aerie-winter-2011

PARENTS, ALUMNI AND FRIENDS of PALMER TRINITY SCHOOL

Photo by: Suzanne Gottlieb Calleja

EDITOR

Suzanne Gottlieb Calleja

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Jennifer Agress

EDITORIAL ADVISORS

Ben Hoke

Katrina Murphy

Bruce Musgrave

Monica Sanchez

DESIGN

R+M Collaborative

EXECUTIVE STAFF (alphabetical)

Suzanne Gottlieb Calleja, Director of Communications and Community Relations

Vivian Cerione, Registrar

Laurette Cestare, Head of Middle School

Jose Chao, Director of Finance and Operations

Ashley Chapman, Head of Upper School

Rita Feild, Counselor

Ben Hoke, Director of Development

Julian Lentz, Chaplain

Susie Loiacono, Executive Assistant to the Head of School

Sean Murphy, Head of School

Bruce Musgrave, Assistant Head of School for Academics

Danny Reynolds, Director of Admission, College Counseling, and Financial Aid

Jake von Scherrer, Director of Athletics

DEVELOPMENT OFFICE

Susanna Cetta , Director of Annual Fund

Lauren Dowlen, Development Officer

Peg Musgrave, Assistant to Development

Monica Sanchez, Director of Alumni Relations and Events

COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE

Mike Pena, Web and Content Manager

ABOUT AERIE

The Aerie is published twice a year by Palmer Trinity School for alumni, parents, grandparents, students and friends.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

2011 – 2012

Joseph J. Kalbac, Jr., Chairman

Susan Ludovici, Vice-Chair

Michael Baiamonte, Secretary

Charles Klenk, Treasurer

Ricardo Albarran

Susan Benenati

Paula Brockway

Teresa Carreno

Rev. Frank J. Corbishley (Bishop’s Designate)

Jim Davidson

Rt. Rev. Leo Frade

Anne Jackaway

Mitchell Kaplan

William Morrison

Vicki O’Meara

Tina Portuondo

Rev. Jennie Lou Reid

Isabel Rodriguez

Magdalena Rothfeldt

Bronwen Rutter

Bishop Calvin Schofield

Gary Tarbe

Jo-Ann Titley

Michelle Torbert

The E-newsletter informs the community of campus events and student and faculty accomplishments. Send story ideas or comments to scalleja@ palmertrinity.org or Webmaster Mike Pena at mpena@palmertrinity.org.

Palmer Trinity School offers a full-service website – www.palmertrinity.org – where you can look up friends in a searchable directory, find out about the latest news and events, and connect with our Alumni office. We also post back issues of our PTS e-newsletter and Aerie magazines online.

For details on alumni benefits and services, please contact Monica Sanchez at msanchez@palmertrinity.org or (305) 969-4210.

ADMISSION ADVISORY BOARD 2011-2012 (alphabetical)

Heather Almaguer

Jorge Arce ‘97

Charles Baumberger ‘94

David Carache-Guzman

Katrina Campins ‘97

Monica Cevera-Sijan ‘96

Lynley (Walker) Ciorobea ‘96

Evans (Dunwody) Crews ‘91

Joanna de Velasco ‘98

Daniel Diaz-Leyva ‘98

Preston Dickerson ‘98

Hadley (Nichols) Foreman ‘93

Dr. Efrain Garcia

Nichole Gaytan

Amber Goethel ‘96

Carlos Gonzalez ‘97

Corey (Krissel) Gonzalez ‘95

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda ‘98

Costa Grillas ‘97

Mason Harris ‘89

Susan Klock ‘00

Sarah (Fernandez) Mendoza ‘95

Laurence Moser ‘80

Patrick Murphy ‘01

Anne Beaumont (Nichols)

Neithhardt ‘95

Leanne Romanchuk

Margaret Rosas-Guyon ‘93

Beth (Brockway) Serrate ‘85

Sabrina (Gray) Siso ‘98

Lee Sterling ‘81

Zachary Sulkes

Amanda (Chrycy) Thompson ‘96

Elkie (Smoleny) Wienczkowski ‘88

Holly (Lee) Zawyer ‘97

Nathan Zeder ‘98

The Aerie welcomes submissions and suggestions for magazine departments. If you have an idea for a feature story, please email Aerie editor at scalleja@palmertrinity.org.

Special thank you to RMC (www.rmcollaborative.com), a strategic design and brand innovation company, who continues to take the image of Palmer Trinity School to the next level.

Finally, thank you to Original Impressions, especially our Account Representative Lori Casner, for their continued dedication to Palmer Trinity School.

Breaking through.

Sometimes a breakthrough cannot be understood in the present; it requires hindsight to fully grasp its significance. What we do know is why Palmer Trinity School is considered a South Florida leader for independent schools: inspiring students and teachers, a beautiful campus, a curriculum that embraces spiritual life and our celebrated commonality and difference. Schools and individuals alike have a nature-andnurture dichotomy, and it is difficult to assess what causes the distinction. Is Palmer Trinity more willing to create initiatives and break-through expectations because of its strong foundation? Or is this foundation strong because of the initiatives explored and implemented over the years?

The theme of this issue of Aerie is “breaking through.” Over the school’s almost four-decade history, one thing has remained constant: a mandate not to remain constant. This is different than simply maintaining the on-campus traditions that we hold dear. Beyond academics, our unique dedication to service, our convocations, our clubs and groups are at the core of our school. But, the school’s willingness and eagerness to seek out innovative programs is central to our success. The school is continually pushing forward in technology, sustainability, science and artistic programs, and global initiatives.

