BANCROFT Winter 2014-15

BulletinBulletin

BANCROFT

Trey Cassidy Bancroft’s 12th Head of School

Q Karmue ’01 Goodness on a Global Level

Contents

BancrofT School 110 Shore Drive

Worcester, MA 01605508.853.2640

www.bancroftschool.org

head of SchoolJames P. “Trey” Cassidy III

Bancroft Bulletin is published biannually and mailed to alumni, parents, and

friends of Bancroft School, one copy per address. The Bulletin may also be viewed online: www.bancroftschool.org/Bulletin

advancement TeamTobey Fossey

Chief Advancement Officer

Lynn St. GermainDirector of Alumni Relations

Debra MooneyDirector of Annual Giving

Julie O’MalleyAssociate Director of Communications

Karla CinquantaWebsite & Communications

Lydia BarterDevelopment Associate

Writing/EditingJulie O’Malley, Lynn St. Germain

layoutDagnello Design

Submit newsIf you would like to change your name or address; add or remove a name from

our mailing list; or submit news and photographs for Class Notes, please

email us at: alumni@bancroftschool.org

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ContentsBANCROFT Bulletin | Winter 2014 – 2015

BancrofT School 110 Shore Drive

Worcester, MA 01605508.853.2640

www.bancroftschool.org

head of SchoolJames P. “Trey” Cassidy III

Bancroft Bulletin is published biannually and mailed to alumni, parents, and

friends of Bancroft School, one copy per address. The Bulletin may also be viewed online: www.bancroftschool.org/Bulletin

advancement TeamTobey Fossey

Chief Advancement Officer

Lynn St. GermainDirector of Alumni Relations

Debra MooneyDirector of Annual Giving

Julie O’MalleyAssociate Director of Communications

Karla CinquantaWebsite & Communications

Lydia BarterDevelopment Associate

Writing/EditingJulie O’Malley, Lynn St. Germain

layoutDagnello Design

Submit newsIf you would like to change your name or address; add or remove a name from

our mailing list; or submit news and photographs for Class Notes, please

email us at: alumni@bancroftschool.org

4 Board President Message

5 News Features Honoring Chris Sheldon… Worcester Journal…National Merit…and more

8 Meet Trey Cassidy Making connections, sharing his vision, and exuding energy during his first year as Head of School

14 Quanuquanei Karmue ’01 Giving hope to the children of Liberia—one child at a time

18 Alumni Reunion 2015 Awards... Class Notes…Mr. White remembers Wyatt Garfield

Cover: Trey Cassidy in a rare quiet moment. Photo by Karla Cinquanta.

in all types of ways...

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Dear Bancroft Community,

Our School’s faculty, staff, and administrators work tirelessly to create the daily experience of excellence that each child deserves. At the same time, there is always thoughtful work going on behind the scenes as the Board of Trustees and a cadre of committed individuals work to advance the institution, further the strategic goals of Vision 2016, and optimize the many facets of a Bancroft School education.

Inclusive, collaborative teams made up of parents, teachers, administrators, alumni, and trustees meet regularly to ensure that the overall Bancroft experience, the School’s curriculum, and the physical space and safety of our campus are optimized to carry us into the future. Let me highlight a few examples:

The Senior Co-Op Committee examines how to infuse preparations for this senior capstone project into the entire scope of Upper School.

The Scheduling Committee is looking closely at our School’s schedule, to determine where it facilitates and where it inhibits opportunities for collaboration, flexibility, and other Bancroft values.

Our Global Studies Think Tank is charged with finding new and better ways to integrate cross- cultural understanding, critical analysis of foreign affairs, and a sense of global community throughout our curriculum.

The Learning Laboratory Initiative seeks to develop a project-based learning model that conveys not only fundamental academic skills, but deeper concepts such as personal and social responsibility, teamwork, problem solving, research gathering, time management, information synthesizing, and decision making.

The Campus Development Committee reviews the physical rooms and equipment that affect how we work and learn, addressing immediate functionality, but also assessing optimal use for the long-term.

Head of School Trey Cassidy is a man of action whose vision and energy inspire those of us who work with him. The hearts, minds, and talents of many loyal Bancroft supporters are working with him at all times to keep Bancroft at the leading edge of independent education.

Sincerely,

David CyganskiPresident, Board of Trustees

News

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NewsFeatures

It’s an Honor

The National Speech & Debate Association has honored Bancroft Speech Coach Chris Sheldon with a Second Diamond Award in recognition of

a coaching career that combines both excellence and longevity. Sheldon started the Bancroft Speech Team in 2003 and under his leadership our student-orators have won more than 750 regional, state, and national awards. Just last year, Marcelo Ferrari ’14 (now a student at Bentley University), won the CFL Grand National Championship in Oral Interpretation of Literature—the highest award there is. “Tremendously thankful,” is how Sheldon feels about this honor, and about his team’s successes. “Speech at Bancroft is a family. The kids are amazingly close-knit and supportive of each other. We spend so much time together, rehearsing and travelling to tournaments. We work hard, but we also have a lot of fun together.” Along with his coaching duties, Chris Sheldon teaches US performing arts and history, and either directs or produces the main stage shows each year. He will receive special recognition for his Second Diamond status at the National Speech & Debate Tournament in Dallas, TX, in June.

As they do three times a year, on Wednesday, March 4th, the Bancroft Middle School community ventured out into the larger Worcester community

to connect with organizations that are eager to welcome small armies of young helpers. Students, teachers, and parent volunteers work with a wide array of groups including eldercare facilities, food pantries, Grafton Community Harvest, and the Worcester County Food Bank, just to name a few. Middle School Head Trevor O’Driscoll has a word for the magic that happens on MS Community Service Days: “mudita.” Mudita is a Sanskrit word that roughly means joy found from the good fortune and fulfillment of others. “Think of it as vicarious happiness, or the opposite of jealousy,” says Trevor. “Not only did I feel it on Wednesday, I saw mudita in abundance in our students.” And he saw more mudita as notes from Bancroft parents began landing in his inbox:

“Thanks for giving our kids the opportunity to head out into the community to serve today! It’s a win-win for the organizations and for our kids... opens their eyes to need in the community and how they can do something to address it.”

“The Bancroft community brings the best out of our students.  That comes from the example Bancroft sets through efforts like this.”

“Thank you for this fabulous philanthropic adventure for our kids.”

These are the experiences that flow from our mission to advance goodness in our changing world.

MS Goodness: Mudita

Bancroft School is fortunate to have well-known journalist, author, and WPI professor James Dempsey as our on-campus writer-in-residence this year, as he

produces The Worcester Journal, a new online literary magazine that showcases the writing of high school and college students from Central Massachusetts. “Working with talented Bancroft students has been a pleasure, and I look forward to more such experiences,” he says. The works of two Bancroft students have been published in the Journal to date. Dempsey is supported in his efforts by a gift from B. A. King and Judy Stoddard King ’52. “I’m deeply grateful to the Judy and Tony King Foundation for its generous support of this project,” says Dempsey, “and to Bancroft School, which has offered the Journal an office, a computer, and the warmest of welcomes.” We invite you to read the magazine at: theworcesterjournal.com.

Young Writers Showcase

Worcester’s Monuments Men

Some might be surprised to learn that the 2014 movie, “The Monuments Men” has a strong Worcester tie. In March, James A. Welu, Director Emeritus of the

Worcester Art Museum (WAM), spoke to Bancroft’s Upper School students and faculty about the heroic efforts of the Monuments Men and their connection to WAM. During WWII, art experts were recruited into the military to rescue priceless art treasures from Nazi looters. Three of these men later became directors of WAM, (including George Stout played by George Clooney in the movie), and a fourth served as curator. Their story and the examples of the five million pieces of treasure the Men saved, is one Mr. Welu has been sharing throughout the community. His presentation at Bancroft was part of the PFA Cultural Series.

SNOW! SNOW! SNOW!

Worcester earned the title of Snowiest City in America this year, giving rise to many a comment prefaced by, “Not since the Blizzard

of ’78…!” Alas, this photo of a young teacher named Mr. Aleksiewicz (better known as “Charlie A.”) was taken right after that infamous storm of 37 years ago. We rounded Charlie up for a 2015 remake of that photograph, taken at the same spot on campus, and the results speak for themselves. The more things change, the more they stay the same!

News Features

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Kicking off the year with a burst of school spirit, Trey Cassidy arranged for every student and teacher to

receive a Homecoming t-shirt, then declared the Friday before Homecoming an All-School Blue-out. The student activities board and the team captains organized a pep-rally, bringing the entire school, Pre-K-12, together in a sea of blue. The wave of blue spirit carried on to Saturday’s Homecoming, with the first annual 5-K race kicking off the day, and continuing through the day as the Bulldogs competed against Lexington Christian Academy.

Homecoming Blue-Out

Bancroft senior Sander Dipietri (center) has risen to finalist status in the National Merit Scholarship Program. Flanking Sander (l to r) are Bancroft

seniors Carly Weaver, Margaret (Maggie) Simon, Rachel Walker, and Michael Lyons, who all received letters of commendation. We congratulate these students for their exceptional academic performance, and wish Sander luck as he continues toward the coveted National Merit Scholarship.

Scholarly Seniors

Sophomore Emmanuel Bangandozou scored his 1,000th point in February as a member of Bancroft’s Bulldog Varsity Basketball team. Says Coach Mark

O’Brien, “What makes Emmanuel really special is he knows that teams are coming after him and are going to try to slow him down. When you’ve got several guys keying on you, and you can still get your teammates the ball and also score, it’s pretty special.” The boys made it all the way to the NEPSAC Class D finals. Although they fell short of the championship, Coach O’Brien is optimistic for the future.

1,000 points Score

By Julie O’MalleyPhotos by Karla Cinquanta

Meet TreYCassidY

An impromptu visit leads Trey Cassidy to join in the Sphinx pose during Kindergarten’s daily yoga session.

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Meet TreYCassidY

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Connections Vision energy The wall of windows in his office gives Trey Cassidy a clear view of the ebb and flow of life on campus. The playground fills then empties. Bodies go by in a blur of motion and sound, as students head off to art or gym or lunch or library. When Trey is at the conference table just inside those windows, the children never fail to wave when they see him seated there. And he waves back. As always, students are the most important people at Bancroft School. “Very involved,” is how Bancroft junior Jack Kates describes Trey Cassidy. “I see him surprisingly often. He’s not sitting in his office; he’s very ‘out & about.’ He shows up at our robotics tournaments and hangs out with us. He just gave me a birthday pin the other day.” Handing out a birthday pin to every student is a daily commitment for Trey, and Jack sees the wisdom behind the practice. “He has a goal—he wants to get to know everyone and connect with us. And handing out birthday pins guarantees that he’ll have at least one interaction with every student. I’m impressed by that.” Since he began his tenure as Bancroft’s Head of School on July 1, 2014, James P. “Trey” Cassidy III has made it clear that building relationships is a top priority. He has been active in seeking connections not only with Bancroft’s students, but also with families, alumni, faculty, staff, and board members. He has reached out and met with people from many of the schools, businesses, and non-profit organizations in Worcester and Central Mass. He’s been to China to visit our international partner schools, held meet-and-greet coffees for parents, attended every on-campus event and assembly he could, visited alumni in Hawaii, attended alumni get-togethers in Boston, New York, L.A., and San Francisco. And he always makes time to sit with former students, faculty, or others who stop by the campus. “I’m the new kid,” he reasons. “Bancroft has been around for 115 years; I’ve been here less than one. This is a close-knit community of people who are

T

Making connections,

sharing a vision,

and exuding energy—

Trey Cassidy hits the

ground running in

his first year as

Head of School.

deeply connected with the School, its rich history, and its vision for the future. I also have my own ideas and goals for stewarding Bancroft toward the future, and my effectiveness in doing so depends on me earning the trust and support of all the people associated with Bancroft and the greater community.”

ConnectionsVision energy His decision to seek, and ultimately to accept the Head of School position at Bancroft was heavily influenced by the people he met during the application process, and by the School’s mission and vision. He was particularly impressed with Vision 2016, the School’s strategic plan. “Global studies, collaborative, project-based learning, diversity in all its forms, honoring all kinds of minds, advancing goodness. Each idea fit in with and built upon the others.”

In his early meetings with the Board, Trey and the Trustees made the decision to add one more initiative to Vision 2016: a focus on athletics and extracurricular activities. “Shared, team experiences that happen outside the daily curriculum should be as much a part of the Bancroft School experience as outstanding academics.”

“He wants to get to know everyone and connect with us. And handing out birthday pins guarantees that he’ll have at least one interaction with every student. I’m impressed by that.”

“One of the great benefits of being a Pre-K through 12 school is the opportunity for all ages to come together, to be there for each other as fans, supporters, mentors, teachers, learners, and friends.”

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- Jack Kates ’16

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As a competitive athlete himself, Trey knows the value of striving for a shared goal, teamwork, competition, sharing triumphs and losses. “Athletics enhances learning. The physical and mental benefits are well established,” says Trey. “Giving our students opportunities to become part of a team, something larger than themselves, is a key part of educating them. It’s part of being the kind of school where children gain confidence through mutual support and collaboration. It can happen through sports, certainly. But it also happens at concerts, art shows, math contests, community service visits, robotics competitions, and speech tournaments. We felt it was important to build that into the overall vision.” In his first State of the School Address, delivered in conjunction with the PFA Annual Meeting in February, Trey elaborated. “We’ve been trying to build opportunities inside our program for there to be audiences for the good work that our students do, for students to ask big and powerful questions, and for students to get out into the world. That’s been happening in the past, and we intend for it to happen in the future.”

Connections Vision energy Asked about his first impressions of Trey, alumnus Nick Cyganski ’13, now a student at WPI, said, “He struck me as almost an action hero. He would never have a hard time keeping up with the students. He has an entrepreneural spirit—he has his goals and he finds ways to make them happen, to be the best. I see a lot of changes already and I wonder if it’s his passion diffusing out to all the people he works with.”

