Parents’ Post A Newsletter for Parents and Friends of The Thacher School
Year-End 2000
Dear Parents, Grandparents, and Friends: This final Post of the year is born during that strangely disquieting (if quiet) interstice between the boisterous, celebratory end of our year and the productive buzz of Thacher’s Teach The Teachers summer program. Classrooms are empty, startlingly neat and orderly; tennis courts and sports fields are green blanks; the Pergola is vacant, the wooden Toadstools near it cleared of bowls of graham crackers and milk cartons. But it’s only momentary, a still prelude to certain ensuing activity. This final issue, then, toasts that activity, which is, after all, the very life of the School. That the primary element of it is now in your homes means that what follows can serve as a prompt: Be sure to prod your daughter or son for more details of our last few weeks as the 111th Thacher School.
ON THEIR WAY… …in the College Board’s annual National Merit Scholarship Program are no fewer than seventeen juniors named in a letter received by Head of School Michael Mulligan. Noted for their “outstanding academic potential” were the following, whose names were read at an Assembly in May: Dave Babbott, Chris Bonewitz, Jennifer Bowie, Mary Ann Bronson, Canyon Cody, Matt Cohen, Peter Frykman, Katie Harmon, Emmett Hopkins, Erin Johnson, Brian Kelly, Caitlin Mulholland, Smitha Reddy, Kevin Schmidt, Anthea Tjuanakis, Meredith Walker, and Emma White.
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FOR THE HUNDREDTH TIME… Thacher students and faculty once again pitched in full force as court managers, security, press helpers, cleaning crew and—the most visible and acclaimed role—ball boys and ball girls—in the 100th Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament. Founded by our founder’s brother, William Larned Thacher, the four-day OVTT is the oldest and largest (1600 entrants) amateur tourney in the country, “a rite of passage for anyone playing tennis in Southern California,” according to former participant, Billy Jean King. Winning Chief Organizer Chris Mazzola’s award for being the “Most Cheerful under the Most Tedious and Adverse Conditions” were Joy Bergeron, Gavin McClintock, Betsy Bradford, and Canyon Cody, each of whom took a shift at punching security gate numbers at a distant outpost in the Valley. In addition to all those helping to keep the event afloat, Thacher brought four players to the nets: Tim Stenovec in CIF singles, Troy Pollet in the 14-and-Unders, and Andrew DeYoung and Dave Babbott in CIF doubles. Pictured here, some of the ballpersons on popsicle break.
CALL OF THE WILD By all kinds of self-propulsion—hiking, paddling, riding—Thacher student and faculty campers fanned out to several wilderness areas during this spring’s Extra Day Trips: to the Los Padres (including stops at favorite and long-established Thacher camps on the Sespe River), the Colorado River, the High and Low Sierra (see photo, next column, for proof of igloobuilding in May—by Tessa Enright, Laurel Hastings, Emmett Hopkins, and others on their backpacking trip), the Sisquoc, and even, for one fortunate group, the Navajo Reservation of Arizona and New Mexico, where, as guests of the Alex and Cooke families, they partook in a ritual slaughter and butchering of a sheep. 100-plus temperatures in some places, star-filled skies at night for everyone, strategically located natural pools for swimming in (horses, too, of course),
some high winds and steep trails, a snake or two (Bobby Kellogg and Jamie Everett said the rattler they kill’d, skin’d, and et tasted, well, a lot like chicken), a few notched knees (human and equine) and a bit of sunburn planted the kind of memories that only grow better and riper with each telling—and that make reunions down the road even more fun for all those peculiarly Thacheresque rememberthe-times.
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SHORT TAKES When push came to shove (actually, it never got that physical), Dave Babbott edged out Betsy Bradford in this spring’s Geography Bee. Orchestrated and run by Clay Pell, the competition drew a big crowd to Room 14, where we all learned a great deal about this wide world of A busload of Cate juniors dieseled onto campus midours. e spring to join Thacher juniors for the annual College Fair, a day of reviewing mock admission folders with selected deans of admission from colleges and universities across the country, including American University, Boston University, Barnard, Cornell, Bryn Mawr, Carleton, Columbia, Reed, University of Chicago, USC, Pitzer, OcBig cidental, Mills, Macalester, Harvey Mudd, and Williams. e thanks to Elaine Elliott (Alison Flynn’s mom) for the several bags of games for Open House. From one end of the house to the other, they’ve been put to immediate and sometimes fiercely competitive use! e Director of the Horse Program Cam Schryver announced recently that, in recognition of her extra effort, energy, and indefatigable behind-the-scenes contributions to the Horse Program, Sara Thacher could wear the esteemed perpetual Shakta Bearstep Silver Buckle. This is an occasional award, one given in only unusually compelling circumstances—the sort that seem to happen whenever Sara’s around. e As featured artist with the local Ojai Camerata (the Valley’s premier select vocal ensemble) in their spring concert, senior coloratura Marisa Binder sang the soprano solo of Rutter’s Magnificat to the thrill of two weekend The Ojai Rotary Club just named lacrosse and audiences. e soccer player Annie Nyborg (pictured here with her father, Neils during Gymkhana Family Weekend) as its May Athlete of the Month, citing her “legacy of leadership and accomplishment.” e News came from the Ventura County Star last month that four members of The Thacher Notes staff had been honored for design and writing: Co-editors Clay Pell and Marisa Binder, Marley Orr for a sports feature, and Emmett Hopkins (twice) for news writing. Beaming in the wings when the announcement was made were proud faculty advisors to that publication: Elizabeth Bowman and Bert Mahoney. e Taking first place in both the Speed Chess and the Untimed Chess Tournaments was senior (and president of the club) Paul Bonewitz. Giving him a run for his money in those two events were Will Chamberlain and Heidi Cole. e