The latest breakthrough is quite literal: we’ve brought Breakthrough Miami to PTS. Last summer, PTS became the fifth site for Breakthrough Miami, an achievement that Head of School Sean Murphy has been working on for over three years. As noted on their website, Breakthrough Miami was founded in 1991 and aims to inspire and encourage talented, motivated middle-school students to enter and thrive in top college-preparatory, high school programs and then graduate from college. The program also promotes educational careers for the exceptional high school and college students who teach, tutor, and mentor in its summer institute and school-year programs.

Key to breaking through are the individuals who have the ability to see into the future; they do not need hindsight to know which innovations will work. A case in point is Mrs. Virginia Hester, our VisionAerie, who is profiled in this issue on page 28. In 1955, Captain William and Virginia Hester purchased the South Dade property that Palmer Trinity owns today. In 2001, they began to explore the best options for their impressive property. Even then, as she does now, Mrs. Hester knew that “expansion” meant something different to her than it does for many others: “We had plenty of chances to sell, and developers wanted to give us a lot more money than Palmer Trinity did. But we decided we’d rather sell it to Palmer Trinity.”

The Hester’s had the foresight to know that the land would inspire a positive future for Palmer Trinity.

Since before my start at PTS in 2005, this School has embraced many new opportunities. From being the first laptop school in South Florida, to researching the latest efficiencies for environmental sustainability, PTS has been at the forefront of advocating change while preserving tradition.

BIRD'S EYE VIEW

EATING LOCALLY

BRIAN SCHACHTER, Food Service Director at Sage Dining Services and Resident PTS Head Chef

PTS PRESENTS:

DUNCAN STONER ‘18

JENNIFER AGRESS , Communications Department

PTS WELCOMES

LAUREN DOWLEN

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN:

STUDENT ATHLETES MAKING

A DIFFERENCE

JAKE VON SCHERRER , Director of Athletics

THE WORLD THROUGH A LENS

PTS PHOTOGRAPHY CLUB

WRITING FROM WITHIN:

PTS PARENT AUTHORS

NEW YEAR, NEW FACES

PERSPECTIVES

RECLAIMING OUR WORLD

DR. LEO LLINAS, Sustainability Coordinator and Science Department

NEW FRONTIERS:

TECHNOLOGY SPRINGS

FORWARD AT PTS

GUS SABOGAL, Director of Technology

STUDENTS TEACHING

STUDENTS

ARIEL EDWARDS, Senior Site Director, Breakthrough Miami at Palmer Trinity School

A LITTLE BIT BEAUTIFUL

KATRINA MURPHY AND SUSANNA

COATES, English Department

Contributing Editors: C ATHY BLACKBURN AND CATIE CUNNING

A LOOK BACK: THE ORIGINS OF TRINITY EPISCOPAL SCHOOL

MARK HAYES , English Department and Resident PTS Historian

Contributing Editors: KATHERINE VALE AND VIVIAN CERIONE

PALMER TRINITY SCHOOL

HERE AND ABROAD

DANNY REYNOLDS, Director of Admission, Financial Aid, and College Counseling

VISIONAERIE: VIRGINIA HESTER

VIRGINIA HESTER’S GIFT: PALMER TRINITY’S FUTURE

SUZANNE GOTTLIEB CALLEJA , Director of Communications and Community Relations DEPARTMENTS

EDITOR’S NOTE

HIGHLIGHTS

EVENTS Homecoming DEVELOPMENT Let Imaginations Soar

ALUMNEWS

CLASS NOTES

ADMISSION ADVISORY BOARD

ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME

ALUMNI SOCCER GAME

NYC ALUMNI GATHERING

ALUMNI PROFILES: Breaking Boundaries

DAWN HOYT KIDD ‘80

TWENTY-ONE: 1986 PALMER CROSS COUNTRY TEAM

ROSA GONZALEZ-GUARDA ‘98

GARRETT DEROSSET ‘05

PTS REMEMBERS: JEAN ELLEN DUPONT SHEEHAN

Sean Murphy Head of School

Recently, I have been reading Rainer Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet with my senior English students. In his first letter addressed to Franz Kappus, a soldier struggling to be a poet, Rilke writes,

You couldn’t disturb your whole development any more violently than by looking outside and waiting for outside answers to questions that only your innermost feeling, in your quietest hour, can perhaps answer.

All of the most significant breakthroughs of my life have come in my quietest hour. As Nietzsche says in Thus Spake Zarathustra, “It is the stillest words which bring the storm. Thoughts that come on doves’ feet guide the world.” Internal and mysterious, unsought and unexpected, certainly not of one’s own volition, the gift of insight comes. “These are the voices which we hear in solitude,” Emerson writes in Self-Reliance, “but they grow faint and inaudible as we enter into the world.”

Indeed, the world is a distraction, not the source of our most urgent obstacles. Our most significant limitations, bonds built of belief spinning out in a self-fulfilling prophecy, are self-imposed. Whatever breakthroughs we achieve, therefore, must be a result of self-overcoming. What we believe, we tend to experience. All of psychology, beginning with Freud and Jung, suggests that in order for our experience to change, we have to change the automatic responses occurring in our thoughts and feelings. We have to reprogram our minds and hearts. Or, as Funkadelic said it in 1970, Free Your Mind, and [the rest] Will Follow

Freeing minds is the point of education, too. Our mission statement reads in part, “Our dedication to excellence and respect for diversity inspire students to seek enlightenment and lead lives of honor, integrity, and social, responsibility.” Our dedication to excellence and respect for diversity are agents of the Holy Spirit. In fact they are essential to prepare us for the insights that come like grace to change our lives. We must strive constantly to learn the truth, and we must acknowledge that truth might come from anywhere, or anyone. I must teach myself to have ears to hear and eyes to see. Others may reveal to me, if I will let them, the blind spots.

