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Thanks to the efforts of its leadership team and dedicated parent volunteers, H&S strengthened the sense of community at WFS, provided educational presentations for families, and served people in need in the broader Wilmington community this year. They made an end-of-year gift of $26,300 to the WFS Annual Fund this spring, due to successful fundraising activities throughout the year, which included a $5,000 unrestricted Annual Fund gift as part of the “Be Bold for Blue” Matching Gift Challenge and a $21,300 gift to support capital improvements benefitting all three divisions of the school. Highlights from the Spring include:

Fundraisers

• The Quaker Closet consignment store was, thanks to generous donors/consignors, shoppers, and a dedicated cadre of weekly volunteers, the biggest H&S fundraiser this year. Thank you to co-clerks Kendra Okolo and Lisa Pisano, assisted by Keri Morrison and April Jefferson at the lower school Q-Tique satellite store, for their efforts throughout the year.

• Annual H&S Used Book Sale, which, thanks to parent coclerks Olivia Montejo and Jon Vanderloo and a wonderful group of volunteers, raised the largest amount in recent memory.

• Lower School Spring Scholastic Book Fair which raised a record amount this year thanks to clerk Kameron McConnell and the other parent volunteers who ran the event.

• Dine in/take out nights at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza and Pizzeria Maki along with fundraisers with Casual Marketplace and Old Country Gardens.

Speaker Events

• Dr. Elizabeth Englander who gave a presentation on “Parenting in 2022: Helping Kids With Social Skills, Social Relationships, and Social Media.”

• Bestselling author and PBS television host Kelly Corrigan came to campus in March as part of the Three-School Speaker Consortium with Tatnall and Tower Hill, spearheaded by WFS parent Michelle Silberglied.

• Rev. Karla Fleshman, LCSW, of Transitions Delaware gave an interactive workshop for parents and caregivers on “LGBTQ+ Youth’s Emerging Identities,” organized by Skye Rashkind and the Parent Awareness Committee. • Film producer and civil rights attorney Jeffery Robinson, along with a screening of his acclaimed documentary Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America, coordinated by the H&S Parents for Multiculturalism (PFM) Committee, led by co-clerks Kendra Okolo and Tonya Baynes, and funded in partnership with the Nathan M. Clark Foundation

Community

• Faculty/staff appreciation treats and luncheons. Thanks to Lower School Events Coordinators Susanne Handling and Kristin Jenney for organizing the lower school events and to 9th and 10th grade class representatives Laura Rossi, Dara Shipp, Tracy Burleigh, and Leah Heckles for organizing the luncheon for middle and upper school faculty and staff.

• The H&S Emmanuel Dining Room (EDR) meals, led by coclerks David and Kristine Tuttleman, serving between 150 and 200 people each month.

• The H&S Parent Ambassadors, led by Kyle McKean ’98 and Kelly O’Donnell ’93, connected with parents and caregivers who joined WFS during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years. They also helped to welcome newly admitted families at Admissions Office events in June, and will serve as a resource for all incoming families over the summer and next fall.

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone who volunteered with H&S and supported this year’s events. A special thanks to outgoing clerks Amy Blake and Fola Adebi (pictured below with Ken) for sharing their time and talents so generously with the WFS community, and to the rest of this year’s H&S Executive Committee for their dedication and leadership: Kellen Amobi, Jodi Bettler, Paul Gaskell, Amanda Hay ’95, Heather Jackman, Adrienne Lenz, Kendra Okolo, Michelle Silberglied, and Kristine Tuttleman.

In a Lunch & Learn, Theo Nix ’72 spoke with stu“ dents about how he is training people to become FAA-certified drone operators. Pictured are Monty Harris (WFS Director of Capital & Endowment Giving), Theo, Ken, and Theo’s colleague, Ashley Cooper.

Fly Like a Drone

By Monty Harris, Director of Capital and Endowment Giving

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s drone power.

