

Julie Doten Sophomore year at Tufts was a busy one.

I have declared majors in economics and Spanish, as well as a minor in film and

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media studies. I am currently the production director for an independent student newspaper, The Tufts Daily, and the head of music for a student-run production studio, Tufts University Television (TUTV).

I have done a lot in film this past year. My credits include producer for various music videos and a short horror film; editor of two episodes for a webseries called Pantheon University (as well as assistant directing one of those episodes); script supervisor and PR chair for a film titled Affection; and most recently, director of a narrative music video for Honeysuckle, a local Boston band. After such a busy year, I am extremely excited to study abroad in Madrid and Alcalà, Spain for the fall semester. I want to wish my brother Kevin ’16 the best of luck in college, as he graduated from SA this past May and will be studying at Northeastern in the fall.

Izzy Thompson I absolutely love the Midwest and everything that the University of Denver has to offer me. I’ve changed my major to international business with a minor in law, which I’ll be continuing when I study in Prague, Czech Republic next fall. I’ll be very excited to come back to DU next winter to join my fellow Suffield Tigers/Denver Pioneers: Susannah Ferris ’15, Piper Holliday ’15, Jesse Phillips ’15 and Clare Lillie!

Izzara Ugarte I have just been offered a 6-month internship in Hong Kong! If anyone happens to be in the area, let me know! I was able to visit campus this spring to see my brother Inigo ’16 and the Class of 2016 graduate.

Hope all my classmates are well!

Amanda Baildon Life on College Hill at Lafayette reminds me a lot of life on Bell Hill. The sunsets are not nearly as gorgeous, but seeing other SA alums on campus is very nostalgic. I’ve decided on the dual degree program for math and economics, was hired as a resident advisor, helped pioneer the scholar advising committee, and finished my third college theatre performance (as a gorilla, no less).

I can’t wait to come back and visit Suffield again soon. KASA! Mike Barit My first year away from Suffield has been great but a bit hectic. I attended Pitzer College in the fall and transferred to the College of Charleston for the spring semester. Even though I transferred from Pitzer, leaving southern California, I really fell in love with the area. I was back in May and June to work at Quiksilver. I was offered an unpaid summer internship to work in the marketing department in Huntington Beach, California. I also worked at a few of the Quiksilver stores, so I dipped my toes in sales, but my main focus was marketing.

Suffield has played a large role in preparing me for these kinds of opportunities. I miss the place terribly—Suffield will always be home.

Hannah Bellorado Missing my Suffield family! I am having so much fun here in Washington, DC. Last fall I joined the GW club lacrosse team which has been a great experience, but I am for sure missing the SA team and all the laughs we had. I was also lucky to have Kelsey come down during the spring. It really shows how Suffield friendships will last a lifetime!

Abby Blyler My soccer team at Middlebury College made it to the NESCAC semifinals this year and are looking to take home the championship in the fall. I have a family in my team and am really enjoying life at “Midd” and want to thank Suffield for helping me get here!

Kelsey Burke Hi, Suffield! My first year here at Providence went well. This year I joined Community Outreach, a community service club that goes to different schools in Rhode Island and helps kids with homework, as well as participating in activities such as sports and the arts. I joined a club that was focused on community because during my time at Suffield I realized how important it was to get involved and help other people.

I can’t wait to be on campus sometime soon again. Wishing everyone a great rest of the school year!

Stephanie Greer I have been having a wonderful time at the University of Richmond. I recently joined the Delta Gamma sorority and am loving getting to know my new sisters. I have had the opportunity to make some amazing friendships at UR, and it is very hard to express just how much I love it here. I interned this summer at the Division of Public Defender Services in Rockville, Connecticut, as I am pursuing a PPEL (a major joining philosophy, politics, economics, and law) with a concentration in philosophy. I am also planning on minoring in Spanish. Furthermore, I am an avid member of Richmond’s club Frisbee team. We all stayed for about a week in Myrtle Beach this spring break for a tournament which, although quite cold, was a good time. I was recently offered a position as a resident assistant in a freshman dorm for this upcoming school year and am looking forward to that as well. This past summer I became a certified Zumba instructor and have been teaching at my university gym. My transition to college was fairly easy. Although the workload is much more, Suffield gave me the time management skills I need to succeed here.

Critical thinking is a big theme at UR, and due to the time spent on this topic at Suffield, I was fully prepared for that.

The professors here make the transition to college very easy and almost seamless. I hope all is well at Suffield, and I will definitely visit this summer.

Emily Lowe Hi, Suffield! My first year at USC has flown by, and I could not be more pleased with the decision I made just one short year ago. Although I am all the way across the country from home, the Trojan family is truly as welcoming and loving as my dear old Suffield family, and I can’t say enough positive things about the school. The classes have been challenging yet rewarding. I am thrilled to have been accepted to a program with the USC Marshall School of Business to travel to Syndey, Australia, shortly after I finish finals. In Sydney, I will be with a group of 45 other USC freshmen meeting with executives from Apple, Google, Amazon, KPMG, Costco, and various other businesses to learn in depth about their experiences conducting global business. Outside of the classroom, I have enjoyed getting involved with student organizations on campus and taking advantage of all that sunny Los Angeles has to offer. I think of Suffield very often with nostalgia and look forward to reuniting with my fellow Suffield alums.