Jyoti Datta, head of Lower School and director of the Hope Graham Program (HGP) at Bancroft School, says, “I love the energy and excitement Trey has brought to the School. He has this broad-level perspective, especially with HGP, looking at it within the context of the whole school.” [HGP is Bancroft’s specialized program of reading and writing support for bright students with language-based learning differences such as dyslexia.] “He recognizes the way HGP lifts the teaching and learning for every student.”

The experience of being a Bancroft student is one of constantly pushing and challenging yourself, conquering fears, and exceeding your perceived limits. “Bancroft is not meant to be an easy ride,” says Trey. “It’s meant to foster individuals who do their best, who encourage and support each other, celebrate their successes, and lift each other up when things go south.” English teacher Mark Taylor observes, “It is in Trey’s nature to push and challenge himself, and he is already leading us by example through his energy and active participation in the life of the School.” Connection, vision, energy—these are some of the terms that characterize Trey Cassidy’s first year at Bancroft, and it seems to be the right approach at the right time to move Bancroft School toward a bright future.

“Our students are discovering that they can improve the lives of others, whether through local community engagement or global outreach, and make the world a better place for all.”

Trey cheers on the Bulldogs with daughter Bridgette ’23.

“You need to step outside the familiar and known, leaving your comfort zone behind. For artists, athletes, musicians, scientists—everyone—this is how learning takes place. ”

In 2013, Q earned his MFA with the completion of his book Witness—an account of the civil war’s impact on the children of Liberia. So many years after the war, the children of Liberia remain devastated by poverty, orphaned by war and Ebola, and lacking the basic necessities of life. Through Witness, he found a way to tell their stories through a camera’s lens, and ultimately to his life’s work. In 2013, Q founded the non-profit SaveMoreKids to help provide food, shelter, healthcare, and education to Liberia’s children.

The excerpts and photographs shared here, taken from Witness, reveal a man who endured hardships and is using his experiences to give back to a homeland he thought he had left forever.

On his childhood in Liberia…

Basic rights I took for granted, like food, safety, and clean water, were no longer guaranteed in 1990. Social structures were collapsing, and suddenly my beautiful country was caught up in the middle of a brutal civil war. I was eight years old and my childhood as I knew it was over. With my father in the U.S. on business and unable to return due to the war, my mother, four siblings and I were forced to leave our home to escape the violence. We hid in the woods, dodging bullets, running from rebels and child soldiers my own age with AK-47 machine guns.

My mother, who is perhaps my greatest inspiration, protected us and provided for us in the midst of chaos and destruction. We walked for miles and miles through fields strewn with bodies. Survival was a matter of timing, and getting through the checkpoints. Each checkpoint we made it through felt like winning the lottery for our lives. Until that one checkpoint we will never forget. My mother was held, and we children were told to move on without her, telling us it would be the last time we would

“Q Karmue ’01 Bearing Witness and Easing Burdens in Liberia

Quanuquanei A. Karmue ’01—known to many as “Q”—was eight years old when a civil war broke out in his homeland of Liberia, West Africa. He and his family were fortunate to escape the horrors of the war, eventually arriving in the United States in 1993 to begin a new life. Those first years as a refugee in a new country brought their own challenges, but four years later, with a determination to seize every opportunity, Q was named a Worcester City Scholar at Bancroft School. This four-year scholarship allowed him to find a place to belong where he excelled as a student-athlete and an artist. It was through his art he found his refuge, a way to rehabilitate from the violence he had witnessed. Despite further successes at Savannah College of Art and Design, his traumatic memories left a deep void in his heart. It was only upon returning to Liberia as a photojournalist that he came to realize what he needed to do to fill that void.

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In 2013, Q earned his MFA with the completion of his book Witness—an account of the civil war’s impact on the children of Liberia. So many years after the war, the children of Liberia remain devastated by poverty, orphaned by war and Ebola, and lacking the basic necessities of life. Through Witness, he found a way to tell their stories through a camera’s lens, and ultimately to his life’s work. In 2013, Q founded the non-profit SaveMoreKids to help provide food, shelter, healthcare, and education to Liberia’s children.

The excerpts and photographs shared here, taken from Witness, reveal a man who endured hardships and is using his experiences to give back to a homeland he thought he had left forever.

On his childhood in Liberia…

Basic rights I took for granted, like food, safety, and clean water, were no longer guaranteed in 1990. Social structures were collapsing, and suddenly my beautiful country was caught up in the middle of a brutal civil war. I was eight years old and my childhood as I knew it was over. With my father in the U.S. on business and unable to return due to the war, my mother, four siblings and I were forced to leave our home to escape the violence. We hid in the woods, dodging bullets, running from rebels and child soldiers my own age with AK-47 machine guns.

My mother, who is perhaps my greatest inspiration, protected us and provided for us in the midst of chaos and destruction. We walked for miles and miles through fields strewn with bodies. Survival was a matter of timing, and getting through the checkpoints. Each checkpoint we made it through felt like winning the lottery for our lives. Until that one checkpoint we will never forget. My mother was held, and we children were told to move on without her, telling us it would be the last time we would

see her alive. Our young selves were not prepared to lose our fortress, our rock, our warrior, and pleaded for her return. She, in turn, begged the young soldier for her life and to stay with her children. The response was a choice: either we live and she dies, or she lives and we die. She then pleaded with us to leave without her. Only through luck and another’s misfortune was she able to escape and rejoin us.

I don’t know what kind of life I would have led if I had lost my mother. Would I have been crazy with grief and angry enough to take up a gun and turn into a child soldier? The return of our mother gave us all hope and the feeling we would survive and escape the war. We were witness to many bad things, but our Mom paved our way through Liberia to safety. We lived as refugees in the Ivory Coast until finally we were reunited with our father in the United States.

I thought to myself, ‘I will never go back to Liberia, I was witness to too many brutal things, it holds too many bad memories.’ But sometimes we cannot see the purpose these memories are to serve.

On his experience at Bancroft School…

It was my parents who valued education, and their persistence that led me to Bancroft School. In 1997, I was one of two people selected to receive the Worcester City Scholars award, a four-year scholarship, and I most likely didn’t realize at the time how blessed I was to receive the opportunity. My peers in Liberia would never have even a taste of the experiences I had. That realization motivated me to make the most of what I was given. I became a competitive athlete, and used this competitive attitude in my artwork. I won art awards, and people started to notice my work and commissioned me to do portraits. I was determined and driven to make the most of every opportunity.

On his return to Liberia…

I never wanted to go back to Liberia. My mother though, had promised God that if he would save her and her children, she would come back [to Liberia] and serve as a mother to orphaned children. In January 2009, after years of planning, my parents Neyor and Fungbeh opened Christ Children’s Home in their former home in Sugar Hill. They invited me to Liberia to help them prepare for the opening. I was hesitant and did not know how to respond. Liberia had become a forgotten scar that I had no interest in visiting.

I realized how ungrateful I was acting. I survived the war and now lived in one of the greatest countries in the world. If my parents could easily give it up for the sake of serving others, I decided to give it a shot. So, I boarded a plane for Liberia with my mother, and found myself longing to see the land I left so long ago.

Now, seventeen years later, I was back on the same road I had traveled, and for a moment, I could not help but wonder why we had returned. America had given us everything we needed, a home, good jobs, family, running water, electricity, food, and a controlled and organized society. Now we are again on the same road, only this time to save lives and help rescue children.

When I arrived in Sugar Hill, I was dumbstruck by the number of children living in extreme conditions, even

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Karmue ’01 Bearing Witness and Easing Burdens in Liberia

Q uses his camera to capture his wife Wendy, and one of his two daughters, Savannah, during a 2013 visit.

after six years of peace. These were the orphans, left to wander aimlessly after the war, looked upon not as a gift, but a burden. They lived on the streets, living without hope, just trying to survive.

My camera became my window into their lives, but it wasn’t until I walked around to talk with people, see their faces, and hear their voices that I felt the depth of the situation. Mom and Dad could only help 44 orphans because of space and monetary limitations. But the need extended far beyond this home, there were thousands of children that needed a glimpse of hope.

I felt a strong sense of responsibility, a calling to document the lives of these children and to bring awareness to their existence.

On his founding of SaveMoreKids.org…

I continued to return to Liberia, but not simply to take photos. In 2013, I realized that I could extend the work of my parents by creating Save More Kids, and spread awareness about the children through visual communication. My goal with SMK is to provide a means for the children of Liberia to have a better life by providing shelter, education, food, and spiritual guidance—to offer them hope. Children under the age of 18 make up more than 50% of the population in Liberia. SMK hopes to build upon and transform children into valuable stewards of their communities and country, and to provide them

“I felt a strong sense of responsibility, a calling to document the lives of these children and to bring awareness to their existence.”

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Q uses his camera to capture his wife Wendy, and one of his two daughters, Savannah, during a 2013 visit.

educational, vocational, and life skills training. We are working to build a Multipurpose Empowerment Facility that will include a vocational life skills school, dormitories, athletic complex and cafeteria, parent training complex, and auditorium.

I believe that the cornerstone that can transform many developing, impoverished nations into progressive, sustainable growing societies is a strong foundation. The children of our society and culture are just that cornerstone.

I was lucky enough to escape as a child. As an adult, I witnessed the devastating effect on the children. An entire country can be destroyed in one day, but it takes decades to rebuild. I hold great hopes that Save More Kids will be a driving force to building the future of Liberia, one child at a time.

Ebola Relief

The Ebola crisis has added at least 3,000 new orphans to the thousands already roaming the streets of Liberia. Q and the Save More Kids team have collected more than 100,000 pounds of food, water, and medicines and are due to travel to Liberia in early May with a team of California State Representatives and delegations from Sacramento in order to help distribute relief items. Q is soliciting sponsorship for the team to travel. If you would like to support or help sponsor Q’s initiative with Save More Kids, please contact Q for more information at q@savemorekids.org.

Census and Data Collection

The Save More Kids team in Liberia has recorded the names of thousands of children, including their age and living conditions. This information has been crucial to their mission, allowing for more strategic planning and effective implementation.

Sharing the Wealth of Books

While at Bancroft, Q formed a friendship with English teacher Elizabeth Johnson [Tsang]. This friendship led Liz, who had retired, to offer professional development services to faculty at Christ Children’s Home. Noting the paucity and poor quality of books and other teaching materials at CCH, Liz quickly realized that she could help. In 2013, Liz took on the task of collecting and shipping books from home to CCH and other Liberian schools and a library. The response has been amazing. She set up a network of support to provide discounted shipping, and organizes the distribution once in Liberia. One of the largest donors, Bancroft’s Social Concerns committee collected, helped pack, and loaded 23 boxes of high-quality books AND raised money for shipping charges. Other groups and individuals have joined in and, to date, over 7,500 books have been shipped. For information, email liberiabooks@gmail.com.

Qsavemorekids.org

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Class Notes

Milton P. Higgins (1918) Award for Distinguished Service to Bancroft School

nEIl D. McDonough

For over 20 years, Neil McDonough has devoted his time, energy, and expertise to Bancroft School. As a Trustee, and a parent of six Bancroft alumni, his leadership has contributed greatly to the continued success of the School, and its ability to evolve and thrive in the 21st century. As President and CEO of FLEXcon, a 300 million dollar manufacturer with over 1,000 employees worldwide, Neil has brought his significant business experience to Bancroft’s Board of Trustees. Since 1992, Neil has served in many roles including President and Treasurer. He was instrumental in guiding the Board through the Strategic Thinking process, and his work as co-chair of the Faculty Compensation Committee set the foundation for the School to attract and retain the best faculty. Just as Milton P. Higgins did half a century ago, Neil has demonstrated extraordinary leadership to Bancroft. His business acumen, quiet strength, and hard work have facilitated and stewarded millions of dollars in funds to support the School, have nurtured talented administrators, faculty and staff, and have led the School’s focused mission and strong academic programs. Neil and his wife, Lisa Hill McDonough, reside in Worcester.

Robert Stoddard (1923) Award for Outstanding Service to the Community

MaurEEn r. gray

Former faculty member, parent of three alumni, and grandparent of a third grader, Maureen is a dedicated and engaged member of Bancroft’s community. Since retiring from Bancroft in 1990, she has been a Financial Advisor at Smith Barney, then Morgan Stanley, and is currently a Senior Wealth Strategist for The Gray Group at UBS Financial Services. Beyond her professional success, she has also made an impact on the greater Worcester community. Maureen has served on the Boards of many non-profit organizations, including Girls, Inc., Junior League of Worcester, Seven Hills Foundation, and the Women’s Initiative of United Way of Central Mass. She believes in empowering young people to make smart choices. Notably, at the Women’s Initiative, she has been instrumental in creating a financial literacy program for teens to help steer them toward economic responsibility and financial independence. Maureen is known as someone who works behind the scenes, connecting people to organizations to help make our community strong. Her willingness to provide mentorship, support, and training in governance has helped many Worcester community organizations stay relevant today. Maureen and her husband, Rob, reside in Worcester.

Esther Forbes (1907) Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement

Dr. cElESTIa “TIa” hIgano ’70

Dr. Tia Higano is known as one of the “key opinion leaders” in prostate cancer clinical research as a result of her longstanding experience and success in the field. After graduating from Bancroft in 1970, she went to Bryn Mawr College and graduated from Clark University. She earned her MD from UMass. Following her residency in internal medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, she completed her fellowship in medical oncology at University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. Today, Tia is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington and a Member of the Clinical Division at Fred Hutch. Tia subspecializes in prostate cancer and leads a team that investigates new agents, including immunotherapy, in men with prostate cancer. Citing patient contact as what she loves most about her job, it was concern for these patients that led her to research. As an oncologist, she was frustrated by the lack of answers and options for her prostate cancer patients. Thus began her dual career in research. Twenty years later, Tia is considered a pioneer in a field that has made significant advances, including developing therapeutic vaccines to treat cancer. Tia and her husband, Dr. Jack Singer, have two daughters and live in Seattle.