The stunning Advanced Placement Studio Art Calendar many of you saw (and purchased) at Gymkhana Family Weekend was, it turns out, a big seller. No real surprise there, given the quality of the works by Megan Winecoff, Sara Thacher, Allegra Towns, Hannah Hooper, Celeste Thomas, Carissa Ridegway, Tara Desjardins, and Anthea Tjuanakis. All profits, the artists decided, would go towards purchasing art supplies for students in local public elementary schools, an on-going project near and dear to the hearts of these young women. e Bobby Kellogg and Ronald Wu have earned sufficient stripes out at the stables, on trails and on the gymkhana field to be elected to PTS—the Thacher Pack and Spur Club. e Elected to the Ventura County Athletes’ Hall of Fame for the year 2000 were Cheryl Lynn Horton (volleyball, basketball, lacrosse, and pictured here hoisting the fifth-in-a-row State Lacrosse Championship trophy) and A n w a r W h i t e (basketball, tennis, here with his coach, A-J Goldman). e We didn’t have to wait for summer for the arrival of the first of The Four Babies to arrive: born to Phoebe and Mark Larson on the first of June was Gordon Fairburn Larson, weighing in at 6 lb., 11 oz. Next up: Chris and Rich Mazzola in late July, followed by the DelVecchios mid-August, and finally, in September, the Mahoneys, first-timers to the whole shenanigans. e A classic: a mathematical scavenger hunt created this spring by A-J Goldman (Mathematics), offered a final clue that read, “The Fibonacci sequence and the Thacher School.” It was senior Kirby Williams who figured out that the clue would lead to some public version of The Chambered Nautilus—the Oliver Wendell Holmes poem read by the Head of School at the first Assembly of the year. (The nautilus, in fact, is a perfect example of the Fibonacci sequence in nature—a list of numbers in which you add the previous two numbers in order to get to the next number, e.g., 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, etc. The chambers of the nautilus increase in size in exactly this proportion.) As the clever Kirby deduced, the winning envelope was taped behind the picture of the nautilus in the Library. e This spring, three seniors made one a last attempt at Silver Dollar fame and glory. Wayne Chang, Clay Pell, and Nate Faggioli saddled up, mounted, and rode out to the Gymkhana Field where, in the presence of Jack Huyler, Emeritus Director of the Horse Program and staunch guardian of Thacher tradition and lore, each successfully reached for the shining coin and scooped it up.
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THE GREAT OUTDOORS… …was the setting all spring long for the Advanced Climbers: Brooke Halsey, Nate Faggioli, Addie Hearst (all three “stand-outs in the Program,” according to their leader, Brian Pidduck), Ella Goodbrod, Carissa Ridgeway, Fritz Rice, Kevin Schmidt (named Most Improved ), Carlos Soriano, and Andrew Warren—students who have already learned the fundamental skills and techniques and who want to delve more deeply into the intricacies of rock climbing. “It’s a sort of apprenticeship in alpinism,” explained Mr. Pidduck, “ as we examine the psychological and physiological aspects of climbing performance, and then put them into practice.” Other areas of inquiry and hands-on (and feet-on) examination: anchor systems, lead climbing, basic mountain rescue. The group ventured to world-class climbing areas in Yosemite Valley, Joshua Tree, the Needles and the Eastern Slope of the Sierra Nevada.
ALSO OUT THERE… …were the hardy kayakers who, under the guidance of Jamie Dial, practiced enough Eskimo rolls (50 consecutive does the trick) to qualify them for waterways as close as the Pacific at Ventura and as distant as the Kern River. Pictured here, the wet set: Laura Slattery, Alden Blair, Lauren Fraim, Peter Warman, Julien Rhodes, Mr. Dial (standing), Carina Fisher, Heidi Cole, and Tessa Enright.
THE GAVEL PASSES Kristin Berona, School Chair for this past academic year, announced at Assembly to loud and supportive cheers that Caitlin Mulholland (pictured here with Kristin and Mr. Mulligan at the All-School Banquet) would don the mantle of leadership for the year 2000-01. Caitlin’s worthy opponents in the finalist race were Chris Brown and Emily Dachs.
SPRING SPORTS TRACK Coaches: Derick Perry, Kurt Meyer, Sarah DelVecchio Captains: Todd Meyer, Eric Reeser, Justin Hilton, Juliette White The core of this team, formed by athletes who’d run for three years, “made it possible to train and compete more intensely than in recent history,” reported Coach Perry. “Each captain contributed to the feeling of camaraderie and competitiveness”—and helped to inspire the kind of sportsmanship that resulted in their being awarded a Tony Dunn. The boys’ 4 X 400m relay—Justin Hilton, Kirby Williams, Bo Eison, and Eric “Like-a-coyote-on-a-kitten”* Reeser— established a new school record in that event, while Logan Clark blasted through school records in both the 1600m and the 3200m, and finished second in CIF Division IV championships in the 3200m. No surprise that she won Most Valuable Runner, nor that she won MVP of the League Meet, as well. There, Allegra Towns (pictured here hurdling with her sister, Zoë) took the 300 Intermediate Hurdles and Deloria Many Grey Horses Lane the 800m. Most Improved were Justin Arnold and Zoë Towns. “I can’t say enough about the dedication and commitment of these runners,” concluded Perry. “The future looks bright with competitors such as these, as well as
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Canyon Cody and Gavin McClintock,” pictured here with Chris Brown hard on his heels. *The words of Coach DelVecchio, describing how Eric appeared as he zoomed up on the Cate runner ahead of him in the final leg of the relay. VARSITY BOYS’ TENNIS Coach: A-J Goldman Captain: Anwar White “What a year!” was just about all Coach Goldman could utter at the end of this banner season, in which his team hammered its way to an 11-1 League record, to a 15-3 season record, to the CIF quarterfinals—and on the way, won a Tony Dunn award for their fine sportsmanship both on and off the courts. The boys dedicated their season to the memory of Frederick Stymetz Lamb, CdeP ’40, faculty member and coach of many victorious Thacher tennis teams during his decades of service to the School and to tennis in the Ojai Valley. With seniors Anwar White, Clay Pell, and Paul Bonewitz setting the tone and example of excellence, the rest couldn’t help but follow. The endof-season play involved handing Cate a defeat in the two schools’ final 13-5 match. Two increasingly formidable players won Most Valuable and Most Improved: Dave Babbott and Nick Horton, respectively. And with only three seniors leaving the ranks, there’s clearly much to look forward to in the years immediately ahead.
