Nobles Magazine Fall 2023

Nobles FALL 2023

A Home Run of a Business Model Adam Franklin ’99: A legacy of entrepreneurship Pg 28

Moments

ARTISTRY UNVEILED Foster Gallery was filled with the meaningful, personal and highly skilled work of Nobles student photographers, painters, draftspeople, ceramicists, and installation artists. Each year, the much-anticipated AP student show is the culmination of a year’s worth of artistic investigation and the honing of craft. Left: AP Ceramics student Larkin Gifford ’23 explored identity through artistry.

Nobles fall 2023 1

Moments

SCIENCE SPECTACLES Right: Eva Yu ’25 prepares to launch a baking soda and vinegar rocket. Below: Tuck Gilbane ’26 studies a slide with a microscope. Bottom right: Brad Becker reviews the answers to a chemistry quiz.

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TOGETHERNESS Above: Students welcomed grandparents and other special guests to attend their classes and enjoy a celebratory lunch on GrandGuest Day. Left: Chamber singers and orchestra students found an idyllic spot to journal during the June music tour to Germany and Austria.

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Moments

IN THE WILD Above: Director of Music Nhung Truong grabs a quick hug from Performing Arts Department Chair Dan Halperin, who was manning the campus water stop during the rainy James Joyce Ramble road race. Above right: Class I students climb Mt. Monadnock on the annual post-graduation hike. Bottom: The AP Environmental Science class enjoys a paddle on the Charles.

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BUNNY BUDDIES Below: Widmayer Trente Et Un ’23 found a quiet moment during the Class I tradition "The Way We Were," a time just before graduation for nostalgic games and a visit from some barnyard friends.

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Contents

28

A Home Run of a Business Model Adam Franklin ’99 shares the secret sauce to a thriving three-generation family business

34 40

Mixed Feelings

The Light Sculptor Jason Krugman ’01: Geometric electrics and voluminous luminance 6 Nobles fall 2023

Karina Cowperthwaite ’19 explores and embraces identity through theatre

cover illustration BY dana smith; photograph (above right) by Claire Yoo

FALL 2023

26

CAMPUS DRIVE

12 Class Act: Explorations in Physics

13 An Investment in Happiness

PERSPECTIVE

Why We Should All Be Teachers Giving and Getting Back

14 Concerts and Culture 16 The Close-Knit Class of 2023

17 A Lasting Impact 20 Freeman Legacy Dinner 21 Cross-Cultural Understanding

22 Shared Wisdom

IN EVERY ISSUE

8 From the Head of School 48 Graduate Notes

68

LOOKING BACK

Unraveling the Mystery A glimpse into the work of Nobles’ resident sleuth

64 In Memoriam

CONNECT WITH US ONLINE

WWW.NOBLES.EDU

@NOBLEANDGREENOUGH @NOBLEANDGREENOUGHGRADS

@NOBLEANDGREENOUGH @NOBLEANDGREENOUGHGRADS

Nobles fall 2023 7

from the head of school

Nobles FALL 2023

editor Tiffany Truong Director of Marketing and Communications

Enduring Connections I AM OFTEN ASKED BY PROSPECTIVE FAMILIES what makes Nobles special. I can quickly share examples of the uniqueness of the Nobles experience: morning Assembly, breakfast with friends in the Castle and advisors who are your advisors for life. While each is a special part of our community, they are examples of what is really our secret sauce: the power of connections. The Nobles experience is rooted in connections—with classmates, faculty, teams and our beloved campus. When students are known and seen, they can be their best selves in the classroom. Forged connections at Nobles lead to lifelong mentoring relationships and friendships. Key to this lifetime of connectedness are graduates who stay engaged and dedicated faculty who remain here for many decades.

As we look ahead to our next chapter as a school, I am acutely aware of how this secret sauce of connections is being challenged. Three things, in particular, are top of mind.

First is the impact of the mounting affordability crisis, which is increasingly straining the ability of both students and faculty to make Nobles work for their families.

From escalating housing and childcare costs to inflation, we are aware of the stress on our families and faculty. We are ambitiously looking at strategic solutions to ensure all who can thrive at Nobles can afford to be here.

Second is the impact of specialization. A Nobles student forms multidimensional connections with faculty members, who get to know them in a range of contexts—academically, athletically, artistically and personally. Students thrive best when they are well-rounded, gaining valuable skills and experiences through diverse pursuits. We aim to combat specialization with a reaffirmed commitment to the multifaceted student and educator model, one that we evolve to be responsive to a changing landscape while staying true to our belief in the value of diversity in our talents, interests and explorations.

Third is the seismic interruption to connections posed by social media and other digital tools. I am mindful of the complex path adolescents must navigate in a world where they are increasingly connected to technologies and less and less connected to one another. While it is tempting to focus on the negative implications of technology for connectedness and declare policies to restrict or ban access, that approach is unhelpful and unwise. These tools are increasingly ubiquitous and rapidly evolving as a presence in our lives. It is our responsibility to develop principles to guide our students in using them in an informed and ethical way.

I am inspired and empowered by what we can do to adapt, adjust and iterate to deepen our commitment to the principles and values that are so essential to a Nobles education. I hope your connections to Nobles only deepen in the years ahead.

—Catherine J. Hall, Ph.D., Head of School 8 Nobles fall 2023

Assistant Editors Ben Heider Associate Director of Communications Anne McManus Associate Director of Communications Kim Neal Associate Director of Communications

Creative Direction and DESIGN 2communiqué www.2communique.com PHOTOGRAPHY and illustration Jonathan Calugi, Michael Dwyer, Joel Haskell, Ben Heider, Grace Helmer, Mickey Howard, Leah LaRiccia, Jenny Lu, Anne McManus, Kim Neal, Dana Smith, Drue Wagner, Claire Yoo Nobles is published twice a year for graduates, past and current parents/guardians and grandparents, students and friends of the school.

Noble and Greenough School is a day and 5-day boarding school for grades 7–12. Nobles is a rigorous academic community that strives for excellence in its classroom teaching, intellectual growth in its students and commitment to the arts, athletics and service to others. www.nobles.edu Letters and comments may be emailed to communications@nobles.edu or mailed to 10 Campus Drive, Dedham, MA 02026. © Noble and Greenough School 2023

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My wish for you is to feel everything deeply and listen to one thousand different people’s stories. Life is this crazy, nonsense playground, and how cool that we get such brilliant playmates.

—Ava Neal ’23

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Campus Drive

CLASS OF 2026 STUDENTS,

Rachael Wang, Rachel Zhao, Isabel Goddard and Alling Lubitz, work together to dissect and identify the organs of a frog in honors biology.

CLASS ACT

Explorations in Physics

Long-exposure photo of LEDs on a thrown ball to demonstrate deflection due to the Magnus effect 12 Nobles fall 2023

With instruction from faculty member Christine Pasterczyk and targeted guidance from electrician Chris Roposa, students in the aptly named Advanced Projects in Physics class spent half of the semester devising their own self-directed physics and engineering projects before presenting them in a spring showcase. The projects explored a wide range of topics, from novel transportation to custom robotics.

Brooke Manning ’23, Austin Tasca ’23, Will Fine ’23 and Bryan Kearns ’23 turned a gas-powered weed wacker into a steerable boat propeller and took it for a maiden voyage on Motley Pond. Marc Garraud ’23, Bruno Batty ’23 and Christian Grosso ’24 attached LEDs to balls and captured their flight trajectory with long-exposure photos to observe the Magnus effect. Chris Capone ’24 and Tommy Schwartz ’23 built a tensegrity floating chair. Chayil Mauristhene ’23 and Chinenye Odenigbo ’23 designed and coded a go-kart speedometer.

Owen Fitzsimmons ’24 prototyped an automated rooftop snow-removal system. Peter Nizolek ’24 and Grayson McClements ’23 explored damped pendulum spirograph painting and built a pneumatic paintball launcher.

Zac Gordon ’23 3D-printed a remote-controlled aero glider, complete with working flaps and an electric fan motor. After the presentations, he launched it off the Castle terrace and successfully flew it more than 100 yards before abruptly losing control and crashing it into a tree.

AN INVESTMENT IN HAPPINESS

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHT

Impressive prefect Carter Bartel ’23 showed up for his Assembly duties bright and early, despite having run 26.2 miles the day before. Bartel was one of many community members who “moved for Nobles” on Patriots Day to raise money for the Elise “Butch” Wallace H’03 and Bill Bliss ’48 Marathon Fund, the secondlargest endowed fund for financial aid at Nobles. Whether spinning, rowing, walking or lifting, the community moves together on this day each year for access and affordability at Nobles.

Tal Ben-Shahar, Ph.D., is an internationally renowned author and lecturer. He taught one of the most popular courses at Harvard University, on positive psychology, and designed the world’s first master’s degree in Happiness Studies at Centenary University.

Ben-Shahar is also the author of many popular books, including the most recent New York Times best-seller Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment. In spring 2023, he spoke to students about the science of happiness and well-being at Assembly.

Ben-Shahar initially got into the field of positive psychology and the science of happiness because of his own unhappiness during his sophomore year at Harvard, despite doing very well academically, socially and athletically at the time. While he “checked the boxes” on the outside, on the inside, things didn’t feel quite right.

One morning, Ben-Shahar saw his advisor and explained that he would be switching majors. “I’m leaving computer science and moving over to philosophy and psychology,” he announced. When his advisor asked him why, he replied, “Because I have two questions: Why aren’t I happy, and how can I become happier?” Since then, Ben-Shahar has devoted his life to discovering how he can help everyone, from individuals to families, organizations and nations, increase their levels of happiness.

Ben-Shahar says it is imperative that we first ask ourselves why happiness is important. While the answer seems obvious—because it feels good to feel good, and we naturally want to be happy—at the heart of the desire for happiness is relationship success.

“Most people in the world actually believe that the path to happiness comes from success,” said Ben-Shahar, “and that if you succeed, that success will lead to happiness.

Well, most people are wrong. Not a little wrong, but very wrong.” He explained that the happiness associated with success is almost always fleeting, leveling out after the initial spike of excitement. Anecdotally, Ben-Shahar shared that the majority of Harvard students experience depression and anxiety during their years there as a direct result of the illusion that success leads to happiness.

“The relationship is the opposite of what we believe it to be,” he explained. “It’s not that success leads to happiness. It’s rather that more happiness leads to more success.” How does Ben-Shahar suggest we go about implementing happiness daily?

By giving ourselves permission to be human and by allowing for periods of recovery.

He explained that even the slightest increase in levels of well-being will enable you to become more innovative, more engaged, more motivated and more committed to the task at hand. Not only does your performance improve, but you become nicer and healthier—you actually live longer when you increase levels of happiness and your relationships improve. “So while success doesn’t lead to happiness,” concluded Ben-Shahar, “happiness is a good investment worth thinking about.”

ILLUSTRATIONs BY drue wagner (top left) and pete ryan (top right)

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CAMPUS DRIVE

The final performance, at Mirabell Palace in Austria, where Mozart himself played

Concerts and Culture Itinerary, set. Tickets, booked. Fifty Nobles musicians were diligently rehearsing for their upcoming Bermuda tour when, in March 2020, their plans—like so many others—vaporized. Those in Class I and II were especially crestfallen, knowing it was their last opportunity to travel and perform with Nobles.

So in June 2023, it was with heightened anticipation and appreciation that another 50 Nobles Chamber Singers and Orchestra members with eight faculty chaperones journeyed to Germany and Austria for Nobles’ first music tour since 2018.

Previous destinations have included Hamilton, Bermuda (2015), Montréal, Canada (2016), New York City (2017), and Santa Marta, Colombia (2018). In 2014, an anonymous benefactor established an endowed fund for the performing arts at Nobles.

The fund subsidizes a portion of the trip for every student and covers financial aid, enabling all who wish to attend. Unlike other EXCEL trips, Chamber Singers Director Michael Turner explained, “Students don’t apply to go; they are invited, by dint of being a member of the chamber singers or orchestra. You don’t want the financial piece to make anyone hesitant to go.”

Another difference from other EXCEL trips (while each student always contributes uniquely) is the reliance on the role of each member of the ensemble. Turner, who has organized the music tours, led this year’s trip with his music department colleagues, Director of Music Nhung Truong, Orchestra Director Antonio Berdugo and Artist-in-Residence Paul Lieberman.

Turner said it is incredibly rewarding for students to have the opportunity to do multiple performances of long-prepared pieces, rather than being limited to one-off concerts. With each concert (all of which were livestreamed for fans at home), the group gelled while individuals grew in confidence and skill. “I know it sounds trite, but music is such a universal language; everyone understands it. We did a lot of American composers but some who were from Munich. Just to go and be musicians together there was really, really cool,” Turner said.

The music department chose Germany based on conversations with former Nobles theatre director Tim Kelly, who now heads the International School of Stuttgart in Germany. The connection provided the cornerstone, and other public concerts, including at the Bavarian International School, enhanced the itin14 Nobles fall 2023

erary. Appearances like the one at Cusanus House, a retirement community in Stuttgart, were planned through the EXCEL lens of dedication to service.

The Nobles group also visited meaningful historical and cultural sites, like the Dachau concentration camp and Nymphenburg Palace in Germany, and the Mozart Museum in Austria. Full group dinners, as well as cozier gatherings where smaller numbers of students and chaperones explored different restaurants, strengthened social bonds old and new—often cited as the most cherished aspect of EXCEL trips.

Singer Christian Figuereo ’23 agreed: “The most memorable aspect of the trip was the amount of time I spent with seniors after graduation going through Germany and Austria and enjoying our surroundings and experiences, while doing something that we have prepped the whole year for. Another was the people we met and created great friendships with at the international schools; I now follow some of them on Instagram! Lastly, I really interacted and created friendships with people I would have never spoken to—from freshmen to senior classmates. Overall, the social aspect of the trip was just great with a good group of people.”

Turner noted, “One of the most heartwarming things about this trip was that nearly every one of the invited musicians from 2023 went. It speaks to the tightness of the musicians in this graduating class, how they wanted to be together for one more thing, even though that’s a lot to ask—that they wanted to give another two weeks to the Nobles music program, rather than doing whatever they would normally do after graduating from high school.”

Flutist Kajsa Harrington ’23 said, “I loved the trip because it was a great balance between music and getting to tour the cities we were in. My favorite leg of the trip was definitely Salzburg, Austria—we had gorgeous views from our hotel, amazing food, and visited some great landmarks.”

After the final concert at the stunning Mirabell Gardens in Salzburg, Austria, singers and instrumentalists spontaneously burst into the beloved Boston anthem “Sweet Caroline.” Turner said, “I’ll never forget it. That final performance—it just became so bittersweet when they all kind of huddled up and performed together, which we didn’t plan. That was a great finish for them.”

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHT

Eric Zhou ’23 sauntered casually onto the stage, settled at the piano bench after loud applause for his arrival, and proceeded to give a flawless performance of Frédéric Chopin’s “Ballade No. 1 in G Minor.” When Zhou finished, the crowd immediately rose to their feet in an uproarious and well-deserved standing ovation.

GRADUATE AUTHOR

WINTER’S WISDOM winter solstice, By Nina MacLaughlin ’97 Black Sparrow Press, 2023

“ The requirements were to include a pizza box prop and the line of dialogue ‘She will never know,’ as well as a character named Alexandra Green, who is a tattoo artist. We went with a twisted and unexpected plot.…

You should watch it!”

—Kira Morales ’27 on making a short film in one weekend with the Middle School Video Production Club to compete in the Boston 48-Hour Film Project.

Watch the film at nobles.edu/48hrfilm ILLUSTRATION BY drue wagner

A celebration and meditation on the season for drinking hot chocolate, spotting a wreath on a neighbor’s door, experiencing the change in light of shorter days. All aspects of winter, from the meteorological to the mythological, are captured in this masterful essay, told in wise and luminous prose that pushes back the dark.

Winter begins with the shortest day of the year before nightfall. As in her companion volume, Summer Solstice, the author meditates on both the dark and the light and what this season means in our lives.

“Winter tells us,” Nina MacLaughlin says, “more than petaled spring, or hot-grassed summer, or fall with its yellow leaves, that we are mortal. In the frankness of its cold, in the mystery of its deep-blue dark, the place in us that knows of death is tickled, focused, stoked.

The angels sing on the doorknobs and others sing from the abyss. The sun has been in retreat since June, and the heat inside glows brighter in proportion to its absence. We make up for the lost light in the spark that burns inside us.”

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CAMPUS DRIVE

THE CLOSE-KNIT CLASS OF 2023 On June 2, the jubilant Class of 2023 celebrated their Nobles journey, marking the school’s 157th graduation ceremony.

The graduation assembly setlist included Gavin Swartz and David Hermanson (“Found/Tonight”), Madeleine Li (“Manhattan“), Madi Shaer (“Better Place”), Molly Hughes (“Better Together”), Brian Grant and Bryan Kearns (“Home”) and Ava Neal, with an original song dedicated to the class (“As Good As This”). Ensembles of friends stirred all the emotions with “The Scientist,” “Hooked on a Feeling” and “Long, Long Time,” while Octavia Reohr reprised her senior comedy sketch as the last forlorn baguette on the grocery shelf at closing time.

School Life Council Co-Presidents Nitty Moore and Carter Bartel presented the Class of ’98 Award, voted on by the graduating class, to Harrison Dolgoff and Ava Neal. The two friends were delighted to share the honor, which recognizes concern for others, a willingness to take risks in the pursuit of personal growth, and an adherence to a personal code of princi16 Nobles fall 2023

ples. During the annual Greg Monack ’02 Passing of the Shield, last year’s recipients, Sophie Majernik and Tommy Schwartz (both ’23), recognized Sophie Levering ’24 and Henry Tweedy ’24 for their remarkable athletic camaraderie, competition and sportsmanship.

The penultimate assembly of the school year closed with two rites of passage: a nostalgic senior slideshow and Class II rising to the senior section after Class I processed out of Lawrence for their last time as Nobles students.

Ceremony speakers Brooke Manning ’23 and Will Grimes ’23 charmed the celebratory crowd. Manning wove a metaphor around pursuing her spirited dog, Moxie, and the quest to find her own intrinsic courage and determination, or “moxie.” She said, “Whether I knew it or not, I have been chasing ‘moxie’ my whole life. We all have. But we haven’t been chasing the lumpy furball who goes from zero to 60 in five seconds. We have been chasing the people we want to be five, 10, even 20 years from now.” Another

important lesson? Don’t go it alone. “No matter where you’re going, there will be plenty of people along the way to offer you a ride,” assured Manning.

