Advancing Our Mission
Thank you to everyone who participated in the 100 Knights ‘til Graduation Alumni/ae Challenge. Stories of connections, lifelong friendships, career success, networking, and personal endeavors were posted for the BB&N alumni/ae community to see. Whether engaging on social media, sharing your story, or making a gift in honor of the $100,000 challenge, we are proud to be a part of a community that continues to make a difference in the world of education.
Patricia Ann Blevins ’44 Drama Fund: A lifelong passion for theater, ignited at Buckingham, sparks new fund to support BB&N Drama Programs When Patricia Ann Blevins entered the Buckingham School as a kindergartener in 1931, little did she know that it would be the beginning of a lifelong passion for the theater. Under the tutelage of longtime Buckingham drama, history, and English teacher Helen Matteson, Patricia and her classmates (members of the Buckingham Dramatic Club, as it was known in those days) acquired the skills to produce a wide variety of full-length dramas and musicals. Students not only performed on stage but also mastered all aspects of costuming, set design, and construction, which culminated for Patricia in a memorable performance of Romeo and Juliet her senior year. After graduating from Smith College in 1948 with a major in theater, Patricia’s joie de vivre was expressed in her lifelong passions for fashion, cooking, and entertaining—but most of all, the theater. Whether on stage or screen, as actor, director, or producer, the theater was Patricia’s first love, and she was a proud holder of both SAG (Screen Actors Guild) and Actors’ Equity cards. She held a variety of roles in community theater (primarily the Concord Players), regional theater (the New England Theater Conference, Merrimack Players, and Zeiterion Theater), and also acted in several movies and television. With her husband of 41 years, Bill Butcher, she raised three children (Ben, Amy, and Jonathan); and after their divorce, enjoyed 24 years of passionate adventures with her second husband, Derek Till. Over the years, Patricia was a loyal supporter of BB&N and was a regular attendee at alumni/ae events. At the Golden Alumni/ae luncheon in 2013, she was proud to receive an official BB&N Lifer bear, now given to seniors who start BB&N in Beginners, Kindergarten, or first grade.
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Friends Freddie Turner ‘91 and Kim Ablon Whitney ‘91 point out their joint senior tiles...
Sadly, Patricia passed away last year at the age of 89 but her lifelong love of drama, born at Buckingham, will be permanently honored and remembered at her alma mater through her family’s generosity. Earlier this year, Patricia’s son Ben notified the School of his interest in making a gift in his mother’s memory to establish the Patricia Ann Blevins ’44 Drama Fund. This new endowment fund will be used to support the expenses of the drama programs on the Lower and Middle School campuses (the former home of the Buckingham School), and will enable current and future BB&N students to develop and experience a love of theater as Patricia did during her years at Buckingham. Those interested in supporting the Blevins Drama Fund can contact Janet Rosen at jrosen@bbns.org or 617-800-2729, or can make a gift online at bbns.org/donate.
As my BB&N Class of 1997 reunion gets closer, I’m thinking about what I must have been doing during my last #100Knights...
The gift of advice to the Class of 2017 - “However cliche this may sound, I’d say ‘trust your gut; it never lies.’ If I knew then what I knew now, I would’ve followed my passion from the very beginning.” Tiana Lewis ‘06 @famoustiana #100Knights
Brianna Smith ‘10 and Alix Wozniak ‘10 became best friends in Kindergarten. Flash forward...
2 PICTURED x 1 x Patricia Blevins Till ‘44 with her BB&N Lifer bear at the Golden Alumni/ae Luncheon, 2013 x 2 x Patricia Till performing in the one-woman show Full Gallop about the controversial fashion editor Diana Vreeland x 3 x Buckingham cast of Trial by Jury, 1943 (Patricia Blevins ‘44 is front row, third from right)
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In response to, “What is one thing that BB&N gave you?” Alumni/ae responded...
Did you know that the BB&N Woodshop has moved 5 times since it was built in 1932? Here’s a then and now #tbd of Upper School Woodworking teacher Paul Ruhlmann working with students then and now. #100Knights
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