terfinals. Named Most Improved was first-timer Matt Spille; Most Valuable, Matty Wilson. “Each and every player contributed to the season’s success,” continued Mazzola. “With only one senior graduating, we can hardly wait ’til next spring!” VARSITY GIRLS’ LACROSSE Coaches: Greg Courter, Mary Everett, CdeP ’94 Captains: Cheryl Lynn Horton, Annie Nyborg Winner of the State Championship title for the fifth consecutive year, this team demonstrated “some of the best defense a Thacher team has ever played” reported Coach Courter. They gave up an average of only four goals per game while scoring an average of 13 per contest—the underpinnings of their juggernaut repeat sweep of the Condor League, 9-0. Erin Hafkenschiel, Anthea Tjuanakis, Meredith Flannery, Brooke Toeller, and Ellie Fletcher were the core of that fearsome defensive unit, playing aggressively and cohesively. Leading the offensive charge (over and over) were seniors Cheryl Lynn Horton (69 goals, 15 assists), Besse Gardner (39 goals, 27 assists), and Annie Nyborg (43 goals, 25 assists), while at midfield, Andrea Black, Liz Sanseau, and Sarah Morrow provided speed and excitement in the transition game. At the State Championships, held at Thacher this year, two of ours were named Most Valuable: Cheryl Lynn as the Offensive MVP, and goalie Caitlin Mulholland as Defensive MVP.
JV BOYS’ TENNIS Coach: David Johnston Captain: Peter Hartnack Another Tony Dunn winner, this team played “with willingness and a great sense of perspective,” according to their coach. Emmett Hopkins—“our most consistent winner when teamed with Andrew Poole in doubles”—proved a force to contend with, as did Tyler Manson when he put his killer serve to work against the opposition. Other team members included Lee Wittlinger, Brian Kelly, Dan Moore, Max Leeds, Andrew Ma, and David Gal.
JV GIRLS’ LACROSSE Coach: Diana Garcia, CdeP ’95
BASEBALL
Captains: Felicity Howe, Kristin Berona
Coaches: Rich Mazzola, Robert Torres
Despite the relative inexperience of this team, its roster was filled with determined, gutsy players, from the four seniors (Felicity, Kristin, Lacey Gordon, and Erin Blankenship—who collectively won Most Valuable Players) straight on down through the ranks of juniors and sophomores. Quoth Coach Garcia,“I was very impressed by the girls’ ability to overcome their uncertainties about this sport, especially in clinch moments against more experienced teams.” The squad improved dramatically during their weeks together, though, ultimately beating teams they’d lost to earlier in the season. Leading scorers were Erin and Felicity, while Most Improved were Bea Staley, Charlotte Lord (also most assists), and Stephanie Hubbard. “We could not have had such a great season without the tenacity, enthusiasm and versatility of all the players, especially of our goalies, Esther Guzman and Kindra Clemence.”
Captains: Matt Cohen, Matty Wilson With an early-in-the-season charge led by Matty Wilson, who had three home runs and two wins on the pitcher’s mound during the first four games, this team marched undaunted and headlong to great achievement this spring. Alfred English had his days in the sun, too, both behind the plate (where he’d never played before) and on the mound, where, in one game, he struck out fifteen players in a five-inning 11-1 win over OVS. According to Coach Mazzola, “The regular season highlight came with a barn-burner, 10-9 victory over Cate that included a two-run triple by Michael Back, a suicide squeeze bunt by Matty, and Alfred’s relieving Matty to pitch the last two innings.” Post-season play extended all the way to the CIF quar-
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SCHOOL THE THACHER ION PARENTS ASSOCIAT Dear Parents,
99-2000 was ol year flew by! 19 ho sc e th y kl ic qu how and a freshman. obably amazed at a graduating senior th bo d ha e w Like us, you are pr as us in the warmth and bittersweet for s and their families nt de stu g tin ee especially exciting gr rday ans that take we were just yeste uated, each with pl ad gr s ha 00 20 of It seems as though s clas d now the ebullient of September—an . ld or w e th rners of him or her to far co iation. The acher Parents Assoc Th e th of ts en sid re co-p tion, staff, sturiching to serve as faculty, administra , rs ee nt lu vo It has been truly en nt re e pa e so enjoyed mmitment from th rience first-hand. W pe ex to al en om enthusiasm and co en ph the year, we Trustees has been in our final letter of e, er H u. yo of y dents, and Board of an m airs who generd work alongside so ding committee ch an tst ou e th to t getting to know an en dgm e it so much grateful acknowle od cheer. You mad go ng ili fa un ith would like to give w gy d Lisa Grant their time and ener s), Kathy Back an ue ec rb Ba nd ke ously gave hours of ee W , Elizabeth Hefz Hastings (Family nnual Fund Drive) A t’s en ar (P n fun! Newlin and Li to or H ina s), Diane and Bill tsy Grether and N (Thacher Gear Sale parents’ Days), Be nd go Barra ar (G M d ), ol ay rn D A Joan ppreciation A ty ul ac (F felfinger (Library), an m hu ed leadership, t Auction), Pam Sc tion and enlighten za ni ga or ur Yo Toumanoff (Paren ). ight Braitman (Grad N e for a great year. bakow and Lynn of volunteers, mad s am te tic ge er en lwart, along with your sta nts Association ith the myriad Pare w t ou ed lp he ho w u king birthday and every one of yo at your homes, to ta ls ea m r fo s Thank you to each am te ts freely and support . From hosting spor you have given so , se ou H n pe activities this year O to to donating games cakes to the dorms, at Thacher has pletely. It is clear th the School so com s as well. It nts, but great parent not only great stude we hope d king with you all an was a pleasure wor ngratulate n as we did. We co you had as much fu over the Parrether as they take Betsy and John G u an advenins, and we wish yo ents Association re od measure! summer, each in go turous and languid Warm Regards, Ridgeway Jennifer and Rick eron ’03) (Carissa ’00, Cam
) 646-4377 • FAX
• (805 IA 93023-9001 JAI, CALIFORN O • D OA R 5025 THACHER
(805) 640-1033