Grimes encouraged classmates to consider noblesse oblige, social responsibility that accompanies privilege, as an opportunity for joy and compassion. When, as an awkward new ninth-grader, Grimes was joined by a friendly junior at lunch, it indelibly impressed upon him “the impact that one small instance of kindness can have on another person’s life.” English teacher Dick Baker’s enthusiasm taught Grimes to question the nature of service and the joy inherent in helping others. He felt that firsthand as an online tutor for a reluctant student during Covid’s early days—they connected when Grimes discovered the boy’s obsession with vulcanology. “Noblesse oblige is, most of all, a way of life, and it is one that both demands and builds reciprocity. In choosing to be kind, you not only build joy for service in yourself, but also in others.…Find something that you love, and find some way to spread it,” said Grimes.

RETIREMENTS

A Lasting Impact Reflections from colleagues

Student-named faculty speaker, English teacher Gia Batty P’20 ’23, continued the theme of service, encouraging everyone to be teachers (excerpt on p. 26).

Colleague Sue Kemalian, math department chair, received the prestigious Vernon L. Greene Award for her dedication and excellence in teaching. Head of School Cathy Hall said, “Sue Kemalian epitomizes our mantra of relationship before task, and sees in her role as an educator the opportunity and privilege to make a meaningful difference in the lives of our students.”

In addition to their traditional performance of “Noble and Strong,” the Class I ensemble sang a soaring “Climb Every Mountain” in anticipation of the summer Nobles music tour to Germany and Austria (story on p. 14).

Find full 2023 graduation coverage, including slideshows, speeches, awards and a year-end video at https://www.nobles.edu/congratulations-class-of-2023/.

ILLUSTRATION BY drue wagner

ON JULIA RUSSELL, ENGLISH

ON STACEY TURNER, MATH

“ To feel things with one’s entire being, to give oneself over to the power of literature, the beauty of a thunderous sky, or the intensity of competition takes bravery and profound empathy. If you took a cross-section of Julia, those qualities would be equally distributed in her every atom. Because besides being brilliant, insightful and kind, Julia is utterly genuine. Her absolute realness is the core of her strength as a remarkable teacher—it empowers her as a leader who earns both implicit trust and the deepest kind of respect.”

—Betsy VanOot, visual arts

“ I know a lot of brilliant mathematicians, and Stacey is certainly among them.

However, brilliant mathematicians cannot always teach what they know. Stacey can.

She is filled with pride and joy (and some relief!) when her young students solve their first quadratic equation, graph their first function, or find the volume of a solid of revolution for the first time.

She is fueled by their curiosity and empathizes with their frustrations. She can explain a concept at least five different ways, and if there is still confusion, she finds another, because she cares.”

—Tilesy Harrington, MATH

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHT

May the 4th featured an entire Star Wars–themed assembly, including an Antiques Roadshow parody video starring classics faculty member George Blake as the appraiser and a Shakespearean Star Wars skit starring Eli Schotland ’25 and performing arts faculty member Dan Halperin as Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, respectively.

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CAMPUS DRIVE

MAKE BELIEVE

“ It would be easy to look at this play in the abstract and think, well, isn’t that a little heavy, a little dark, for such young actors.... Bad things happen in the real world every day. I don’t believe we have a responsibility to shield young people from that; they already know. What I care very deeply about is using art as a safe and supportive space to experience, question and navigate the bad things that happen, and to lean on each other as we do. We’re able to look serious issues in the eye and have empathy for fictional lives that both mirror and contrast our own... and then when we leave, we’re able to go back to our real lives having practiced, a little bit, what it means to experience the really tough stuff.”

—Adaire Robinson-Bohnslav, director, The Nobles Theatre Collective spring 2023 mainstage play: Make Believe, by Bess Wohl

18 Nobles fall 2023

photograph BY Leah LaRiccia

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CAMPUS DRIVE

Christian Figuereo ’23

Helen Cui ’23

FREEMAN LEGACY DINNER Honoring the heart and honesty of Class I students of color Nobles celebrated the achievements and contributions of students of color from the Class of 2023 at the annual Freeman Legacy Dinner in May 2023. The dinner is named in honor of former visual arts faculty member and artist Bob Freeman. This year’s 49 graduates gathered for joy and reflection with their families, Class II students of color and adults in the Nobles community.

Chief Equity Officer Edgar De Leon ’04 shared his conversation with a senior about the real meaning of diversity, equity and inclusion. He asked, “Is it numbers? Is it programming, affinity spaces or assembly announcements? What this class taught me is that the answer to these questions is yes: It is all of it, because what we do—what you do—is work.” He thanked seniors for exemplifying authenticity and for pushing Nobles to become more equitable through their presentations, relationships, conversations and art. “You taught us who you are and why you matter here. You taught us why violence against Asians matters; you taught us that the African American story can be joyous; and you taught us about the vibrancy of Latino culture. You always kept us honest.…You held a mirror in front of us.…To me, your legacy is that you always thought of others.”

Class II speaker Sheehan Pierre-Louis ’24 added, “I hope that my grade and future grades down the line can provide the same type of role modeling that the Class of 2023 has given us all these years.”

Christian Figuereo and Helen Cui, Class I speakers, shared their journeys and hopes. Figuereo recounted a rough transition to Nobles from Boston Public Schools and urged self-advocacy.

He said, “As young POC [people of color] going into amazing 20 Nobles fall 2023

universities, career paths or our adult lives, we have to make sure we are heard.…Once you get a grasp of the world we have surrounded ourselves in for the past two to six years, you have to use that to your advantage and seize opportunities you would otherwise never have gotten.”

Cui recalled that as a child, “Racism I saw didn’t feel like the racism I was taught to look for. It looked like short-tempered responses to my mother’s accented voice. It looked like being taken to be tested for English as a second language after growing up speaking English my entire life.” At Nobles, Cui learned about herself through an array of experiences, including studying “the delicate and intricate complexities of the Asian diaspora,” grappling with complex issues in Race and Identity with De Leon and Alden Mauck, and studying Black American writers with Julia Russell. When national anti-Asian hate crimes shook Cui “to [her] very bones,” she found comfort in A2A [Nobles’ Asian/ Asian American affinity group], which “became intimate, became quiet, became words of assurance shared between people who cared.” Cui said she would not have wanted to face those challenges with any other class.

Graduate speaker Devareaux Brown ’97, chief technology officer, credited Ekow Sam ’23 with sparking his speech about how Nobles has changed him, why he returned, and why he stays.

Despite culture shock as a new student, Brown found belonging, confidence and connection through relationships with supportive adults like Alden Mauck, Tim Carey, Ben Snyder (who hired him) and the late Nick Marinaro. Now, Brown works to be that caring mentor for today’s students.

FACULTY FOCUS

Cross-Cultural Understanding Modern Language Department Chair Laura Yamartino’s multidisciplinary approach to global citizenship

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHT

Assistant Head of School and Head of the Middle School John Gifford ’86 took to the stage to surprise Larkin Gifford ’23 with an impressive vocal performance of the song “Lovely Day,”

by Bill Withers. He was joined onstage by a talented group of musicians—Octavia Reohr and Madeleine Li, both ’23, on vocals; Will Eckford ’25 and Ariel Rabinovich ’26 on electric guitar; Kajsa Harrington ’23 on flute; and Jackie Zhang ’23 on keyboard. The audience was awed

by Gifford’s talent and thoughtfulness, rising to their feet in applause at the end of the performance and possibly shedding a tear or two.

ILLUSTRATION BY drue wagner

The job market was bleak in 2009 when Modern Language Department Chair and Spanish teacher Laura Yamartino graduated from Notre Dame as a Spanish and history dual major. She landed on her feet via a Fulbright in Valencia, Spain, where she taught at a trilingual elementary school: Spanish, English and the regional language, Valenciano. Her language skills flourished, and she discovered her passion for teaching.

Back in the States, she earned her M.Ed. in secondary Spanish education at Boston College and taught at Boston College High School before joining Nobles in 2011.

In addition to teaching Spanish, Yamartino has coached varsity sailing and middle school girls lacrosse. For several years, she led the middle school identity week curriculum. Joining the boarding faculty in 2015, she became a Wiggins Dormitory parent in 2019, where now, she and her husband, Kevin, are raising their little ones, Sofia and Henry. From 2013–2023, Yamartino was instrumental to the smooth operation of Nobles’ Experiential and Community Engaged Learning program (EXCEL), from the community service Afternoon Program to the herculean task of supporting trip leaders and coordinating international and domestic study away opportunities while leading trips herself to Spain and New Orleans.

Teaching both Sixies and seniors has been fulfilling for Yamartino: “To teach kids when they first start and literally know nothing, and then to see them at the end…how much they’ve grown, the really concrete language skills and confidence they’ve gained.”

And the interdisciplinary possibilities of teaching Spanish keep her and her students engaged. “We get to teach about history, race, religion, literature, art and movies. We could make a Spanish class about almost anything.” She constantly seeks relevant new connections, like comparing Spain, Argentina and Peru in Spanish V on issues like media censorship or police brutality and how we can learn from them. She’s optimistic that Nobles’ new seven-day academic schedule will generate more opportunities for more multidisciplinary collegial collaboration.

Working and traveling abroad have shaped Yamartino’s pedagogy, which she attributes to witnessing others’ lived experiences and to the humility of being a cultural outsider: “Some of my favorite memories from being in different places were getting lost or saying the wrong thing and being really embarrassed….Taking that into consideration, I work to create an environment in the classroom that makes it feel like a welcoming place to learn and also to laugh at yourself.” Most important, she emphasizes, is “valuing others’ perspectives and approaching things with cultural competency. In addition to teaching communication, that’s something that our department focuses on—attitudes of acceptance and curiosity, understanding and perspective-taking. It’s something we obviously all need.”

Nobles fall 2023 21

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ASSEMBLY: GRADUATE LEADERSHIP SERIES

Shared Wisdom DAVID MEDINA ’05 I NTERNATIONAL SECURITY EXPERT

A TRUE MVP—AT NOBLES AND BEYOND Each year, through the Myra Kraft Community MVP Awards program, the Kraft family and the New England Patriots Foundation recognize the volunteer work of individuals who give back to their communities in exceptional ways. Among this year’s 26 honorees was former—and beloved—Nobles English teacher Tim Carey. Carey was presented with a $10,000 donation for the Nativity Preparatory School of Boston, a tuition-free middle school for low-income families, where he has volunteered since 2014.

At Nativity, Carey works with students in the English classroom, helping them with their essays for high school applications and mentoring fledgling teaching fellows. A talented photographer, Carey also spends countless hours documenting the day-to-day life of students at the school and donating his captivating images.

Carey invited three guests to the ceremony, one of whom was Joseph Ngnombouowo ’22, a graduate of Nativity Prep who now attends Williams College.

“I learned about Nativity Prep in 1995, when I served on an evaluation team five years after the school was founded in 1990,” Carey says. “Love at first sight! The energy and joy emanating from the place stayed with me, and after I retired from Nobles, I discovered the school had moved to Jamaica Plain.

I was on the doorstep in an instant, asking if I might be able to help in any way. What a gift for me to be part of that joy and energy, assisting students with their high school applications, working with English teachers, and taking photographs at myriad school events. The school has provided me with the chance to continue doing work that I love. If you give a little, you get far more in return.”

22 Nobles fall 2023

“ When you have a plan and you prepare, fall in love with preparation for the things that you do. Because when you’re doing something that you love, it’s much easier to do it consistently, and when you do things consistently, that compounds over time, and it’s an unavoidable element to reaching success.”

CAITLIN NASEMA CASSIDY ’07 ACTOR, DIRECTOR, PRODUCER

“ As an artist, I feel like my job is to imagine creatively forward, and I feel like I am most powerfully imaginative when I am working in community and when I am collaborating. I will leave you with that idea and that call to collaborate across disciplines, across species and across many of the borders and boundaries that I think have stopped us from doing that in the past.”

SAMER ABOUHAMAD ’12 GLOBAL CYCLIST

“ Be grateful for what you have.

On my trip, I met a lot of families and a lot of people that all they needed for happiness is water, food and shelter, and then everything after that is a bonus. You realize that when you kind of strip down and simplify your life, you don’t need as much as you think you need to be happy.”

“ A cultural tradition that is widespread across Eastern and Southeastern Asia, the lion dance is used to celebrate and to bring in good luck and prosperity.”

ASSEMBLY HIGHLIGHT

In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) heritage month, the middle school chorus, conducted by Director of Music Nhung Truong, sang “Yi Jian Mei,” by Chen I, which was originally written as the theme song for a 1980s Taiwanese TV show and was repopularized in recent years after its use in a TikTok video.

—Performing arts faculty member Anna Parker

Anna Parker performing a lion dance at Assembly

ILLUSTRATION BY drue wagner

Nobles fall 2023 23

Campus DRIVE

NEIRA CHAMPIONSHIPS On a hot Saturday in May, 40 Nobles rowers endured a 12-hour day on Lake Quinsigamond to take on New England’s top competition at the NEIRA regatta. NEIRA is special not only for its intense competition but also for the classic big regatta atmosphere. From the towering screen broadcasting a livestream of each race to the vendor tents and the Nobles encampment right in the heart of it, it feels like a mini Head of the Charles.

Seven of Nobles’ eight boats won their heats to secure spots in the grand finals. Then they started raking in the hardware.

Silver, Gold, Bronze, Bronze for the boys 4V, 3V, 2V and 1V, respectively. Gold, Gold, Gold for the girls 3V, 2V and 1V. Grinning athletes hauling their boats like battering rams with medals wrapped around their necks and coxswains carrying big silver platters and giant cups kept streaming back to camp.

From the prime spectator beach a few hundred yards from the finish line, every race seemed too close to call. Spectators waited for the exhausted yet exuberant cheering from the boat to know who came out on top. When the girls 1V started slapping the water, the crowd knew they had edged out Brooks, Winsor and NMH to win the final gold and the girls New England team championship. After the trophy presentation on the dock, they promptly commenced the quintessential crew team celebration: toss-the-coxswain-into-the-lake.

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

n Yichen Ding ’23 won the Division II NEPSTA javelin

championship and qualified for the New Balance Nationals Outdoor meet, where she won the Rising Stars division. n Girls varsity crew won the NEIRA Championship. n The girls varsity crew coxed four qualified for the Youth Nationals A Finals and finished seventh in the nation. The girls straight four won the Youth Nationals B Finals, finishing ninth in the nation. n The boys and girls varsity lacrosse teams won ISL tournaments and the season championships. n Fiona O’Keeffe ’23 and Maddie MacDonald ’24 were named USA Lacrosse All-Americans, and Tierney Smink ’24 was All-Academic. n Grayson McClements ’23 and Matt Tully ’23 were named USA Lacrosse All-Americans.

24 Nobles fall 2023

COACH’S TIP

COACH KELLY CHUNG’S SOFTBALL TIPS WATCH

Turn on the Women’s College World Series to see high-level athletes play softball on the biggest stage. Not only is the game exciting to watch, but seeing how the top players compete is a great way to learn the nuances of the sport.

START EARLY

Whether you are playing professionally or for your company’s slow-pitch team, it’s important to start throwing in the winter months to build up your arm strength and avoid early-season injuries. Many players want to go all out right away, but you need to put in the time in the off-season to set yourself up for success.

TRAIN

Softball is only getting faster and more exciting every year. To best prepare for your season, strength training can build both foundational power and also help prevent injury. But don’t forget to work in speed and agility training to hone those quick reflexes. It’s a game of inches; give yourself every advantage you can!

HAVE FUN!

There’s nothing better than chasing down fly balls on a beautiful day, having a catch while you chat with a friend, or hearing that chatter of your teammates from the bench when you’re in the batter’s box.

When it gets hard, go back to the basics and enjoy the process.

MEET THE ATHLETE

Grayson McClements ’23 Q: How long have you been playing lacrosse?

A: Pretty much my whole life. My grandfather brought me a lacrosse stick when I was still in the hospital, so I’ve been playing a long time.

Q: How was this past season?

A: It was pretty much everything we could have asked for. I don’t think it could have ended a better way. Winning the ISL championship game against Governor’s for a second year in a row was a pretty surreal feeling—something I’ll definitely remember for the rest of my life. The whole team was really close. I can safely say that all those guys are my best friends and will be for a long time. So, it was a lot of fun, and I’m really grateful to Coach Rowley, Coach Marchant and Coach Warren; they’re the best coaches in the country.

Q: Any thoughts on setting the ISL points record?

Boys varsity lacrosse attackman Grayson McClements ’23 earned All-American, All-NEPSAC and ISL MVP honors, and set a new ISL singleseason points record this spring.

A: That was my big goal all off-season. I knew what I wanted, so I really worked hard for it, and I put a lot of time in. I’ve never been one of the fastest guys. I’m lucky enough to be pretty strong, so I spent a lot of time in the weight room trying to work on that. I was often up early before school taking shots on a net one v. one, lifting weights, or running and sprinting. So it was a lot, but I’m really grateful that I was able to accomplish it.

Nobles fall 2023 25

PERSPECTIVES

WHY WE SHOULD ALL BE TEACHERS An excerpt from the Class of 2023 graduation speech by English teacher Gia Batty P’20 ’23 BY gia batty | illustration by Jonathan Calugi

26 Nobles fall 2023

I BET IF I ASKED all of you to tell me about your favorite teacher, you would talk, more than anything else, about how that teacher made you feel. How your favorite teacher noticed you, challenged you, made you realize you weren’t bad at math. How they made you excited to come to class or recognized that you actually were a pretty good writer.

What if we could harness some of that favorite teacher energy and use it outside the classroom, beyond our campus? I think you can all be teachers.

What I mean is that, in the next few years, you will find yourself in a place where, because of your knowledge and experience, you will be in charge. You’ll need to get people to trust you, to work together, to take on challenges. In other words, you will be a teacher. You can all be teachers in whatever you choose to do and pay forward what your teachers have given you.

There’s a little bit of magic to it, and I can’t give away all of our secrets in this speech, but I can share two pro tips for being a good teacher, which will help you to be a good leader and a good human.

The first is to prioritize relationships. Get to know people and let them know you. This is the true work of teaching. Don’t get me wrong, I love the books and I love helping you make your writing sparkle, but without a good relationship, without trust, you’re not going to buy in and revise your essay for the second time or want to share your interesting thoughts in my class. At its heart, teaching is about building relationships, and over the last few years and in so many ways, I’ve loved getting to know you. I have asked you countless questions of the day, noticed dozens of new

haircuts, new smiles without braces, new white sneakers. You’ve asked me about my eye problems, how I felt about my son Bruno’s mustache, and most recently, how this speech was coming along.

