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Distinguished Young Alumna Award: Marynee Pontes ’12
Distinguished Young Alumna honoree Marynee Pontes ’12 gives back in both her professional and personal life to pay it forward.
Marynee Pontes ’12 remembers the surprise that registered when she approached a table at a college volunteer fair. Strong Women, Strong Girls (SWSG) was an organization she’d been involved with as a girl mentee. Now here she was, attending Tufts University and in a place where she herself could be one of those college mentors she’d looked up to so many years ago. positive reinforcements,” she said. She’s also involved with Kriola’s Professional Association, which provides community building and networking to Cape Verdean women in Boston, as their development director.
Pontes was honored with the Distinguished Young Alumna Award during Reunion Weekend in April for the work she’s done for local nonprofits like SWSG as well as her current role at Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC).
In college, she thought she needed to go the finance route — do more of a “traditional career,” she said, “but I kept looking at jobs that were of interest to me. They were jobs that made an impact. One where I would be able to connect with multiple individuals from many backgrounds.” Pontes’ decision to pursue a life of service was cultivated and birthed at Dana Hall, she said. Her involvement in SHADES and Bridge helped her bring awareness of various issues that those communities faced by educating the larger Dana Hall community. And she credits Model UN as one of the places that helped hone her voice, teaching her to effectively communicate ideas on important issues and topics.
“Dana really helped build up my own inner confidence,” Pontes said. “At college, I spoke out about the things I was passionate about. I didn’t feel that sense of, ‘What’s everyone going to think of me?’ A lot of those fears were gone because I had done so much of that while at Dana.
She currently serves as a deputy director for ICIC, where she supports small business development in underserved communities by running programs that provide entrepreneurs with the education and resources to grow and advance their businesses. This was especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pontes said, as many of these small businesses were “extremely unequipped to weather that sort of impact. We really had an opportunity to respond directly to the needs of the business owners, and provide them with timely and relevant resources to support them during that time.” “I see the difference in myself and how much Dana has impacted so many aspects of my life compared to my peers,” she said. “I hope to encourage others to hone in on who they are and what they want to be. Follow your passion. Follow your gut to pursue those dreams. The Dana community is there to support that growth.”
Along with her work at ICIC, Pontes volunteers for SWSG, where after serving as a college mentor, she went on to become a board member. “I believe strongly in the power of mentorship, the power of positive role models and
Alumnae Council President Lee Ferguson Frechette ’81, P16, 22 (right) presented the Distinguished Young Alumna Award to Marynee Pontes ’12 during the Reunion luncheon.
Your Legacy. Their Future.
ool D ana H all S c H
Say Yes to the Challenge
The Helen Temple Cooke Society recognizes those who have included Dana Hall School in their estate plans. A robust community of more than 160 alumnae, parents, faculty and friends of the School, members have a shared purpose: investing in the future of Dana Hall with a planned gift. This year, there is an extra incentive to benefit Dana Hall with a legacy gift: the 2022 Planned Giving Challenge. For each new member of the Helen Temple Cooke Society, an anonymous alumna member of the Society will donate $1,000 to Dana Hall’s endowment and capital projects, up to $25,000. Members of the Dana Hall community have already said yes to the Challenge. Here’s why, in their own words:
No matter your age or financial situation, there are planned giving vehicles that align with your personal priorities. Planned gifts can satisfy both financial and philanthropic objectives: • Current and/or future tax advantages • An income stream for you and/or your partner during life • Designation for a particular fund or purpose that is meaningful to you • Clarity for those managing donor-advised funds or family foundations • Maintenance of your annual giving in perpetuity • Ability to make a significant gift when you no longer need the assets
“My formative experience at Dana Hall included a world-class education and the creation of life-long friendships, which set the foundation for my future success and happiness. I am excited to now support Dana through a planned gift to help ensure that future generations of women can benefit from the unique, evergreen zeitgeist of our beloved alma mater.” — Diane Appel ’80
“Some years ago my husband and I made a planned gift to our church, so when I learned that Dana had the Helen Temple Cooke Society to recognize planned giving, I thought why not make a gift to Dana in our wills as well? We don’t know how long we will live or what our needs will be as we age, but leaving a percentage of our trust at life’s end seems like a fail-safe bequest. I feel very good about recognizing in a tangible way the ‘gift that can ne’er be bought’ and ‘our debt to you, Alma Mater, our debt to Dana Hall’.” — Suzy Hoagland Titus ’62