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FAREWELL, NOT GOODBYE… …to those faculty and staff members who are moving back to or towards new personal adventures or professional endeavors: • Catherine Jappe, who slid gracefully and ably behind the Study Skills desk when Wendy McCobb moved on this year; • Bobby Acquistapace, CdeP ’95, who pitched in cheerfully and capably in the stable area, gymkhana field and trails winding over the Ridge and into the Sespe; • Richard Heller, who returns to his horse ranching full-time after his year with us in the Math classroom; • Andrew Ho, physics, who knocked our collective socks off with his classroom, sports field, ballroom, and podium knowledge and elan; • Bill Vickery, whose service as Athletic Director and Condor League coordinator set a new standard for commitment and excellence and whose eye for detail is unequaled; • Cecilia Ortiz, who, with her husband David and daughters Eve and Hannah, will spend her sabbatical year in Spain.
A WAY OF ENDING Sleeping bags are aired and put away, the last soot is scrubbed from the camp pots, then books and binders are stacked and ordered, some studying resumes, formal dinner and then…the dusty walk up to the Memorial Pergola and Outdoor Chapel, where, annually, we stand to hear the Head of School intone the names of those Thacher men who gave their lives in various wars. From there, to Senior Vespers where, this year, Dean of Students Chris Mazzola (chosen Kristin Berona, by the seniors to be their School Chair, 1999-2000 speaker) ruminated on some wisdom first handed to her years ago by her father in a small frame: a copy of the words of 18th century English essayist, poet, and statesman Joseph Addison. On this paper were what he called “the three great essentials to happiness in life: something to do, something to love, something to hope for.” She concluded,“Our lives
“As you fly into summer with open arms, remember the balance between flaws and perfection. And when you come back next fall, though you may strive for perfection, remember to appreciate the imperfections in any endeavor. You can escape that glass bottle of your ego; you can escape into the forests, no matter where you are.”
have been intertwined here to such an extent that I feel it’s fitting that I take the advice that my beloved father gave to me all those years ago and pass it along to you now…It is really all you need to know.” (Pictured here, Wayne Chang giving a reading.) And so the end begins. Final exams follow apace, then the All-School Banquet, the final time for this year that the community as we know it (see ToadTalk, page 15, for Bo Manson’s view of this phenomenon) is gathered in one place. There, we honor and cheer various individual accomplishments, hear the School Chair’s parting words, and say our good-byes to freshmen and sophomores, who leave the next morning in loaded cars or vans or busses to the airport. In that last dusk together, under the still pepper trees of the Pergola, we hear the names of those whose work and achievement have earned them academic commendations, or of those who have distinguished themselves in other areas central to Thacher’s mission: the horse, outdoor and camping programs, and community service.
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Big Gym Family W
The weather for Big Gymkhana this year was Goldilocks-right: not too hot, not too cold, not too sunny, not too cloudy— making the riding, spectating, timing, and cheering out at the field a particular pleasure for the crowd of young, middle-aged, and older folks involved. Hurry-scurrying, rescuing, jumping, ring-spearing, galloping, galloping, galloping: with the practice of several Wednesdays under their belts (or, in the case of upperclassmen, of several years), no race was too daunting for this gang of gung-ho riders. When the last handful of dirt flew into the air after the Silver Dollar Pick-Up, it was the Green Team that had prevailed, under the captaincy of Lucinda Brown and Darren Bechtel, raking in a total of 6433 points for the season. Orange (led by Wallis Adams and Sara Thacher) finished with 5385, and Blue (under the guidance of Christy Acquistapace and Alex Herbert) with 5180. After everyone had cleaned up some, Cam Schryver and other members of the Horse Department distributed the ribbons and other hardware in a ceremony held at the Wadsworth Gymnasium: to Ronald Wu and Christy Acquistapace, the coveted silver-studded perpetual bridles for Best All-Around Horsemanship in the sophomore or junior class; to Katherine Bechtel, the Top Freshman Rider Buckle and the Top English Rider Buckle
TOP TEN FRESHMEN
Katherine Bechtel Luke Myers Owili Eison Phoebe Barkan Tyler Caldwell Troy Pollet Chance Phelps Phoebe Halsey Jonathan Walsh-Wilson Jacey Roche
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mkhana Weekend
TOP TEN RIDERS Darren Bechtel Ronald Wu Duncan Winecoff Katherine Bechtel Alex Herbert Lucinda Brown Wallis Adams Luke Myers Owili Eison Libby Rauner
(she’ll just have to alternate days, we guess). To big brother Darren Bechtel went the Overall High Point and the Overall Day High Point Buckles. Non-stop events elsewhere on campus: on the Twin Peaks Trap Range, Riley, CdeP ’70, and Darren Bechtel outshot the competition to win the Parent-Student Trap Shoot; on the tennis courts, for the second year running, it was Doubles Trouble Babbott/Babbott (David and Dave) victorious; in the Lamb Auditorium, song, dance, and drama lit up the stage; at the Outdoor Chapel, mountaineer, entrepreneur, and Thacher dad Rick Ridgeway spoke to the appreciative crowd. And the place of happy convergence on Saturday evening, the gym, where yet another artfully crafted and highly successful Parents’ Auction— thanks to the year-long efforts of Auction Chairs Nina Toumanoff and Betsy Grether—brought the generosity of donors together with the generosity of bidders to create a whopping $75,000 which, combined with other donations to the Parents’ Fund, support various aspects of the School’s programs. The creativity, purpose, and munificence of literally hundreds of people made the whole campus and the entire weekend buzz with excitement—and left a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction reverberating for many days afterwards.