Bancroft School’s Young Alumni Achievement Award

MErEDITh BrookS ’00

A member of Bancroft’s Class of 2000, Meredith went on to graduate cum laude from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a dual BS in Mechanical Engineering, and Science, Technology and Society with a focus in Product Design and Innovation. Upon graduating, she was recruited by GE Energy and worked for GE’s gas turbine business in Greenville, SC. After two years at GE, she decided to follow her passion for creating innovative products and changed industries. She joined Hasbro, Inc., one of the largest toy makers in the world, as an Associate Project Engineer. She quickly found success, and promotions, to Project Engineer-Technology Development, and then Senior Project Engineer-Product Development. She holds five U.S. patents and has been instrumental in the development of multiple brands including Nerf, Supersoaker, Transformers, and Kre-O. In 2015, Meredith accepted a two-year assignment in Hasbro’s Hong Kong office where she is Director of Product Development for the Preschool and EZ Bake categories. Outside of work, Meredith has served as a Board member for the Attleboro Area Council for Children, and visits schools and colleges, including Bancroft, to speak to students about careers in science and engineering.

Join us in congratulating four distinguished members of the Bancroft community on their selection as the Bancroft Alumni Award Recipients for 2015. 

Learn more about Bancroft’s Reunion 2015 at www.bancroftschool.org/reunion

19

Phew! We have 4,200 alumni, 700 parents, 500 grandparents, 465 students…and I think I have met all of you! Well, okay, maybe not ALL of you (yet). It’s been a busy few months here at Bancroft as Trey Cassidy and I have hit the road to meet many people who have dedicated time, energy, and funds to support Bancroft. Thank you for making this place what it is today. It’s such a joy to talk to so many people connected to this school and to hear your stories. Many of you speak fondly of the skills you learned and the confidence you developed through Bancroft activities. We need your help to continue the good work at our school. If I haven’t met you yet at one of the many events in Worcester, Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles or San Francisco, then you can rest assured that I will soon be packing my bag and heading out to meet you too. Or perhaps we will see you May 1 & 2 at Reunion! In the meantime, I encourage you to stay a part of the action. Keep in touch,

Tobey Fossey, Chief Advancement Officer

Keep in TouchSubmit class notesClass Notes and photos may be sent to your Class Secretary or directly to Bancroft at alumni@bancroftschool.org. In our attempts to limit paper, we will request Class Notes by email for the classes of 1950 to the present.

Memories of Bancroft We asked alumni to write about what their school years were like on Sever Street. Here are a few excerpts:

Betty ’45: “I finally realized that a good education was necessary to do well in life. Thanks Bancroft—memories of Sever Street remain and (at 87 years) I haven’t forgotten.”

Marilynn ’51: “Another thing I remember: Once you became a senior you could leave the main study hall and go into the small, back room and sit on a comfortable couch, where we could ‘study’ and/or of course talk!”

Jan ’51: “We wore uniforms from October 1 until May 1.  Gray skirt, blazer, and white gray or navy blouse or sweater were the norm.  It took me years to enjoy wearing a gray outfit again! Those were certainly simpler times than the chaotic and dangerous world of today.  We were fortunate to share such a special education in such surroundings.”

Kathy ’52: “Our class was very small, just about 20 girls by graduation. This made for close friendships…Our dances were held in the lower hall which was also the gym and where we had assemblies. Most of the boys we dated were from Worcester Academy. We also had great Gilbert and Sullivan operettas with them, always held at the Academy. All in all, happy memories.”

Sally ’56: “Now nearly fifty-nine years since then, I still hold fond memories of those unique old walls and am gratified that a number of us in the class of 1956 are still in touch.”

John M. ’57: “Wandering around Sever Street in 2007 at our 50th brought back lots of positive and negative memories, but most important it made me (and I’m sure the rest of us) recognize that who we became depended a lot on our experiences there. It provided a very solid foundation for my further study and my teaching—and I still tell stories in my classes of things that happened to me there!”

John G. ’58: “There was plenty of opportunity to enjoy winter sports at the Sever Street campus as well. It was said that Mr. Bill Keck, manual training teacher, (We were allowed to call him ‘Keckie.’) stayed late many a freezing night with a hose icing up the skating rink which covered the entire playground. Next day if the thermometer cooperated, any student who could wear skates would have hard ice to skate on during recess and after school.  The fact that I could skate can be attributed to the rink at Bancroft. I was unaware at the time how important knowing my teachers was. Their presence gave me a first sense of belonging in a learning community.”

Class NotesClass NotesClassNotes

Tobey, right, meeting alumni in NYC

MEET TOBEY FOSSEY

Ice skating at Sever Street is a favorite memory of many.

Join us in congratulating four distinguished members of the Bancroft community on their selection as the Bancroft Alumni Award Recipients for 2015. 

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1945 70th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Phyllis Andreson Nassikas

Betty Taylor richards: “I am now in the Greenbriar Nursing Home due to my inability to care for myself after breaking a hip. I shall be here permanently but miss the Bancroft news.” Sever Street: “It’s difficult for me to remember names of people. Still looking for information about Betty Johnson Mitchell— Recall Ginnie Thayer ’44 and of course cynthia carey Taylor who married my brother and helped me (or suffered with me) through Spanish. Remember chatting at the long table in the Library – a brief acting career in Little Women and shaking knees when the chorus was asked to perform. Often wonder what happened to the girls from England and so many others who (because of old age) I’ve forgotten their names.  BUT I HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN  the girl’s 17/18 year old faces and discovering that Bancroft would help me throughout life after only a year of tutelage. (I finally realized that a good education was necessary to do well in life.) Thanks Bancroft – memories of Sever Street remain and (at 87 years) I haven’t forgotten (even though now I abide in a Nursing Home) but still know how to laugh and have so many great memories. Yes, I’m on Facebook if anyone cares to join me.”

1949 Class Secretary: Alison Alton Rob nature@cape.com

1950

65th May 1-2, 2015

1951

Gail Whitcomb Coon ’47 and Marilynn Hamilton Goodale ’51 reminiscing about their days at Bancroft on Sever Street.

Marilynn hamilton goodale: “Ray and I just celebrated our 60th wedding anniversary in January. This picture is of me and Gail Whitcomb Coon, class of 1947. Ray also grew up with Gail and we have continued to visit as each of us has moved around the country.        Ray and I are still sailing our 35’ sailboat out of Pocassett, MA at Kingman Yacht Center. We do not go out alone, for safety reasons anymore. Our older daughter, Linda, has taken us out many

weekends as has our younger daughter, Holly. She also took us on a week-long cruise with our energetic Red Brook Harbor Yacht Club. We live in a townhouse in Mashpee in the summer and Vero Beach, FL in the winter. We try to do group water exercises and/or chair exercises (don’t laugh) 3 or 4 times per week. Hoping that some of the 8th graders plus class of ’51 will let us know what they are doing. With the help of the medical profession we are being kept together. Please call us if you are ever visiting in either place.” Sever Street: “I had the opportunity of being taught to play tennis at the Worcester Tennis Club next door instead of playing softball. I continued to play my four years at Bancroft and many full days in the summers with Jan Mix hemminger and kept my membership for years. Another thing I remember: Once you became a senior you could leave the main study hall and go into the small, back room and sit on a comfortable couch, where we could ‘study’ and/or of course talk! One of the teachers who was most important to me (whose name eludes me) had very brown eyes. I did write her a note of thanks years later. She taught 3rd year math—a combination of physics, trigonom-etry and geometry. She also taught biology in my senior year. At one time I was sick with pneumonia, I missed classes, homework and was behind on other subjects too! I needed to get it all done before midyear exams. This same teacher helped me make up only the ‘necessary’ work. She continued to encourage me through that year and senior year.”

Janet Mix hemminger: Sever Street: “I have lasting and fond memories of my three years in Upper School at Bancroft.  Without teachers like Mrs. Peckham and Mrs. Farnum  I would never have had the opportunity to go to Vassar College.  There were 16 (all girls at that time) members of the class of 1951.  We skated on the lawn outside the front steps, which was flooded in the winter.  In fall and spring we had field hockey and softball on that lawn.  Special dances and events were held in the gymnasium.  Hours were spent transforming the gym with decor fitting the theme of a prom, like the ‘mad hatters ball’ or the South Pacific ball.  We wore uniforms from October 1 until May 1.  Gray skirt, blazer, and white gray or navy blouse or sweater were the norm.  It took me years to enjoy wearing a gray outfit again!

Those were certainly simpler times than the chaotic and dangerous world of today. We were fortunate to share such a special education in such surroundings.  I am still in contact with several classmates as well as some of the eighth grade boys who were  friends. Best to all those younger classes.  May you also enjoy more than 60 years of being an alumna/us of Bancroft.”

1952 Class Secretary: Kathy O’Brien Cavanaugh kathycav@mac.com

kathleen o’Brien cavanaugh: “Sever Street had great memories for me. Our class was very small, just about 20 girls by graduation. This made for close friendships. All our classes were held on the second floor (Upper School) with the large room at the head of the stairs study hall and examination room. It was also the first room you went to at the start of school. Henry Tiffany was our headmaster and Mrs. Farnham head of the Upper School. Teachers I remember were Mrs. Peckham, Miss

Estes, Mrs. Farnham, Miss Cross and Miss Pike. Drama was Mrs. Graham. Our uniforms were grey skirts and blazers and you could only wear grey, blue or white sweaters or blouses. No lipstick was allowed. We were a pallid looking group! We had a Blue Moon Fair at Christmas-time which was a lot of fun to set up and sell ornaments etc. Our dances were held in the lower hall which was also the gym and where we had assemblies. Most of the boys we dated were from Worcester Academy. We also had great Gilbert and Sullivan operettas with them, always held at the Academy. All in all happy memories!”

1954 Class Secretary: Brad Gooch ’54 bradgooch1@gmail.com

Notes from Class Secretary, Brad gooch: Your humble secretary sends greetings to all you fine ’54’s and special thanks to those who took the time to send news for this Bulletin. Several used their annual Christmas notes to do that, and yes, there is a hint implied there!

Mary Waddell, aka Tookey Ingalls found 2014 a year “for Christians ‘all hands on deck.’” for she lost two “saintly friends” who “have left this earth for heaven.” She finds herself “plodding along” getting aid with chores like shopping, laundry and cleaning. Tookey has found and suggests you listen to some lovely Christmas music at YouTube: “Villancico Ruso” and the “Still, Still, Still” by the Vienna Boys Choir. Lovely they are, Tookey!

ruth harold Zollinger sent her annual Christmas letter from which the following is culled: 2013 was Ruth’s 55th Reunion at Wellesley College which then continued with friends back at their cottage in Maine with a lobster dinner celebra-tion in Boothbay where several other ’54’s live. In the spring of 2014 Ruth and Robert took a trip to Chaco Canyon, a 900 AD Indian UNESCO site in NW New Mexico. More celebrations were in order for Robert’s 80th and a gathering of the whole clan in the Cayman Islands, and Robert’s Harvard Medical School reunion and post-reunion events again back in Maine. Then a trip with grand-daughters for “Carmen” at the Met and to the Metropolitan Museum (exhausting even to write about these grand treks!). Ruth still serves on the College of Science Board at the U. of Az, and was recently elected Chair of the Atmospheric Science Department Board. She is also involved in Maine with the Boothbay Region Land and Trust. She, like many of us, has met and overcome a challenge, of spinal stenosis and now climbs the mountains near her newly remodeled home in the foothills of the Catalina Mountains in Tucson. She adds that the rest of the family, four sons and their families, are leading full and productive lives.

Janet newton Weinberg has, like Ruth, met and overcome the challenge of hip surgery from which she is “fully recovered” and is “walking around caneless” but is still working hard in rehab. (Bravo!) Her three sons are married and spread out from San Francisco to Denver to Silver Springs, MD. Janet works part time in her office doing surveys with business and  professional folks, but she is most interested in her free time with Adult Jewish Education (e.g. the Institute for Adult Jewish Studies); she also volunteers her time at the Cinema Arts Center, a major venue for foreign

Class Notes

and independent films. She stays busier on various Temple committees, and is especially engaged when her grandkids “who make me melt when they call and say ‘Grandma.’”

roz kochman at 78 years young is feeling “quite well,” and is still working away as a stone carver (and a superb one judging by the work she showed me in her email). They spend their Christmas and New Years in their Vail, Colorado home and will spend their summer there as well. (Ah, some of you ’54’s do get around.) Among her four grandsons, the eldest is a reporter for the NY Times, the twin boys are at Tufts and Lehigh, and the youngest is a first-grader, a skier, swimmer and soccer player for Roz to keep up with! More activity is planned for their trip to Germany, prehistoric England, and to see the antiquities of Jordan.  

Brad: (Your secretary) and wife Mary marked our sixth cancer-free year and did our celebrating by taking a cruise sponsored by my old college, Washington and Lee, our fourth such trip, and as always it was top notch, if a challenge as we knew it would be. The cruise took us from the old city of Dobrovnik, Croatia, along the gorgeous Dalmation Coast with quick visits ashore along the way, with lots of steps to climb in that hilly, mountainous country, taxing us both, Mary with her walker, me with post-polio cane (I’m jealous of Janet.) We ended, exhausted in Venice, sipping coffee in St. Marks Square the morning before the long flight home. Suffield Academy, where I taught for 36 years, now has the Gooch/Vincenti (a 40 year art teacher), Scholarship, a merit-based, full academic tuition award for an extremely talented rising senior in one field of the arts or another (e.g. art, dance, music, etc.). I kept a hand in the arts with my second stint as Guest Conductor of the Choir for the Lessons and Carols at our church performing John Rutter’s “Candlelight Carol” which came off very nicely indeed.

Your Humble Secretary, Brad, who thanks those above and who hopes to hear from lots more of you for the next edition of the Bulletin.