In his letter to the Ephesians St. Paul wrote,

I pray that God may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance. (1:17-18)

Our future—the future of each one of us individually, and the future of our species as a whole—is dependent upon individuals listening to the still small voice of spirit within themselves. If we are to break through to the hope to which God has called us, and to the riches of His glorious inheritance, we must let the eyes of our hearts come to know that the kingdom of heaven is within.

Eating Locally

FOOD

By: BRIAN SCHACHTER Food Service Director at SAGE Dining Services and resident PTS Head Chef

Every action, both great and small, has an impact on our world. We at SAGE Dining understand our responsibility for the stewardship of the earth’s resources. We founded our company on the principles of quality, integrity and service—values that apply to every aspect of our organization. Our commitment to sustainability begins with our choice of vendors, selection of products and design of the dining program.

Here is a taste of what you’ll find in our PTS kitchen:

All meals are prepared from scratch, onsite, daily. Menus are custom-designed for our community, and change with the seasons to reflect the fresh produce available to South Florida residents. We batch cook, preparing small quantities of food throughout the day to maximize flavor and minimize waste. All of our soups and sauces are made from scratch on a daily basis. We serve turkey breast and roast beef that is roasted in-house, and purchase locally-baked breads. Our salads and salad dressings are made from scratch. Our milk is antibiotic-free and hormonefree. We use shell eggs that are cage-free and Certified Humane. In support of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood

Watch guidelines, we strive to increase our purchases of sustainable seafood, and our tuna is dolphin-safe and packaged in water. We use fresh herbs to enhance flavor and garnish our displays. Whenever possible, we use fresh herbs and vegetables from our Palmer Trinity School student gardens. In an effort to help PTS faculty and students appreciate the value of buying and eating locally, I met with local farmers at local farms, at the start of this school year, to begin to build relationships with them. After viewing their abundance of local produce, I was inspired to create a menu that included produce indigenous to our area—such as Florida citrus fruits, avocado, boniato, callalou, coconuts and star fruit—and I hosted a special school lunch, in late October, to serve this menu to PTS students, faculty and staff. Buying locally contributes to the local economy, enhances plant diversity and decreases the distances food must travel—ultimately reducing carbon dioxide emissions from trucking. By principle, we at SAGE Dining continue to promote the use of local and organic products, and aim to provide the PTS community with more opportunities to “eat locally” throughout the year.

“All meals are prepared from scratch, on-site, daily. Menus are custom-designed for our community, and change with the seasons to reflect the fresh produce available to South Florida residents.”

Resident PTS Head Chef Brian Schachter holds fresh produce from J & C Tropicals, a local farm.

Through our World Ecology class, seniors have the opportunity to cook meals using produce grown in our PTS garden.

PTS Presents: Duncan Stoner '18

ATHLETICS

By: JENNIFER AGRESS Communications Department

New to Palmer Trinity School this year, sixth-grader Duncan Stoner has already impressed PTS students, faculty and staff with accomplishments both in and out of the classroom. Coming to us from Princeton Christian School, Duncan loves the challenging nature of his classes at PTS, and the opportunity he has to study under a variety of teachers. His favorite subject is science, and he enjoys learning new things about animals and the world around him. His passion in the classroom mirrors his passion for service—and when the sixth-grade class planned to send care packages and thank you letters to American soldiers, in honor of September 11th, it was Duncan who suggested that they be sent directly to Unit 73300—his cousin’s unit in Afghanistan. Outside the classroom, Duncan has always had an affinity for athletics. Dabbling in swimming and baseball in elementary school, he has spent the past year fencing for the Miami Fencing Club, where he has already earned silver medals in two club-wide tournaments. Most recently, Duncan was selected as a sixth-grader to join the PTS Varsity Boys Cross Country Team.

The sixth-grade class sent care packages and thank you letters to Unit 73300, the military unit of Duncan’s cousin, who is currently stationed in Afghanistan.

Though he never expected to compete at the Varsity level, Duncan has never thought twice about being the youngest member of a predominantly Upper School team. “The guys on the team are like my brothers,” Duncan says. “They give me advice on school and teach me about life at PTS.” With so many years ahead of him, Duncan has big plans for his athletic career. “When I get older, I want to be an Olympian—in running, fencing or maybe even something else,” he says. “To have those abilities in any sport would be amazing.” But what is it about running that this new Falcon loves so much? Simple: the journey. “When you start running, your mind goes blank,” Duncan says. “It’s not until I’m done that I remember how much homework I still have to do.”

PTS Welcomes Lauren Dowlen

On October 3rd, 2011, Lauren Billingslea Dowlen joined the Palmer Trinity School community as the newest member of the Development team. Lauren graduated from Miami Palmetto Senior High, and went on to earn degrees in Communications and Theatre from Florida State University. Since graduation, Lauren has been very involved in non-profit work, volunteering with the Junior League of Miami, Beaux Arts, HistoryMiami, the Fairchild Palms and St. Philip’s Episcopal Church. She has worked as the Director of Development for St. Stephen’s Episcopal School in Coconut Grove and as Director of Alumni Relations for Ransom Everglades School. Lauren now joins Palmer Trinity School as a Development Officer focused on planned giving, 40th anniversary preparations and ongoing fundraising projects for the South Campus. From 1999 to 2000, Lauren’s mother, Reverend Wendy Billingslea, served on our Board of Trustees. Lauren is married to Buddy Dowlen and they have a one-year old son, Dale.

Duncan Stoner ‘18 competes with the PTS Varsity Boys Cross Country Team at the 2011 Tri-Country Championships.