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ACADEMIC COMMENDATIONS 1999-2000 (*indicates the top student in that discipline)
ENGLISH
MATHEMATICS
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Amy Vanderloop* Carrie Blayney Graham Dunn Katie Kuhl Emily Nathan Jacey Roche Maddie McQuillan* Claire Milligan * Meg Kwan Leigh Salem Noel Vietor
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Mary Ann Bronson* Hannah Carney Emmett Hopkins Brian Kelly Caitlin Mulholland Anthea Tjuanakis Meredith Walker
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Kristin Berona* Wayne Chang* Marisa Binder Erin Blankenship Lucinda Brown Lucy Milligan Mia Silverman The John Nash Robbins Short Story Prize: Meredith Walker The William Bishop Nixon Poetry Prize: Nikki Silverman
Alison Flynn* Katherine Bechtel Vincent Chen Phoebe Halsey Alex Huth Youna Kim* Claire Milligan Laurel Peterson Ronald Wu Erin Johnson* Mary Ann Bronson Emmett Hopkins Kevin Schmidt Brooke Halsey * Juliette White* Lucinda Brown Wayne Chang Lucy Milligan Clay Pell The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Award for Excellence in Science and Mathematics: Mary Ann Bronson
COMPUTER SCIENCE Darren Bechtel Wayne Chang Fred Kim Todd Meyer The Computer Science Award, to the junior who has done the best work in Computer Science: Kevin Schmidt Simon Xi
FOREIGN LANGUAGE Level I Katherine Bechtel* Stephanie Hubbard* Marisa Binder Katie Kuhl Andrew Ma Charlie Munzig Amy Vanderloop Level II Brooke Halsey * Sarah Shaikh* Mercedes Farrell Gavin McClintock Lucy Milligan Emily Nathan Laurel Peterson Katie Telischak
HISTORY
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Amy Vanderloop* Christopher Cahill Vincent Chen Owili Eison Julia Erdman Emily Nathan Katie Telischak
THE SCIENCES
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Christopher Cahill* Arielle Flam Drew Fleck Kylie Manson Charlie Munzig Nathan Parker
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Robert Brownell Eita Hatayama Ben Heilveil Stephanie Hubbard Youna Kim Julien Rhodes Ronald Wu
11 Level III Youna Kim* Liz Sanseau* Mary Ann Bronson Eric Butts Kerry Connolly Emmett Hopkins Emma White Level IV and Advanced Placement Alden Blair Emmett Hopkins Brian Kelly Charlotte Lord Smith Reddy Lee Wittlinger The Foreign Language Award, given to the senior who has done the best work in language: Brooke Halsey
Yasmine Arastu Eric Butts Meredith Flannery Meredith Walker Emma White Simon Xi
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Kristin Berona Erin Blankenship Brooke Halsey Cheryl Lynn Horton Clay Pell The Chemistry Award: Kevin Cahill The Physics Award: Mary Ann Bronson Claire Milligan
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Betsy Bradford* Erik Fiske Youna Kim Claire Milligan Anthea Tjuanakis* Dave Babbott Mary Ann Bronson Hannah Carney Meredith Flannery Emmett Hopkins Brian Kelly Caitlin Mulholland Meredith Walker
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Lucy Milligan* Nathaniel Faggioli Brendan Fitzgerald Ella Goodbrod Peter Hartnack Sarah Morrow Eric Reeser
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ACADEMIC COMMENDATIONS 1999-2000 (*indicates the top student in that discipline)
THE ARTS
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Emily Nathan* Julia Erdman Hugh Gordon Russell Grether Emery Mitchem Brenton Sullivan Sarah Tapscott Amy Vanderloop
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Kindra Clemence* Tamima Al-Awar Will Barkan Heidi Cole Youna Kim Dan Moore Leigh Salem
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Christopher Bonewitz* Hannah Carney Grace Carter Logan Clark Tara Desjardins Max Greene Esther Guzman Tyler Manson Anthea Tjuanakis
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Marisa Binder Erin Blankenship Paul Bonewitz Margaux Lloyd Trevor McProud Anne Nyborg Allegra Towns Peter Warman Kirby Williams The Harry Llewellyn Bixby Dramatic Cup, awarded to students in recognition of their contribution to the Thacher Drama program: Paul Bonewitz Mariposa Widdoes
The Darah Corbett, Jr., Studio Prize: Sara Thacher The Marcus Hele Dall Award, given to the best photographer in the School: Carissa Ridgeway The Rhode Island School of Design Art Award, in acknowledgment of achievement in the Visual Arts: Megan Winecoff The Agnes M. Lord Music Award: Margaux Lloyd The Eric Bechtel Dachs Prize for Technical Theatre, awarded by the Drama Director to the senior who, in his or her career at Thacher, has shown the greatest dedication, imagination and expertise in technical theater: Matt Schuman The Class of 2000 Dance Award, established this year in recognition of the leadership, dedication, and accomplishments of Margaux Lloyd Lucy Milligan Yui Scribner Mariposa Widdoes Megan Winecoff
CUM LAUDE SOCIETY The Cum Laude Society, founded in 1906 and modeled on Phi Beta Kappa, is a national organization that recognizes superior academic achievement and excellence in select secondary schools across the nation. Election to Cum Laude honors those students who not only have “Excellence, Justice, and Honor” at heart (the society’s motto), but who also have maintained the very highest level of academic achievement throughout each and every year of their time at Thacher. They are the top decatheletes of the academic realm. Seniors elected in the spring of their junior year: Kristin Berona Wayne Chang Clay Pell
Seniors elected this spring: Marisa Binder Erin Blankenship Paul Bonewitz Lucinda Brown Ellie Fletcher Brooke Halsey Lucy Milligan Mia Silverman Juliette White Juniors elected this spring: Mary Ann Bronson Brian Kelly The Munro-Palmer Prize for Public Speaking and Debating: Dave Babbott The Beckwith Gymkhana Trophy: Darren Bechtel and Lucinda Brown, captains of the winning Green Team The Bissell Gymkhana Trophy, to the highpoint gymkhana rider: Darren Bechtel
