A C h a p e l Ta l k
by Stephen M. Strachan ’72 April 25, 2014
An Explorationist’s
Perspective
voces
G
ood morning, everyone. I would like to say thank you for coming and giving me a few moments to speak with you, but I realize, too, that most of you did not have a choice in the matter, and that this is just a brief interlude before the trials and tribulations of the day kick in for you. I remember that all too well. You see, I was a member of the last First Form, and in those six years, I sat through more than 1,680 Chapel services. So I appreciate your circumstances and your indulgence. Well, maybe not the full 1,680 services. I actually had an excuse not to go to the last two months of Chapel my Sixth Form year: when it was discovered that several of us adventurous seniors were enjoying a Jerry Garcia and the New Riders of the Purple Sage concert in Boston, we were unceremoniously asked to leave. So, in honor of the 42nd anniversary of this sojourn, today I have worn my favorite Jerry Garcia tie. I must say, it is quite the pleasure to be staying at the Headmaster’s House rather than being heaved out the front door, slightly airborne, by Paul Wright at three in the morning. I think my ejection from the Headmaster’s House was perhaps a little more forceful than others, as I have had a longer history with Groton than most. One might assume that under the most awesome tutelage and mentorship of my babysitter, Mr. Doug Brown, in 1960, I would have had the forever valid “get out of jail card.” But it goes back even earlier than that. My grandfather, Richard E. Danielson, taught English here from 1904-1910; my father, the Reverend Malcolm Strachan, was a master and chaplain here from 1932 until his death at the beginning of the School year in 1960 at the young age of 56. Paul Wright and my father were best friends, and I feel sure there were some mixed emotions on his part as he tested the ability of man to fly on me that morning. 64
Groton School Quarterly
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Fall 2014
Towards the end of the School year in 1972, it was decided that our intrepid team of music lovers had paid a fair price for our mischief, and we were allowed to graduate. Needless to say, our disagreement over being “off campus without permission” did not last long. While it had no impact on my permanent record here (that gentleman’s C was never altered), I did end up volunteering with the Alumni Association for 25 years, first as form governor, then as a member of the GSAA Standing Committee, followed by serving as vice president then president of the GSAA and ex-officio member of the Board of Trustees. It was during this term on the board, in 1999, that Bill Polk suggested that the new Performing Arts Center, not even on the drawing board, be named after my mother, Marion Danielson Campbell. I agreed, and at the end of my term on the board in 2005, we enjoyed a wonderful