Lauren Dowlen, Development Officer

Oh Captain, My Captain: Student Athletes Making A Difference

ATHLETICS

By: JAKE VON SCHERRER Director of Athletics

Just two years in the making, the Palmer Trinity School Captains’ Council has already made a significant impact on the PTS athletic program. Composed of a select group of more than 30 student athletes, this organization contains students who are either named captains of PTS sports teams, or who have been nominated to the Council for their demonstration of outstanding leadership, sportsmanship, character and sacrifice.

The original members of the Captain’s Council made service to PTS and its surrounding community their main focus. Since then, the group has expanded its mission to include an emphasis on sportsmanship and leadership. Recently, Captains’ Council officers—Co-Presidents Mary Ann Casas ‘12 and Bailey Evans ’12, and Co-Vice Presidents Ashley du Feu ‘12 and Ledah Geller ‘12 —organized initiatives in all three of these areas: assisting with trips to the Homeless Assistance Center in Homestead, presenting messages about sportsmanship to PTS coaches and parents, and continuing to be active leaders on campus.

The Captains’ Council was actively involved in the organization of our first-annual “Meet-the-Coaches” Night—which not only introduced our coaches, but also showed the far-reaching development of our student athletes, beyond the fields and courts. At the start of the evening, Mary Ann Casas spoke about the history of the Captain’s Council, and emphasized her desire for the group to have a positive impact on Palmer Trinity School and its community. Bailey Evans stressed the importance of getting involved in activities, both athletic and co-curricular, as a way to expand interests, increase opportunities to build lasting

relationships and develop a group of life-long friends. Ledah Geller encouraged student leaders to nurture great sportsmanship not only through their own participation, but as athletic supporters, as well. Ashley du Feu informed attendees of the well-documented connection between athletic participation and academic achievement, and further spoke to student leaders about the importance of academic success.

“Meet-the-Coaches” Night was the first of many events Captains’ Council has planned for this year, including various community outreach projects, a convocation that focuses on sportsmanship, and a four-week project with our middle school students emphasizing the relationship between sports and leadership.

Bailey Evans ‘12 plays on the PTS Girls’ Varsity Softball Team.

Ashley du Feu ‘12 plays on the PTS Girls’ Varsity Soccer Team.

(L-R) Captains’ Council Co-Presidents, Bailey Evans ‘12 and Mary Ann Casas ‘12

(L-R) Captains’ Council Co-Vice Presidents, Ashley du Feu ‘12 and Ledah Geller ‘12

The World Through A Lens

ARTS

By: THE PTS PHOTOGRAPHY CLUB

It has always been said that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” This applies to every culture. Pictures move us, teach us, and inspire us to be the best that we can be—and that is the mission of The PTS Photography Club. The PTS Photography Club, founded by Diana Fernandez ‘12 in the spring of 2011, has reached out to the PTS community, service organizations and other clubs by raising money for new cameras, taking photos for the PTS Yearbook and incorporating photographic art into the Literary Magazine. “We are the eyes of

Writing From Within:

PTS

Parent Authors

Palmer Trinity School,” says Fernandez, President of The PTS Photography Club. “This is our way of beautifying our community and portraying it in a way that not many people notice.” In the future, the club hopes to use these “eyes”—and their camera lenses—to create a greater appreciation for PTS and its surrounding community. “Photography is more than just pressing a button on a camera,” says Emily Fernandez, a freshman here at Palmer Trinity School. “It’s an art. You have to know how to see the things that people can’t see, and how to show them to others. You need a real passion for photography.” Each member of The Photography Club has an exceptional talent and overwhelming enthusiasm for photography. Whether in a photo of friends, the sunset, an abstract angle or a touching moment, the Photography Club’s passion always shines through.

As we continue to encourage our students to “dream big” at Palmer Trinity School, it is important to recognize the strong role models they have outside of the classroom—their parents.

Below, you will find two PTS parents who have made their own dreams come true: authors Adam Scholer and Mari Sampedro-Iglesia.

Born and raised in Miami, FL, author Adam Scholer wrote and published his first book, Little Tales for Little People, at the age of seven. Graduating from Christopher Columbus High School in 1981, Scholer earned his Bachelor of Arts in English from Florida State University, and went on to complete his Master’s Degree in English Education from Florida International University. A writer of both fiction and nonfiction, he has currently published Brother Duke, and hopes to have additional publications—Clean as a Whistle, The Last Cabin, Live at 5, and Scholer’s Shorts —out before the end of 2011. When he’s not writing the next bestseller, Scholer teaches English and

Speech at Columbus High School and works as an adjunct professor at Barry University. Always supporting a good cause, Scholer is also a member of “Castaways Against Cancer”—a group of individuals that kayak from Miami to Key West each summer, a 163-mile journey, to raise money for cancer research. Adam Scholer lives at home with his wife, Liz, and two daughters, Lindsey ‘16 and Kelsey ‘18.

Born in Cuba, but raised in New Jersey, current South Florida-resident Mari Sampedro-Iglesia recently published her first book, The Heroes Among Us. Earning a law degree from The University of Miami, Sampedro-Iglesia practiced law in Miami, FL for nearly nineteen years and currently serves as an Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court Judge in the Juvenile Division. Her book is a true

account of her family’s suffering when her husband, José, was diagnosed with stage 4 head and neck cancer. Though José is alive today, and free from cancer, her book serves as a tribute to the “heroes” who carried her family through José’s illness— and how this experience ultimately brought her family closer together. All the proceeds from her book will be donated to The University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center to further benefit research to find a cure for head and neck cancer. Mari Sampedro-Iglesia lives at home with her husband, José, and their two sons: Michael, a senior at Belen Jesuit Preparatory School, and Christopher, a sixth-grader at Palmer Trinity School.