The Vacquero Cup, awarded to the best all-around student in riding, shooting, and gymkhana: Darren Bechtel The Charles Pratt Trapshoot Plate, given to that student with the highest score in the annual School Trapshoot Competition: Chris Brown The Spaulding Tennis Cup, to the winner of the School-Wide Tournament: Dave Babbott The Marvin H. Shagam Award, given to that student who has made a difference in The Thacher Community through force of character, goodness, courage, vision, and love for all God’s creation, rather than for leadership in academics and athletics. Although the award was established in Mr. Shagam’s name, he has no part in the selection of the recipient. Jennifer Bowie
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WHERE IT ALL BEGAN…
And, finally, the two culminating awards: The Charles L Tutt Silver Bowl for Integrity and Responsibility, which recognizes not primarily leadership, but “integrity and responsibility, of fortitude in the face of adversity, and consideration for others,” went, by vote of the faculty, to Jon LePlastrier,
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…registration on the lawn of the Mulligans’ home two, three, or four years ago, there, too, was the first of the rituals of Commencement weekend: a reception for parents, friends and extended family of the soon-to-graduates. From there, the hordes moved to the Forest Cooke Lawn, sheltered by a tent open to the wafting evening breezes. After the banquet, an address by Thacher alumnus and father (of Besse ’00 and Mollie ’99) Bob Gardner, CdeP ’60, and retiring President of the Alumni Association, brought the assembled to their feet in appreciation for the wisAmissa Bongo and Wayne Chang head dom and rightness of his words toward their seats. (See The Thacher News, summer, for full text.) After thanks to Parents’ Association Presidents Jennifer and And always remember Rick Ridgeway for their creative, in- this: You did not go to spiring, and tireless work, and for “their conscientious efforts on be- prep school or boarding school or private school half of the School and for their sensitive and thoughtful contributions or high school or to the business of the Board,” Head of School Michael Mulligan moved secondary school. You on to the major awards of the went to Thacher. evening.
Howe for having “demonstrated, through volunteer work in the community, an unselfish interest in and concern for others.” Felicity, through both organizing and serving “has epitomized the best of the Community Service Program.” The Charles Warren Alpinist Award, whose simple criteria is “that the climber be trusted to evacuate the faculty leader should he be injured in a climbing situation,” went to Brooke Halsey, whose “overall ability, dedication, and attention to safety has created two years that shall henceforth be known as ‘The Brooke Era.’” The School Chair Award, next, honored Kristin Berona who, in the words of the Head of School with whom she worked quite closely, “came to the job, in the words of psychologist Abraham Maslowe, ‘self-actualized.’ She has always, it seems, known who she is; she has been confident of her values but never boastful of her abilities. She has been sensitive to others and open to review and criticism. Quietly and effectively, she has represented student opinion. Ever smiling and ever thoughtful, she has been for me a great example of the fact that wisdom and age need not be at odds.”
Through the gauntlet of faculty and fans: Lucinda Brown and Eric Reeser.
Bob Gardner, CdeP ’60
First, a reiteration of the names of those seniors and juniors elected to the Cum Laude Society, then the twin sportsmanship awards: for girls, The Elizabeth Helms Adams Perpetual Sportsmanship Award, voted by the coaches of Thacher’s Athletic Council to honor “those qualities of sportsmanship, participation, achievement, and leadership characteristic of the highest ideals of interscholastic athletics” was won by tri-athlete and triple-captain Cheryl Lynn Horton, “a determined, yet gracious competitor and leader” whose excellence on the volleyball and basketball courts and on Head of School Michael Mulligan and Paul the lacrosse field have not Bonewitz share a moment at the podium. only brought glory to this School “elevated the play of others.” The boys’ counterpart to this award, The Thacher Lettermen’s Club Perpetual Trophy, lauds not merely athleticism, but more important, commends a commitment to excellence, teamwork, good sportsmanship and the ability to inspire others to better play. Both winners of this award—Todd Meyer and Anwar White—simply love the games they play, the races they run (Todd in track, lacrosse and soccer, Anwar in tennis and basketball), working tirelessly to hone their own skills and to push, by force of example, others to improve theirs. Next on the agenda, the Newton K. Chase Community Service Award, which went to Felicity
The Writer In her room at the prow of the house Where light breaks, and the windows are tossed with linden, My daughter is writing a story. I pause in the stairwell, hearing From her shut door a commotion of typewriter-keys Like a chain hauled over a gunwale. Young as she is, the stuff Of her life is heavy: I wish her a lucky passage. But now it is she who pauses, As if to reflect my thought and its easy figure. A stillness greatens, in which The whole house seems to be thinking, And then she is at it again with a bunched clamor Of strokes, and again it is silent. I remember the dazed starling Which was trapped in that very room, two years ago; How we stole in, lifted a sash
Year-End 2000 :: 13
“whose courage, integrity, a profound respect for others regardless of age or rank” make him a model for all others in the community. And The Thacher Cup,which goes “to that senior who, in the judgment of the faculty, best demonstrates those qualities the School holds as central: academic excellence, extracurricular achievement, moral leadership, and con-
Mariposa Widdoes and Evy Disner in a postdiploma hug.