Putting relationships first not only makes everything else easier, it makes it better. This is teaching. This is also how to lead. Take the time to get to know people and let them know you.

The second pro tip is to remember that a big part of teaching is actually learning, that as much as you think you have to teach people, you have just as much to learn. Some important lessons I’ve learned from you include: what “no cap” means; that gaining trust is sometimes glacial and you can’t give up on people too quickly; that Bojack Horseman is a show worth watching; and that teenagers are so much kinder than the world makes them out to be. You’ve taught me over and over again that I am doing the right thing in the right place. Just remember that you don’t know everything. You never will, and you can always learn something from the people around you.

These two pro tips—prioritizing relationships and being open to learning from others—will make your job, whatever it is, more enjoyable, and will make the people you’re working with want to work with you, want to do what you’re asking them to do, because you will be a teacher.

Teaching is such a lesson in humanity: What you put into it, you get back in abundance. When I meet your parents and grandparents, they’ll sometimes say, “Oh, you’re so passionate and enthusiastic, no wonder you’re a teacher!”—but the truth is that I’m passionate and enthusiastic because I am a teacher.

Because of you.

Nobles fall 2023 27

E M O H A N OF A RU feature_deck_flexstyle feature_deck_flexstyle

28 Nobles Fall 2023

Adam Franklin ’99, president of Franklin Sports, is privy to the family recipe for their neonyellow ball that is dominating the pickleball market—along with the thousands of other products they manufacture—but good luck getting it out of him. The secret sauce to a thriving three-generation family business? That, he shares here.

BY Anne McManus Portrait by Mickey Howard for Franklin Sports

S S E N I S BU MODEL Nobles Fall 2023 29

Blooper. Bleeder.

Blunder. Whiff.

Shank. Fumble.

It’s best not to find yourself on the receiving end of such jargon during a competitive athletic game. Their mere utterance means that you’ve fallen short in some way, goofed a play, and likely suffered a healthy dose of ridicule in the process. Recovering from the disappointment of floundering on the field or the court is one thing, but when it comes to the real-life game of running a family business, the stakes are a bit higher. In this arena, it’s crucial to strive for consistent, solid shots, and winning the points is non-negotiable. For many of those who have braved the challenge of starting or carrying on a family business, this feeling of coming up short is all too familiar. According to The Harvard Business Review, about 70 percent of family-run companies will not make it to the second generation, failing or selling out before reaching that milestone.

Adam Franklin ’99, president of Franklin Sports, tells a different version of this story, that of his family’s third-generation sporting goods business, which is deftly defying the stats as it inches closer to a fourth generation.

30 Nobles Fall 2023

THE SUPER-ENTREPRENEUR OF THE FIRST GENERATION

Adam describes his grandfather Irving Franklin, who started the company in 1946, as a visionary super-entrepreneur in the sports retail world. One of the first companies to source products from Asia and bring them back to the United States, Franklin was always a step ahead of competitors. “He would go over and seek something interesting,” explains Adam, “buy a full container of it, and send a letter back to the office saying, ‘Hey, FYI, there are 26,000 badminton rackets that will show up in 60 days. Go out and sell them.’”

In the late 1950s, Irving sat at a meeting with executives from Sears, who mentioned they were interested in buying baseball gloves. He walked out of the meeting with an order for 10,000 gloves and zero clue how—or where—to make them. Undaunted, Irving immediately contracted a factory in Puerto Rico to start manufacturing the gloves, and in 1960 he and his son, Larry, moved there to start a factory of their own. When that factory ultimately closed down four years later, they returned to the United States, where they continued to innovate and expand.

ESTABLISHING THE FRANKLIN NAME

It’s hard to imagine a time when the high-profile athlete wasn’t synonymous with product endorsement, but prior to Franklin, no one had paid celebrity athletes royalties to build product lines around them. These deals enabled them to market their brand more broadly, expanding beyond regional sales through partnerships with the heaviest hitters in the sports world. The first big name on their list: New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath.

“It allowed us to garner mass distribution,” explains Adam, “because no one knew who Franklin was, but everyone knew who Joe Namath was. So we were selling a line of Joe Namath footballs, shoulder pads, kicking tees—you name it, we were able to sell it with the athlete’s name.” Other athletes later affiliated with the brand included Terry Bradshaw, Sugar Ray Leonard, David Robinson, Dan Marino and Barry Bonds. Around this time, Irving noticed that baseball players were struggling with

Irving Franklin checking out new samples.

blistering on their hands, so, in his characteristic entrepreneurial style, he created a solution—the batting glove. Innovation in marketing and product development has driven Franklin’s success ever since.

By the 1980s, they recognized that it was time to shift gears.

“The price to play ball with the players was going way up,” notes Adam, “so we transitioned our strategy: Instead of focusing on individual athletes, we focused on the leagues.” The brand marketing they had been employing with the batting gloves had been a ten-strike; by 1984, 90 percent of Major League Baseball players could be seen going to bat with “Franklin” strategically placed— dead-center on the front of their gloves. Instant marketing.

In 1983, they sent Phillies Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt to the MLB All-Star game with droves of batting gloves to hand out. “Not only did we get access to the players,” said Adam, “but we had access to the best players.” Eventually, Schmidt told Irving he needed to focus on his game and could no longer hand out the gloves. Working at the warehouse at the time was a semi-professional bowler from Brockton named John Ballas. Irving pulled Ballas aside and asked his thoughts about going down to spring training to run the batting glove business. Forty-two years later, Ballas is still running Franklin’s batting glove program. “He is by far the most well-respected equipment liaison of anyone in the league,” says Adam. “Every

single player, past and present, every equipment manager, every locker room manager, every trainer—they all know John Ballas, and he is considered to be the best.” This personal touch is one of the key ingredients to Franklin’s enduring success, and it permeates each and every aspect of the work that they do, from product development to philanthropy.

THE SPECIAL SAUCE

In 1998, the same year Mark McGwire broke Roger Maris’ single-season home run record, he turned down a $1 million deal with Nike, opting to ignore the big-brand dollar signs and stick with what worked: the unparalleled products made by the Boston-based family business with a long record of manufacturing the highest-quality gear in the industry. McGwire accepted Franklin’s offer of $5,000, and high-profile athletes have demonstrated the same loyalty ever since.

While Franklin has never been able to compete with the money that major brands have to pay athletes, it has yet to deter their success. “We have been able to maintain a lot of big-name, superstar athletes because we provide a superior product, and we provide the best service,” explains Adam. “When guys are making millions on their contracts, the batting glove is such an important piece of their equipment. They are holding the bat, and everything they are getting paid for is because of that bat.

Nobles Fall 2023 31

Middle: Campers compete in a game of volleyball at Camp Harbor View in the Boston Harbor Islands. Right: Adam and Larry Franklin celebrating the Red Sox 2018 World Series Championship with Franklin Athlete and MVP Steve Pearce.

The players recognized that our product was far superior to our competitors’, and they didn’t want to impede their performance by moving to a different brand just for a paycheck.” The type of service Adam refers to is hard to come by these days, but it continues to be at the core of their business model. “If a player calls or texts us to ask for something on a Tuesday,” says Adam, “by Wednesday, he’ll have whatever he needs…soup to nuts. We’re able to do anything and everything for our players.”

Also at the heart of Franklin’s enduring success is its savvy entrepreneurship. “It’s all about innovation,” says Adam, noting that while onlookers might think, It’s just a glove. There’s not much to it, there’s actually a great deal that goes into making them.

“We work exclusively with the No. 1 batting glove manufacturer in the world, and we’ve been making our gloves in the same place for 42 years, so there’s inherent knowledge about how to sew and cut. There are all kinds of secret sauces.” For over four decades, Franklin has worked to create a glove that feels like a second piece of skin right on their hands. “We want the player to not even realize that they are wearing batting gloves,” says Adam.

PICKLEBALL

In 2016, a little over half a century after Irving Franklin walked out of his fateful meeting with Sears executives with the order for 10,000 baseball gloves, his grandson sat in a meeting with folks from one of their largest retailers—Walmart. They happened to be looking to add emerging sports to their sporting goods assortment and wanted to hear what Franklin had been working on. Adam’s response? Pickleball. “They loved it,” he says, smiling. “We ended up putting pickleball in every single Walmart store basically overnight, and that made us the largest pickleball manufacturer in the sport.”

Franklin was well ahead of the curve, but their foresight did not come without extensive research. “We recognized the sport’s growth given our work with the Sports and Fitness Industry Association. They put out participation reports annually, and we started to see pickleball growing and growing.” Despite the 32 Nobles Fall 2023

hard work it took to get there, Adam concedes that much like his grandfather when he set off with his order for 10,000 baseball gloves, they didn’t know what they were doing at the time. It soon became clear that considerable technology needed to go into making quality pickleball equipment, so Franklin pulled all products from the shelves, invested in some patience, and perfected the ball. They wanted to own the ball for the sport of pickleball, and getting there meant spending two years in research and development. Today, Franklin has a 77 percent market share of the ball, their anchor product. “Almost every single retailer in the country is carrying our pickleball,” says Adam. “We’re in 40,000 brick-and-mortar stores.”

But does pickleball have staying power? Adam thinks it does.

“It’s once in a lifetime where a sport has mass appeal to the recreational player, so we’ve got millions of people playing, but at the same time, the retailers have embraced it, and the product is selling through and expanding.” Other sports have not been able to translate into retail in the same way as pickleball products, which sell at stores like CVS, Walgreens and BJs, opening doors for incredible growth. According to Adam, pickleball is here to stay, and we’re still a long way from seeing the runway for growth max out. The reason for its staying power, he explains, is simple: “It’s accessible. It’s easy to play. It’s multigenerational. In pickleball, everyone can compete at the same level with three generations of family. It’s special—that doesn’t happen in any other sport.”

FENWAY EVENT

In July, Franklin collaborated with Pickle4 to sponsor a major pickleball event in the outfield at Fenway Park. They brought in 12 portable pickleball courts for the event, which not only featured professional and amateur tournaments but also offered opportunities for fans to rent courts. The best part? In partnership with the Red Sox Foundation, whose mission is to make a difference in the lives of children, families, veterans and communities in need by improving opportunities around health, education and recreation, Franklin made it possible to provide

“ IT’S ACCESSIBLE. IT’S EASY TO PLAY. IT’S MULTIGENERATIONAL. IN PICKLEBALL, EVERYONE CAN COMPETE AT THE SAME LEVEL WITH THREE GENERATIONS OF FAMILY.” pickleball lessons to 250 kids from all over Boston. Each child left with a Franklin Red Sox pickleball paddle to call their own.

PHILANTHROPY

“At the heart of our philanthropic mission,” says Adam, “is to provide access and opportunity to those who are underserved.”

Philanthropy runs deep in the veins of this successful family business and continues to be the pulse of the work they do.

Irving began working with charities in the 1950s while living in Puerto Rico, where he started the United Jewish Appeal fundraising campaign. Locally, he worked closely with multiple charities around Boston, including New England Sinai Hospital and the Striers Jewish Community Center, Israeli Bonds and Temple Beth Emunah. In 1998, he established the Franklin Fellow Rabbinical School Scholarship Fund at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York. Today, as the official youth development partner of USA Pickleball, Franklin works closely with the organization to grow pickleball in schools. “We’re donating kits of balls, paddles and everything you would need to play in a gym or out in the parking lot so that schools can spin up a pickleball program for free,” says Adam. “Hundreds of kits are being donated to programs all over the country so that schools that can’t afford to buy 50 pickleball paddles and balls now can get a donation from us with instructional materials.” The company has done the same for Camp Harbor View, a summer camp for middle and high school students on an island in Boston Harbor, and it works closely with The BASE, an organization that develops and elevates youth talent and builds pathways to success for local student-athletes. As the youth sports provider for all major leagues, Franklin has a vested interest not only in youth sports but in accessibility to those sports for all children.

CHALLENGES & WINS

Despite Franklin’s enormous success, running a third-generation family business in 2023 is not without its challenges, one of which is the company’s small size. “We act and treat ourselves like a

startup,” says Adam, “and we’re competing with multibillion-dollar shoe brands.” Franklin makes products in numerous categories, each with its own set of competitors. “Every day, we’ve got new competitors coming in and going away,” explains Adam, “so we’ve really got to stay on our toes.”

Fortunately, Franklin Sports has decades of experience staying alert, doing its homework, and pivoting when (or before) the industry dictates it is time. The innovation, quality and price point it can provide has given it a leg up, as retailers with thousands of SKUs to manage can pick up the phone, call Franklin, and manage multiple categories with a single call. “Most of our competitors are really focused on one or a handful of sports,” says Adam. “We’ve got this broad base that gives us another unique special sauce.” Still, they have to be vigilant. While pickleball might be Franklin’s fastest-growing segment, it is just 10 percent of the total company, and a competitor specializing in pickleball has the advantage of focusing exclusively on one sport seven days a week.

As the man at the helm of the second generation of Franklin Sports, Adam’s father, Larry, had a rule for his sons: Neither of them was allowed to join the business until they went out and worked on their own—somewhere else—for at least five years.

Having gone straight to work for his own father after college, he wanted to ensure that if his sons did choose to work for the family business, that decision would be their own. Might the superentrepreneur of the 1940s have had the foresight to envision that his company would one day mass-produce a neon-yellow, plastic ball that would allow for an impressive “Erne” over the “kitchen”?

Maybe not, but he was a true entrepreneur whose business model has stood the test of time, providing a healthy dose of hope and inspiration for other family businesses. With significant year-toyear revenue growth and 250 full-time employees, this particular third-generation family business doesn’t need to worry about hitting a blooper, a bleeder, a pancake or a lollipop—what they’ve hit is a home run. Next up? Adam plans to bring a professional women’s volleyball team to Massachusetts.

Nobles Fall 2023 33

34 Nobles Fall 2023

Enter the mesmerizing world of visual artist Jason Krugman ’01, whose creative studio is the nucleus for technical innovation, imaginative vision and the boundless potential of light.

Story and photography BY Ben Heider

Nobles Fall 2023 35

LED meshes sit on tables, countertops and shelves. They hang from pegs, hooks, ceiling struts. Simple diodes and soldered wires are woven into grids, wrapped into cylinders, rounded into spheres. Elegant copper and gold struts connect into flexible triangular lattices. Bins of tape, baskets of pliers, spools of wire and sleeves of straws are always within arm’s reach.

Jason Krugman ’01 is the mastermind behind this nook of neatly ordered chaos.

His structures have names reminiscent of fantasy, science, mathematics and nature: basket, flying carpet, toroid, reef, helix, gyroid, firefly. Krugman is a light sculptor, a visual artist who creates large-scale public installations, commercial real estate centerpieces and high-end residential light fixtures.

Krugman’s mother, a painter, and aunt, a potter, exposed him to artwork from a young age. At Nobles, he took advantage of the strong arts programming and athletics, crediting the Swayzes, Bob Freeman and other legends with orienting his artistic passions.

“I started out doing a lot of scrapbooking, journaling and drawing because it really helped me to organize my ideas and abstract the physical world and the emotional world,” recalls Krugman.

After studying economics and studio art at Tufts, with an immersive year abroad in Barcelona, he found himself “trying the Wall Street thing” at Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch. Processing credit default swaps in the lead-up to the financial crisis, he resisted the inertia toward a career in securities law and realized his answer to the question “How long is this going to take before I can be an artist?” was “Why wait?”

Still in tune with the art world, he attended a Wired Magazine tech showcase and was blown away by the ways artists were combining projection mapping, LED technology and interactive sensors. Wanting to learn these emerging technologies for himself, he entered the Interactive Telecom36 Nobles Fall 2023

munications Program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. “When I was there, I had just a furious amount of energy,” says Krugman.

“Just so much energy, because I wanted to be an artist so badly, and was so immersed in it.” At ITP, he developed a mantra: “If you want to successfully make an artwork to garner attention, you can make things that look like people, you can make things that move, or you can make things that are big. If you do those things, it’s hard for people not to pay attention to it, particularly if you do all of them.” So, with no budget and rudimentary skills, he dabbled in creating large light-up humanoid sculptures with recycled materials and Christmas lights, and dispersed them in random trees throughout the city.

For his ITP thesis project, he built an 8’x8’ array with about 1,000 LEDs, each controlled by its own wind-sensitive switch that transformed gusts of wind into visual propagations of light. It was a hit that piqued the interest of the MoMA. “It went viral before that was even a thing. A music festival art director saw it online and commissioned me to make another version of it to show at different music festivals,” recalls Krugman.

“It wasn’t a giant commission, but it was enough to invest some more money in one of my ideas and launch out of school into making my own commissioned artwork.”

Off and running, Krugman soon began his signature style of soldering LEDs into grids and making sculptures with them. “This was a new way that people hadn’t really done before,” says Krugman, “and I really liked it because it shared something with drawing in that it was very repetitive. You get into this flow state—just focus on making a good solder joint. I would solder hundreds or thousands of these things into these big grids. I was making my own medium, essentially.”

Krugman is always experimenting and working to develop systems that he can mold into new shapes and structures.

In recent years, he’s patented a system

of thin custom-printed copper and goldplated circuit boards with LEDs built in and concentric circles that serve as both the structural and electrical contacts.

By sandwiching together layers of power, ground and addressable data channels, they can be connected in parallel to build threedimensional illuminated artwork.

He likes playing with the idea of serendipitous emergence, where he sets the stage for something beautiful to happen and selectively controls variables to see what grows organically. “Light is a perceptual medium, and it’s an energetic medium,” says Krugman. “The way I’ve developed my thinking about my own artwork is by basing my work around the development of systems and investing repeatedly in the same thing, so that all of the learning and work builds upon itself.” Whether he’s wrapping one-inchsquare grid wire meshes, bending five- and six-valence triangular cell webs, fabricating steel tubing, or designing LED strips for a 200-foot-tall construction crane, there’s a cohesive thread that runs throughout his work that can be seen and experienced.

Krugman’s business is irregularly cyclical, going through phases of intense fabrication and installation interspersed with periods of design and proposal applications. With commissions in skyscrapers, cruise ships, hospitals and vacation homes, he’s able to employ a team of a few full-time fabricators plus a set of long-term contractors who are highly skilled craftsmen with day jobs as software engineers and circuit-board designers. Most of his works are large, so the team builds them in pieces and ships them to the site for final assembly and installation. While he’s constantly working toward grander sculptures and permanent installations where the margins are greater, he appreciates the comfort of a vibrant studio and a tight team. “I try to balance my lifestyle with my business, so I’m not necessarily trying to scale as big as possible as quickly as possible,” he says. “I’m just trying to sustainably build the business up and do better and better work.”