For more information about either of these authors, or to purchase copies of their books, please contact Adam Scholer at ascholer@bellsouth.net and Mari Sampedro-Iglesia at mjmigles@bellsouth.net.

Laces

Adam Scholer

Judge Mari Sampedro-Iglesia

The PTS Photography Club

Book

New Year, New Faces

ELENA AMATO Department of Religion

Born in Baltimore, MD, Elena Amato now joins the Palmer Trinity School family as the newest member of our Religious Studies Department. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Analysis from Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA, and went on to earn a Master’s in Religious Studies from FIU. Amato spent two years as a Religious Studies Adjunct and English Teaching Assistant at FIU, and now teaches Upper School Religious Studies classes and serves as Assistant Cross Country Coach, here at Palmer Trinity School. Ms. Amato loves pets—when she was five, she named her first dog Lady Laura Elizabeth Megan Di.

CATHY BLACKBURN

English Department

Originally from Rome, NY, Cathy Blackburn has lived all over the United States—Ponca City, OK; Boston, MA; New York, NY and now, Miami, FL. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville, AR, and Master’s degrees in English from both The University of South Alabama and Middlebury College Breadloaf School of English. Here at Palmer Trinity School, Mrs. Blackburn teaches Middle School and Upper School English, and hopes to get involved in the PTS Book Club. Each Monday, faculty and staff look forward to her “Poem of the Week”—Mrs. Blackburn loves contemporary poetry, and her favorite poets are Billy Collins, Mary Oliver and Stephen Dunn.

JEREMY EVANS

Middle School Science

Born and raised in Fort Wayne, IN, science teacher Jeremy Evans is a new addition to our Palmer Trinity School Science Department. Graduating from Indiana University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and History, Evans comes to PTS from Los Angeles, CA, where he most recently taught science at Campbell Hall Episcopal School. Currently, Mr. Evans teaches Seventh-Grade Earth Science and coaches our Middle School Girls Volleyball Team. If you want to practice your Sign Language, Mr. Evans can teach you all you need to know—both of his parents are deaf, and as a result, he is fluent in American Sign Language!

FRANK HERNANDEZ

Department of Academic Computing

Born in Cuba, Frank Hernandez has lived in Miami for the past nine years. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Computer and Information Science from FIU, this new addition to our faculty went on to complete a Master of Science in Computer and Information Science from the same university, where he also expects to complete his Ph.D in December. Mr. Hernandez is the latest addition to our Academic Computing Department, and currently teaches Upper School Introduction to Programming. When he’s not in your classroom, find him in another—Mr. Fernandez is a Teaching Assistant and Software Engineer and Programming Instructor at FIU, and enjoys doing programming projects in his free time.

TIMOTHY LESTER Performing Arts Chair

Originally from Williamsburg, VA, Palmer Trinity School’s new Performing Arts Chair, Timothy Lester, has been a South Florida resident for nearly 22 years.

Graduating from FIU with both a Bachelor and Master of Arts in Vocal Performance, Lester spent four years teaching at South Dade Senior High Academy of Visual and Performing Arts and ten years in the Miami Dade College Music Department. At PTS, Mr. Lester currently teaches Sixth-Grade Chorus, Middle School Musical Theater, Upper School Chorus and Piano. If you want a good scare, Mr. Lester is extremely “double-jointed”—he can astound you with his hands!

ANTHONY M c FARLANE Music Department

Originally from Washington D.C., music teacher Anthony McFarlane moved to Florida when he was just nine years old. After graduating with a Bachelor of Music in Trombone Performance from Florida State University, this talented trombonist went on to complete a Master of Music, with a Ph.D in Trombone Performance expected in December from The University of Miami. Serving as an Adjunct Band Teacher for Palmer Trinity School for six years, McFarlane now joins PTS, full-time—teaching Band and A.P. Music Theory, and leading our Jazz Ensemble and Drumline/ Percussion Ensemble after school. When he’s not in the classroom, Mr. McFarlane loves to cook—and can often be found picking up new tips from cooking shows like Top Chef, Hell’s Kitchen, and Chopped

JANETTE NEUWAHL

Middle School English

A native of Miami, Janette Neuwahl joins Palmer Trinity School, this year, as our newest Sixth-Grade English teacher. After graduating from Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and a minor in History, Neuwahl spent several years working as a journalist—covering everything from shark attacks in South Africa and crime in Miami, to the political scene in Massachusetts and Florida education. Ms. Neuwahl previously taught at Carver Middle School, Kinloch Middle School, and Flagler County School, and currently leads our sixth-grade team in the PTS Book Club.

BASANT PANGENI

Math Department

A native of Nepal, Basant Pangeni teaches Pre-Algebra and PreCalculus here at Palmer Trinity School. Receiving a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Hanover College, Pangeni later earned his Master of Science in Applied Mathematics from the University of South California. Before coming to PTS, Mr. Pangeni worked as a Math Instructor at RASG Hebrew Academy, in Miami Beach; a math item writer for the ACT; and an A.P. Calculus Reader for the College Board. In his spare time, he enjoys running and playing soccer.

LOURDES RAMIREZ

English as a Second Language

The newest addition to our ESL team, Cuba-native Lourdes Ramirez joined the Palmer Trinity School family in the spring of last year.

She received a Bachelor’s degree in Peninsular Spanish Literature from Indiana University, earned a Master’s in Latin American Literature and Linguistics from Middlebury College, and received her Ph.D from The University of Massachusetts, where she focused on Language Acquisition and Bilingual and Bicultural Education. While obtaining her doctorate degree, she studied at La Sorbonne in Paris and MIT. Mrs. Ramirez spent most of her professional life in New Hampshire, and currently teaches English as a Second Language (ESL) History and English here at PTS. When she’s not teaching, find her out on the water—Mrs. Ramirez loves to “fly fish,” and does it whenever she gets the chance!