cern for others,” was voted to Wayne Chang: “He has made the pursuit of knowledge a hallmark of his career here at Thacher. His steadfast morality, equanimity during difficult situations, and genuine kindness have also marked his tenure here. He has lived a life based on honor and integrity, and he truly represents the best of what Thacher is, and even further, the best of what we are as humans.” The evening concluded with some closing remarks from Mr. Mulligan, who used a poem by Richard Wilbur as his springboard. Mr. Mulligan concluded: In so many ways the experience of this daughter is
your experience, and the experience of the father is ours, faculty and parents together. You are writing your own stories; you are in your own boats, capable of raising your own anchors, heavy as they may be. The cargo of your life over your years here has been, no doubt, at times weighty. You, like this young author, have had to pause for reflection, for inspiration, to find the proper word, the right phrase.
Mia Silverman, all smiles after the ceremony, with Spanish teacher Cecilia Ortiz and her daughter Hannah.
But we have given to you the room, the tools and training, you have written pieces of your own stories, and you will continue to. As you are the author, you must remind yourself that if you find yourself the victim in your story, it is because that is the way you have written your script.
Bennett Barbakow shows what a Silver Dollar Pick-Up (short horse or not) can evolve into.
And retreated, not to affright it; And how for a helpless hour, through the crack in the door We watched the sleek, wild, dark And iridescent creature Batter against the brilliance, drop like a glove To the hard floor, or the desk-top, And wait then, humped and bloody, For the wits to try again; and how our spirits Rose when, suddenly sure, It lifted off from a chair-back, Beating a smooth course for the right window And clearing the sill of the world. It is always a matter, my darling, Of life and death, as I had forgotten. I wish What I wished you before, but harder.
—Richard Wilbur
Like the iridescent starling that we do not wish to affright, you face an open window, the sill of this world. We hope, naturally, that you will not have to batter, to become bloodied to find the opening, to access the brilliance on the other side. But freedom means that you are doing the choosing, and you now, as you have before, will succeed or struggle, live in harmony or live in conflict, by your choices. The scary part for us, your teachers, your mentors, your devoted In a long-standing tradition, Todd Meyer parents and families, is that while is congratulated by Michael Mulligan and we can help open the windows, his father, Kurt Meyer (Mathematics) at we cannot fly through them with the commencement podium. you. We cannot ultimately choose for you, coach you through your every move, direct you through every opening. This you must do for yourselves. So now, like this girl’s father, we stand on the stairwell outside of your room, wishing harder than ever what we have always wished—that you will rise up, beating a smooth and certain course for the opening, your own iridescence flashing in the light beyond.
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:: Parents’Post
COMMENCEMENT DAY… …dawned clear and bright, and not long after, the celebrants wended their way up to the Outdoor Chapel, where the Baccalaureate service included an address by Thacher and Princeton alumnus, Tyrone Pike, CdeP ’73, president and CEO of VPNX.com, Inc., a Silicon Valley technological company. As someone who, self-reportedly, “made several fortuitous left turns” in his academic and entrepeneurial life, Mr. Pike extolled the challenge and rewards of “thinking outside the box.”“Thacher,” he said, “grooms synthesizers, people who can arrange, create, design, organize, plan, and prepare beyond the present, who can find the pieces that don’t look like they fit together, flip them backward, and discover the fit.” He also stressed the importance, stated in the Thacher mission and borne out in our heritage, of using one’s own success to give back to the communities of which we are citizens. “Go out there and find a way to lower the bar and let those who have not had the opportunities [you have] to enter the i-age.” From there, it was down to the Big Top again, this time for the Main Event: the presentation of diplomas, in traditionally random (not alphabetical) order, each senior called joining Nothing ever is, Mr. Mulligan at the podium to listen to a but all things are short testimony to the particular influence he or she has had on this community and becoming… its members. (See special insert.) One final All things are the diploma—reserved, always, for the School offspring of flux Chair—and up went the roar from the crowd and the happy graduates, sustained and motion. and echoing long after the last chair had Socrates been vacated, a sound now a piece of our shared aural history.