Molly Tettemer So much has happened in the past eight months, but it feels like I just moved into my dorm yesterday. I like to think I have adjusted well to the college atmosphere since it is so different from high school. I declared my major in environmental engineering and recently pledged the sorority Alpha Gamma Delta. I am a bank teller at Westfield Bank for the summer. Suffield for life!

Endy Morales ’15 delivering a pitch for the West Virginia Mountaineers

SUBMIT YOUR CLASS NOTES FOR THE NEXT ISSUE OF SUFFIELD SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG/CLASSNOTES (DEADLINE IS 10.31.16) SEND YOUR CLASS NOTE AND PHOTOGRAPH(S) TO Harry Melendez III ’07, Director of Alumni Relations 185 North Main Street Suffield, Connecticut 06078 hmelendez@suffieldacademy.org NOTE If submitting digitally through email, please send your high-quality file(s) (preferably 300 dpi) to suffield.magazine@gmail.com If submitting prints through the mail, please send a photo-lab quality print

Class Notes 109

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Weddings 01

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Liju Chen ’03 & Mark Wilkerson 07.19.2015

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Nicholas Faas ’01 & Kelsey Flanagan 08.01.15

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Dan Matchett ’08 & Keegan Frobey 11.23.15

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Tom DeCosmo ’05 & Audrey Suskind 04.09.16

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04 Chris Stafford ’06 & Tyler Hornyak 10.17.15

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Engagements 01

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01 Steve Root ’06 to Meghan O’Connell 02 Kristen LaPlante ’06 to Craig Beall 04

03 Kellyn McGarity ’02 to Jimmie Blount 04 Christin Peters ’06 to Daniel Tate 05 Becca Joslow ’08 to Justin MacGregor 06 Scott Phillips ’08 to Liz McKellar

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07 Leah Hunter ’07 to Nick Gunn

Not Pictured: Meredith Rarus ’07 to Daley Wilson 06

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Births 01

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Hilary Golas Rouse ’02 & husband Dave, a boy on 08.21.15 Jack Richard Rouse

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Khadim Diouf ’07 & wife Phyleka Rogers Mareme Khyli Diouf, a girl on 02.27.16

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Peter Snedeker ’02 & wife Lindsay, a girl on 02.09.16 Julie Steele Snedeker

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Sarah Glass Fitzsimmons ’02 & husband Matthew, a girl on 04.05.15 Maizie Elizabeth Fitzsimmons

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Lindsay Carleton ’01 & husband Dan, a girl on 12.24.15 Philippa Wren

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Carolyn Rosca Johnson ’05 & husband Kevin, a boy on 03.01.16 Chase Clayton Johnson

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Amy Groszyk Sheiber ’99 & husband Rick, a boy on 11.14.15 Samuel James Sheiber

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Alex Vinograd ’02 & wife Serra, a boy on 04.04.15 Mattia Vinograd

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FROM ALL OF US AT SUFFIELD

Thank You OVER 2875 ALUMNI, PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, FRIENDS, AND FACULTY DONATED TO THE 2016 ANNUAL FUND TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS AND EVERYTHING THAT MAKES THEIR EDUCATION THE VERY BEST.

42% ALUMNI 89% PARENT 100% FACULTY

your participation

2016 ALUMNI EVENTS 09.10

alumni sports day | 12 p.m. games begin ALUMNI VS STUDENTS: AN AFTERNOON OF SOCCER, WATER POLO, AND CROSS-COUNTRY, FOLLOWED

BY A COMMUNITY COOKOUT.

10.07

suffield academy golf outing | 11 a.m. registration TEE IT UP FOR A FUN DAY AT SUFFIELD COUNTRY CLUB! SIGN UP YOURSELF OR A TEAM, A SCRAMBLE FORMAT TOURNAMENT, FOLLOWED BY HAPPY HOUR AND DINNER IN THE SUNSET TAVERN.

10.04

bermuda reception | 6–8 p.m.

AN INVITATION TO ATTEND AN ISLAND GATHERING AT THE HOME OF PETER AND ANN DURHAGER P’17, ’18.

10.14-16

reunion 2016 | registration friday p.m.

COME BACK AND JOIN US FOR THE WEEKEND, RECONNECT WITH FRIENDS, SEE WHAT’S NEW ON CAMPUS, CHEER ON OUR ATHLETES, SHARE AN EVENING OF FINE FOOD AND MUSIC.

for information on all alumni events contact: HARRY MELENDEZ III ’07, DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI RELATIONS HMELENDEZ@SUFFIELDACADEMY.ORG | 860.386.4463

SUFFIELD ACADEMY 185 NORTH MAIN STREET SUFFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06078

Reunion

october 14-16, 2016

S U F F I E L D A C A D E M Y.O R G / R E U N I O N