1956 Class Secretary: Sally Poor McHenry smchenrywrites@gmail.com

Sally Poor Mchenry: “Have recently adopted a shelter cat and it’s been like dealing with a new baby. I got her and brought her home for the first time, on the same day she had major surgery! My nerves are shot, my eyes are red and have circles under them, and I’ve lost a few pounds (that’s the good part). If anyone wants to hear about cat stories, I’ve got ’em. For instance, this morning for her opening gambit, she licked off her surgery scabs which drew blood, and then went and sat on a very expensive off-white couch in the living room. I’m resisting the urge to commit suicide.” Sever Street: “My introduction to Bancroft was on the day my parents escorted me to the Sever Street location to take the entrance exam. I was newly eleven years old. A very tall woman took me to an empty classroom, explained I was to complete the test she places on a desk, and left me in the quiet. Since it was a weekend, no one else was in the building, which made the place seem very big and me very small. I decided to ignore the size differences and be unafraid, and to dig into the test. When I finished, the tall lady took me to my waiting parents, disappeared for a while, and

Estes, Mrs. Farnham, Miss Cross and Miss Pike. Drama was Mrs. Graham. Our uniforms were grey skirts and blazers and you could only wear grey, blue or white sweaters or blouses. No lipstick was allowed. We were a pallid looking group! We had a Blue Moon Fair at Christmas-time which was a lot of fun to set up and sell ornaments etc. Our dances were held in the lower hall which was also the gym and where we had assemblies. Most of the boys we dated were from Worcester Academy. We also had great Gilbert and Sullivan operettas with them, always held at the Academy. All in all happy memories!”

1954 Class Secretary: Brad Gooch ’54 bradgooch1@gmail.com

Notes from Class Secretary, Brad gooch: Your humble secretary sends greetings to all you fine ’54’s and special thanks to those who took the time to send news for this Bulletin. Several used their annual Christmas notes to do that, and yes, there is a hint implied there!

Mary Waddell, aka Tookey Ingalls found 2014 a year “for Christians ‘all hands on deck.’” for she lost two “saintly friends” who “have left this earth for heaven.” She finds herself “plodding along” getting aid with chores like shopping, laundry and cleaning. Tookey has found and suggests you listen to some lovely Christmas music at YouTube: “Villancico Ruso” and the “Still, Still, Still” by the Vienna Boys Choir. Lovely they are, Tookey!

ruth harold Zollinger sent her annual Christmas letter from which the following is culled: 2013 was Ruth’s 55th Reunion at Wellesley College which then continued with friends back at their cottage in Maine with a lobster dinner celebra-tion in Boothbay where several other ’54’s live. In the spring of 2014 Ruth and Robert took a trip to Chaco Canyon, a 900 AD Indian UNESCO site in NW New Mexico. More celebrations were in order for Robert’s 80th and a gathering of the whole clan in the Cayman Islands, and Robert’s Harvard Medical School reunion and post-reunion events again back in Maine. Then a trip with grand-daughters for “Carmen” at the Met and to the Metropolitan Museum (exhausting even to write about these grand treks!). Ruth still serves on the College of Science Board at the U. of Az, and was recently elected Chair of the Atmospheric Science Department Board. She is also involved in Maine with the Boothbay Region Land and Trust. She, like many of us, has met and overcome a challenge, of spinal stenosis and now climbs the mountains near her newly remodeled home in the foothills of the Catalina Mountains in Tucson. She adds that the rest of the family, four sons and their families, are leading full and productive lives.

Janet newton Weinberg has, like Ruth, met and overcome the challenge of hip surgery from which she is “fully recovered” and is “walking around caneless” but is still working hard in rehab. (Bravo!) Her three sons are married and spread out from San Francisco to Denver to Silver Springs, MD. Janet works part time in her office doing surveys with business and  professional folks, but she is most interested in her free time with Adult Jewish Education (e.g. the Institute for Adult Jewish Studies); she also volunteers her time at the Cinema Arts Center, a major venue for foreign

21came back into the corridor with a broad smile on her face. I had passed. That was my first encounter with Bancroft and the venerable Mrs. Dorothy T. Peckham.

Seven years later I graduated from Bancroft, not knowing that our class was to be the last one to inhabit the Sever Street school. I’m glad we weren’t the first in the new location, because, by our senior year, Bancroft meant the familiar, comfortable Sever Street, not the brand new, untrodden Shore Drive location. Now nearly fifty-nine years since then, I still hold fond memories of those unique old walls and am gratified that a number of us in the class of 1956 are still in touch. Bancroft was a fine foundation.”

1957 Class Secretary and Agent: Betsy Glass Engvall appleby1939@gmail.com

John Mayher: Sever Street: “I’ll try to reflect a bit on what Bancroft has meant to me—and es-pecially as a teacher and teacher educator. All of us are influenced by our teachers, but those of us who go on to become teachers are particularly so. When we move to the other side of the desk, we bring all kinds of beliefs and attitudes about what school is, what teaching is, and how to help children learn. Many of these beliefs run deep and are mostly unconscious—at least until the new reality of our role shift causes us to make them conscious.

Since I became an English teacher initially in middle school and soon in high school, memories of Betty Norwood were powerfully influential—mostly for good—but also for questions and chal-lenges. How important is teaching grammar rules? I remember even in the 7th and 8th grades flipping through John Warriner’s Handbook harassing Mrs. Norwood by looking for exceptions to his rules, so it was a bizarre thing to find myself with the 10th grade version of his book in my first year of high school teaching. And my conviction that learning such rules didn’t help us learn to write grew though my years as a high school teacher, was strength-ened by studying linguistics when I returned to graduate school.

I remember her as a terrific teacher—caring, helpful, and inspirational in her love for litera-ture—even though I came to question some of what she taught and/or the way she taught it. And it was great to run into her at the National Coun-cil of Teachers of English convention in Houston in 1966!

One of the difficulties I had as a beginning teacher derived directly from the highly positive experience I had as a learner at Bancroft. This derived from my classmates as much as the teachers, and your collective influence left me underprepared for working with pupils who were less engaged with schooling and resistant to read-ing and writing. I soon learned that as a teacher you have to teach the students who are actually in your classes, not the ones you imagine to be typical seventh or eleventh graders.

The influence of those experience based beliefs and attitudes has continued to effect me through-out my career—even though I retired from New York University in 2009, I’m still teaching part time at Lehman College in the Bronx. Since I be-came a teacher educator, my overall goal has been to support my students as they strive to improve the schools they are teaching in. And reflecting on their own educational autobiographies has been a crucial ingredient in helping them make better choices in their classrooms. We don’t have to teach as we were taught, so if we do so it must be based on considering alternatives and understand-ing why we would. The power of what I came to call these common sense beliefs runs deep in all of us as parents and citizens as well as teachers, and it remains one of the reasons why schools haven’t changed very much even when they should have.

Wandering around Sever Street in 2007 at our 50th brought back lots of positive and negative memories, but most important it made me (and I’m sure the rest of us) recognize that who we became depended a lot on our experiences there. It provided a very solid foundation for my further study and my teaching—and I still tell stories in my classes of things that happened to me there!”

and independent films. She stays busier on various Temple committees, and is especially engaged when her grandkids “who make me melt when they call and say ‘Grandma.’”

roz kochman at 78 years young is feeling “quite well,” and is still working away as a stone carver (and a superb one judging by the work she showed me in her email). They spend their Christmas and New Years in their Vail, Colorado home and will spend their summer there as well. (Ah, some of you ’54’s do get around.) Among her four grandsons, the eldest is a reporter for the NY Times, the twin boys are at Tufts and Lehigh, and the youngest is a first-grader, a skier, swimmer and soccer player for Roz to keep up with! More activity is planned for their trip to Germany, prehistoric England, and to see the antiquities of Jordan.  

Brad: (Your secretary) and wife Mary marked our sixth cancer-free year and did our celebrating by taking a cruise sponsored by my old college, Washington and Lee, our fourth such trip, and as always it was top notch, if a challenge as we knew it would be. The cruise took us from the old city of Dobrovnik, Croatia, along the gorgeous Dalmation Coast with quick visits ashore along the way, with lots of steps to climb in that hilly, mountainous country, taxing us both, Mary with her walker, me with post-polio cane (I’m jealous of Janet.) We ended, exhausted in Venice, sipping coffee in St. Marks Square the morning before the long flight home. Suffield Academy, where I taught for 36 years, now has the Gooch/Vincenti (a 40 year art teacher), Scholarship, a merit-based, full academic tuition award for an extremely talented rising senior in one field of the arts or another (e.g. art, dance, music, etc.). I kept a hand in the arts with my second stint as Guest Conductor of the Choir for the Lessons and Carols at our church performing John Rutter’s “Candlelight Carol” which came off very nicely indeed.

Your Humble Secretary, Brad, who thanks those above and who hopes to hear from lots more of you for the next edition of the Bulletin.

1956 Class Secretary: Sally Poor McHenry smchenrywrites@gmail.com

Sally Poor Mchenry: “Have recently adopted a shelter cat and it’s been like dealing with a new baby. I got her and brought her home for the first time, on the same day she had major surgery! My nerves are shot, my eyes are red and have circles under them, and I’ve lost a few pounds (that’s the good part). If anyone wants to hear about cat stories, I’ve got ’em. For instance, this morning for her opening gambit, she licked off her surgery scabs which drew blood, and then went and sat on a very expensive off-white couch in the living room. I’m resisting the urge to commit suicide.” Sever Street: “My introduction to Bancroft was on the day my parents escorted me to the Sever Street location to take the entrance exam. I was newly eleven years old. A very tall woman took me to an empty classroom, explained I was to complete the test she places on a desk, and left me in the quiet. Since it was a weekend, no one else was in the building, which made the place seem very big and me very small. I decided to ignore the size differences and be unafraid, and to dig into the test. When I finished, the tall lady took me to my waiting parents, disappeared for a while, and

Ten years since your 50th Reunion. Plan to get together for another milestone—your 60th Reunion on May 1 & 2, 2015.

195560th May 1-2, 2015

22

Class Notes

1958 Class Secretary: Martha Coes Thayer marthav260@aol.com

Mark higgins, who died in the Congo in 1960, is subject of a book, written by his cousin Clarinda Higgins ’67. In, Against the Current, How Albert Schweitzer Inspired a Young Man’s Journey, Rindy uncovers Mark’s story of how he became the first and only American student working for the famous Dr. Schweitzer in West Africa in 1959, and what really happened to him during a solo journey through the Congo. The book is in the Bancroft library or may be purchased on Amazon.”

1960 55th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary/Agent: Rev. Christina Gummere Laurie preacherpoet@comcast.net

Class Agent: Evelyn Magnuson Wegner lynn.wegner@gmail.com

1962 Class Secretary: Pamela Kinnicutt Motley pamelamotley@msn.com

Dick Knight ’62 enjoying time with his grandchildren.

Notes from Class Secretary, Pam kinnicutt Motley:

lisa Johnson is still working in education after 30 years in the classroom teaching K, first and second grades. She has recently taken a position as a lit-eracy and math coach for teachers in an inner-city elementary school in Aurora, CO. She spends a few weeks each summer hiking, riding and explor-ing in the Tetons, a beautiful part of the west.

Susan Salzer fort celebrated her big Christmas birthday with her husband, all her children, their spouses, 6 grandchildren and other relatives in San Diego. It was a week of sun, water and good times.

Dick Pierpont writes that his daughter Lauren is expecting identical twin boys in May. In just a few months they will have 3 little ones under 3, and should be exciting.

Dick knight retired March 1, 2014 after 28 years building a career management consulting business called Keystone Partners. He and wife Lee still live in Marblehead, MA. Their two daughters have been married for some years, and have given them grandchildren ages 8, 5, 3, and 3. The two young-est are skiing already.

lee higgins says, “Did someone say retirement?” she retired from the Hawaii DOE last June, but is working almost every day for the Kamehameha Preschools and a Montessori school. She is still paddling her outrigger canoe in competitions. Lee’s great grandson, Caden Kaniela Hyatt was born on January 3, 2015 in Hawaii, and lives nearby.

Sue goldthwaite graham moved to Murfreesboro, TN in 2014 to be near her daughter Laura and her family. Laura has six children, and Sue gets a lot of “Gammy” time. Her son Chet and his wife Susan live outside of Atlanta, GA, which is only about 3 hours away. Sue works part time for National Health Care as a compliance specialist in their corporate office. She has found many new friends, a wonderful church family and new opportunities. “Life is good!”

I, Pam, am still working part-time for a Boston accounting firm, and this schedule works well for me. It gives me time to attend all sorts of grand-child activities…everything from musical theatre (“Music Man”) to Slalom ski races at Waterville Valley, NH, to Optimist pram sailboat races out of Marblehead. Being a Grandma is the best.

1963 Class Secretary and Agent: Charlotte Millard Harrington cwharrington4@comcast.net

It is with sadness we report the death of Charlie Sumner on January 3, 2015. Here are some of our memories of him:

Bill Shipman: “It is with great sorrow that I hear of charlie Sumner’s passing. I hadn’t seen Charlie since we graduated from Bancroft in 1959 except for occasional holiday social events during our college years. Then, two years ago I was asked to contact him in California to encourage his joining us at our 50th Reunion. When he heard why I was calling he seemed to scamper to a private cupboard where he kept his Bancroft memories in a balloon-like safe so inflated that it was about to burst.

And, burst it did. Charlie played a riff of memories that included classmates, teachers, sport-ing events, drama, and just stuff. Spontaneous, witty, hilarious. He was surely having fun reliving Bancroft. And, we laughed. A lot.

When asked again if he would travel to Worcester for our 50th, he hesitated. He was torn, for he had another reunion, one with his fellow Marines. He was trying to juggle this conflict knowing that if he didn’t attend, he probably

It’s been 5 years since the Class of 1960 organized a memorable 50th Reunion celebration. Plan to attend the 55th Reunion on May 1 & 2, 2015 to reconnect and reminisce.

1965 50th Reunion: Don’t let this milestone pass you by without celebrating!

50th May 1-2, 20151965

would never see us again. He would get back to me. When he did he said he could not be with us, for he felt called to duty to be with his Marines. He mentioned this with great sadness, and hoped we would understand. We missed you, Charlie. You and your memories would have offered so much to our celebration. Never lose your infectious humor or your love for Bancroft.”