Last April, two dozen students, staff, faculty, and WDEL gathered in the library for a glimpse into the future. Theo Nix, Jr. ‘72 presented on why the sky’s the limit in opportunities for FAA-certified drone pilots. The former corporate counsel for DuPont has founded a business to train pilots in five states including Delaware - and he wants to expand internationally, starting in Kenya.

Imagine delivery times for medical supplies to remote areas dramatically reduced. Or, think of how farmers can increase crop yields by analyzing data captured by airborne cameras. That’s drone power.

Theo’s DWS Drone School (www.dwsdroneschool.com) has partnered with Wilmington Mayor Michael Purzycki to train urban youth how to operate drones and virtual reality cameras. His vision is to replicate this model around the world.

At the Lunch and Learn last April, Theo also announced his plans to form the Delaware Drone Soccer League. Judging by the students’ expressions, it may very well happen.

The compelling video and talk ended before an actual demonstration of drones in flight. After the students left for their next classes, Head of School Ken Aldridge operated a drone for the first time. He appeared to enjoy the experience.

As a student, Theo, who was known as “Ricky,” was a class president, started the Martin Luther King Scholarship Fund, and developed his passion for music. The apex of his Friends experience was performing in Violet Richman theater productions. “Violet Richman was a transformational teacher and person who brought out the best in everyone she taught,” he wrote.

There were few students of color when he attended Friends from 1967 to 1972. In fact, many were his family members: Sheldon Nix ’74, Denise Nix-Thompson ’75, and Crystal Nix Hines ’81.

“My siblings and I were the only African Americans in the Upper School. For me there were many moments of loneliness. Friends is an exceptional school with provocative teachers. It was always on the cutting edge of most things including the issue of race. However, we lived in two worlds, their white world and the Black world. Our classmates really didn't know or ask what that African American world was about. But we thrived anyway and have benefited from the experience. I know our parents wanted the best education possible and nine Nix graduates later, Friends is part of our family DNA,” he reflected. to the Jones House.

As an alumnus and a parent of two Friends students, Courtney Nix ’07 and Theo Nix III ’07, Theo Jr. had a serendipitous experience on the Friends campus. “I was working for a billion dollar, high-end developer at the time and was looking for a new gig and a way not to commute,” he recalls. “DuPont attorney, Mark Christman's daughter, Meg Christman (’06) and my daughter, Courtney Nix, played volleyball together. While sitting in the stands, I asked Mark if DuPont legal was hiring. He didn't know but said he would find out. It turned out that one year later, I was the first attorney hired in five years. I worked for DuPont as corporate counsel for fifteen great years. I learned early on you have to ask for what you want in this life.”

As a businessman, Theo has always had an entrepreneurial mindset. “I started the drone and virtual reality school and employment company to help the American middle class and our veterans who come from around the country to take our classes,” he wrote. “I believe passionately that having your own business helps to create generational wealth for families. When you are a W-2 employee, your employer pays you just enough to come to work the next day but never enough to get wealthy. I would rather create wealth for myself and my own family. Entrepreneurship does that.”

Theo believes “your network is your net worth” and that using one’s network and creating networks will lead to opportunities. He also finds that partnerships help grow a business. “I learned from being corporate counsel at DuPont that one of the keys to the company's success is to create collaborations.” [At the DWS Drone School] “We have created scores of global partnerships that will help drive our school and employment company to create thriving jobs and careers in these technologies,” he wrote.

When asked how he thinks his industry will look like in five years, Theo says “According to Goldman Sachs, drone technology is a $100 billion industry of which $13 billion is in the commercial/civil space where we play,” he responded. “The virtual reality space is a trillion dollar industry. These industries will be a significant part of every part of our global society. As an early adopter in these industries, operators will be able to create generational wealth for their families while making a transformational and substantive difference for their communities, neighborhoods and society. That's worth getting up in the morning. Fly Away with Us!”