/ class notes /
in memoriam BY NOELLE ANSON
Gail Carter Demaine
After a long battle with chronic disease, Gail Carter Demaine, 65, died on January 12, 2012. She served in many capacities at NMH from 1987 through 2011 but was best known as an English teacher, school dean, and coleader of term abroad groups. Born on October 3, 1946, in Bronxville, N.Y., Gail was the eldest of three children. She graduated from high school in Westfield, N.J., in 1964, and then earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and English from Susquehanna University in 1968. In 1973, she earned her teaching certification at the University of California at Riverside, where she later earned a master’s in education in 1976. She met her husband, David Demaine, in the summer of 1972 while she was working in the welfare department in Riverside. After they married, Gail continued with her career in social work both in Riverside and in New York City. By the early 1980s, the Demaine family included sons Daniel and Matthew, and in 1987 they all moved to Northfield. Gail began her NMH career as an English teacher and dorm head of South Crossley. She coached tennis and track. She also volunteered with literacy projects, as a mediator in small claims court, at the Dickinson Library in Northfield, and with Hospice of Franklin County. She and David led the term abroad Egypt group in 1996 and repeated years later to France and South Africa. In 1996, Gail became one of the deans on the Mt. Hermon campus, eventually becoming associate dean of students and student life in 2000. In 2003, she became senior associate director of community development, and then served as senior associate director of the Center for
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International Education before retiring in 2006. Gail worked as a learning skills tutor until 2011, when David retired and they moved from campus. Gail was an ardent supporter of the arts, was a member of a book discussion group, sang in a Brattleboro chorus, knitted, and traveled to many countries with her husband. At her service in Memorial Chapel on February 12, 2012, retired faculty member Ted Thornton recalled a trip he and his wife took with the Demaines to Lebanon in 2006. “We were amazed at how much Gail could pack into a day, given her long battle with chronic disease. With the help of those canes, she moved briskly and firmly. She made the utmost of every experience no matter what the challenges.” Also on that day, friend and colleague Meg Donnelly commented on Gail’s philosophy of life: “Gail refused to let her own sadness, fears, frustrations, and disappointments negatively affect anyone else. She chose to be happy, to make the best of things, to find joy.” Gail is survived by her husband David; son Daniel ’96, his wife and their three children; her mother Annette Carter; and her two brothers. Gail was predeceased by her father and son Matthew ’00. Gifts in Gail’s memory can be directed to the Matthew Demaine Memorial Scholarship Fund at NMH, c/o Kristin Kellom in the Office of Advancement. ♦
Glenn T. Dulmage
Glenn Dulmage, teacher of English as a second language and director of the ESL Program at NMH from 1980 to 1995, died April 22, 2012, at the age of 77. Born on June 2, 1934, in Jacksonville, Fla., Glenn graduated from Windsor Mountain School in Lenox, Mass., in 1951 and went on to earn a bachelor’s in English literature from Wesleyan. Glenn served in the U.S. Army from 1957 to 1960, and worked at other jobs
for several years before becoming the Sports Illustrated reference librarian from 1964 to 1970. He and Juliana married in 1968 and joined the Peace Corps in 1970. The Dulmages spent five years in the West African nation of Côte d’Ivoire. They taught high school English and in a teacher training program. Daughter Corey ’90 was born in 1972. In 1975, the family moved to Mashhad, Iran, to join the English language program at Ferdowsi University. Both Glenn and Juli taught classes there, and, according to their supervisor, willingly served on every committee in the department, doing everything from curriculum development to directing a language course in Farsi for new staff members. In 1978, they returned to the States. Glenn earned a master’s in teaching English as a second language from SUNY-Albany in 1979 and that fall the Dulmage family moved to NMH. A year later, Glenn was appointed director of the ESL program, a position he held until his retirement in June 1995. Glenn developed computing skills and became an important resource for those in the administration. Former Head of School Richard Unsworth commented in 1985 that Glenn was “the world’s most gracious and generous instructor in computer utilization.” Glenn also worked extensively with foreign students, coled the Egypt program for several years, and traveled to Saudi Arabia and the Middle East as NMH’s representative. At home, Glenn and Juli worked tirelessly for the Community Meals Program and Community Circle, both volunteering elsewhere as well. They were jointly given a President’s Award for their volunteerism in June 1989. As he prepared to retire in 1995, then Head of School Jacqueline Smethurst wrote: “You have contributed fully and brilliantly to the life of the school.” Ginny Brooks, chaplain during his tenure, said: “I’ll always remember Glenn as being at the heart of community life at NMH. He had that classic ‘can-do’ spirit of ex-Peace Corps volunteers, ready to pitch in with whatever needed to be done.” She continued, in a lighter vein, “Glenn was truly in his element enjoying supper at West (Alumni) Hall—both for the camaraderie and the cuisine. His absolute favorite was when the staff put out big tubs of ice cream for dessert. Once when Glenn was laid up at home with severe back pain, Ed and I made a pastoral call. I’ll never forget how Glenn’s face lit up when we presented him with a half gallon of ice cream to speed his recovery.” After retiring to Chestertown, Md., Glenn’s interests included volunteering with the AARP Tax Aide Program, photography, scuba diving, and birding.