The hub of Jason Krugman Studio is this workshop where designs are prototyped and smaller sculptures are created. Krugman and his team use a metal shop and warehouse spaces to weld and fabricate custom pieces for larger installations.

Vast amounts of pliers, crimpers, screwdrivers, sockets, spools of wire and LED components

Nobles Fall 2023 37

Krugman installs Figure 8, a straw mesh sculpture with over 2,500 LEDs commissioned for a private residence.

LEFT: A Flying Carpet light sculpture made of Krugman’s

signature unshielded square LED mesh

RIGHT: With his flexible proprietary LED struts, Krugman is working to transform flat electrified meshes into surfaces with curvature.

38 Nobles Fall 2023

A nearly unlimited number of Krugman’s patented printed circuit board LED struts can be connected in any position through a shared axis.

LEFT: Jupiter Sphere with an interior reflecting balloon RIGHT: Two LED meshes connected with plastic straws

LEFT: Gyroid, a triply periodic minimal surface that tiles in three dimensions RIGHT: Bubble Seed, a pendant light, where triangles of the central icosahedron transition into circular columns capped with dichroic reflectors

Nobles Fall 2023 39

Graduate News

KARINA COWPERTHWAITE ’19

MIXED FEELINGS

In April 2023, Harvard senior Karina Cowperthwaite ’19 debuted her first original play, Ugly Feelings, at the American Repertory Theater’s Loeb Drama Center. As writer, director and actor, she explored the complexity of growing up multiracial, specifically Asian and white. Following are excerpts of a conversation with Nobles’ multiracial affinity group advisor Kim Neal before her premiere.

BY Kim Neal | Photography by Jenny Lu

You were always active in the Nobles Theatre Collective in high school, mainly onstage. How did you get into directing?

KARINA COWPERTHWAITE: Nobles is where I became seriously interested in theatre. My main extracurricular in high school was acting in as many productions as I could. Then, when I directed Spring Awakening, it was an eye-opening experience. For the first time, I recognized theatre as a medium for storytelling—not just an activity, but an art form—that has the power to create conversations, activate change in a community, and deeply impact people in a way beyond entertainment. It felt like this spark lit under me, as cheesy as that sounds, of, What can I create next? Until that point, I had never created the theatre I was a part of. But once I had this taste of people looking to me to ask, “What story do you want to tell on the stage?”—which was an incredible responsibility and collaborative effort—I was hooked.

What was your personal multiracial reckoning like in high school and college?

KC: Growing up in a pretty white-dominated town, I felt really conflicted about my identity. I felt labeled as Asian, but at the same time, not truly Asian enough to be in A2A [Nobles’ Asian/Asian American affinity group], so I was in this weird in-between. Coming to college, I remember thinking, I don’t want to be ashamed of being Asian anymore. It’s a crazy trajectory from not wanting to be Asian to fit into a white-dominated space, to then come to college, which was incredibly diverse, and be like, I feel so out of touch with that part of myself, and I want to reconnect to that, to then leading an Asian American theatre group. Then came this guilt where I’m leading the Asian Student Arts Project (ASAP),

but I’m also half white—do people look at me and wonder, Why is this girl leading this group? This is a cultural, identity-tied organization. Is she Asian enough to run it? I have always felt these oscillations of anxiety and discomfort and confusion on where I am allowed to fit between these two identities.

What has helped you to embrace your identity and use it to inform your work in theatre?

KC: My sophomore year during COVID, MIT had a class called Mixed Race Theater and Film. It completely changed how I began thinking about my own identity. We were reading a lot of theory, scholarship and history about multiracial children and looking at contemporary movies and books with characters who were mixed race. Many of us in the class were multiracial. For the first time, that class taught me that being multiracial does not mean being split between two identities. You don’t have to just be proud that you’re white and Asian, but you can be proud that you’re both, and being mixed race is its whole own identity. That seems like a simple concept, but it hadn’t struck me until then. That class really taught me, There’s only one person who chooses who you are, and it’s you. That was a really powerful sentiment to hear. I started thinking about my identity, not as white or as Asian American, but as multiracial—and that being a point of strength and pride.

When I came to college, all the theatre was studentdirected, produced, built, and designed. All of a sudden, I was in this whole world of students who were really entrepreneurial about theatre. Joining ASAP was also a turning point because I was surrounded by people who were making art that was tied to their identity, and creating spaces for

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that exploration. I had never thought about my identity and theatre together; those existed in separate planes—theatre has always felt almost like escapism from identity for me, because previously, I had never seen any Asian or multiracial Asian roles. Joining an Asian American theatre group that was actively trying to write new musicals and new plays to create new roles for Asian Americans was really exciting to me. I knew I wanted to be a part of that movement.

When you directed ASAP’s production of Legally Blonde in 2021 with an all-Asian cast, it made national headlines for creatively flipping the script on a mainstream—and traditionally white—show. How did that happen?

KC: When COVID disrupted a lot of performing arts, I lived with four girls who were Asian American and who were also interested in theatre. We were thinking about what theatre we’d want to do back on campus, but couldn’t think of any Asian American musicals—they had stereotypical portrayals or were outdated. One of my friends was like, “I just wish we could do a really fun musical like High School Musical, but for Asian people.” That’s how my idea for our adaptation of Legally Blonde was born. Why couldn’t Elle Woods be Asian American? How does the musical change if it is set in an Asian American space? It was my first time directing in college, which was an exciting endeavor. The most exciting part was how much student interest there was; people came out for auditions saying, “Hey, I heard this idea was happening on campus. I’ve never done musical theatre, but I just want to be a part of it.” There was a really exciting energy being built around it because there had never been a musical on campus featuring an all-Asian cast. However, the biggest critique of Legally Blonde and one of my anxieties about it was that it still wasn’t written with Asian people in mind.

So, while it was a big step for representation in our community, the question was, “How can we move forward?” To me, that answer was student-written work.

Speaking of student-written work, I’m excited to see your play, Ugly Feelings. It’ll be my first time seeing an identity like yours and mine—biracial Asian and white—represented in live theatre.

How are you feeling, and what should the audience expect?

KC: I knew I wanted to write a play talking about multiracial identity, specifically white/Asian because I had never seen or read a play with a character who was talking about 42 Nobles Fall 2023

those experiences. But I also recognized that there were a lot of uncomfortable feelings associated with mixed-race identity. One of the biggest ones in my mind was, how do you reckon with this idea that you’re a person of color who experiences microaggressions and otherness, but at the same time, you’re also someone who’s white, who’s experiencing white privilege? Especially when that’s also tied to identifying as a woman, and this idea of being exoticized for your Asian features in some spaces but being put on a pedestal for your Western features in other spaces. This romanticization of whiteness in mixed-race children or individuals is something that I was really curious about— how is this another form of white privilege? Another form of racism? How does this all impact a young girl growing up in society hearing two different discourses about how she should feel about herself, her identity and how she looks? What would happen on stage if a mixed-race child is told in some spaces they are superior and other spaces inferior? I really wanted to write a character that was exploring these “ugly feelings” of not coming to terms with how to deal with their identity, and how that can impact and be impacted by different spaces and different relationships.

As a playwright, it must be so hard to be that honest and vulnerable, and to confront those “ugly feelings.” How did you grapple with, “Am I really going to put this forth onstage?” Did you feel a burden of responsibility around representation?

KC: I’ve never written a play; I’ve never had the inner workings of my mind displayed on the stage. And that is really exciting—but also scary. There were a lot of things I was afraid to write, and a lot of questions I was scared to ask. But my favorite playwright is a Korean playwright named Young Jean Lee, and she says that when she starts writing a play, she thinks about the last play she wants to write—and then she writes that play. So I constantly would ask myself, “What is something I would not want anyone to hear out loud?” As I’m writing it on the page, I’m cringing, but I would force myself to write it. My advisors pushed me to be bold in approaching challenging conversations and pushing boundaries and to always look for the unsaid. Writing unlikable characters who are making bad choices is also hard. I wanted to write characters who were making mistakes and were complex and complicated, and to see how that would dramatize on the stage.

I think my biggest fear going into this performance is how to explore these challenging issues. Talking about white privilege—especially as part of multiracial identity— is a really complicated topic that we can be afraid to talk about or even think about. But I felt I had to write those conversations because I wanted to see, “What happens if that conversation happens on the stage? How does that impact this character?”

There are a lot of questions about racial belonging that I’ve asked myself throughout my life that I’ve never seen answered. This play is my attempt at asking those questions that I still don’t have the answer to. All I can hope is that it creates a conversation beyond the theatre.

Cowperthwaite and Neal spoke again as part of a Nobles graduates podcast series hosted by Director of Graduate Affairs Kate Treitman Brown ’99.

Listen to the “Creative Stories” interview and those of other grads on Spotify.

Nobles Fall 2023 43

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Reunion 2023 More than 600 graduates, guests and friends returned to campus to celebrate Reunion 2023 on Friday, May 12, and Saturday, May 13. The 50th Reunion Class of 1973 kicked off the festivities on Friday, where they sat in on assembly, joined classes and participated in a roundtable with Head of School Cathy Hall. The first day concluded in the Castle with a 50th Reunion class dinner and the “Noblest” dinner for classes more than 50 years out of Nobles.

Saturday’s weather was picture perfect, and guests soaked up the sunshine while enjoying a full day of events, including the men’s graduate lacrosse game, a cookout and carnival, the Wild World of Reptiles presented by Joy Densler Marzolf ’86, and student athletic contests. Distinguished Graduate award winner and actor Mike Beach ’82 joined current Nobles Theatre Collective (NTC) students for a special Arts in the Afternoon. At the graduate assembly, the Class of 1998 presented retired faculty member Ben Snyder with the Coggeshall Award for outstanding teaching. Chip Goode ’72 was presented with the Lawson Service Award, and Hil Moss ’08 was awarded the Young Graduate Award. Abbeygale Anderson ’14 was announced as the Graduate Trustee Award winner. The night concluded with class dinners in the Castle.

2008

44 Nobles Fall 2023

1973

1998

2013

Alden Abad ’08, Aaron Roth ’08 and Misha Kaufman ’08

Grads enjoy reunion evening on the Castle Terrace.

Chip Goode’s classmates from ’72 and ’73 joined him on stage to sing an updated version of “Vive L’Amour” after surprising him with the Lawson Service Award.

Mike Beach ’82 receives the Distinguished Graduate Award.

Players in the graduate lacrosse game Photography by Joel Haskell, Ben Heider and Leah LaRiccia

Nobles Fall 2023 45

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1993

1978

Hilary Sturtevant Schmitt ’88, Deb Sturtevant White ’78 and family at Deb’s induction to the Athletics Hall of Fame

2018

Kate Serafini Cox ’98, former faculty members Ben and Sarah Snyder, Jason Burns ’98 and Kate Dockery

1988

46 Nobles Fall 2023

2003

▲

1983

Exploring the wonders of the reptile kingdom at the Wild World of Reptiles show, a young adventurer gets a hands-on lesson in courage and curiosity with the help of Joy Densler Marzolf ’86

Bridget Mussafer ’18, Sophie Mussafer Griffin ’13, Olivia Mussafer ’15, and Casey Griffin Giudicelli ’09 with Sophie and Mike Griffin ’08‘s child Gracie, and Casey and Bryan Giudicelli‘s children Charlie, Maddy and Griffin

Sheldon Ross ’78, sister Harriet Denise Ross ’82 and family at Sheldon‘s induction to the Athletics Hall of Fame

Former wrestling coach and math faculty member Steve Toubman at his induction to the Athletics Hall of Fame with Charles Wang ’23 Nobles Fall 2023 47

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1951 class correspondent

Galt Grant

1952 & 1953 class correspondent

John Childs

Dave Horton and I were the sole representatives for the 71st reunion of ’52 and 70th of ’53, as we attended the Friday night “Noblest” (classes that graduated 51 or more years ago) dinner and then some activities Saturday. I believe we were the oldest graduates there. First, a few observations and comments from classmates.

In addition to Dave and Terry and Jean and me, others you may remember who were there included Fred Clifford ’54, Bob Chellis ’55 and Charlie Long ’58, but that was it for nearby contemporaries. A decidedly poor showing for the old guys.

Willy Williams’ mother made the 1953 framed banner in 1951. She also made a 1952 banner that was believed to have perished in a fire. Anyway, this ’53 banner was held in safekeeping by Bo Wakefield* and next appeared at a special ’52–’53 reunion in Newport, Rhode Island, in September 2011 at Sally and Dick Flood’s house.

It next went to Hooley Perry and appeared at the dinner in the Castle for our 60th reunion, then at our (Childs) house for

Graduate Notes Policy: ■ Noble and Greenough School is a nonprofit institution with no religious or political affiliation.

■ Send graduate updates and photographs to class correspondents if you have one.

■ Digital photographs must be high-resolution JPEG images (1MB+) to appear in print.

■ Editorial staff reserves the right to edit, format and select all materials for publication, to accommodate eight decades of classes in the magazine.

■ For more information, visit the graduate notes online submission page: www.nobles.edu/community/ submit-a-class-note/.

■ Please contact us if you’d like to volunteer as class correspondent, to collect and compile news of your classmates to share.

Please note: If you do not have a class correspondent listed, you may submit your notes online at www.nobles. edu/community/submit-a-class-note/ or volunteer to become the class correspondent by contacting Director of Graduate Affairs Kate Treitman Brown ’99 at kbrown99@nobles.edu.

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another reunion in 2013, and then to the Nobles archives.

A marvelous highlight Saturday morning at the Nobles Athletic Hall of Fame presentation was an award to the girls 2011 cross country team that included Dave and Terry’s granddaughter, Savannah Horton ’13. You may recall that the 1951 football team, which prominently included Dave himself, was inducted about 15 years ago, and Dave’s father (yes, that Square Dave) was similarly honored three years ago for his 30 years as baseball coach. By golly, a Horton dynasty!

And one more impressive story concerns Jake Dunnell*, who has been pretty much confined to his home in New Hampshire for several years but has retained a strong interest in classmates. With difficulties communicating directly, he has relied on his nephew Jacob to read the Class Notes to him and pass along his good wishes. Remarkably, Jacob has been a dedicated caretaker for some time and insisted that he and his wife, Kelly, attend the reunion to gather Nobles stories and pictures. You will see him in several photos. This has to be a unique and incredibly noteworthy relationship.

In attempting to put more meat on the reunion bone, I asked for comments about life, interests and accomplishments from the 19 remaining graduates from ’52 and ’53, and here is the response.

Jack Farlow: “Greetings and congratulations to fellow N&G classmates of 1952–1953 on the occasion of our 70th reunion. Who ever would have

thought, back in the day, that such a large percentage of us would still be alive and kicking?

Well, we’ve had pretty amazing lives all in all, and we can assign credit for that to the significant intellectual, emotional and athletic support we received at Nobles during our formative years. Our teachers and coaches were amazing and gifted people who provided us with information, skills and examples of how to be high-quality human beings. As I look back from my present perspective, I am even more conscious of (and grateful for) all the help they so gladly and effectively gave us. The Castle and river were important dividends too (though minor by comparison). Imagine how deprived we would have felt had we attended Milton Academy! I have always been rather a solitary introvert, getting along with others but never making serious friends. Oddly enough, except for John Childs and David Thibodeau, my best Nobles contact has been Bo Wakefield (hidden away in Australia). He and I have emailed each other a half dozen times annually for some 15 years now, sharing our lives, family and interests, although I barely knew who he was back at school. For me, he has turned out to be a truly extraordinary guy! My best to you all!”

Lu Hallett: “After retiring from the Air Force in 1974, I went back to UNH and got a two-year degree covering a bunch of subjects, then flew helicopters for Wiggins Airways and then New Hampshire helicopters until 1988. From ’88 until ’98, I was the assistant to *deceased

the president of an advertising company in New Hampshire. In ’98, I got tired of working, so I quit. Now I’m broke but having a ball, have left snow country and am living in Florida. Not having to shovel snow any longer is refreshing now that I will be 90 next December.”

Ben Taylor: “Not many of us left in either class. As for me, I fell and broke a hip two years ago. My hip is fine now, but I am still unsteady and have not regained all of my strength. Part of the problem is being 89. But I am keeping quite busy. I live in a retirement village (like North Hill and Fox Hill) and spend a lot of time writing short stories for our community publication. Stories are about events in my life: mountain climbing in Germany, meeting Robert Frost, my whaling ancestors on Nantucket, our undefeated football team at Nobles in 1951, and my uncles and the Flying Tigers. My fellow residents seem to like them, so I keep writing. I have also published two books since I retired—the first in 2003 was about my great-grandfather who founded Union Carbide, and the second in 2013 was about a famous fly fisherman (and friend) who lived in California. There are a few other things that keep me busy, but writing is the most interesting for me. Hope you are well, John, and thanks for keeping our two classes connected.”

David Thibodeau: “During the last five years I have been living in Fox Hill in Westwood.

I have also spent time in East Hampton, New York, and

Naples, Florida. I have been on several cruises: a few in Europe and several on American Cruise Line in the U.S. I have also been on several Road Scholar trips.”

Pete Willauer (written by Carol): “Peter and I moved to Falmouth, Maine, this past fall.

We moved and then immediately left for Nevis in the West Indies where we still spend six months a year. We sold the last of our boats a couple of years ago, so we’re landlubbers now.

Peter’s Parkinson’s disease is slow in developing, thankfully.

He now walks either with a walking stick or a walker. He works hard at staying in shape and continues to row, but now on land on an erg. His sons and their families are all doing well.

One grandson is following in Peter’s footsteps and is an avid sailor who, with his partner, is sailing around the world. Peter continues to be active as a trustee emeritus at Hurricane Island Center for Science and Leadership, which we founded 12 years ago. The organization is doing extremely well, and this summer will open a marine research science lab on the island. This will be a tremendous resource for scientists in the Gulf of Maine. Peter and I both wish you and Jean, Dave and Terry, and all of his classmates, the very best.”