Peter Johnson: “Very sorry to hear of charlie’s death. We were really joined at the hip during the 60’s because we were both training partners and rowed in a double scull together. We had some great success culminating in a U.S. National Championship in 1964. I remember Charlie as a very playful companion who was also a gutsy athlete. I’ll treasure the memories of those early mornings on Lake Quinsigamond.”

1966cynthia kaltsas: “Things are going well for me here in sunny Florida. Just put on a new roof and am busy with my Earth boxes growing organic veggies! My second harvest this year. So yummy...romaine, arugula, spinach, chard, tomatoes, herbs and flowers. My bestie carol Davis cicma is here for 3 months and we are having a ball. I am semi- retired and enjoying every minute of walking the beach, bicycle riding, laying in the sun, reading, 2nd-hand store shopping and just easing my way down the road. I dream of taking trips to some exotic destination but can’t seem to tear myself away from my cozy little bungalow just a hop, skip, and jump away from the number one beach in America! All the ladies in our class have been in touch. Only nancy Evans and DD Donnelly are missing so if you are reading this Bulletin please check in! And let’s not forget the men in our class-be sure to keep in touch. Would be so wonderful if we were all together once again. Judy Jacobson, harriet Perkins, and Betsy Mccune our dearly departed classmates...we miss you!”

linda Paquin McEvoy: ”I am still living in New Smyrna Beach FL. Trying to play golf at Sugar Mill CC and working hard with a group of great women in our local Garden club. I am really excited about our 50th reunion.”

1967 Class Secretaries: Elizabeth V. Young fdlcamp@aol.com

M. Valentine Callahan valentine.callahan@gmail.com

Marsha kunin continues her success as a pub-lished poet with her most recent poem, “Leaping the Blithewood Road” appearing in the most recent Worcester County Poetry Association’s Worcester Review.

rindy higgins: “I worked for the fourth summer directing a beachside nature center and was success-ful in intriguing an entrepreneur to buy the Higgins Armory Museum building so at least the building will remain and provide Worcester with an interest-ing re-use. But my big news is that I accomplished the number one wish on my bucket list! Since I was 11 years old, I have wanted to know how my cousin Mark Higgins ’58, had become the first and only American student working for the famous Dr. Albert Schweitzer in West Africa in 1959, and what really happened to him during a courageous

1965 50th Reunion: Don’t let this milestone pass you by without celebrating!

23

croft Art Teacher Louise Ewing, for any satisfac-tion and success I ever achieve as an artist and art teacher, as she was the first to encourage me.

Life is very good; I am grateful for every day. I’d love to meet any Bancroft’ers here in NC area!”

1970 45th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Debra Jones D’Alessandro djdmen@yahoo.com

Congratulations to Tia higano on being named the 2015 Esther Forbes Award recipient for Profes-sional Achievement, which will be presented at Reunion.

1972 Class Secretary: Jo Herron Truesdell thehats@aol.com

Class Agent: David Nicholson davidnicholson@endeavorproducts.com

Notes from Class Secretary, Jo herron Truesdell

Like most people in these parts this winter, lynn hutchins has been battling the weather. She was supposed to be vacationing in sunny Florida, but the snows came and the airport closed. She is hoping March will bring better weather as she is planning to visit her sister Ann in Santa Barbara at

solo journey in 1960 through the Congo after his work at the jungle clinic. For the last several years, my husband Bill and I have been researching and writing a book that weaves this biographical-adventure story with world events. In May, I took my husband and two adult kids on a rigorous but fun trip to Gabon to accomplish the last round of research. I have finally solved various mysteries of Mark’s life and have discovered inspiring legacies that have had lasting effects around the world 55 years later. Oakham Press has just published our book: Against the Current: How Albert Schweitzer Inspired a Young Man’s Journey. Thanks to Val callahan, longtime member and past president of Worcester Rotary and now the current District Governor, who arranged for us to speak at the Worcester Rotary Luncheon Meeting in February.

phot

o by

Ric

h Pr

ager

1969 Class Secretary and Agent: Hester Kinnicutt Jacobs djacobs@midrivers.com

Susan White Mcchesney: “I moved from Phipps-burg, ME to Asheville NC in 2014, an experience I never want to live through again. The desire to get OUT of New England winters was a big factor, but even bigger was having two sons Chas (26 yrs) and Avery (31) Duncan in Asheville. Avery and Molly have a son Safi (2), who has completely and utterly stolen my heart. I am simply loving being with all of them for regular ‘Sunday Family Dinner’ and all that ‘day to day’ life experience!

I work as a Visual Artist and Art Educator in a variety of ways in a variety of places;  www.mcchesneyart.com  to see what I am up to with my first love: Drawing. I still to this day thank my Ban-

would never see us again. He would get back to me. When he did he said he could not be with us, for he felt called to duty to be with his Marines. He mentioned this with great sadness, and hoped we would understand. We missed you, Charlie. You and your memories would have offered so much to our celebration. Never lose your infectious humor or your love for Bancroft.”

Peter Johnson: “Very sorry to hear of charlie’s death. We were really joined at the hip during the 60’s because we were both training partners and rowed in a double scull together. We had some great success culminating in a U.S. National Championship in 1964. I remember Charlie as a very playful companion who was also a gutsy athlete. I’ll treasure the memories of those early mornings on Lake Quinsigamond.”

1966cynthia kaltsas: “Things are going well for me here in sunny Florida. Just put on a new roof and am busy with my Earth boxes growing organic veggies! My second harvest this year. So yummy...romaine, arugula, spinach, chard, tomatoes, herbs and flowers. My bestie carol Davis cicma is here for 3 months and we are having a ball. I am semi- retired and enjoying every minute of walking the beach, bicycle riding, laying in the sun, reading, 2nd-hand store shopping and just easing my way down the road. I dream of taking trips to some exotic destination but can’t seem to tear myself away from my cozy little bungalow just a hop, skip, and jump away from the number one beach in America! All the ladies in our class have been in touch. Only nancy Evans and DD Donnelly are missing so if you are reading this Bulletin please check in! And let’s not forget the men in our class-be sure to keep in touch. Would be so wonderful if we were all together once again. Judy Jacobson, harriet Perkins, and Betsy Mccune our dearly departed classmates...we miss you!”

linda Paquin McEvoy: ”I am still living in New Smyrna Beach FL. Trying to play golf at Sugar Mill CC and working hard with a group of great women in our local Garden club. I am really excited about our 50th reunion.”

1967 Class Secretaries: Elizabeth V. Young fdlcamp@aol.com

M. Valentine Callahan valentine.callahan@gmail.com

Marsha kunin continues her success as a pub-lished poet with her most recent poem, “Leaping the Blithewood Road” appearing in the most recent Worcester County Poetry Association’s Worcester Review.

rindy higgins: “I worked for the fourth summer directing a beachside nature center and was success-ful in intriguing an entrepreneur to buy the Higgins Armory Museum building so at least the building will remain and provide Worcester with an interest-ing re-use. But my big news is that I accomplished the number one wish on my bucket list! Since I was 11 years old, I have wanted to know how my cousin Mark Higgins ’58, had become the first and only American student working for the famous Dr. Albert Schweitzer in West Africa in 1959, and what really happened to him during a courageous

1970 It’s been 45 years! Let’s celebrate! May 1 & 2, 2015

Your Gift to the Bancroft Fund...

PAYS IT FORWARD

giving@bancroftschool.org

Rindy and Bill at Rotary Club luncheon.

Class Notes

24

have Marion Howe to thank for the fact I recently penned my 22nd book, Unfinished Odyssey, The Life and Legend of Harry Agganis.”

lisa heald Zuar: “In April, Sally married her fiancé, Jesus Cantu, in an intimate ceremony just 5 minutes from our home. Sally and Jesus live in Houston, Texas. They both teach science during the day and Sally attends Acupuncture classes at the University of Texas, in the evenings. In May, Jenny graduated from Tuft’s Medical School and was accepted into the residency program with Brown University in Providence, RI.  My husband Bob continues to teach at Lasell College.”

Doug MacMillan: “Loving my new career working for a major US contractor here in Toronto. Tasked with mostly business development – I get a lot of free lunches these days and the occasional dinner with the Minister of the Economic Development! Had another rock star moment, playing keys and harmonica for a crowd of 400+ at an industry jam in the Spring. A ton of personal travel this year... high school reunion (40!) in Worcester; camping in Tobermorey; was able to hang out with Justin and his wife Amy in San Francisco; see Johnny’s enumerable teen-aged cousins in Lake Tahoe; climb onto a glacier in Iceland; and chase ruins in the South of France. Still sorting through thou-sands of pictures and will post some soon! Hoping everyone has a successful and energizing (if not a little chaotic) 2015.”

1975 40th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Elizabeth Tonna Sarantos esarantos@verizon.net

Class Agent: Seth Garfield oceanrancher@yahoo.com

Here some of us are in grade 4, 1967.

It’s been 15 years since our 25th Reunion. Let’s get together to see how good we still look. Plan to attend our 40th Reunion on May 1 & 2!

Seth garfield: “Greetings from Cuttyhunk, I as well as you cannot believe that it is our upcoming 40th reunion. I hope to see many of you that weekend. I am sure we all have a few stories to share, and it is always a pleasure to return to Shore Drive. I stopped in to see Mr. A. a few months ago and it was as though I was in a time warp. I appreciate all the notes and kind words from many of you regarding my father’s passing this Summer. We rallied as a family and held a very nice service in Mystic (Mr A., new Bancroft Head of School

Class Notes

that time. The snow in Austria didn’t stop adrien Perschak from enjoying his vacation, though, as he spent time this winter skiing in Ischgl.

Sarah Ireland has made some major changes. She and Rita sold their spot in Worcester and have moved full time into their “dream house” in Truro. Currently working for the DCF out of the Hyannis office, Rita is looking to retire soon, while Sarah has taken a job as the Director of Care Manage-ment for Outer Cape Health Services.

There is big news from the nicholson household as well. Their oldest son, Dave ’01, got engaged last August and is planning to be married this coming August, and their middle son, Scott ’04, got engaged in December and is planning to be married in June 2016. As David noted, “2014 was a truly wonderful year for Suzie and me as we gained two incredible daughters!”

Barbara Petter Putnam: “I am in a two-person show at the University of Maine Museum in Bangor called Global Change: The Dance of Contingencies. It is with Deborah Cornell, a printmaker at BU and we are focusing on the unintended consequences of warming temperatures and the gamble we make with every choice made or ignored. I have several quilts shown this time, where I am now printing onto fabric, dying it, and printing digitally onto cot-ton as well, then cutting it all up to make large wall pieces to speak about the interdependence of the species whose nutrients may be moving at the same time as migrating patterns of the past which were synchronized more on light.”

Barbara Petter Putnam’s quilt titled, “Where will they go from here?” is an accurate graphic display of the collapse of the barn swallows.

As for me (Jo), all is basically the same, except that our son, Sam ’01, moved from Maine to Michigan last fall to do a postdoc at the Center for Quantitative Fisheries at Michigan State. While continuing to teach Kindergarten at Bancroft, this year I began volunteering at the Worcester Children’s Friend Society’s Carriage House, a grief support center for children and their families.

1974 Class Secretary: Louisa Gebelein Jones lgjones@pomfretschool.org

Class Agent: Blake Anderson blake.anderson@mac.com

richard Johnson: “Bobby is in his second year with Americorps working for City Year at the JFK School in Jamaica Plain and Lizzy is a sophomore at Gettysburg College where she is a member of their cross country team. My wife Mary is in her 33rd year as a senior attorney for the US Treasury Dept. and I am in my 33rd year with The Sports Museum where I recently mounted a display cel-ebrating Sports Illustrated’s 60th anniversary. And I

Fargone Prod.

Lauren Shuster ’77 and her husband, Glen Gardner, joined friends Gayle Fish and Philippe Gut to open Symply Fargone Productions, to give “the Worcester music scene a much needed shot in the arm!” Says Lauren, they all grew up in Worcester and have known each other for 40 years. They all have a love of music and believed Worcester was primed for a revival of high-quality concerts for people who love classic rock, blues, and folk. And they were right.

Combining their years of music production, business, and professional experience, Symply Fargone is now in its second year, and has showcased such classic bands as Pure Prairie League, and Livingston Taylor and so many more, with performances in the Hanover Theatre, Mechanics Hall and Club Symply Fargone at Viva Bene. Lauren thanks some of her ’77 classmates who are involved in their success including, Eric Wells, Tara O’Connor Vigliotti, Paul Levenson and Wendy Rickles ’71. Simply put, they are bringing the music back to Worcester.

Check out: symplyfargone.com for complete listing of shows.

Lauren Shuster ’77 is Symply Fargone

Here some of us are in grade 4, 1967.

It’s been 15 years since our 25th Reunion. Let’s get together to see how good we still look. Plan to attend our 40th Reunion on May 1 & 2!

Seth garfield: “Greetings from Cuttyhunk, I as well as you cannot believe that it is our upcoming 40th reunion. I hope to see many of you that weekend. I am sure we all have a few stories to share, and it is always a pleasure to return to Shore Drive. I stopped in to see Mr. A. a few months ago and it was as though I was in a time warp. I appreciate all the notes and kind words from many of you regarding my father’s passing this Summer. We rallied as a family and held a very nice service in Mystic (Mr A., new Bancroft Head of School

Trey Cassidy, and the Headmaster from Wheeler attended) and a second one on a rain soaked windy day this Fall on the Island. Mr. White from the good old days of Upper School English was there with his wife sitting up front helping us say good bye to my Dad. We had a large turn out of so many folks from his past in the education world. Plenty of wonderful stories. A fitting send-off to a wonderful dad, teacher, and listener. My Mom is fine and we six children stop in to see her frequently and she will be on the Island this summer. I am still oystering (year 34) and I am working on starting a college program in Fairhaven MA. Lots more paperwork than I thought. I wish you all a great 2015 and look forward to our reunion.”