MELISSA ROGERS

Math Department

Born in Buffalo, NY, Melissa Rogers is the latest addition to our Palmer Trinity School Math Department. Attending St. Lawrence University, where she played Varsity Softball all four years, Rogers graduated, this past May, with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics. She currently teaches Sixth- and Seventh-Grade Math at Palmer Trinity School, and coaches our Girls Softball and Middle School Girls Basketball teams. Ms. Rogers has always had a passion for travel; and has spent time studying abroad in both Ethiopa and Hungary.

TILLY STRAUSS

Art Department

With parents in the military, art teacher Tilly Strauss has lived all over the world—but most recently, she comes to Palmer Trinity School from a farm in Upstate NY, her

home for the past twenty years. Completing her higher education at Colorado University at Boulder, she received both a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting. Currently, Ms. Strauss teaches Painting, Mixed Media and Hand Building classes here at PTS. She spent much of the first ten years of her life in Haiti, and in line with their local customs, considers herself very superstitious.

KRISTIN WHEELER

Middle School Science

Born and raised in Tallahassee, Kristin Wheeler comes to PTS from Miramar, FL—where she was a Middle School Science Instructor at Somerset Academy. Graduating from Florida State University with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, she went on to obtain a Master of Arts in English Literature from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Currently, Ms. Wheeler teaches Seventh-Grade Earth Science and Eighth-Grade Physical Science here at Palmer Trinity School. When she’s not in the classroom, head to the ocean and look down—Ms. Wheeler loves to dive! She has gone scuba diving in Panama, Cozumel, Texas, and Florida, shark diving in the Bahamas, and cave diving in Mexico.

INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

Reclaiming Our World

By : LEO LLINAS, PH.D. Science Department and Sustainability at PTS

As

an educational institution, Palmer Trinity School believes that all schools have a special role and responsibility to confront the challenges of climate change and environmental stewardship. We are dedicated to confronting these challenges both in and out of the classroom.

Administered through Sustainability at PTS, Palmer Trinity School’s commitment to sustainability is driven by schoolwide programs and the support fostered by our community of students, teachers and staff. Sustainability at PTS is working to create models for community involvement in saving the environment—encouraging schools to engage students, faculty and staff in the development of innovative, economically-viable solutions that build a healthier, more sustainable campus. Here are some recent examples:

RECLAMATION PROJECT

The Reclamation Project is a local eco-art project that aims to educate residents of South Florida about the positive impact of mangrove forests on our environment. Not only do they protect our coastlines during hurricanes, but mangrove forests further provide homes for birds and wild animals, clean our coastal waters and fight global warming. Each year, student volunteers get together, through The Reclamation Project, to collect mangrove propagules in coastal areas. These propagules are then placed in plastic cups filled with water and displayed

around campus, where they are nurtured into seedlings and eventually planted in our coastlines. By providing for this coastal reforestation, the students are ultimately creating new habitats for organisms in our environment.

BUTTERFLY GARDEN

Established in Spring 2011, the butterfly garden at Palmer Trinity School gives visitors the opportunity to learn about butterfly plants, ways to improve butterfly populations, and conservation—while also adding a beautiful garden to our Palmer Trinity School campus. By planting host plants, Palmer Trinity School provides nectar resources for butterflies and food for caterpillars, giving the PTS community a chance to watch them grow and transform into adult butterflies. Planting a butterfly garden can help provide many of the resources necessary to foster populations of local butterflies while furnishing a wonderful learning environment for our students. Students are inspired by the Palmer Trinity School butterfly garden, and through it, become advocates for environmental conservation.

Through The Reclamation Project, Matthew Barr ‘12 collected mangrove propagules to later nurture into seedlings and plant on South Florida coastlines.

FAIRCHILD CHALLENGE

Sponsored by Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, The Fairchild Challenge is a multidisciplinary, environmental education outreach program designed to foster an appreciation for the beauty and value of nature, develop critical-thinking skills, and understand the importance of biodiversity and conservation. This program encourages students to tap community resources, become actively engaged in their environment and recognize that individuals do make a difference.

SUSTAINABILITY PLEDGE

At Palmer Trinity School, students have the enormous power to institute change in their classrooms and the campus community. Each year, the students take a “Sustainability Pledge.” This pledge teaches students how to reduce their environmental impact, and serves as a reminder to practice quality, eco-friendly habits.

PTS gives preferred parking to those with fuel-efficient vehicles.

FUEL-EFFICIENT VEHICLE PREFERRED PARKING

In Fall 2010, Sustainability at PTS introduced a preferred parking program for fuel-efficient vehicles. Through this program, members of the PTS community with fuel-efficient vehicles are given the option to park in special, designated spaces—labeled FEV (Fuel Efficiency Vehicle)— throughout campus. In order to park in these spaces, the combined city/highway of your vehicle must be 30 mpg or higher.

CARBON-FOOTPRINTREDUCTION COMMITMENT

In 2009, Palmer Trinity School joined the Green Schools Alliance (GSA)—an alliance of K-12 public, private and independent schools that unite to take action against climate change and help the environment. As a part of GSA, Palmer Trinity School is committed to reducing its carbon footprint over time, including growth.

You can read more about the exciting initiatives at Palmer Trinity School that help the environment by visiting “Sustainability at PTS” on the Palmer Trinity School website. The future of our school and the environment is crucial; we strive to make Palmer Trinity School a beacon of ideas and inspiration for long-term, sustainable living.