Jake Dunnell: “I am grateful my nephew Jacob and his wife, Kelly, were able to attend the Noblest 70th Reunion on my behalf, as the distance was far too great for me to travel. They report that the school put on a grand reunion event and everyone had a lovely time. I had the

opportunity to look through the many photographs taken during the event and was quite happy to see the Round Room and fireplaces in the Castle remain as beautiful today as I recall them from years past. The reunion classes of 1952/1953 all look spry and energetic. I continue to enjoy my quiet solitude in the lakes region of New Hampshire, reading and reflecting, and wish my classmates all the best.”

Jacob Dunnell II (Jake’s nephew): “As emissaries for my uncle, my wife, Kelly, and I were absolutely taken by the beauty of the Nobles campus and grounds, and specifically the blending of its historic and newer architecture. But above all, the polite and sincere kindness we experienced as ‘outsiders’ to the Noblest Reunion was quite overwhelming.

Individuals from each reunion class we encountered were so generous to take the time to speak with us, show us around, and regale us with their stories.

We were particularly appreciative of the Classes of ’52 and ’53 for inviting us, and to the Nobles administration to allow us to attend on behalf of my uncle. As non-Nobles graduates (I went to Brooks), Kelly and I had simply the most wonderful time at an event the school should be proud of.

Our thanks to all who made it happen.”

John Childs: “While this reunion report is clearly getting out of hand, I can’t pester you to send news without participating myself. After living in Wellesley since 1940 (and since 1967 in the family

home), Jean (who came from multi-generations in Dedham) moved three miles to the town in between (Needham) to a retirement community, North Hill. While this disqualifies us from claiming to be world travelers, the move retained all of our local activities, such as regularly playing golf, sailing in Rockport, Massachusetts (Jean), curling all winter, and keeping active with clubs, civic interests and friends. We also both participate in many resident committees and some crazy endeavors, such as serving as class agents (Nobles and Milton). While the aging process is apparent, we are both amazed and lucky that we are relatively healthy and happily busy. While I have been retired more than 20 years from investment counseling, Jean has never stopped organizing everything in sight. Adjusting to life in a top-notch retirement community has been easy and successful. Like many of you, we are truly blessed.”

1954 class correspondent

Peter Partridge

Jonathan Barnett published a book in June 2023 titled Implementing Urban Design: Green, Civic, and Community Strategies, which addresses a central urban design issue: how to bring an urban design from concept to reality. When implementation strategies are made an integral part of urban design, the result becomes more detailed, more situational and much more likeNobles Fall 2023 49

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ly to be related to the natural landscape and the character already present in the community. The strategies described in this book range from neighborhoods to downtown business districts, and from designs for whole suburbs and cities to designs at the scale of the region and megaregion. They deal with everyday situations, although some of the issues can be complicated. This book will interest community leaders, urban design professionals, and students, instructors, and practitioners of urban design and city planning.

Jonathan has been an urban design advisor to the cities of Charleston, South Carolina; Cleveland, Kansas City, Miami, Nashville, New York City, Norfolk, Omaha and Pittsburgh in the United States, and Xiamen and Tianjin in China. He has also advised the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the National Park Service, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Capital Planning Commission. He is the author of many books and articles about urban design and planning and is a professor emeritus of practice in city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania.

1955 class correspondent

Bob Chellis

More news from our shrinking class. Bob Gregg’s service was in Peterborough, New Hampshire, on April 1, 2023.

50 Nobles Fall 2023

Sam Gray had to cancel—and I assumed Johnny Harrison was not up to it—so I drove up alone. A fine sunny day, a pretty drive on the back roads.

I picked up Carolyn Grumman/ Taylor at Bob Taylor’s Old Town Farm and drove to the lovely old church in the center of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town.

Bebo died last fall, as memorialized in previous Class Notes, and was one of the cheerful leaders of the class. In our early Nobles years, there was some excitement when Bob Gregg’s father married Bob Taylor’s mother. Bebo’s interesting career included a small plane business in the 1960s and quite a career with LandVest, dealing with major properties and land management in the northeast, and maintaining his own woodland in the Adirondacks. Bebo’s family, friends and relatives assembled from many directions on April 1 for tributes, anecdotes and a reception at the church.

Sadly, returning from Peterborough, I learned that Johnny Harrison had died in Dedham while we were gathered for Bebo. Johnny Harrison and Sally had an especially hard time with health problems last year, and he had serious operations, but both were back at home when he died. His funeral service was just a few weeks later, on May 18, at the big white Unitarian Church on Court Street. Sam and Gerry Gray and I were there from the class, joined by Charlie Long ’58 and Whit Bond ’59.

It was a lovely sunny day, and of course a good turnout. Sally was in a wheelchair in the front row. She has not been well but

is still at home in Dedham. A reception followed at the Country Club, where he spent so much happy time with tennis, golf and good friends.

The Nobles Athletic Hall of Fame was an accolade John would have appreciated, and years ago several of us submitted a strong nomination. Year by year we would encourage it. He was deserving and would have been pleased, but we’ve been disappointed. He was an athletic star in our class—it seemed in every sport—famously playing with a cast to beat Milton in football. But I guess with a bigger school, and more great candidates, and more voters who knew them, that’s not likely to happen. He’s still a superstar for us.

Reunion Weekend May 12 and 13 was well done, as always.

When one hears “cocktails in the Castle,” it may sound like a fairy-tale invitation to most, and who would not pay attention?

How many can straighten their tie and go off to a Castle for the evening? But every year, Nobles invites us, and it is a welcoming and upbeat time. Another good evening this year, with cocktails and dinner in the handsome new banqueting hall. With just two of us from 1955, Sam and Gerry Gray found a good table, Fred Clifford ’54, former board chair, and Tim Leland and Fred Wells (both ’56) joined us. Then who should sit next to me but Catherine Hall, the impressive head of school! Very good company, indeed. She stood to speak several times. One statement delighted me: She said that Nobles wants to graduate young people who have

“learned to live life joyously!”

And I was able to say to her: “That was wonderful.

Aspirational!”

I think we all took to heart our morning assembly calls, when we were urged to work hard, do our best, and be kind! And that was great. Now “joyously” raises the ante to another dimension! I’m sorry that many of us miss these reunion evenings.

During the pandemic, we can be grateful that one year Charlie Nichols organized a Zoom reunion meeting for the class, and there were more of us than there are now. I think most clicked in, and Wally Stimpson did an elegant and thoughtful job of leading and moderating.

Just this week, our own David Fisher, M.D., forwarded a reassuring, if debatable, medical clipping, reporting that a little alcohol protects the heart and general well-being. As noted above, Eliot Putnam was an inspiration for most of us on those gray morning assemblies.

And I’m pretty sure he never urged us to drink. But last year I finally found an outlet carrying Putnam New England Straight Rye Whiskey* from Boston Harbor Distillery. And I have just now raised a (small) glass to that great man and mentor, from this elegant Putnam Whiskey bottle, hoping it helps get these Class Notes off by this afternoon, and joyously!

Sunny days to all—eight survivors who should keep in touch. *Thanks to Bob for bringing Putnam Whiskey to our attention; it was happily served at Reunion 2022 when we celebrated 100 years in the Castle!

1956 class correspondent

Gren “Rocky” Whitman

John Raye writes, “I continue to live happily in Chatham on the Cape. As some of you may know, my wife, Paula, died in 2018 from Parkinson’s disease, a terrible affliction that gradually robs you of your talents. I attended a bereavement group shortly after and met a lovely nurse, Evelyn, whose husband had recently died. The short of it is, we quickly fell in love, my life bloomed again, and we are amazingly compatible. She is wonderful to me. As I become increasingly unstable with some serious falls, she puts me back together. She has cared for me through a complicated reverse shoulder replacement, which required a lot of support for more than six months. We have an active life here and travel to Vero Beach in Florida each winter, where her son has a restaurant (The Oar), so we’re well fed there. We are active in our local Unitarian Universalist meeting, go to the theater often, and have an active group of friends.

Two of my three children live on the Cape, and we enjoy our grandchildren. Life is grand, and except for my relentless aging, I am extraordinarily happy.”

George Waterman shares, “I have been working on the Visual Art Library for more than 40 years. We now have a full-time librarian and about 90,000 books and catalogs, all on art. Our primary interest is worldwide art from 1940 to the present. I live in Manhattan but

am usually at the library in New London, Connecticut, three days a week. Stop in if you are driving on I-95; we’re just a mile off it. Or call 917-513-4663.”

Bill Wiese writes, “Janislee and I have been busy with our lives in New Mexico much as before. This year I reengaged with behavioral health and addiction policy issues at the county level, and that’s been a good experience. I’m still trying to keep up with sheep, hay, yards, gardens and renters, as well as with three seriously aging houses. Janislee is a voracious reader in a reading group of close friends and is intent on keeping our local bookstore alive. She’s still involved with the local fiber arts scene and keeps our home livable. After 52 years in one place, we’re starting to sort through the clutter. We covet our moments with children near and far, and with grandchildren who are growing up and moving into and through college and beyond. Our creaking joints are hourly reminders that all this isn’t going to last.”

John Fritts is going to be a great-grandfather in August! He writes, “... and if nothing else makes me feel like an old-timer, this certainly does. Advanced age and other factors prevented us from making our usual trips to Florida and California this past year. But we love Cape Cod and don’t mind limiting our adventures to Barnstable County.”

Fred Wells and Tim Leland, escorted by Tim’s wife, Julie, attended the Noblest dinner in May and took the opportunity for a side-trip to inspect the N’56 Path, which we found to

1

2

1. Tim Leland ’56, Julie Hatfield-Leland and Fred Wells ’56 rest on the way up the ’56 Path. 2. Twenty-three members of the Class of 1958 gathered in June 2023 to celebrate their 65th Reunion at the Country Club. Pictured, from left: Jan Russell, Bill Russell, Bob MacPhail, Fran MacPhail, Bob Bland, Patty Bacon, Tappy Wilder, Jane Puffer, Larry Daloz behind her, Bob Puffer, Bill Danielson, Fusako Grant, Gordon Grant behind her, Betsy Nelson (daughter of the late Percy Nelson ’40), Charlie Long behind her, Michael Whitman, Patty Jackson, Kathy Tallman, Peter Norstrand, Chris Morss, Henry Batchelder, Peter Horton and Peter Wadsworth.

be in excellent shape. “The same could not be said for us,” Tim jokes, “as we huffed and puffed up the hill.” The path now sports carved granite steps, sturdy steel railings, a macadam surface and a handsome bronze plaque in our class’s honor. Tim continues, “Feeling like Rip Van Winkles, we had a hard time finding the Castle amidst so many new auditoriums, science buildings, dormitories, libraries and schoolhouses, but it was worth the search. At the dinner we sat with

Fred Clifford ’54, Bob Chellis ’55 and Sam Gray ’55, and Head of School Catherine Hall. In that distinguished company we had a grand old time and an excellent meal in the Castle’s sparkling new dining room.”

Due to a heart episode, Dave Carroll is “on a diet of lettuce, chicken, glass and concrete, but the latter two wear down my molars, so I rarely have them. Also, I’ve been invited on a trip to the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Nobles Fall 2023 51

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Museum in Indiana by two friends, in their car, one driving, so all I have to do is enjoy the ride. Being the lifelong car guy, I’m stoked and can’t wait.”

Bob Bach underwent a complicated cardiac surgery at the Brigham last October and was finally discharged from rehab in February. “Glad I consented to all the procedures I thought I never would agree to and am now known as ‘a tough old bird.’”

Rocky Whitman concludes: “Although the rigors of nursing a diabetic cat keep us close to home in Rock Hall, we manage weekly driving trips here and there on the Delmarva peninsula. I can direct you to every Port-a-Potty between Chincoteague, Virginia, and Cecil County, Maryland!”

1957 class correspondent

Eliot Putnam

Eliot Putnam writes: “When this is read, Jan and I will have completed a 10-day small-boat trip on the Upper Amazon in Peru. We love to go where the wild things are, and this will have given us an intimate exposure to the flora and fauna of the Amazon rainforest, with side trips in kayaks, small guided hikes, and many quiet, contemplative moments on that great artery. We are looking forward to it immensely, and my personal, passionately creative travel agent, Jan, is already working on what comes next. Alaska, Vieques, the New Mexico high desert…they all magnetize us. In other family news, two of our Nobles graduate grandchildren, 52 Nobles Fall 2023

Finn Putnam ’14 and his sister Katherine ’15, are each engaged to be married. Who knows?

Maybe we will be the first in our class to be great-grandparents.

Peace to all classmates.”

Lance Grandone shares, “It’s been a while since I’ve sent in an update, but I have been totally tied up as primary caregiver for my wife, Karin, and dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Ian and our condo association. After several years of poor medical advice and diagnoses, we finally found some qualified doctors at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida, who were able to diagnose her symptoms as a rare form of T-cell lymphoma known as Sezary Syndrome, which is treated primarily using a process known as photopheresis.

This involved driving to Tampa six times per month for the 2.5hour treatment procedure. The inconvenience was worth it, because she is now considered in remission and the care at Moffitt was absolutely superb.

I have never experienced such a qualified and caring group of individuals. Karin still has a lot of other serious health issues such as CKD, COPD and mobility problems, but at least we have the most serious issue on the run.

“While all the aforementioned health issues were taking place, we were hit with Hurricane Ian, and, shortly thereafter, a tropical rainstorm deluge.

I am still acting as president of the condo association where we bought an investment unit as a potential residence for when we would need to leave our house in Nokomis.

The complex incurred serious damage to roofs and exterior structures; however, nowhere near the damage suffered south of us in Cape Coral and Fort Myers. I just wrapped up six months of corrective mold remediation, contractor hiring, insurance claim negotiation, securing new association insurance, signing contracts for new roofs, hiring a public adjuster, and fielding owner questions and complaints. What a trip!

There weren’t enough hours in the day. I haven’t worked this hard since my consulting days 60 years ago.

“Between Karin’s health issues, Covid, Hurricane Ian and old age, I’ve had a major change in lifestyle. At least my health is holding up pretty well, although the arthritis is troublesome. Both our son and daughter are retired and doing sporadic consulting work. Cass is building a new home outside of Edwards, Colorado, in the Cordillera community, and Susan is splitting her time between her self-rehabbed house in Columbia, South Carolina, and Nokomis, Florida. Our twin granddaughters just turned 30.

Megan works at Abbott Labs in Dallas as a researcher in the Systems Division labs, while Sara is a software team leader at Lockheed Martin for the Artemis moon shot that will carry astronauts this time. Karin and I are so proud of both twins.

What little free time I have is spent with my two new rescue cats, cooking and reading thrillers on my Kindle.

“I think of my days at Nobles fondly and wish circumstances were such that I

could get back for a reunion.

My classmates, both living and passed, are in my thoughts frequently. Lots of good memories there. All the best to my classmates and their families.”

1958 class correspondent

Chris Morss

The Class of 1958 had a dinner at the Country Club in Brookline at their delayed 65th Reunion on June 16, 2023.

Long-distance winners were Fusako and Gordon Grant from Honolulu, Hawaii; Tappy Wilder and Patty Bacon from Sausalito, California; and Fran and Bob MacPhail from Las Vegas. In all, 15 classmates and eight ladies attended. A small group gathered at Fox Hill in the early afternoon for a discussion of climate change, arranged

by Charlie Long.

Bill Danielson writes, “I’m a member of numerous conservation groups (two land conservation trusts, three historical societies, several coastal and maritime conservation groups, etc.); they satisfy my liberal appetite.

I’m also a member of the town of Chebeague Island’s Climate Action Team, working to conserve Earth as a habitable planet.”

1959 class correspondents

Whit Bond

Buzz Gagnebin

John Gibson

1960 class correspondent

Albert Vandam

1961 class correspondent

Peter Ward

Peter Ward writes, “Adrienne and I just returned from Spitsbergen, halfway between northern Norway and the North Pole. We cruised on the Ocean Explorer (128 guests) from Longyearbyen, the world’s northernmost settlement with more than 1,000 people, to the polar ice front at 80 degrees north. Saw reindeer, polar bears, walruses, seals, whales, arctic fox, arctic terns, and a bunch of other birds. Landed and hiked or cruised by zodiac twice a day for 10 days. We had this planned for 2020, but Covid took care of that.” (See photo on page 54) Sally and Jim Newell have been celebrating 50 years together and time with their six grandchildren with family trips to Alaska, France and Mohonk Mountain House in the Shawangunk Mountains. They have also discovered 30-plus genetic grandchildren and enjoyed meeting them and their parents from Germany, Israel, the Netherlands, Arizona, England and Denmark.

Sally and Bert Dane are delighted that Rae Ann and Sam Mandell are moving to join them at North Hill Retirement Community in Needham. There must be a robust Nobles contingent there, just 5.6 miles from Motley Pond.

Brad Willauer continues to teach all relatives of all ages the fine art of sailing. This year his prized boat Breezing Up competed again in the Newport Bermuda Race, with daughter Tori Willauer as skipper and son Ben as navigator. All eight on board were Willauers—children, grandchildren, great-nieces and -nephews—what fun they had! Brad demurred a month before the start, attending to successful minimally invasive mitral valve surgery.

Now he is stronger than ever, planning to cruise Mallorca this fall in a bareboat charter with many other friends from the Cruising Club of America, where he was commodore just a few years ago.

at old pictures. I don’t think Frank’s family was disappointed, as most of what was said was laced with good humor and laughter. Following lunch, a smaller group went out to Nobles, as Hayden in particular wanted to see the place where his father had spent his high school years, some of the happiest times of his life.

Hayden remarked that, “For me, this was the highlight of the event.” In attendance from ’64 were John Axten, Maurice Hamilburg, David Brooks, Clint Smith, Topher Cutler, Ned Bigelow and George Darrell.

1965 Class Correspondent

Jim Summers

1962 Class Correspondent

Peter McCombs

1963 Class Correspondent

Jim Lehan

1964 Class Correspondent

Bill Sargent shares that his most recent book, Backstory, came out in April 2023. It is a novel about three Boston-based journalists covering Covid, climate and the war in Ukraine.

Bill says, “Fiction is new for me, though some say I have been writing it for years!”

1966 Class Correspondent

Ned Reece

Ned Bigelow

On Sunday, June 25, seven members of the Class of ’64 gathered at Seasons 52 in Chestnut Hill to honor their classmate Frank Cobb, who passed away on April 23. Frank’s two sons, Hayden and Brenden, and their families joined us for lunch, wonderful stories, remembrances and looking

1967 Class Correspondent

Drew Sullivan

1968 Class Correspondent

Mike Sherman

Rick Storer writes, “Regrettably, I could not make it to our 55th reunion but did have a chance to reconnect with classmate Russ Harris and his wife, Deborah, who came to our house in Duxbury for a weekend visit in February. We had a picnic lunch on the beach on a beautiful sunny 60-plus-degree day, took them on a tour of Duxbury, shared family news, and heard all about their very busy lives publishing their hometown newspaper, the Groton Herald.