David Stone ’75

David Stone: “I am hoping to attend the reunion and am encouraging other classmates to do so. Here’s a quick update on me.

Vocation: After nearly six years as cofounder and CEO of a burgeoning, fast growth tech start-up (CashStar), I resigned 18 months ago. I decided to take a break after 30 years of nearly non-stop work related activities and idle my engines for a bit, since they’d been redlined for so long. I have started a new venture focused on the farm-to-table market, very early days though. Would love help if you are into this sort of thing and have connec-tions. Family: With five children, it’s always crazy busy. My oldest, Mariana moved to Boston where she is looking for a nursing position. My son Ben is in the Pre-Med program up here at the University of Southern Maine and lives with his girlfriend, Mara. Ellie just moved to San Francisco after graduation from Skidmore last May and is trying to get a job in a home goods related start-up. Noah is a junior at Middlebury and is off to Nepal for a semester.  And finally Grace is fully ensconced at Waynflete school as an 8th grader. I look forward to someday being an empty nester and partial retirement! Personal: After stepping aside from CashStar, I took a 79-day around the world ‘walk about’, a renewal and discovery journey. If you are interested you can read the blog I wrote while un-derway. It was a more than amazing trip. It enabled me to slow down and see things, make new friends and reconnect with old ones. I mostly stayed with family, friends and acquaintances, which allowed me to see the world through their eyes. I journeyed 35,000 miles through 11 countries and more than

20 cities and towns, some remote, some among the largest on the planet. I also have taken the time to relearn the piano. I have several other unfulfilled passions to pursue, but now need to refocus on building my next venture. Hope to see many of you in May!”

Judi hutchins Bastion: “I’m currently working for VF Corporation as a Business Analyst in Global IT Procurement. Spending more time in my studio and active in Gate City Quilt Guild and PAQA, a regional art quilts guild.”

Beth Tonna Sarantos: “Forty years after our gradu-ation, I continue to pursue the same passions in literacy and the arts that I had while at Bancroft. I teach language arts year-round as a private tutor and as a summer school teacher at the Landmark Elementary/Middle School in Manchester-by-the-Sea.  I have been in a book group with the same group of women for twenty-six years and our reading list is currently over 200 books!  I sing in church choir, a gospel group, and with the New England Classical Singers, also serving on its board of directors.  In the past two years, my focus in music has been less as a solo performer and more as a volunteer.  I sing bedside to hospice patients and their families in hospitals, nursing homes and private residences, and I serve as a mentor and sub-stitute director for a choir of special needs children and young adults called My Own Voice, which is affiliated with the Treble Chorus of New England. I hope to see many of my classmates in May to celebrate our 40th reunion.”

1981Michele leMaitre: “How time flies!  My three teen aged boys, ages 17, 16 & 15  and I have been living on Nantucket Island for quite some time now. The boys are in the throws of academy/college searching so the next few months will prove exciting and I expect big changes for us all soon. For the last 11 years, I’ve owned and run a

MARRIAGES

ken Davenport ’90 to Tracy Weiler

August 2014

Jennifer Summers ’90to Aaron Karvar

July 3, 2014

Julia croft ’02to Tyler TracewskiSeptember 20, 2014

clancey a. Bateman ’04to Andrew Potter September 20, 2014

Baird a. Bream ’06to Kelsey Robbins

August 30, 2014

Class of 1980: Let’s get together again for our 35th Reunion.Don’t miss this chance!

1980 35th May 1-2, 2015

Your Gift to the Bancroft Fund...

MAKES A DIFFERENCE

giving@bancroftschool.org

company called Nantucket Estate Sales, acting as liaison w/auction houses, private collectors as well as running estate sales, to help clients sell the contents of their homes, once the homes have been sold.

More recently, I have followed my life long passion of photography, and finally put my work out there for the world to see (MicheleLeMaitre.com). My first gallery showing was on Nan-tucket in September and I had the pleasure of two Bancroft friends attending the exhibit. I also joined the Artists Association of Nantucket, where I also exhibit my work. My intention is to continue to travel, photograph the beauty in the ordinary and have fun doing what I love. For those of you traveling to Nantucket feel free to look me up and perhaps we can grab a cup of coffee!”

25

26

Class Notes

richard coe writes, “As for me, it has been quite busy lately.  As the attached photo shows, my wife and I now have five grandchildren!  Even better, we are expecting two more in February and March as

each of our kids are expecting.  Grandparenthood is a blast and everything you hear about it is indeed true.  Personally, after 24 years in book publishing at the same company, I had the opportunity to leave last August and after much thought, I opted to take it.  I spent the remainder of 2014 truly relaxing, finishing up a long list of house projects, spending time with the family, cooking a lot of dinners, and getting outdoors to run and bike as much as possible (including the New York City marathon in November). I am feeling refreshed and energized (as I had hoped) and with the new year here I am now focused on the next step in my career (taking time to snowboard a bit when it snows!). I hope to be able to make it to reunion in May.”

1986 Class Secretaries: Rebecca Condon Zieminski rebeccazieminski@aol.com

Robert Gray gray@graymediagroup.com

Class Agent: Khurston Ellia-Epple KEllia-Epple@unum.com

Phil and Kasia’s son, Ian Komorowski-Robinson

Philip robinson: “I didn’t see any updates from my ’86 classmates in the last Bulletin, so I thought I’d draft one. Life is great in Ithaca! My son Ian is almost two, and he’s already playing piano with his feet, so the apple didn’t fall very far from the tree. I’ve enjoyed some amazing trips over the past year, including an elephant sanctuary in Kenya, Mexico, Vienna, Italy, and Istanbul.  As soon as one trip ends, you can bet that I’m already planning the next one! I’m also very happy with my recent career transition as IT Technical Architect/Assistant Director at Cornell’s Student and Academic Services division. Musically, I continue to be busy gigging with the Cornell Middle Eastern Ensemble and the O’Shanigans contra dance group. If you’re ever in Ithaca on a Tuesday night, stop by the Chapter House and you’ll probably see me behind a 12-string at the weekly Irish Session. And I keep busy with one of my other addictions—languages—lately studying a lot of Italian and Bulgarian to keep life maximally interesting. Cheers to all!”

1990 25th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Andrea Pantos Berger andreab264@gmail.com

Class Agent: Kerri Aleksiewicz Melley kamelley@hotmail.com

1985 30th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Jessie Boardman Glockner lpjglockner@msn.com

Wendy Rasnick Sternberg ‘85, Liz Commons Novak ’85 and Jessie Boardman Glockner ’85 caught up last summer at Liz’s Cape Cod home.

From Class Secretary, Jessie Boardman glockner: “After 15 years with an agency, I took the plunge and started my own PR consulting company last year (www.techprconsulting.com). I am happy to report that things are going well. I enjoy being my own boss and get great satisfaction from helping various companies bring their projects to fruition. Our son, Liam, (who is now taller than both my husband, Pete, and I) became a freshman at Wachusett Regional High School in the Fall and is thriving, having made Honor Roll the last two quarters. All in all, 2014 turned out better than expected, and I look forward to a successful and rewarding 2015. I hope to see many of you at reunion in May!”

kendall kennison writes, “I became a college parent this year, with my oldest at Haverford, and already the house is quieter, even with two kids still home. I can see the empty nest just around the corner. Meanwhile, I have kids in middle and high school and life is still pretty busy. I hope to make it to reunion, having had a great time at the 25th, but it will depend on the schedule.”

Pete Janhunen writes, “I live in Bethesda, MD, just outside Washington, DC. I get paid to give com-munications advice. I have two amazing daughters in college. And I still play in basketball and soccer leagues, albeit at an age-adjusted speed (ha).”

Class of 1985: Clothing and hair styles may have changed a little in 30 years, but the friendships you made remain. Plan to attend your 30th Reunion on May 1 & 2 and reminisce and reconnect.

BIRTHS

andrew Barter ’94 and AnnaCaroline Joan BarterSeptember 29, 2014

Stefani orland Silverstein ’00 and MarkChloe Pep Silverstein

November 7, 2014

rebecca holden Mccullough ’02and Patrick

Hudson Emory McCullough August 21, 2014

Jessie feldman Prunell ’02 and Justin Charles Edward Prunell

March 2014

Jennifer Summers: “I would like to report life in Baltimore is busy but good! My daughters are now 13, 12 and 8! I got remarried last July in a small ceremony in Annapolis, MD to Aaron Karvar. I look forward to seeing everyone at Reunion!”

ken Davenport: “My update? Took me awhile, but I finally got married! To the lovely and super patient Tracy Weiler. We got married in her hometown of Batesville, Indiana.  And Joey V. made the trip and was one of my groomsmen. In Broadway news, I’m a producer on It’s Only A Play with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick as well as a producer on Kinky Boots.  I’ve got a bunch of shows in development including a couple I’ve writ-ten. Stay tuned.”

Ken and Tracy on their wedding day.

Joey Veneziano ’90 congratulates Ken Davenport ’90.

27

Jennifer Summers: “I would like to report life in Baltimore is busy but good! My daughters are now 13, 12 and 8! I got remarried last July in a small ceremony in Annapolis, MD to Aaron Karvar. I look forward to seeing everyone at Reunion!”

ken Davenport: “My update? Took me awhile, but I finally got married! To the lovely and super patient Tracy Weiler. We got married in her hometown of Batesville, Indiana.  And Joey V. made the trip and was one of my groomsmen. In Broadway news, I’m a producer on It’s Only A Play with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick as well as a producer on Kinky Boots.  I’ve got a bunch of shows in development including a couple I’ve writ-ten. Stay tuned.”

Ken and Tracy on their wedding day.

Joey Veneziano ’90 congratulates Ken Davenport ’90.

1992 Class Secretary: Eleni N. Gage eleni_gage@yahoo.com

Class Agent: Tamar Alfred Steinman tsteinman26@yahoo.com

Eleni gage: “We’re expecting two new arrivals this Spring. The first is our second child, due in early April. It’s a boy! The next is my second novel, The Ladies of Managua, which will be published by St. Martin’s Press in May, just in time for Mother’s Day. It’s three girls! Actually, three generations of Nicaraguan women, each with her own secret, who are forced to confront their complicated relationships to each other and their homeland; I wrote most of it when we lived in Granada, Nicaragua, for Emilio’s work in 2013. We’re very excited to meet both newcomers, and happy to be back in New York where we get to see fellow alums cat Mailloux and Maxine Sleeper ’91 often. Let us know if you’re passing through town.”

1993 Class Secretary: Alicia Davis Downs awdd@targetpointconsulting.com

Class Agent: Erica Driscoll Ribeiro eldr@hotmail.com

kevin ramos-glew: “Life is wonderful in the Upper Valley.  We feel blessed to be able to Nordic ski out our backdoor and Alpine ski a few miles away.  My wife works at two farms here in Meriden—and our boys are in pre-K and 2nd grade.  We are enjoying the great outdoors here in NH.  Also, we are planning to build a sustainable/green home on our property in three years so be in touch with any architectural or construction advice.  Finally, I’m going to be the Director of Enrollment Management at Kimball Union.  If you’re headed skiing or visiting Dartmouth, please stop.”

1995 20th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretary: Jennifer Harter Alves jharteralves@gmail.com

1996 Class Agent: Peter Collins bantam91@yahoo.com

Thank you to Jim Paugh, who is now living in Dublin, Ireland, for his support and work as the ’96 Class Secretary. Now almost 20 years later, it seems it is time to step aside and ask another classmate to take the reins. Email Lynn in the alumni office (alumni@bancroftschool.org), if you are interested in keeping the ’96s connected.

Nicky Puccio visits with former student, Josh Shriber, and experiences Josh & the Jamtones, a family music band. Along with the band, Josh has a thriving music center, Jammin’ with You!, in Wellesley, MA. The center runs six different programs including Jam Baby, Jam Band, Stage Play, and dispatches teachers to lessons in 20 towns in Massachusetts.

Your Gift to the Bancroft Fund...

IS TAX DEDUCTIBLE

giving@bancroftschool.org

1995: Don’t miss this chance to celebrate 20 years on May 1 & 2, 2015.1990: It’s our 25th. Don’t miss it!

Can you believe it’s been 15 years since this photo was taken? Reconnect and reminisce at the 15th Reunion on May 1 & 2.

28

Class Notes

1997 Class Secretary: Anthony Selvitella aselvitella@gmail.com

Rachel Josephson Friedman ’97 and sons Jacob and Zach.

rachel Josephson friedman: “My family and I are living in Washington, DC (we’ve been here almost 7 years now) and we settled into a new neighbor-hood/house this past year. We have 2 boys, Jacob is 3 1/2 and Zach is 17 months. I am working part time as an occupational therapist/certified hand therapist and my husband Mark works in sports television...life is good!”

2000 15th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretaries/Agents: Win Ruml winthrop.ruml@gmail.com

Samantha Welch Zappia welch.sam@gmail.com

Stefani orland Silverstein and husband Mark are excited to welcome a daughter Chloe Pep on November 7, 2014. Chloe joins big brother Cyrus.

Win ruml: “My wife Annie and I enjoy Brooklyn Heights and see a few Bancroft friends from time to time. Our sons (Hugh 3; Cameron 1) keep us busy. Hugh has started preschool and enjoys our weekend trips to the library, and Cameron likes to tag along. We took a vacation last summer to Vinalhaven, Maine, my first time there in more than a decade, and we hope that we can get back up there soon. My mother lives in Lexington now, so it’s been a long time since I visited Worcester and Bancroft—I’m looking forward to the 15th reunion in May!”

2001 Class Secretary: Kelly McKallagat kellyrogers615@gmail.com

Class Agent: Liza Michie Laurent eliza.m.laurent@gmail.com

Notes from Class Secretary, kelly: Hello again class of 2001!  Can you believe our 15-year reunion is only one year away? Put it on your calendar now.

As for updates, I’ve only got two. First from the abyss Justin lesniewski came forward to report a project he has been working on-though he isn’t a zombie, he has been working with them. You can check out his project here: www.howtozombie.com.