Our PTS butterfly garden is a local opportunity for our students to study their natural environment.

New Frontiers: Technology Springs Forward at PTS

By: GUS SABOGAL Director of Technology

Technology

software innovations have arrived at Palmer Trinity School.

As computers and technology become more dominant in today’s education, Palmer Trinity School understands that being a “laptop school” means more than simply providing a student with a machine to use for research, Power Point presentations, word processing and e-mail. The future of technology in education will enable real-time engagement and online interaction between students and teachers.

Social networking, texting, Smartphones and applications are part of every student’s life; and as educators, we need to be relevant—engaging our students in ways that make them feel comfortable and connected. To achieve that goal, I introduced three new pieces of software—to be used by PTS students, faculty and staff at the start of the 2011-2012 academic year—that will facilitate the technological experience and enhance the potential of the laptop program both during, and after, class.

As social networking becomes more notorious, and we continue to emphasize student safety, Palmer Trinity School has started using Edmodo Edmodo is a private social networking platform, designed as an educational alternative to Facebook, which safely facilitates communication, collaboration and student-teacher online interaction. To prevent posting photos, private chatting and inappropriate behavior, all communication on Edmodo is monitored by our PTS Techzone, and can be seen by everyone within the community. With Edmodo, educators harness the power of social media by customizing online pages for each classroom. Through password-protected access, students can blog, post comments, share links and upload assignments with the same skills used during any online social networking interaction. Using this new software, we are not only engaging the student community with applications they are comfortable using, but are also providing them with the opportunity to develop their online etiquette and writing skills—primary learning points—as they continue to learn the rules of appropriate digital citizenship, a part of every student’s future.

“Edmodo has been a great addition to PTS. Social networking is a big part of our students’ lives, and instead of dismissing them, we need to embrace them and teach them the responsible way of using it. The students love it and so do the teachers that are using it. It has been a great success.”

Raul

Gonzalez, World Languages Department

Two other new pieces of software are DyKnow Vision and DyKnow monitor. DyKnow Vision is a unique teaching collaboration tool that shares and records classroom content, creating multiple ways for student-teacher interaction. PTS teachers can broadcast their computer screens to every computer, giving students the opportunity to save their teacher’s version of an assignment on their laptop, ultimately allowing them to concentrate more on the lesson, and less on trying to keep up with their teacher’s annotations. Accordingly, teachers can poll students at any time during class and capture immediate results to maintain student focus and attention. Students can easily ask questions, share ideas and collaborate with each other. With DyKnow Vision, Palmer Trinity School students can provide participant status reports, letting a teacher know their level of understanding on

DyKnow gives students the opportunity to save an electronic copy of their teacher’s work to use as an example when completing their homework.

Through DyKnow, teachers gain full access to their students’ computer screens to ensure full comprehension of the lesson at hand.

Using laptops gives students an early grasp on technology, enhances their learning and eases the working process.

a given topic. Fostering live feedback from students allows the teachers to adjust accordingly, and if necessary, provide more comprehensible versions of their lessons. Students can share their laptop screens and submit work panels to distribute with other students. Teachers can grade and return those panels without needing to send e-mails, print or worry about hardcopies of assignments. With the Review utility of DyKnow Vision, students can go home and replay a digital-movie version of the lesson in the same sequence as it was presented during class.

“I have really enjoyed using the DyKnow software in my class. It allows my students to really engage in the lesson without worrying if they missed something in their notes. One of my students, Philip McMichael, commented that he really enjoyed this tool because it allowed him to replay the lesson, which provided a greater understanding of his notes. This is a really neat tool, as it allows students to work in an arena they are usually already immersed in—technology.” Cristie Castellano, Math Department

With DyKnow Monitor, teachers have the ability to focus student attention by minimizing electronic distraction. During a class session, teachers can use their computers to view thumbnail versions of each student’s computer screen in their classroom. This feature was not created to “police” students, but rather gives teachers the ability to observe which students are having difficulty understanding a particular lesson. By noticing if a student is falling behind, teachers can provide independent assistance and adjust accordingly. Since space limitations are usually a problem through e-mail providers, with DyKnow Monitor, teachers can request or send files directly from/to a student’s computer without sending an e-mail or printing. Furthermore, during tests or polls, teachers can block non-curricular applications to ensure that students cannot access other materials during the process. To prevent getting students distracted from web searching, teachers can filter specific websites and block others to allow consistency during the research activity.

Designed with the same features and structure as

police the virtual learning environment, I’d rather work with them there. If a lesson is worthwhile, there’s no need to be ‘Big Brother.’ And what we have been able to do so far— sharing lectures more directly with students, being able to record those lectures for students who miss class, the ability to have ‘instant quizzes’ and other immediate feedback—all that’s been great. We haven’t really yet had a chance to explore all the student-to-student features—group chats, shared workspaces, and so forth—but the students seem genuinely excited about the possibilities.” Mark Hayes, English Department

Palmer Trinity School believes that the proper use of technology can transform a classroom—allowing students to become more active participants in their own educational process. With these tools, we want to provide our PTS community with opportunities for innovation, interaction and classroom collaboration. We expect to engage students in the learning process with 21st century technology.

“What’s great about DyKnow isn’t so much the monitoring feature, which really boils down to limiting what applications students can use and not watching what they’re doing. That’s something I certainly don’t want to have to do. Rather than

“These new applications will keep our laptop program at the leading edge of technology education. Our teachers have been quick to implement these programs in the classroom because they are so useful and relevant.” Sean Murphy, Head of School

All PTS students participate in the laptop program.