We were also fortunate to have a nice lunch at our house with Lois and Andrew Fisher, who were up in Boston in March for a weekend wedding. We shared a lot of pictures of our grandkids; Andrew and Lois were recently blessed with the arrival of their first three grandkids, all in the space of about a month! Andrew is making great progress on his first retirement project, an ambitious biography of New York philanthropist Nathan Strauss.

“I continue to keep busy with restoration and maintenance work on my two classic wooden boats, a 1960 E.M. White Canoe Co. 18’ lapstrake runabout and a 16’ Haven gaffrigged keelboat, a Joel White modification of the classic Herreshoff 12 ½ design. I publish the newsletter for the Bay State Classic Boat Club and serve as treasurer for the New England Lyman Group, the only boat club in New England dedicated to lapstrake or ‘clinker-built’ runabouts. With Covid mostly in the rearview mirror, we’re starting to travel more; Jane and I took a four-day trip to Quebec City in March with a stopover Nobles Fall 2023 53

GRADUATE NEWS

in Lake Placid on the way home for the ECAC ice hockey playoffs. In mid-June we’re off to London for three days, then on to Bergen, Norway, for a 12-day fjord cruise (Hurtigruten Coastal Express). We’ll finish the trip with five days in the Aland Islands (an archipelago between Sweden and Finland) and a visit to Salskar lighthouse island, where my Swedish grandmother grew up as the daughter of the Salskar lighthouse keeper.

Other retirement hobbies that keep me busy include genealogy research, playing my acoustic guitar, saltwater fishing, building furniture, and maintenance and improvements to our cottage and outbuildings on Barker Pond in southwestern Maine.”

David Robinson shares, “My new CD, One Night Stand (recorded fall ’22), is garnering good reviews these days for those fortunate enough to possess a CD player! Granddaughters Avery (10, fourth grade) and Winnie (3) keep us hopping happily.”

Rob Woods says, “No idea when my next book will be published—presumably after I finish editing it (Seven Shades of Superb—Now What?) and finding a publisher. But if any one of you wants to be a trial reader of this historical fiction about seven fabulous role models for the next generation (like S. Wonder, L. Messi, J. Joyce, M. Obama...), just let me know and I’ll send you a PDF copy for your review. I’d love any feedback people have!

(Thanks in advance.) It’s been two years in the making so far, and it’s time to wrap it up, right?

“But I did do a private publication of a family memoir called Love and Adventure—Down the 54 Nobles Fall 2023

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7a

Years From 1950. Our kids gave me a ‘StoryWorth’ subscription where they pose weekly questions, I answer them, and the book gets printed about a year later. Nice way to go.

“As for grandkids, we just got our fifth and sixth—unbelievably blessed in this department. We take care of four of them every Wednesday, which can be exhausting. Hope you are all well, healthy and thriving!”

George Record writes, “Yes, classmates, I live a scant mile away from Sherman, and the two of us would happily welcome and entertain any visitors.

Next up is hopefully Woodsie.

“I stopped working several years ago, just before losing my wife of 43 years to cancer and don’t have anything beyond generally farting around (I’m good at that, thanks to Nobles and college) to report.”

Jim Esten says, “Time with my wife, reading, birding, photography, exercise. That about sums it up. I try to get in one or two photo tours each year.”

1969 Class Correspondent

Peter Pach

1. Adrienne and Peter Ward ’61 in a Zodiac cruising among icebergs near 80 degrees north in Spitsbergen on June 4, 2023. Peter was the student in 1957 who founded the Nobles Outing Club together with English teacher Bill Biddle. Peter and Adrienne live on the edge of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming and still enjoy hiking, snowshoeing, rafting, canoeing and visiting wild places around the world. 2. Members of the Class of ’64 gathered to remember Frank Cobb. From left: John Axten, Maurice Hamilburg, David Brooks, Clint Smith, Topher Cutler, Ned Bigelow and George Darrell. 3. Bill Sargent ’65 wrote a book called Backstory. 4. A shot of Jim Esten ’68 in Glacier Bay, Alaska 5. The late Kit Norton ’69 sailing, one of his passions, with youngest son Sam. 6. Kit Norton ’69, an accomplished bluegrass musician, playing guitar. 7a & 7b. Wes Wellington ’69 outside the “Yellow House,” built in 1895 by his great-grandfather Ernest Jeffers.

I was saddened to learn that our classmate Kit Norton died April 17 in Charleston, South Carolina, where he lived and worked as a building contractor.

I spoke to his brother, Chip Norton ’73, who said that Kit died of complications following knee surgery.

Chip said Kit left Colby College before graduating, and after some travel settled full time on

Nantucket, where he used skills first learned in their family’s business to start a career in carpentry and home contracting.

When a hurricane went through South Carolina, Kit and some friends left Nantucket to repair and replace buildings the storm damaged. Kit established a business in Charleston and eventually concentrated on building second homes in the nearby coastal town of Isle of Palms. He met his former wife in South Carolina, and they had two sons, Kyle and Sam. Kit was devoted to bluegrass music, Chip said, and became an accomplished guitarist, performing in clubs around Charleston.

It turns out that Mark Haffenreffer was a close neighbor of Kit’s growing up, which left good memories. “Kit was blessed with living on Carisbrooke Road in Wellesley,” Mark wrote.

“Any number of times, Kit and I would lounge and swim in his backyard. I remember their stereo system as my first Morrison [high-end audio equipment] and heavy metal experience that took place while lying on Kit’s bedroom floor. He and his siblings, Candy and Chip, made for a great family.”

Tom Taylor remembers Kit as a good friend and fellow soccer player. Kit got a lasting claim to fame when he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Milton our senior year.

Wes Wellington, who was co-captain of the soccer team, said Kit’s death was “a bit of a jolt. Another member of our cohort has fallen, and somehow it doesn’t seem all that long ago that we were having lunch at the Castle or running

through the woods for soccer practice. I made a mental note to focus on things that give me a sense of purpose and set aside the rest.”

Wes seems to be living that resolve. He wrote, “I’m still working and traveling in the investment business, and the principal reason is to satisfy my inner show pony with speaking engagements around the country. I also have a side hustle with the New Hampshire dairy farm I worked on as a teenager.” Called Jeffers Hill Farm in Pike, New Hampshire, it was once owned by Wes’s great-grandfather Ernest Jeffers.

When Wes worked on the farm, it was owned by Bill Grimes.

Wes bought the 400-plus-acre farm after Grimes’s death in 2012 and described his effort to give it new life. “The Holsteins are long gone, and the barn has been updated and reimagined as a wedding venue, and I have a local wedding planner beating the bushes for prospective clients. The farm seems to be a magnet for unexpected good fortune. A neighbor came recently and inquired if she could pasture her two magnificent Percheron draft horses on one of the fields. And she added that they were trained to pull wagons and could easily be outfitted to work for wedding parties. Needless to say, it didn’t take me long to agree.”

Wes added, “I’ll keep working as long as it’s fun, and when I stop, I’ll likely devote increasing effort to preserving a small slice of rural New Hampshire history.” (If you want the full story, go to jeffershillfarm.com to read the history and see photos.)

I heard from Don Watson who said, “I was very sad to hear about Kit. We shared, but sadly not together, a lifelong love of sailing. I am also sad to just find out he lived in Charleston. I married a Charleston native and have spent quite a bit of time there. Very sorry not to have connected.”

Don reports he will not get much time on the water this summer. “I am having hip replacement surgery at the end of June, which will dampen the summer sailing season.”

Nonetheless, he will be busy.

“I also am expecting a second grandson in August. He and his family live two miles away.

I drove across the country from Astoria, Oregon, with my daughter in May, a first-time trip for me. She and her husband are moving to Baltimore.

I head a nonprofit foundation that benefits the local sailing school. Ellen and I are feeling very lucky as we travel through our 70s—happily married and all healthy (except for my hip).”

Chip Harding sent an email from Columbia, Missouri, where he was visiting his oldest son, Mathieu, and his family. “I wanted to say I was really sad to see Kit has passed away. He was a friend during our time at Nobles, and I have fond memories of the times we shared in those years. I wish he had discovered his passion for music while we were still at Nobles and that we might have had a chance to play some tunes together.”

Chip added an update on his life, which is busy with his family and music. “Our middle son, Sam, got married in October, and he and his wife, Elizabeth,

are expecting a baby in August.

Our youngest, Joe, is a working musician and living right down the road in Eliot, Maine. I am teaching in my home studio now and really enjoying it.

Madeleine works in retail, and we still play shows together in the Seacoast.”

John Clarke, who seems to annually set goals for himself, says he is doing fine except for a slight bump in his plans.

“So, I started 2023 with regular hikes in Pawtuckaway State Park,” Clarkie wrote. “I had hiked more than 100 miles there, when on April 25 I slipped while descending a wet granite slab and landed hard on my left shoulder. Fortunately, my legs were fine, and I was able to hike out. I did not tear any muscles but have been in physical therapy since and just recently (with the help of a cortisone shot, which my doctor assured me was not ‘cheating’) I am finally able to put my left hand behind my head and have almost a full range of motion without pain. I am looking forward to resuming my hiking and biking in late June after six weeks of almost nothing. The shoulder issue also interrupted my platelet (and plasma) donations, but I expect to be back sharing my blood next week and reach my goal of 20-plus donations in 2023. In August I am very excited to be spending a week in Vermont with the family tree that grows from my daughter, which includes two grandchildren and their spouses and four great-grandchildren aged 3 to 10. On the other branch of my family tree, there is a new bud growing, Nobles Fall 2023 55

GRADUATE NEWS

BRADEN TIERNEY ’12

Survival Scientist Braden Tierney ’12 is a staff scientist at Weill Cornell Medical College and has an appointment at Harvard Medical School. Tierney is a self-proclaimed “scientist of survival.” “I’m really interested in finding the mechanisms by which life survives where you might not expect it to,” he says. “Then one can attempt to engineer these mechanisms to figure out all sorts of interesting societal issues.”

Tierney founded the nonprofit Two Frontiers Project to examine how life thrives in extreme environments. “To combat global warming, for example, we identify and visit high carbon dioxide areas on Earth and look for microbes that are really good at sequestering carbon, and use this knowledge on humanity’s two greatest frontiers, the oceans and space,” says Tierney. He has visited the volcanoes off the coast of Sicily and the Saudi Arabian desert seeking ways to clean carbon from the atmosphere.

Tierney admits that STEM courses have always been challenging for him. He credits two Nobles math teachers, Ross Henderson and the late Bill Kehlenbeck, for believing in him. “They made me realize that I had a different way of finding the answers that isn’t always the most efficient when taking a test but is helpful when trying to prove a hypothesis.” He earned a bachelor’s from Duke University and a Ph.D. in biological and biomedical sciences from Harvard.

Tierney aspires to run his own laboratory one day, connecting academia with industry.

56 Nobles Fall 2023

and I will be welcoming my fifth great-grandchild in late September. Life is good.”

Stew Young is relinquishing one duty but remains quite busy. “I am retiring this year after seven years as president of the board of trustees of the Rotch Jones Duff House and Garden Museum in New Bedford. Although I don’t think of myself as a masochist, I raised my hand to become treasurer.

“I continue to serve on the selectboard for the town of Gosnold and have two more years on my current term. We’ll see how it goes after that. I think succession is important for the health of these types of organizations, so I’ll probably step aside. I also continue to work at LandVest focusing on the western suburbs and Cape Cod.” I had a nice talk with Tom Taylor, who had just come in off his tractor up in Parish, New York. He had been putting down fertilizer on his 2,500-square-foot garden. Sweet corn takes up a lot of room, but he is also putting in tomatoes, squash, peas, beans and carrots.

That might seem like enough to keep him busy, but gardening is in addition to his hands-on project rehabilitating the main house on his property, a job he described as one-quarter done. His goal is to finish this summer. A feral cat showed up on his place a while ago. She is now known as Miss Kitty (after the bar owner in Gunsmoke) and sleeps on his bed. Life in upstate New York, Tom says, is good. “You rarely get many people at the market or hardware store,” he said. “No lines.”

Brad Wilkinson wrote, “I try to keep in touch with friends and family by organizing annual events. There’s a sailing weekend in September, a couple of days of skiing in the winter, and trout fishing in June.

I just returned from four days at Nahmakanta Lake Camps in Maine. It’s 30 miles down a logging road, remote, completely off the grid. We cast to native brook trout on beautiful small ponds. But the best part was the talking, laughing, teasing, relaxing and bonding of four guys and a 10-year-old grandson. Great for the soul…”

Wes Wellington writes about the “Yellow House” (on page 54), built in 1895 by his great-grandfather Ernest Jeffers: “The house was and is owned by my mother, Ruth Jeffers, and when this photo was taken (ca.

1968), I was a summer farmhand for Bill Grimes, who ran the dairy operation for what had once been the Jeffers farm, 100 yards down the road. I purchased the 400-plus-acre farm following Bill’s death in 2012, returning it to Jeffers family ownership. I’m driving a 1950 Farmall H tractor to rake freshly mowed hay into windrows suitable for baling. It had led a rather harsh life, and I suspect it had spent every night out in the rain or snow for 60 years. I had it refurbished and freshly painted by a local expert, and when I drove it into the dooryard of Bill’s widow to show it off, she had tears in her eyes.”

Here in Middle Haddam, the end of spring brought sad news, as my mother, Constance Barnard Pach, died at the age of 103. An accomILLUSTRATION BY grace helmer

plished sculptor, she led a long, interesting and full life.

I’m always happy to hear from classmates—phone or email work equally well. Some of you have changed email addresses, which makes my notes to you bounce. Send me a note on your new email.

1974 Class Correspondent

Kevin McCarthy

1975 Class Correspondents

Jed Dawson

1970 Class Correspondent

Levy Byrd

Doug Floyd

1971

1976

Class Correspondents

Class Correspondents

Harry Blackman

Tom Bartlett

John Dewey Rob Piana

and among other things, I’m involved in helping expand on the service experience for students (with hundreds participating over the past eight years!), into opportunities for parents and grads. Having formed deep bonds with this largely Haitian diaspora, this challenging period has become one of my more inspiring and meaningful. To learn more about IFSI and Nobles, keep an eye on Nobles media.”

1978 Class Correspondent

Christopher Reynolds

1979 Class Correspondent

Nick Mittell

Dan Rodgers

1977 Win Perkins

1972 Class Correspondent

Art Depoian

Art Depoian reports that he is finally 100 percent retired in 2023. Living near Saratoga Springs, New York, Art invites anyone with a Nobles affiliation to join him for a round of golf at McGregor Links this summer.

At least the first couple of rounds are on Art.

1973 Rich Rectanus writes: “Enjoying family and friends in Florida and beyond!”

Larry Childs shares, “After 30 years in Cambridge, where my wife, Alice, and I set roots and raised two boys, we moved mid-pandemic to Williamsburg, Massachusetts, a small hill town just west of Northampton. Despite the increased distance, my connections to Nobles only deepened, as I joined our class reunion committee and started consulting with Immigrant Family Services Institute (IFSI-USA), the Boston-based immigration services organization founded and led by Nobles parent Dr. Geralde Gabeau. We discovered our common bond when I spotted her wearing a Nobles Dance sweatshirt on Zoom!

IFSI is now one of Nobles’ leading ‘community partners,’

And so now it’s June 2023, and I sing the blues: The Bruins blew it, the Celts collapsed and the Sox . . . . But most of blue of all, I have heard nothing from any of you. So, in no particular order, I’m here to shout out some names in the hope that one or more of you will write to me and let me know how your lives are progressing: Fiona Roman, Mark Byers, Dwight Aspinwall, Scott Leland, Dirk Long, Holly Charlesworth Casner, Anne Abbott. And please forgive me for using maiden names for some of our classmates, as I just can’t remember your other surnames!

By the way, happy 40th college reunion, wherever it may be.

1980 Class Correspondent

Martha Kittredge Rowley

Last winter, Margaret Bowman, Elizabeth Soderstrom and Anne Fowler Wallace ’77 reconnected at a meeting on nature, climate and equity.

Amy Sargent Swank writes, “All is good in my world. My design business is going well, and I’m still painting and writing, and hoping to finish my second book soon. Our daughter Lucy got married this past April in Big Sur, California. It was absolutely beautiful, and we adore our new son-in-law. Our other daughter, Hannah, got married on the beach in Rye, New York, in October 2021. We also adore her husband! Our son, Charlie, works and lives in New York City, and we get to see him a lot. Life is good. It was fun seeing some of you on our Zoom reunion. Hope you all are well!”

Martha Kittredge Rowley writes, “One of the upsides to living in Dedham is the occasional encounter with Nobles folks. Periodically I see Chris Burr and Ned Bigelow ’64 while walking, and I had coffee with Tim Carey last spring.

Christine Cochrane McGrail ’82 and Trevor Keohane ’84 are neighbors. I’m always happy to get out of Dedham, however, and had a fantastic family trip to New Zealand late in 2022. Family weddings in 2023 took us to South Carolina and Montana, and we logged many miles watching our daughter play college lacrosse last spring.”

Nobles Fall 2023 57

GRADUATE NEWS

1981 Class Correspondent

John Fiske

Joan Alker writes, “To celebrate our daughter’s graduation from Bryn Mawr College this May, the Walsh-Alkers spent a week in Iceland, which was far too short. I continue in my role as executive director of a policy research center at Georgetown University that focuses on access to health coverage for low-income families—improving our health care system is a time-consuming endeavor :).

Hope to see folks if they are in the D.C. area.”

Rich Lincoln has come ashore. “After four years living and traveling aboard M/V Apricity, we returned to land on May 16 after purchasing a condominium (sight unseen due to the crazy real estate market) in Norton, Massachusetts. Surprisingly, the transition back to land has been more challenging than when we moved aboard Apricity.” He plans to return to the workforce, although he is not sure exactly what form that will take. Rich adds, “I also look forward to reconnecting with friends in the area!”

Ben Lloyd presented his creative work about people with disabilities at a global conference in Spain in 2022 and at a national conference in Boston in 2023. He continues to transform workplaces through the power of play and applied improvisation. His son Griffen is a senior at Temple, and his son Silas a rising junior at Bard.

Rich O’Keeffe reports that life in bucolic western Washing58 Nobles Fall 2023

ton continues to be a fantastic and enjoyable roller coaster ride through life. All three of his kids are out and off on their own.