I can personally vouch for the fact that liza, her husband Mike, and son Charlie are about as far from zombies as possible.  She wrote to report, “Well we have had a busy year in our family. Charlie and I were seen on the field hockey field for a number of games this fall and it was nice to be back! It was also great to catch up with some old players at the mini reunion in the Fall. Mike and I also found time for lots of golf this summer. Charlie is a big fan of the golf carts! I hope to see some people in the near future and hope everyone is well.”

We’ve been keeping these updates short and sweet, I’d love to put your updates in the next edition. Send me your emails, Facebook messages, or smoke signals.

Until next time, have a great weekend and stay out of jail.

In September, Rebecca Kowaloff ’02, Kelly McKallagat Rogers ’01, and Caitlin McDonough Mackenzie ’02, ran the Squam Ridge Trail in Holderness, NH. Rebecca and Caitlin both completed the 12-mile course with Caitlin placing 3rd in the super competitive 30-39 women’s division. Kelly placed first in the 4-mile race (which she attributes to lack of competitors), but we think all three ladies are awesome.

2002 Class Secretary: Rebecca Holden McCullough rebeccahmccullough@gmail.com

Class Agent: Alexis Tumolo alexis.tumolo@gmail.com

Notes from Becky holden Mccullough:

“2014 was a big year for my husband and me, namely because we welcomed a baby boy, Hudson Emory McCullough, on August 21st. We’ve had so much fun learning the ropes of being new parents and have been enjoying all the fun milestones. I’m still working at McKinsey, where I lead experi-enced hire recruiting in North America, and we’re continuing to do renovations on our home in Andover. Hoping to make it out to Boston more, would love to see the Bancroft crew in town!” Becky

Hudson Emory McCullough

Here’s what the rest of our class has been up to:

Jessie feldman Prunell writes: “My husband and I welcomed a baby, Charles Edward Prunell (but we call him Charlie) into the family last March. Charlie joined older dog sister Phoebe, a wild and crazy Golden Doodle who so far seems to enjoy having a sibling, especially when it’s highchair time. I am in my 5th year at Google, although I am now part time. I work in Sales and Marketing with a focus on Health Services clients in the weight loss and vitamin space. Funny enough, I am on the same team as Jess Weisberger ’04! My husband is also a ‘Googler’ which is fun and not surprisingly, pretty common at the company. We are still on the Upper West Side of Manhattan but make it back to Mass a few times of year to visit family and friends, especially my sister Sara Weiner ’00 and Margaret Bacon Duddy. We travel as much as we can—this past summer we were in Nantucket, and we recently spent 2 weeks in Ireland. Next up is

St. John for some much needed warm weather, and London.”

Sam Truesdell graduated with Ph.D. from University of Maine and in October and moved to Michigan to start a postdoc at MSU, where he’s working on stock assessment of Great Lakes fish populations.

Julia croft Tracewski married Tyler Tracewski on September 20th at the Exchange Conference Center on Boston’s Waterfront.

Stephie cohen writes in January: “Not much new around here, but getting ready to head to my 7th Super Bowl! Glad the Pats will have another shot at the win!  Also want to congratulate classmate Bram geller on his New Years wedding, sorry I couldn’t attend.”

Dave nicholson writes: “The past 18 months have been a big year for me.  I moved into my new condo in Sept 2013 with my brother Brad joining as my roommate.  Exactly a year later, I (gently) evicted Brad so that my fiancée, Laura, could move in to the condo. Laura and I were engaged Labor Day weekend of 2014 and are busy planning our wedding for the summer of 2015.  Although Laura went to Milton Academy, she’s been warmly welcomed by all the Bancroft people in my life and we’re excited to start the next stage of our life together!”

 

2004 Class Secretary: Jennifer Deprez jennifer.l.deprez@gmail.com

Class Agent: David Slatkin dslatkin@gmail.com

clancey Bateman Potter: Clancey Bateman (daughter of Math Department Head Kim VanderSpek) and Andrew Potter (Brown ’08) were married at the Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, Massachusetts on September 20, 2014. Eileen gardner and Erin finicane were bridesmaids. 

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St. John for some much needed warm weather, and London.”

Sam Truesdell graduated with Ph.D. from University of Maine and in October and moved to Michigan to start a postdoc at MSU, where he’s working on stock assessment of Great Lakes fish populations.

Julia croft Tracewski married Tyler Tracewski on September 20th at the Exchange Conference Center on Boston’s Waterfront.

Stephie cohen writes in January: “Not much new around here, but getting ready to head to my 7th Super Bowl! Glad the Pats will have another shot at the win!  Also want to congratulate classmate Bram geller on his New Years wedding, sorry I couldn’t attend.”

Dave nicholson writes: “The past 18 months have been a big year for me.  I moved into my new condo in Sept 2013 with my brother Brad joining as my roommate.  Exactly a year later, I (gently) evicted Brad so that my fiancée, Laura, could move in to the condo. Laura and I were engaged Labor Day weekend of 2014 and are busy planning our wedding for the summer of 2015.  Although Laura went to Milton Academy, she’s been warmly welcomed by all the Bancroft people in my life and we’re excited to start the next stage of our life together!”

 

2004 Class Secretary: Jennifer Deprez jennifer.l.deprez@gmail.com

Class Agent: David Slatkin dslatkin@gmail.com

clancey Bateman Potter: Clancey Bateman (daughter of Math Department Head Kim VanderSpek) and Andrew Potter (Brown ’08) were married at the Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, Massachusetts on September 20, 2014. Eileen gardner and Erin finicane were bridesmaids. 

Bride Clancey Bateman ’04 and groom Andrew Potter, with Clancey’s parents, Adrian and Kim VanderSpek.

2005 10th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretaries: Hannah Holdstein Hannah.holdstein@gmail.com

Sarah Allen sallen1@conncoll.edu

Class of 2005 in grade 4 with Mrs. Seale and Mrs. Shack. Reminisce and reconnect at the 10th Reunion on May 1 & 2, 2015.

2006 Class Secretaries and Agents: Mally Anderson mallyanderson@gmail.com

Curtis Reid curtisR27@gmail.com

Vanessa Theoharis vtheoharis@gmail.com

callie lekas: “I’m now in my third year at Wellesley working with the field hockey team and as our Recreation Coordinator. In the fall we won the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference Field Hockey Championship in a dramatic overtime win for the second year in a row. Our team then competed in Salisbury, Maryland  for the Sweet 16 of NCAAs. It has been an awesome opportunity being able to work at my alma mater with the field hockey team!”

Callie Lekas ’06 (center) and fellow Wellesley coaches holding NEWMAC field hockey championship trophy.

Erin Finicane ’04, and Eileen Gardner ’04, were bridesmaids at Clancey Bateman’s wedding in September 20, 2014.

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Tiffany Soobitsky: “Hi all! Upon graduating with my Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering in May from UConn, I celebrated my accomplishments with an extensive trip to Europe, visiting 7 countries and 12 cities in 5.5 weeks (the best trip of my life). I’ve since started my full time job at Pratt & Whit-ney in East Hartford, CT, working in their Nacelle & Engine Integration department. My role as an integration engineer includes managing nacelle test failure resolutions that I present to my department and the customer, and coordinating certification documents per Pratt & Whitney, US government, customer and the customer’s government regula-tions. I will also hopefully get to witness certifica-tion tests, which take place in places ranging from California, Montreal, Florida, Brazil and right here in Connecticut. My assigned projects are with the aircraft company Embraer, based in Brazil, and Bombardier in Canada, who is purchasing Pratt & Whitney’s new PurePower geared turbofan jet engine! It’s their new engine that is 45% quieter and 15% more fuel efficient than anything on the market right now. I’m ecstatic that I’m working on the most sustainable jet engine on the market!! (as sustainable energy and travel are my passions!) 

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Baird Bream: “In August, Kelsey London Robbins and I got married at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. Though we live in Chicago now, we’re both natives of Massachusetts, and we were thrilled to be back in the Bay State for our wedding. In attendance were over a dozen Bancroft alums from the Classes of 2006 through 2009—and one current Bancroft teacher, Kim VanderSpek. I was honored to have Will chilton, Brendan “cava” conuel, nate Erskine, and Gabe Drapos ’08 stand with me as Kelsey walked down the aisle.”

2009 Class Secretary: Molly Jackel Molly.e.jackel@gmail.com

Jimmy Kelley ’09, Meredith Crawford ’06, Curtis Reid ’06, Callie Lekas ’06, and Sarah Kelley ’10 joined other Bancroft alums at the Boston gathering in November. (Photobomb-Mr. A.)

Jimmy kelley: “I’m in my second year at Rivers School and have added the role of advisor to my communications/development duties. Also coached middle school lacrosse last spring and looking forward to the upcoming season.”

2010 5th May 1-2, 2015

Class Secretaries and Agents: Russell Oliver sportsfanatic44@yahoo.com

Ali Luthman aluthman@grad.bryant.edu

Jo-Ellen El Khoury jelkhoury18@gmail.com

Fingers crossed that I’ll be able to go to Brazil in the near future to witness testing!! I also moved to West Hartford with two friends and am enjoying all that it has to offer. All is well in the Soobitsky corner!!”

2012 Class Secretary: Guillermo Creamer guillermo.creamer@american.edu

guillermo creamer: “I traveled to London and Barcelona and met up with some Bancroft class-mates. Above, hannah reisinger, Meg fortier, and calla Simeone in London, and below, Hannah and I visited Molly Shea in Park Guell that over-looks Barcelona.”

Bancroft friends celebrating Baird Bream’s ’06 August wedding: sitting: Brendan Conuel ’06, Will Chilton ’06, Baird and bride Kelsey Robbins; Standing (l to r) Stephen Ursprung ’06, Kim VanderSpek, Sam Ostrow ’06, Allison Bennett ’09, Gabe Drapos ’08, Julia Karpicz ’06 Julia Probert ’07, Mally Anderson ’06, Tom Killeen, ’08, and Nate Erskine ’06.

Let’s not miss this chance to get together at our 5th Reunion on May 1 & 2, 2015.

Fingers crossed that I’ll be able to go to Brazil in the near future to witness testing!! I also moved to West Hartford with two friends and am enjoying all that it has to offer. All is well in the Soobitsky corner!!”

2012 Class Secretary: Guillermo Creamer guillermo.creamer@american.edu

guillermo creamer: “I traveled to London and Barcelona and met up with some Bancroft class-mates. Above, hannah reisinger, Meg fortier, and calla Simeone in London, and below, Hannah and I visited Molly Shea in Park Guell that over-looks Barcelona.”

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2013 Class Secretaries: Adrienne Chodnowsky adriennech@comcast.net

Eura Myrta Eura.Myrta@tufts.edu

Panelists, Ali Luthman ’10, Jason Theoharis ’13, Emory Payne ’14 and Emma Keates ’14 offer Bancroft’s senior Class of 2015 some advice about transitioning from high school to college.

2014 Class Secretaries: Akanksh Chaudhary ’14 akankshc96@gmail.com

Kat Landry ’14 klandry@andrew.cmu.edu

Once a speechie, always a speechie, especially when you were on Bancroft’s Speech team. December’s Holly Tournament proved the point as eleven Bancroft speech alumni, ranging in age from 19 to 29, were present to lend moral support to Bancroft’s team and to serve as judges. Pictured left to right, back row: Zach Dittami ’12, Sarah Whalen ’14, Keely Sullivan ’12, Karlie Fitzgerald ’12, Sali Diakite ’14, Kat Landry ’14. Front; Katie Oliver ’12, Jackie Theoharis ’10, Vanessa Theoharis ’06, and Aidan Payne ’08 (Aly Brody ’12 missing from photo).

Young Alumni ShAre their Path to Finding their Passions

Jill Goldstein ’04 and Winslow Dresser ’07 were featured speakers at Upper School lunch. Their message resonated with the students—follow your passions and make your future your own.

Jill, who is a Principal Investigator at Yale, spoke about her myriad of science experiences since graduating from Bancroft. She worked for a short stint at the FBI, did research, earned her PhD, and is now working in the field of adult stem cell biology. She stressed how important it is to find a mentor to guide you, and the students responded to her open and honest talk about her experiences.

Winslow’s talk was organized by the leaders of the Environmental Club. He spoke about his position with the Trustees of the Reservation, managing approx. 3,000 acres of public land. He told of his path after Bancroft included switching colleges and majors in an effort to find his passion. Knowing he wanted to do something involving outdoors and educating others, he graduated with a degree in Parks, Recreation & Tourism and worked as a National Park Ranger prior to his current position.

Science Chair, Brian Kondek, organizes a Lunch with a Scientist series providing students a chance to glimpse the opportunities they might explore in the future.

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In Memoriam

Alumni

Mary Ellen Mowbray Johansen ’35 December 16, 2014 in Florida, at 97

Mary Ellen graduated from Bancroft then earned her BA from Smith College. In 1950, she moved to New Canaan, CT with her first husband Mackarness Goode. Her second husband, John M. Johansen, an architect, built the modern house in which they lived. She was active in the Democratic Party and enjoyed reading, gardening and traveling. She co-founded a women’s book group, which still flourishes today. She leaves behind a son and a daughter and their families.

ronald S. Davis ’38 September 26, 2014 in Shrewsbury, MA, at 93

Ron attended Bancroft through eighth grade, and graduated from Deerfield Academy and Yale University. In World War II he was awarded a Bronze Star medal as an Artillery Forward Observer with the 104th Infantry Division. Ron joined Davis Press in 1946, was elected President in 1961, and held that position for Davis Advertising and Davis Publications as well before retiring in 1997. Throughout his retirement, he served as a trustee, chairman, board member, and volunteer for many local organizations including Bancroft. He was predeceased by his wife of 50 years Peggy, and his brother Gilbert S. Davis ’42. He leaves his daughter Elaine Davis Reid ’71, son Mark, grandchildren Abigail ’04 and W. Curtis ’06.