AH, THE PLACES THEY’RE GOING Wallis Adams Justin Arnold Bennett Barbakow Darren Bechtel Kristin Berona Marisa Binder Erin Blankenship Paul Bonewitz Amissa Bongo Jake Braitman Lucinda Brown Wayne Chang Evy Disner Alfred English Nate Faggioli Brendan Fitzgerald Ellie Fletcher Lauren Fraim Besse Gardner Ella Goodbrod
Oberlin College Vanderbilt University Brown University Stanford University Stanford University University of Chicago Trinity University Tufts University Georgetown University Colorado College Yale University Yale University University of Southern California Kenyon College George Washington McGill University Vassar College University of San Diego UC Berkeley Mt. Holyoke College
Lacey Gordon Brooke Halsey Peter Hartnack Justin Hilton Hannah Hooper
Scripps College Princeton University of Southern California University of Southern California Eugene Lang College and Parsons School of Design Cheryl Lynn Horton Duke University Felicity Howe University of Colorado, Boulder Fred Kim Northwestern University Jon LePlastrier UC Santa Cruz Margaux Lloyd Goucher College Trevor McProud Colorado College Todd Meyer Emory University Lucy Milligan Princeton University Sarah Morrow University of Colorado, Boulder Anne Nyborg Stanford University Marley Orr Colby College Richard Parks McGill University Clay Pell Harvard University Eric Reeser Emory University Fritz Rice Pitzer College Carissa Ridgeway Bard College Matt Schuman UC Berkeley Yui Scribner Barnard College Mia Silverman Stanford University Guido Soracco Franklin & Marshall College Carlos Soriano University of Pennsylvania Devon Tarasevic Southwestern University Sara Thacher Rhode Island School of Design Allegra Towns Columbia University Andrew Warren Connecticut College Juliette White Wellesley College Anwar White Carnegie Mellon University Mariposa Widdoes DePaul University—Conservatory Kirby Williams Oberlin College Megan Winecoff Lewis & Clark College
Year-End 2000 :: 15
TOADTALK On the last Monday before Commencement this spring, Bo Manson (English, Casa Dormitory Head) gave his TOAD (Teacher On Active Duty) Talk—a feature of every Monday’s Assembly, during which the faculty member in charge for the week reads a poem, sings, offers some personal insight, or, in some other unique way, kicks off our week. Well, here we are at the end of another school year. Last night, we began our traditional end-of-year festivities with Senior Vespers. This week, we will continue with the All-School Banquet, the Senior Banquet, Baccalaureate, and Graduation. Of course, we all recognize the value of these traditional year-end events. It is important that, as a community, we set aside time to celebrate the accomplishments of both our underclassmen and our seniors. But these formal celebrations also serve a more fundamental purpose. They allow us to recognize, accept, and adjust to a process that is as natural as the sun rising each morning and setting each evening: the well-established rhythm of our school year from its beginning in September to its inevitable end in June. If fact, I’m really talking about the yearly transformation of our present Thacher School into yet one more past Thacher School. We like to think of Thacher as a stable institution, flexible enough to embrace contemporary concepts and technology, yet careful to retain its historical strengths and values. It’s no wonder that we so enthusiastically maintain our many traditions: The Honor Code, school banquets, gymkhana, camping, Toad duties, milk and graham crackers, breakfast check-in, formal dinner, school songs, Open House, surprise holidays, Secret Santas, and senior skip day…Yet, what really is “The Thacher School”? Clearly, it doesn’t exist in admission brochures, WASC reports, or archival photographs. In fact, there actually is no one Thacher School. Thacher, like all schools, is the unique combination of the individuals who occupy it at any given moment in time. It is something we create every September only to then dismantle each June. In a very real sense, there have been 111 separate Thacher Schools since Sherman Day Thacher founded his school in September, 1889. Maybe that explains why we find it so tempting to create [long-standing traditions] in the course of a year or two. After all, one year is the actual life span of each school we create, embrace, celebrate, and then vacate in this annual cycle. For our seniors, this perspective may be somewhat reassuring. They are, as it turns out, not the only ones leaving Thacher this week: in a sense, we all are. While it’s true that each senior will never again be an active resident of this hillside community, in a way, neither will the rest of us—at least not of this Thacher community. This 111th Thacher School will cease to exist in just a few days because the seniors will leave it, because some faculty will leave it, but also because freshmen will become sophomores, sophomores will become juniors, and juniors will become seniors. The sun will set on this 111th Thacher School. This present school will inevitably, naturally, be-
come a past school, not only for our seniors, but also for the rest of us. Virginia Woolf expressed this fundamental relationship between the present and the past in a brief passage from her novel To The Lighthouse. For those of you who haven’t read it, the novel primarily concerns the events of two days (separated by ten years) in the lives of the members and friends of a large British family. In [this passage], Mrs. Ramsay—the wife, mother, and host of the family— and friends gathered at the Ramsays’ summer home and pauses in the doorway of her dining room at the end of a family meal. There, on the threshold, she reflects on this notion of the present transforming itself into the past, and of the necessity that we, too, recognize at the end of each school year: on the one hand, that we should pause to celebrate our present; and, on the other hand, that we must take that inevitable step forward into a future which requires that our present become our past. As I read Woolf’s description, I hope you will think of the seniors for whom this transformation is arguably most poignant. But I also hope that you are reminded that for each of us, the present is a transitory commodity, something to be cherished even as we anticipate our disparate futures and remember our communal past. It was necessary now to carry everything a step further. With her foot on the threshold [Mrs. Ramsay] waited a moment longer in a scene which was vanishing even as she looked, and then, as she moved and took Minta’s arm and left the room, it changed, it shaped itself differently; it had become, she knew, giving one last look at it over her shoulder, already the past.
May 29, 2000
Mrs. Ramsay on her threshold; we on ours. We glance back in this moment of quiet and calm, and then look forward, the summer, shimmering, stretching ahead—and, beyond it in the distance, students, faculty, families, and friends walking slowly towards us, ready to recreate, again, The Thacher School of 2000-01. See you then! Cheers,
P.S. My favorite fridge poetry, which I discovered after the last Open House of the year had ended:
whisper
to
imagine
s
summer
Production Credits Editor Joy Sawyer-Mulligan Design J. Bert Mahoney
HOO L
T HE
sweet
fairy
CH E A R H
Production and Design Tim Ditch
1
thousand
SC
T
a
Photography Kathy Caldwell, Timothy Teague, Ted Grether ’01, Meredith Walker ’01, Joy Sawyer-Mulligan, Michael Mulligan, Steve Carter, Philip Channing, Emmett Hopkins ’01, Brian Pidduck, CdeP ’92
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