His oldest has two children, and he is “absolutely loving the Grandfather/Papa lifestyle.” He currently works for the State of Washington—mostly arranging things at this point so that his eventual retirement is comfortable, all while having wonderful adventures along the way. Last year he caught up on the travel he didn’t get to take during Covid. This year, he’s going to Burning Man (again) as well as to Alaska to take the train ride from Anchorage to Fairbanks, which goes thru Denali National Park.

1982 Class Correspondent

Holly Malkasian Staudinger

1983 Class Correspondent

Nancy Sarkis Corcoran

I can hardly believe our 40th Reunion has come and gone!

I dare say it was our most fun and meaningful reunion to date. I wish everyone could have been here because it was a really special weekend.

After many months of rain, we got the most beautiful sunny weather of the entire spring for reunion weekend.

Steve and I kicked off the weekend with a cocktail party at our house in Walpole on Friday night. We had a fantastic turnout (50+ people!). First guests arrived at 6 p.m. (John Montgomery and newly mar-

ried couple Jeff Schwartz and Lindsey Plexico) and last ones left at 1 a.m. (Toby Gillis, Rob Finlay and Kimberly Huskins).

It was so much fun reminiscing and catching up, and we got a great class photo at sunset in front of our 1983 blue and white balloon wall.

On Saturday, we met at Sam Dawson’s memorial bench to honor Sam, Betsy Morris Rosen and Julie Zoppo. Lindsey Plexico shared her memories of Betsy. Mark Young shared his and Jim Cabot’s memories of Sam. I shared some thoughts about Julie from her old Canton carpool buddies who could not make it to the reunion, David Francis and Kristin Vinios Marken. Sam’s brother Ben Dawson ’76 ended the event with moving remarks about Sam and our class.

After the memorial, many of us attended the all-school assembly, where Nobles presented the Distinguished Graduate Award to Michael Beach ’82. Mike’s friend, Fred Clifford ’82, was in attendance to see his old classmate receive his award.

We then moved on to the Castle for cocktails and class parties. It was fun to see Steve’s golf buddy John Connolly ’78, who was celebrating his 45th Nobles reunion. Wendy Riseborough introduced me to her sister, Penelope Riseborough ’78, who was also celebrating her 45th. Our son, Holden Corcoran ’18, was also in attendance for his 5th reunion.

Thank you to everyone who attended, especially classmates who traveled from out of town: Greg Williams, Marianna McK-

im, Margaret King O’Day, Greg Pastore, Kieran Sheehan, Jacquie Lawhorne Holder (and her husband, Robert), Pamina Gorbach, Amor Towles, Frances Robbins Bauer, Todd Chisholm (and fiancée Karen), Sudie Naimi DiGiovanni (and husband Chris), Kwame Dixon (and his wife, Dawn), Jay Dunkle, Rob Finlay, Toby Gillis, Marc Gladstone (and his fiancée, Miriam) and Seth Goldman.

Other local classmates who attended included Allen Davidson, Peter Amory, Amy McCulloch Brown, Jim Cabot, Fred Ewald, Jane Fogg, John Glass, Peter Griglik (and husband Michael), Hilary Harrison, Chris McCusker (and wife Tina), Chris Lawson, Kristina Malek, Dan Tarlin, Mox Weber, John Stephenson ’84, Rob Rosen (Betsy Morris Rosen’s widower). And the best reunion committee: Haley Clifford Adams, Kristen Forsberg Diebus (we missed you!), Jane Fogg, MaryBeth Long, Margot Hartley MacArthur, Marty McDonough, John Montgomery, Greg Pastore, Lindsey Plexico, Wendy Riseborough, Debbie Paine Sabin and Mark Young.

Seth Goldman is back in the tea biz! He was kind enough to bring Steve and me a great sampling of his new tea products, Just Ice Tea. They are delicious!

My faves are the Half & Half (half lemonade/half tea) and the Peach Oolong Tea, but there are lots of other great flavors. You can find them at Whole Foods and other retailers. Here’s the press release from September 2022: “The co-founders of Honest Tea, Seth Goldman and

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1. From left: Anne Fowler Wallace ’77, Elizabeth Soderstrom ’80 and Margaret Bowman ’80 2. Dan Tarlin ’83 and family.

From left: Dan’s parents, Dan Tarlin, Lori Tarlin, Rebecca and Solomon, brothers Isaac and Max. 3. Nancy Sarkis Corcoran ’83, Holden Corcoran ’18 and Steve Corcoran ’83 at reunion. 4.

Mark Young, Amor Towles and Greg Williams (all ’83).

Barry Nalebuff, announced their return to the bottled tea business, alongside celebrity Chef Spike Mendelsohn, with the launch of Just Ice Tea, a ready-to-drink organic iced tea brand focused on sourcing simple ingredients and Fair Trade Certified teas and sweeteners.”

I heard from Kelly Keyes Carey, who was sorry to miss the fun, but her son graduat-

ed from Holy Cross the same weekend as our reunion.

John Kirk was not able to attend because he and Susan Carlson Kirk ’82 were visiting with their second grandchild in South Carolina. Congrats, John and Susan!

Months ago, Dan Tarlin sent me his family update and wedding photo. “My eldest son, Solomon, was married

(see photo) in October 2021.

They live in Philadelphia. Son #2, Isaac, lives in Boston and works for Liberty Mutual as a data analyst, and son #3, Max, is finishing his MBA at Endicott and hoping to end with a trip to the College World Series, which they almost made last year. (They did make it to the Division 3 College World Series in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, but did not win the series.

This was Endicott’s first time ever making it to that level, so the kids were thrilled.) Max is a pitcher, the closer on the team, and has an accounting job with KPMG lined up for when he finishes there. All my kids are in financial-related careers, while Lora and I are both in social services—not sure what to make of that! I am still singing a cappella for Shir Rhythm, ‘Sharon’s Premier Jewish A Cappella Group,’ and I had a bittersweet time singing a bit at Nobles in 2019 at the memorial service for Bill Kehlenbeck, who had a lot to do with forming who I am, and whom I miss greatly.”

Jeff Schwartz brought to our attention that each year when the Sam Dawson Award is given out at the end of the year lacrosse banquet, there is no description of Sam or what made him a special player. In past years, Jeff has taken the time to talk to the recipient of the award and let him know about Sam. But this year, Jeff asked classmates to chime in with words or thoughts about Sam to incorporate into a few lines to be read at the dinner each year. This is what was read at this year’s banquet and

will now be read as standard protocol when presenting the award moving forward.

Thanks, Jeff, for making this lasting memorial to Sam: “Sam Dawson was a member of the Noble and Greenough Class of 1983 and the captain of the boys lacrosse team until his tragic death in the fall of his senior year. Smart, athletic and humble, Sam was the epitome of the Nobles student-athlete.

He loved competing for his school, and he loved the game of lacrosse. But most of all, Sam loved his teammates. As a player, Sam had an engine that wouldn’t quit, was a ground ball machine, and excelled in the transition game. He always had his head up where you would most often see him smiling ear to ear. Sam played the game the way it should be played and made all around him want to be better.”

Well, that’s it for reunion recap and class news. Please keep in touch. As I’ve said before, the Class of ’83 is the best, and it has been a privilege to be your class correspondent for 40 years! I’m so grateful to be part of this class of such lovely, successful, diverse and kind people. Here’s to the next 40 years! Peace and love to all.

Now, the countdown begins for our 45th. Cheers! xo. N.

1984 Class Correspondent

Christine Todd

1985 Class Correspondent

Neil Bleicken

Nobles Fall 2023 59

GRADUATE NEWS

1986 Class Correspondents

Heather Markey

Jessica Tyler

Eliza Kelly Beaulac

1987 Class Correspondents

Emily Gallagher Byrne

Elise Gustafson

Dana Gershengorn writes, “We celebrated two graduations this spring: My daughter graduated U. Michigan and is off to Washington, D.C., to work at the National Institutes of Health. My son, who came in eighth in the state for his wrestling weight class, is off to Penn State. We’re celebrating both by spending time this summer in Italy and Scotland, where my son is participating in the Highland Games. Not going to lie, I’m dreading the empty nest.”

Chrissy Ducharme writes, “Our oldest daughter, Ashley Ducharme ’18, graduated from Brown and is living/working in Manhattan. Our next daughter, Caroline Ducharme ’21, is entering her junior year at UConn. Our son, Reid, is entering his freshman year at Xavier University. All three kids went to Nobles! All three played/are 60 Nobles Fall 2023

currently playing basketball at their colleges. Hard to believe we’re empty nesters. But we have so much fun going to the kids’ games!”

Natascha Armleder writes, “My son, Tassilo, will be starting Tufts in the fall, so after 31 years abroad, I am getting ready to spend more time in Boston (at least in my imagination, as I am not sure he will really want mum visiting him that much!). His sister will be joining us at drop-off and visiting Boston University as a possibility for next fall, so I may have most of the family ‘back home’ very soon!”

Rashid Ashraf shares, “The kids are real people now. At least older than I was when we all graduated from Nobles in ’87. Lexi is going to be a senior at Bowdoin this fall, and Nick just finished his freshman year at NYU and is excited to be a sophomore this fall. Not going to lie, I’m feeling like ‘an Old’ (that’s what Nick calls me…).”

Nicole Stata shares, “Our twins, Mai and Kai, are stepping up to ninth grade at Nobles, and our son Kai played MS basketball as number 13 this year (my number).”

1988

1990 Class Correspondent

Lisa Donahue Rose

1991 Class Correspondent

1992 Class Correspondent

Lynne Dumas Davis 703-623-4211

1993 Class Correspondent

Sam Jackson

Liz Travers Bronson writes, “All is well in Austin. Loving my role as VP of People at a tech startup and keeping up with kids who are 16 and 14.”

1994 Class Correspondent

Marni Fox Payne

1995 1996 Class Correspondents

Matt Kane

Sasha Leland

Class Correspondent

Rachel Spencer

1998 Class Correspondent

Nina Freeman Hanlon

Amy Russell Farber

Class Correspondent

1989

Jessie Sandell Achterhof

Sean Greenhalgh

1997 Class Correspondents

Bobbi Oldfield Wegner

Dave Klivans writes, “I am an investor and artist in Austin, Texas, along with my wonderful wife, Crystal, of 14 years. We have three kids, ages 8, 8 and 11, all with demonstrably curly hair (I have virtually none left). We helped co-found Bella Groves (www.bellagroves.com), an education and older adult living firm near San Antonio, now in its second year of operations, aiming to spread unconditional joy to families affected by dementia. I create haikus with the goal of disseminating kindness throughout the universe. We have two dogs, a gecko and a ball python that are all trained to behave nicely and don’t take much time to care for. Don’t forget to watch out for the imminent advent of klivabs. com (although now it probably should be klive-pot-belly.com).”

Justin Cambria lives in Milton with his wife, Heydi, and daughter, CeCe. He has been working in the field of substance use and mental health treatment for 10 years.

Justin completed a dual MSW/ MBA from Boston College in 2017, and in 2023, he is opening an adolescent substance use and mental health outpatient treatment program right in Dedham. It’s called New Harbor Behavioral Healthcare. Justin welcomes contact from the Nobles community about anyone

struggling with a substance use or mental health issue.

Amy Lodge Wall writes, “Sorry to miss everyone at the 25th reunion. I have recently relocated from Vermont to the Vail, Colorado, area with my husband, Brad, and our three kids—Owen (9), Sidney (7) and Cameron (2). We are enjoying the sun and snow out West! I have been working remotely for Bain and Company since we moved back to the U.S. about five years ago (we were in Australia for the 10 years prior to that). Hope everyone is well.”

Hillary Weinblatt Chapman writes, “I was able to see Lisa Cardito Oliver and her family during a recent trip to Florida with my two girls. It was, remarkably, almost three years to the month after our previous get-together at Lisa’s previous home on Maui, Hawaii. Time flies thanks to the pandemic! I’m in Brooklyn, New York, where I work for the New York State Office of the Attorney General prosecuting health-care fraud.

It’s been a lot of fun to be in the city these past (almost) six years. I’ve had run-ins with Jason Burns at the playground, playdates with Sara Kaufman and Jenn Falchuk Kollenscher, and drinks/dinner with Mike Holick and Sara Wood. Would love to see other Class of 1998 bulldogs if they are also in the NYC area!”

1999 Class Correspondent

Gabriela Herman

too modest to tell you, but he’s the showrunner (creator, lead writer and director) for a show on NBC called La Brea. They’re filming their third season now in Australia, I believe!”

Congratulations to Bianca Mauro, who recently received the 2023 Women in Construction Award from the City of Boston. This award is presented annually by the Inspectional Services Division to worthy recipients in recognition of their outstanding achievements in the construction industry. Bianca shares, “As a Massachusetts licensed general contractor, my company, BRM Production Management, works in the construction of public art and placemaking venues, and is a full-service public art project management firm in operation since 2015. Our recent work in large-scale public art can be seen at brmpm.com/public-art.”

Super impressive!

Lastly, Eric Hanson and his girlfriend are back in New York City for the summer after nearly 10 months in Latin America.

“To say that our time away was life-changing would be to understate things by a significant magnitude, and needless to say, while we’re back in the U.S. now to figure out our next steps, we’re already dreaming of our next adventure. If anyone is headed to Mexico or South America and needs travel advice, please hit me up at eric.b.hanson@gmail. com; I’d be happy to share what I’ve learned!”

2000 Nick Gorman met up with Dave Appelbaum in Los Angeles in May 2023. Nick shares, “He’s

Class Correspondent

Lisa Marx Corn

Meredith Anas Richardson offers an update after all these years: “After 13 years of following the straight and narrow path of working as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, the death of my mother, and turning 40, I’m right on schedule for a midlife crisis. We can say I’ve avoided a full-blown crisis by not only working in mental health but by living in mental health, so perhaps it’s more appropriate to call it a midlife transition. This past winter, I was trained in Peruvian shamanism and turned my basement into an art studio. If anyone wants to see my work or chat about the metaphysical, I hope they visit me!”

Alex Temple shared a song cycle written for Julia Holter and Spektral Quartet that was recently released as a studio album. Check it out at spektralquartet.com. It’s gotten some great online reviews in Spin, Chicago Reader and The Quietus.

2001 Class Correspondent

Lauren Kenney Murphy

Liz Libert Sterner published a photography book called Boy Crazy, which was shortlisted for the Arles Book Awards 2023! Created to support the extraordinary development of photographic publishing and to contribute to its wider dissemination, the Book Awards of Les Rencontres d’Arles reward three categories of works: the Author’s Book Award, the Historical Book Award and the Photo-Text Book Award, supported and encouraged by

the Fondation Jan Michalski pour L’Écriture et La Littérature, which celebrates the relationship between texts and images.

2002 Class Correspondent

William N. Duffey III

2003 Class Correspondent

Laura Marholin Garcia

2004 Class Correspondent

Carolyn Sheehan Wintner

2005 Class Correspondent

Saul Gorman

Nathan Tower writes: “Hey, everybody, it’s been a while!

Making my first Nobles graduate update to share that my wife and I welcomed our son, Cole, into the world on May 31. We are living in Natick now, so if any of y’all are in the area and want to catch up, please reach out. Would love to see everybody!”

On June 17, 2023, Will Maich married Annie Kenney of Weston, Massachusetts, at Borgo Egnazia, in Puglia, Italy. Nobles was well represented with graduates from four different classes.

2006 Class Correspondent

E.B. Bartels

Nobles Fall 2023 61

GRADUATE NEWS

1

2

3

4 1. From left: Abby Mayer Flajoliet ’06, Anabel Lippincott Paksoy ’06 and Molly Dwyer Martel ’06 all had babies this spring! They swear they did not have a pregnancy pact. (Photo by ’06 classmate Lucy Minott McCall) 2. Bernard Hilton ’06 graduated from Curry College’s accelerated nursing bachelor’s degree program on May 21, 2023. 3. 2018 classmates Holden Corcoran, Camden Filoon, Liam Dorsey, Dani Abouhamad, David Yeh, Mark Xiao and Oliver Constable at Seljalandsfoss Falls in Iceland. 4. Janna Herman ’06 has adopted an objectively handsome dog named Lefty.

Happy summer, 2006! You all have been busy since I last collected notes. Here are some of the thrilling updates that people shared with me, that I am now sharing with all of you: Major congratulations are in order to Bernard Hilton and Betsaida Jarvis, who had a baby boy, Benjamin Charles Hilton, on March 24, 2023. Turn to page 67 for a cute photo! Bernard also shared that he graduated from Curry College’s accelerated nursing bachelor’s degree program 62 Nobles Fall 2023

on May 21, 2023. Amazing! Big spring for Bernard!

Molly Dwyer Martell and Nick Martell had a baby boy named Max on June 22, and, not only that, Anabel Lippincott Paksoy and Mustafa Paksoy had a baby boy in April named Aydin, and Abby Mayer Flajoliet and Corentin Flajoliet had a baby boy in April named Basile.

Molly, Anabel and Abby are all in San Francisco together, too!

Check out the above photo

to see all three of their baby bumps, in a photo taken by the one and only Lucy Minott McCall! Molly adds, “For the record, these babies did not coordinate their timing!”

I also heard from Janna Herman (who wrote in with an update all on her own! I did not pressure her this time!): “I got a dog! His name is Lefty, and he was once a stray in Oklahoma.

Within six months, he has both made and ruined my life many times. He also was featured on National Geographic’s Instagram account because he’s objectively handsome.” I can 100 percent endorse this. Lefty is a handsome son of a gun. Don’t believe me and Janna? Look at that face to the left! Plus, Janna had two other important updates: “I have also achieved two other life goals: reclaiming Austrian citizenship and attending Antiques Roadshow in person.” Mazel tov, Janna! You’re crushing it!

Get this: Griffin Keady is officially a father of two! What?!?!

Griffin shared that baby boy Augustus (“Auggie”) Keady was born on May 23, 2023, and 3-year-old big sister Lennox (“Lennie”) Keady is being “very kind and helpful so far, helping with diapers and outfits (but has kindly asked for him to not play with any of her toys, as they are all ‘special to her’… even some toys that she hasn’t touched in over a year). My wife, Portia, is doing great and was born to be a mom. My only complaint is that she doesn’t play Wordle.” What a great update, Griff! Thanks for sharing. And if you ever need a Wordle buddy, just hit up me and the Erins (Erin Greene and Erin Bruynell Gallagher). We

still text our scores to each other every morning.