Virginia Wade Sampson ’38 January 2, 2015 in Fort Collins, CO, at 95

Jinny graduated from Bancroft School in 1938, and attended Wellesley College and the Salter Secretarial School. She worked at the Worcester Art Museum and married John Sampson in 1942. They lived in New York, Washington, and California before settling in Lexington, MA. Together they enjoyed hiking, skiing, and canoeing, bird watching, and gardening. After his death, Jinny moved to Colorado to be near family. She is predeceased by her husband and her sister Beverly Anne Wade ’42 and 3 other siblings. She is survived by her sister Miriam Wade Butts ’44, and son David and his family.

Elizabeth lasell Whipple ’39 November 20, 2014 in Topsham, ME, at 92

Elizabeth, or Pinkie as she was known, attended Bancroft for grades 9 and 10, then graduated from Chatham Hall and Pine Manor College. She married William Whipple in 1944 and settled in Grafton, MA, where they raised five children. She enjoyed tennis, piano, skiing, and traveling and was known for her warmth, thoughtfulness, and courage in the face of adversity. Pinkie was a dedicated volunteer for Bancroft and received the Mary Gage Rice Award for Outstanding Service in 1990. She was predeceased by her husband, and two sisters, Sonia Lasell Jaretzki ’41 and Katharine Lasell Dealy ’39. She leaves one brother and five children, including Susan ’71 and Lasell ’75, and nine grandchildren.

Sarah Daniels Pettit ’40 February 24, 2015 in Worcester, MA, at 92

Sally attended Bancroft and then went on to graduate from Miss Hall’s School, and then Garland Junior College. She served in the U.S. Navy from 1943-1946 as a Pharmacist Mate during WWII. She married William Pettit and raised a family. During that time she was an avid volunteer and gardener. She was President of the Worcester Garden Club, before becoming an honorary member for her 54 years of service. She was known nationally for her award winning flower arrangements. Sally volunteered at several community organizations and was honored by the Rainbow Child Center with their Advocate for Children Award. Sally was predeceased by her husband William and her sister Mary Daniels Blake ’39. She leaves her daughter Sarah Daignault ’66, and son William ’68 and their families.

David E. Beach ’47 December 6, 2014 in Stowe, VT, at 86

David attended Bancroft through grade eight and then Classical High School, which was interrupted by World War II. After discharge, he returned to obtain his high school diploma, and a degree in mechanical engineering from WPI. He worked for Eastman Kodak for 34 years—two of his many project designs were the pocket camera and the flash cube. He enjoyed many sports, including competitive skiing and tennis, cards, music, and served as a National Ski Patrol member for 16 years. He was predeceased by his first wife Nancy, and his son Jonathan. He is survived by his wife of 25 years, Lisa, 3 children and 3 step-children, and many grandchildren.

David k. Beach ’49 December 27, 2014 in Rutland, MA, at 83

David graduated from Bancroft’s grade 8 and attended Wilbraham Academy, Worcester Academy and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He owned and operated Beach Engineering Sales Associates in Worcester, and was a sales engineer at Coppus Engineering previously. He was active in Paxton, MA’s community, where he had lived for many years before moving to Rutland in 2004. He enjoyed woodcarving, piano playing, skiing and was a Tennessee Squire. He was predeceased by his wife Ella in 2012 and

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leaves his sisters Mary Lou Beach Seto ’53 and Carol Beach ’58, a son, 2 daughters and nine grandchildren.

Mary givan Bath ’50 January 31, 2015 in Worcester, MA, at 83

Mary attended Bancroft for high school, graduating in 1950. She received a degree in retail from Lasell College and loved working at the Worcester Crafter Center. She was a consummate volunteer, for Abby’s House, for her church, and for Bancroft School, acting as Class Secretary for many years. She was devoted to her family. Her husband John, and daughter Hilary ’72 predeceased her. She is survived by children Pamela Kelly, Janet Jack, and Jay Bath, and their families including granddaughter Taylor Kelly ’09.

robert D. harrington, Jr. ’50 November 5, 2014 in Worcester, MA, at 82

Robert attended Bancroft through grade 8, and went on to Manlius School. He earned an degree from Brown University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. An entrepreneur and venture capitalist, he owned Printers Express, and worked for Morgan Guarantee in Worcester. He was also a member of the National Guard, and actively supported organizations that focused on the environment, with particular interest in the waters off the coast of New England. He was also an avid sportsman and explorer, and a Mason. He is survived by his wife, Clare, sister Sarah Williams ’53 and extended family.

Eustis Barber cowardin ’52 November 6, 2014 in Jamestown, ND, at 79

Eustis attended Bancroft grades 5 - 9, and graduated from Miss Porter’s School. She received her BA from Wellesley College, and married Lewis in 1956. They lived in Hawaii and North Dakota, where Eustis earned her LPN, and worked in hospice and home health care. She volunteered for many local youth organizations and the Grace Episcopal Church, culminating in her ordination to the deaconate and priesthood. She was dedicated to the Grace Church for over 40 years, well into her retirement. She is survived by her husband of 58 years, Lewis, their four children and three grandchildren.

Priscilla Davis ’52 October 24, 2014 in Rockland, MA at 79

Priscilla attended Bancroft from nursery school until junior year when she went on to graduate from the Ethel Walker School and then Smith College. She was an exceptionally talented artist of watercolor and oil paintings and has left her family many pieces of her treasured works of art. She was a student at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and studied with Paul Sample in Hanover, NH. Priscilla is survived by her brother Phillips Davis ’58 and sister Frances Johnstone ’54, and their families.

charles Sumner, II ’63 January 3, 2015 in California, at 69

Charlie attended Bancroft until grade 8 and then graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall. He received his BA in Architecture from Yale University, and his MBA from the Wharton School at UPenn. He became a U. S. National Champion in rowing in 1964 and served in the Marines in Vietnam. Charlie became an accomplished real estate professional with extensive experience in commercial real estate development, asset management and property management. He leaves his wife Valerie and family including brother, Stephen Sumner ’66.

John rives ’69 November 22, 2014 in Worcester, MA, at 63

John graduated from Bancroft’s grade 8 and then from St. George’s School. He went on to the University of Rhode Island and was a graduate of the NAWCC School of Horology. His career and passion in life was the repair and restoration of clocks

throughout New England. He was a member of the All Saints Church Choir, Worcester Chorus, a volunteer and Board member for Wachusett Greenways and running coach at Notre Dame Academy. John leaves his wife Linda Waldron, 2 children, his brother Peter Rives ’72, and his sister Judith Peachy Warren ’67.

Extended Community

christos cocaine February 7, 2015 in Worcester, MA, at 90

Former Trustee and parent, Christos lived with his wife Mary Tonna in Worcester since 1954 when he began working at Table Talk Pies. Eventually becoming the owner, he continued to work until the time of his death. Active within the Worcester community, Christo served on Bancroft’s Board of Trustees from 1966 to 1972. He was predeceased by his son, Michael Cocaine ’76. He leaves his wife of 68 years, Mary Tonna Cocaine ’46, daughter Marina C. Smith ’65, and son Harry Kokkinis ’70, and many grandchildren and extended family.

natalie ferris February 7, 2015 in Worcester, MA, at 80

Former teacher and parent of four Bancroft alumni, Natalie graduated from Spence School for Girls and Briarcliff College. She married Rodney Ferris and together they raised their family in Holden, MA. In the 1970’s Natalie took over the ICE (Independent Community Experience) program at Bancroft, and also managed the bookstore. She leaves her husband of 59 years, Rodney, and 4 sons: Rodney, Jr ’76, Dakin ’78, Timothy ’80, and Bradley ’82, their wives and children.

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In 1961, Mr. Garfield saved me from permanent penury by taking a chance

and offering me gainful employment at Bancroft School. It came about in this way: I was teaching, part time, freshman English at B.U., and my family and I were living under the poverty line. I learned that a private school in Worcester was looking for an English teacher. Mr. Garfield and I met in his office; he had just finished planting pine seedlings on the hill above the campus; some of these are still growing while some have fallen. After knocking the ashes in his pipe into a large blue ashtray, he began a dialogue. I have no idea what we talked about, but mainly it was not details, it was a getting to know each other. In any case, he made an offer I could not refuse, circa $4,000. I would be teaching sophomore and senior English, a seventh grade class in beginning Latin and helping with gym classes. After nine years, I would graduate from gym duty as I was demoted each year to a lower grade Over time, I learned that Wyatt had been commissioned at Dartmouth College. Returning from the Pacific, he resumed his education at Yale where he was captain of the crew and majored in English. His favorite writer was Joseph Conrad who usually wrote about men and the sea. I had spent two years in the Navy and was a great admirer of “Moby Dick.” We bonded

over sea stories, some true. In retirement, Wyatt built a wooden boat and volunteered at Mystic Seaport where he worked on the rigging of the last wooden whaler, the Charles Morgan, which made her 38th voyage to Boston this year. “Call me Ishmael.” He was a paradoxical amalgam of Melville’s Starbuck and Stubb, the one righteous, the second fun loving. One day, decades ago, I found myself helping Wyatt making ice on the School’s rink. It was the coldest day of the decade. Wyatt cheerfully averred we were having fun. Though my hands had lost all sensation (Emily Dickinson describes it this way: “As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow/First–Chill–then Stupor–then the letting go”), I wondered what would happen to my widow plus one and a half dependents; would it be the poor farm or the Dickensian workhouse? So I smiled, as much as I was able to. I think Wyatt once said he would like to do manual work in the morning and read through the afternoon. He seemed to prefer moving around the campus, getting in the “trenches” and talking to teachers and students. When he arrived in the morning, he first greeted the custodians and the cooks, asking about their families and making certain things were O.K. Though he loved books, I think he liked people even more. He followed the Kantian principle that others must be treated

as ends in themselves, never as means. This is not always the norm in competitive independent schools. Before my first week at Bancroft, he lent me three books I might assign: “Chanson de Roland,” “The Art of Modern Fiction,” and Conrad’s “Lord Jim.” For ten years I enjoyed going through the great stories in “The Art of Modern Fiction.” But I still have not read “Lord Jim,” which I believe is about guilt over abandoning a sinking ship filled with pilgrims journeying to Mecca. Perhaps the guilt will mount to the point where I have to read it. Mark Twain, who took his name from safe water, or two fathoms deep, said he had met every type of human being while working as a pilot on the Mississippi; it was his Yale, as a whaler was Melville’s “Yale, and his Harvard.” In 1981, Wyatt announced to the faculty that he and Kitsy had decided, while on a steamboat on the Mississippi, that it was time

to retire. At that time, he was the longest sitting headmaster of an independent school in the state. He had learned in the Navy, from Conrad, from his home on Cuttyhunk Island that, as Melville wrote: “everyone knows meditation and water are wedded forever.” The day in October on which a celebration of Wyatt’s life was held on his cherished Cuttyhunk Island, it rained, but that did not dampen the spirit of the service in the church, which was full, so full, in fact, that an overflow crowd stood listening outside under umbrellas. Appropriately, the service began with “The Sea” played by the composer. It also included the Navy Hymn. The Garfield children then spoke with love and humor about their father. They captured not only his kindness but also his mischief. He had begun his love for Cuttyhunk in 1929, and his ashes have been enclosed in a toolbox that he made and will rest on Cuttyhunk Island, his Walden, his omphalos.

Steve hite Remembers

yatt GarfieldW

I shall not forget that he rescued me from debtor’s prison and/or the workhouse, but more importantly he taught me, and many others, how to pursue personal happiness through compassion for others, a lesson we would honor him by learning.

Read the story in its entirety at www.bancroftschool.org/stevewhite Wyatt Garfield passed away at age 89 on 8/14/14

When Headmaster Garfield hired a young English teacher named White, neither man knew their friendship would last a lifetime.

Steve hite Remembers

yatt Garfield

I shall not forget that he rescued me from debtor’s prison and/or the workhouse, but more importantly he taught me, and many others, how to pursue personal happiness through compassion for others, a lesson we would honor him by learning.

Read the story in its entirety at www.bancroftschool.org/stevewhite Wyatt Garfield passed away at age 89 on 8/14/14

Spotlight on GivingMichael Conboy ‘84 entered Bancroft in 7th grade. He went on to earn a Harvard B.A. and a Stanford Ph.D. and today is Assistant Professional Researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, studying immortal DNA, aging, and regeneration in mammalian stem cells. Michael talked about why he continues to generously support the school.

“There were a couple of years that I attended Bancroft on the generosity of others. I won’t forget that; I’m paying it forward.”

Do you have a favorite memory of Bancroft?Few of my truly favorite memories are fit to print, but one was singing with my basketball teammates a slightly modified version of Kool and the Gang’s “Get Down On It,” while riding home on the bus from a basketball game. Ahh, what a manic teenage moment…

What subjects did you like most?At the time I liked the math and science classes and they certainly prepared me well for my college major (biochemistry). But in hindsight I’m realizing the non-science classes that I grudgingly studied, English, history, Mrs. Koontz’s drama classes (which at the time I treated like structured recess), even Sra. Bayon’s Spanish, THOSE are the classes that I never would have taken in college, and if it weren’t for Bancroft and an actual liberal arts, broad education, I would be an even bigger buffoon trying to plan a fundraising strategy, lecturing in front of a class, or even integrating myself in my hometown (El Sobrante, CA).

Which teachers inspired or influenced you most?They all did, but the biggest mental sea changes came from Mrs. Rasnick who taught history and economics, and Mr. Oliphant who taught the physical sciences. Mrs. Raz taught me to think deconstructively, to critically take apart a “truth” into supporting or conflicting facts, and Mr. O taught me to think constructively, to build known facts into a truth or hypothesis that I didn’t know before.

When did you know what you wanted to do professionally?I knew I wanted to be left alone to study natural sciences when I was five. I just didn’t know at the time that all the leaves, bugs, and critters were called natural sciences.

Did you feel well prepared academically for college? I joke to myself that Bancroft prepared me better for Stanford than Harvard did. Grad school is like getting dropped off in the jungle and you graduate if you find your way back to civilization. Bancroft was my knife and flint.

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