Congratulations to Arthur Levy, who got engaged to Ashley Volpert this spring!

Look at that sweet proposal setup in the photo on page 66.

Arthur adds that he is still living in Los Angeles and still working at the technology company Brex. So happy for you, Arthur!

Glad things are going well.

And finally, Harry Aspinwall is “living in Federal Hill in Providence, bouldering a lot, lots of houseplants, grew some arugula in the backyard, saw my dad in Mexico, played a charming British children’s book illustrator in a Hallmark Christmas movie, going to France for a month, then directing a spooky film in Scotland in September.” Harry, busy as always! Love it.

2007 Class Correspondent

Kat Sargent

2008 Class Correspondent

Michael Polebaum

2009 Class Correspondent

Maria Montes

2010 Class Correspondent

Tori Goyette

2011 Class Correspondent

Katie Puccio-Williams

2012

2018

Class Correspondent

Class Correspondent

Coco Woeltz

Jill Radley

Coco Woeltz shares that she moved to Nashville and got engaged.

Lizzie Ayoub got engaged to Alex Baker.

Right after the 5th Reunion, Holden Corcoran, Camden Filoon, Liam Dorsey, Dani Abouhamad, David Yeh, Mark Xiao and Oliver Constable went on a trip to Iceland for 10 days!

See photo of the group in front of Seljalandsfoss Falls on page 62.

2013 Class Correspondent

Caroline Thayer

2014

2019 Class Correspondents

Cyan Jean

Class Correspondent

Alexandra Charron Ally Guerrero Sarah Harthun got engaged to Nicholas Yoo in June 2023.

The couple met at University of Michigan in 2017.

Max Montgomery and Abbey Cahill welcomed baby Murphy Cahill Montgomery in May 2023.

2020 Class Correspondents

Drew Barry

Hailey Brown

2015

2021

Class Correspondent

Class Correspondent

Natalie Hession

Hadley Winslow

2016

2022

Class Correspondents

Class Correspondent

Sabrina Rabins

Alex Janower

Mariana Vega

2023 Class Correspondent

2017

Madi Shaer

Class Correspondent

Harry Sherman

ILLUSTRATION BY grace helmer

Excited to welcome our newest Class Correspondent: Madi Shaer! Any 2023 grads, send Madi your notes to include in the next magazine issue.

ARIELLE D’ANGELO ’13

LGBTQ+ Advocacy Arielle D’Angelo ’13 is the founder of We The Rainbow, an LGBTQ+ personal development organization, and an empowerment coach, content creator, speaker and advocate. Her life’s mission is to help LGBTQ+ humans live empowered and liberated lives that are connected to their truth.

This mission is deeply rooted in her journey as a gay woman. At Nobles and Tulane University, D’Angelo struggled with her identity and sexuality.

“Amidst the silent suffering, I remember thinking that if I got to the other side of this obstacle, I would make it my mission to help others do the same...but with more ease, more self-compassion and more support.”

She uses neuro-linguistic programming, meditation, hypnotherapy and emotional freedom techniques (EFT) in her practice with individuals and groups. EFT involves physically tapping on certain acupressure points to reduce anxiety and pain. These methods lay a foundation for self-compassion.

As her business grows, D’Angelo is making her services more accessible by creating free resources and experiences, especially for those in countries where being LGBTQ+ is criminalized. “I work with people virtually in parts of the Middle East and Africa, where it is completely illegal to be queer,” says D’Angelo. “If their families ever find out about their identities, they will be jailed or even killed.” These sessions help individuals feel more seen and empowered.

Nobles Fall 2023 63

GRADUATE NEWS

In Memoriam JACOB DUNNELL ’52

Jacob Dunnell ’52 passed away June 19, 2023, at the age of 89. At Nobles, “Jake” played football, basketball and baseball. He was also a member and co-president of the Dramatic Club. His Classbook entry stated, “He packs a remarkable punch for his size, as he so often proved by plunging headfirst with a football into a seemingly immovable wall of linemen without so much as a flinch.

This courage and many other reasons have won him the whole-hearted friendship of the entire class.”

Dunnell was born in Boston and grew up in Wayland, Massachusetts. After Nobles, he went on to attend Harvard College. He enlisted in the United States Navy after his sophomore year and served aboard the U.S.S. Yellowstone and U.S.S. Rooks. He then returned to Harvard and earned an A.B. in English in 1959. Later, he earned a Master of Arts degree from the Middlebury Bread Loaf School of English.

Dunnell was a career educator. Upon graduating from college, he taught English at the Rectory School in Pomfret, Connecticut, and subsequently at Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts. He then moved to Boca Raton, Florida, where he taught English at the Saint Andrew’s School until 1968. He then moved back to the Northeast and joined his brother, the late William “Bill” Dunnell ’51, in the English department at the Brooks School in North Andover, Massachusetts. He remained teaching at Brooks until his retirement in 1994.

At Brooks, in addition to teaching, Dunnell was a longtime advisor and dormitory master, and he coached basketball and baseball. At his 1994 retirement with his brother, Bill, the Brooks faculty created the “Dunnell Prize” in honor of their combined 57 years of service to the school.

The prize is awarded annually to the Sixth Former who best exemplifies the spirit of selfless service to the school community.

He was always held in the highest regard 64 Nobles Fall 2023

by colleagues, friends and students for his wit and easygoing personality. He was a reliable presence at athletic events, often sitting with his brother on the sidelines.

He is survived by numerous nephews, nieces, great-nephews and great-nieces.

JOHN HARTWELL HARRISON JR. ’55 John Hartwell Harrison Jr. ’55 passed away peacefully at home on April 2, 2023, at the age of 86. At Nobles, he played football, hockey and baseball and was a leader on all his teams. Harrison was also a member of the choir, Quartets, Nobleonians, Glee Club and the Dramatic Club.

Harrison was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, and attended Dexter School, St. Paul’s School and Nobles. After spending two years at the University of Virginia, he graduated from Boston University in 1961.

After college, he began a rewarding career in the insurance industry working for Minnesota Life Insurance.

A talented athlete, Harrison was an avid golfer and tennis player. He was a longtime member of the Country Club in Brookline, where he greatly valued the connections he formed with fellow members and staff. Harrison had a unique ability to strike up conversations with everyone, always finding common ground with others and valuing their thoughts and ideas.

Above all, he cherished his family, especially his beloved wife of 60 years, Sally.

He treasured the time he spent with them on Cape Cod and Bermuda, where they often vacationed together.

Harrison was a frequent visitor to the Nobles campus in his later years. He proudly served as a Nobles class agent and reached out personally to each and every member of his class to garner support for the school and keep them updated on the latest news in each other’s lives. He regularly attended Nobles ice hockey games and relished the chance to discuss his Nobles years with students, faculty and staff.

His warmth and easygoing personality will be greatly missed by all.

Harrison was predeceased by his brother Jeff Harrison ’65. He is survived by his wife, Sarah “Sally” Harrison; his sister, Cornelia “Nina” Scribner; his brother Robert “Bob” Harrison; his daughters, Sarah “Scottie” Cochran and Hilary Harrison ’83; four grandchildren; his nephews Eric Harrison ’05 and Tucker Harrison ’02; his niece Kristin Harrison ’09; and other nieces and nephews.

MARSHALL GRANT BOLSTER JR. ’64 Marshall Grant Bolster Jr. ’64 passed away peacefully April 2, 2023, at the age of 77. At Nobles, “Sandy” made the Honor Roll four of his six years, played football, rowed, and was in the Rifle Club. Bolster was on the Nobleman and served as Classbook editor. He was also a member of the Outing and Dramatic Clubs, and Cercle Français and Societas Latina.

Bolster was born in Boston and raised in Wellesley, Massachusetts. After graduating from Nobles, he attended Harvard University. While at Harvard, Bolster rowed with the men’s crew team and had the honor of winning the Henley Royal Regatta, Thames Challenge Cup with his team in 1966. After graduating from Harvard in 1968, he joined the Navy and served as an officer.

Bolster will be remembered by his family and friends for his keen intellect and, above all else, his love of sailing. His deep connection to the ocean began at a young age during the summers he spent in East Boothbay, Maine. He spent his adolescent and teenage years exploring the waters around Boothbay by skiff and sailboat in all kinds of weather, likely causing his mother a great deal of worry, but having a great deal of fun.

Bolster took his passion and made it his livelihood. He made boats his life, working at boatyards from Maine to Florida as a fine woodworker, diver, rigger and everything in between. He chartered

his sailboat for tourists in the summer out of Camden and Surry, and even owned a boat-building shop at one point where he built wooden dories. Bolster owned too many sailboats over the years to count and spent countless hours and often months at a time cruising Penobscot Bay and the Caribbean.

Bolster sailed to Cuba for extended stays on two occasions. He was always a seeker of knowledge and a greater understanding of all people, and the time he spent living aboard a boat in Cuba was particularly meaningful to him. He found the Cuban people to be exceptionally kind, open and welcoming.

In addition to sailing, some of his other passions included reading, playing hockey and rooting for the New England Patriots. He could talk for hours and hours and loved spending time with friends discussing politics or playing poker. He will be remembered by those who knew and loved him as a devoted friend, wonderful conversationalist and, as his grandson says, “a mighty sailor.”

Bolster is survived by his wife, Thia Belajonas; his sister, Alice Hatch; his daughters, Heddy Snyder and Catherine Bolster; and five grandchildren.

CHRISTOPHER NORTON ’69 Christopher “Kit” Norton ’69 passed away April 17, 2023, in Charleston, South Carolina. At Nobles, he was on the soccer and ski teams. He was also a member of Cercle Français, Deutsche Verein and the Dramatic Club, as well as Portcullis and the Car-of-the-Month Club.

Norton attended Colby College after graduating from Nobles in 1969. After Colby, he began a life journey that would eventually take him to Nantucket, where he started playing bluegrass music and learned carpentry and custom homebuilding.

An avid sailor since he was a child, Norton discovered the town of Charleston by sea and immediately fell in love with the

Lowcountry. He moved there with some tools, a guitar and boundless energy. He made a long career as a general contractor, leaving his mark with historic renovations in downtown Charleston and custom homes around the Lowcountry.

He married and raised his sons on the Isle of Palms, South Carolina, and instilled in them his love of soccer, skiing, sailing, snorkeling and, of course, the Celtics, Bruins, Red Sox and Patriots.

Norton is survived by his sons, Kyle and Sam Norton; his sister, Candy Hitchcock; his brother, Chip Norton ’73; and his granddaughter, Violet.

JOHN C. CROSS ’73 John C. Cross ’73 passed away at his home in Dover, Massachusetts, on May 11, 2023.

At Nobles, he was a contributing editor to the Nobleman.

Cross grew up in Weston, Massachusetts, and attended Amherst College, where he graduated cum laude in 1977.

He went on to receive his JD from Suffolk University Law School in 1983.

With a successful lifelong career in publishing, Cross started as an editor at Warren, Gorham & Lamont, first in New York City and then in Boston. After law school, he founded Federal Research Press, which he later renamed the Standard Publishing Corporation after acquiring The Standard, an insurance news magazine founded in 1865. He held the position of publisher and president ever since, running nearly a dozen different business journals in New England and Texas.

Cross will be remembered for his intellectual curiosity and love of reading, keeping at least six books in rotation at any given time. He enjoyed giving tours of his extensive home library to family and friends, many of whom were sent home with a stock of tomes chosen specifically to spark future debate.

He was also a passionate bird hunter and talented clay-target shooter. He served on

the board of the Fin, Fur, and Feather, and also chaired the trap-shooting committee at the Dedham Country and Polo Club.

Cross adored his wife of 45 years, Margaret “Peggy,” whom he met at a social mixer at Smith College their freshman year. Together, they enjoyed spending time in Maine and, later, traveling abroad.

Cross was predeceased by his father, Gorham Cross Jr. ’48. He is survived by his wife, Peggy; his sisters, Jennifer Cross Peterson and Heather Cross Woodworth; his sons, Theodore and Charles; his two grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews, including Nobles graduates Heather Peterson ’03 and Erik Peterson ’06.

COLIN WILLIAM GILLIS ’86 Colin William Gillis ’86 passed away April 17, 2023. At Nobles, he ran cross country, rowed and was the captain of the cross-country ski team. He was a member of the French Club and Lacuna Squad.

Gillis was born in Norwood, Massachusetts, and was raised in Dover, Massachusetts. After Nobles, he attended Brown University, where he obtained an engineering degree. He received his MBA from New York University.

Gillis worked in finance in New York City for most of his professional life before moving to Chatham, Massachusetts, in 2018.

He is survived by his wife of 22 years, Louise; his son, Chatham Rhodes Gillis; his father, Thomas Gillis; his three sisters, Betsey Warden, Kate Kjeell and Christina Stevens; his brother, Tom Gillis ’83; and many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Nobles Fall 2023 65

GRADUATE NEWS

Announcements

1

2

Engagements

Arthur Levy ’06 got engaged to Ashley Volpert in the spring of 2023.

Lizzie Ayoub ’12 got engaged to Alex Baker in May 2023.

Coco Woeltz ’12 is engaged to Willem Maritz.

Sarah Harthun ’14 got engaged to Nicolas Yoo in June 2023.

3

4

Marriages

Christina Matulis ’08 and Gus Gleason got married at Mount Hope Farm in Bristol, Rhode Island, on July 1, 2023.

Will Maich ’05 married Annie Kenney at Borgo Egnazia, in Puglia, Italy, in June 2023.

Kenisha McFadden Mendez ’12 married Stephen Mendez on July 15, 2023, at Lord Thompson Manor in Thompson, Connecticut.

5

7

66 Nobles Fall 2023

6

1. Lizzie Ayoub ’12 got engaged to Alex Baker in May 2023.

2. Will Maich ’05 and Annie Kenney were married at Borgo Egnazia, in Puglia, Italy. 3. Arthur Levy ’06 got engaged to Ashley Volpert on the beach in California in spring 2023.

4. Sarah Harthun ’14 and Nicholas Yoo. 5. Christina Matulis ’08 and Gus Gleason. 6. Left to right in the back: Chandler Devlin ’13, Ann Marie Ott ’12, Emily Ott ’14, Kenisha McFadden Mendez ’12, Mary Parker ’12, Denna Laing ’10.

Bottom: Lexie Laing ’14 and Marissa Gedman ’10 joined by faculty members Tara McDonald, Karen Gallagher and Kate Boyle Ramsdell. 6-7. Kenisha McFadden Mendez married Stephen Mendez on July 15, 2023, at Lord Thompson Manor in Thompson, Connecticut.

New Arrivals

8

10

9

11

12

Justin Dziama ’99 and his wife, Laura, welcomed their third child, Aurelia Jaide Dziama, on May 20, 2023.

Nathan Tower ’05 and Alisa Prager welcomed their son, Cole, in May 2023.

Benjamin Charles Hilton, son of Bernard Hilton ’06 and Betsaida Jarvis, was born on March 24, 2023.

Anabel Lippincott Paksoy ’06 and Mustafa Paksoy had a baby boy in April named Aydin.

Abby Mayer Flajoliet ’06 and Corentin Flajoliet had a baby boy in April named Basile.

Griffin Keady ’06 and wife Portia welcomed baby boy Augustus (“Auggie”) Keady on May 23, 2023.

Molly Dwyer Martell ’06 and Nick Martell welcomed baby boy Max on June 22.

Nike John Maguire ’10 and Michael Maguire welcomed Josephine (Jojo) L. Maguire on May 21, 2023.

Max Montgomery ’14 and Abbey Cahill welcomed their daughter, Murphy Cahill Montgomery, in May 2023.

Sophie Atwood Marsden ’12 and Trevor Marsden welcomed Finley Marsden in July 2023.

8. Bernard Hilton ’06 with his son, Benjamin Charles Hilton, born March 24, 2023. 9. Nathan Tower ’05 and Alisa Prager, with their son Cole.

10. Max Montgomery ’14 with baby Murphy.

11. Baby Jojo with Nike John Maguire ’10 and Michael Maguire. 12. Finley Marsden, daughter of Sophie Atwood Marsden ’12 and Trevor Marsden.

Nobles Fall 2023 67

looking back

UNRAVELING THE MYSTERY The Illegible Signature As Nobles’ archivist, I relish my role as a detective solving mysteries in the Noble and Greenough School Archives.

Recently, I was stumped by an illegible signature on a World War I honorable discharge certificate acquired on eBay. Whose was it? And why did it not match what I knew to be true?

The certificate released Charles L. Norton, Class of 1921, from the Noble and Greenough Battalion, formed in 1918 under the direction of the board of trustees. Led by Nobles graduates, it provided practical instruction throughout the school year, including assault formations, bayonet and grenade practice, military courtesy and physical exercise.

The first three signatures checked out: George A. Fiske, the school’s principal 68 Nobles Fall 2023

from 1918–1932; Francis P. Williams, Class of 1918, battalion captain; and Charles J. Innes, Class of 1918, battalion commandant. The last signature should have read “Richard M. Saltonstall,” Nobles’ first president of the board of trustees (1913–1921)—but it bore little resemblance to “Saltonstall” in cursive. Seeking a comparison, I delved into archival trustee records but was frustrated by carbon copies of Saltonstall’s correspondence without his signature.

Finally, I discovered one Saltonstall signature with no resemblance to the one on the honorable discharge certificate. I wondered who signed the certificate if it wasn’t Saltonstall? Was it an oversight or an intentional act? Still searching, I struck gold when I found not one, but three,

R. M. Saltonstall signatures on other documents, each closely resembling the one on the honorable discharge certificate. My doubts finally dispelled, it was undeniable that the signature on the certificate was, in fact, that of Richard M. Saltonstall.

This case is a perfect example of the meticulous work I do in the archives. Like a detective, my work involves extensive research, investigation, analytical thinking, problem solving and creative methodology. Each document, photograph or artifact that comes into the Nobles Archives holds a piece of history waiting to be uncovered. I’m honored to be the one who is able to unravel these mysteries and to help Nobles better understand its past.

—Heidi Charles Archivist/Librarian

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To make your gift to the ANF, visit nobles.edu/giveonline.

Nobles Fall 2023 3

NONPROFIT U.S. POSTAGE PAID N READING MA PERMIT NO. 121

Noble and Greenough School 10 Campus Drive Dedham, MA 02026-4099

Geometric electrics and voluminous luminance PG 34

MIXED FEELINGS Exploring and embracing identity through theatre PG 40 ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

Make Believe PG 18 Why We Should All Be Teachers PG 26 Reunion PG 44