Alejandro Rodriguez-Santilli ‘14 and Luiz Guilherme Hoelz ‘15 use their laptops in the classroom.

Facebook, Edmodo gives students a social media platform that can be used for classroom activities and communication.

Breakthrough Miami: STUDENTS TEACHING STUDENTS

By: ARIEL EDWARDS Senior Site Director of Breakthrough Miami at Palmer Trinity School

STUDENTS

In April 2011, Palmer Trinity School opened its doors to Breakthrough Miami—a vision of Head of School Sean Murphy, who had long wanted to offer underprivileged students the opportunity to attend PTS for tutoring, enrichment activities, and summer programs. Through Breakthrough Miami, elementary school students are exposed to academic counseling, Saturday enrichment programs, and summer institutes. For most students, this is an eight-year commitment that provides endless resources to ensure a successful road to college. This past summer, Breakthrough Miami Site Director, Ariel Edwards, recruited students from more than fifteen elementary schools in the South Miami area, selecting 75 scholars, out of more than 150 applications, who were invited to attend a summer program at Palmer Trinity School.

Gabriella Cruz ’14 helps Breakthrough student Renny Jimenez, from Laura C. Saunders Elementary, with homework.

This summer featured one of the most diverse classes of Breakthrough Miami students, representing a variety of backgrounds and schools from all over the South Miami area.

This summer featured one of the most diverse classes of Breakthrough Miami students, representing a variety of backgrounds and schools from all over the South Miami area—Cutler Ridge, Leisure City K-8, Laura C. Saunders, Coconut Palm K-8, Airbase, E.L. Whigham, Coral Reef Montessori, Robert Russa, Frank C. Martin, Florida City, Cutler Ridge Christian Academy, South Dade, Keys Gate Charter, Water Stone Charter, and Pine Lake Elementary. From these educational institutions, 75 fourth- and fifth- grade students gathered at PTS to participate in an enlightening summer adventure, termed by many as “academic boot camp.” This summer institute increased their scholastic endurance and enhanced their social skills. Taking a variety of classes, Breakthrough Miami students studied everything from Mark Twain and Shakespeare, to Ancient Greek history, fractions, pre-algebra, earth and space science, and biology. They took a series of electives—ranging from Speech and Debate, Playwriting, Photography and Bollywood—and participated in special day-long activities, like “Career Day.” That day, fifth-grade students shadowed local professionals in their places of employment—PTS Board Member, Susan Ludovici, from Ludovici and Ludovici, P.A.; PTS Parent, Juli Reynolds, from Morris & Reynolds Insurance; and PTS Parent, Eric Haas, at Sports Grill Miami. Students learned about health care at Community Health of South Florida, and were taught the basics of Business Development at Bill Ussery Motors Group/Cutler Bay Mercedes Benz. Here at Palmer Trinity School, Breakthrough Miami students had the opportunity to enjoy a unique dining experience with Palmer Trinity School’s very own Chef Brian and his Sage Catering team. With those activities and more, this was one summer we know our Breakthrough scholars will never forget.

TEACHERS

For every ten Breakthrough Miami students sporting a PTS book bag, you might also spot one “big kid” in an orange shirt leading them around campus. Who are these young leaders, you might ask? All Breakthrough Miami teachers are juniors and seniors from local high schools or college students from Universities across the nation. Eight lucky scholars were chosen to lead Palmer Trinity School’s first class of Breakthrough Miami students. Two of those young teachers, Dipika Daryanani ‘11 and Julian Del Prado ‘12, were Palmer Trinity School students, and Julian is currently President of PTS’s Breakthrough Miami Club. Palmer Trinity alumna and recent Savannah College of Art and Design alumna, Estefania Romero ‘07, returned to her alma mater, where she taught writing techniques to a class of fourth-grade students, in a classroom she once sat in as a Palmer Trinity School student. Akida Greene ‘13, from Ransom Everglades, and Jeremy Mathurin ‘12, from Coral Reef Senior High School, taught math and science classes. As a part of the program, Breakthrough Miami teachers were responsible for creating lesson plans, leading committee meetings, serenading students with openingand closing-day songs, and much more for twenty-nine days of Breakthrough.

“Students teaching students” is a unique learning tool that encompasses the beauty of making connections and building relationships, and sets the stage for creativity in skill-building. Breakthrough Miami exposes students to careers in education through paid teaching internships during our summer institute. Our young teachers attend one week of training prior to the institute and are partnered with professional educators that mentor them throughout the summer. At the conclusion of the program, many of our interns go on to become teachers and

Senior Site Director, Ariel Edwards, works with Breakthrough Miami students during fourteen Breakthrough Saturdays throughout the year.

advocates for education by entering Teach for America, City Year and the Peace Corps.

FUTURE

The Breakthrough Miami School-Year Program at Palmer Trinity School continues to highlight “students teaching students,” and many students have signed up to teach and tutor during fourteen Breakthrough Saturdays, which began this past October. In this year’s Falcon Fest, we were excited to have over thirty-five Palmer Trinity School students join the Breakthrough Miami Club. Volunteering with Breakthrough Miami is a great way to give back to the community, but this experience isn’t only about community service— it’s an opportunity to increase diversity awareness, gain experience with careers in education, and build social skills. This is an opportunity for growth that benefits the whole student. Through its programs, Breakthrough Miami cultivates well-rounded students, teachers and leaders.

One unique aspect of the schoolyear program is our partnership with Deering Estate at Cutler, where Breakthrough Miami students will have the opportunity to engage in science-enrichment classes on select Saturday afternoons. While studying at this beautiful Biscayne Bay preserve, students will learn about animal behavior, the scientific method, plankton, crustaceans, nature hiking, and our planet Earth. Breakthrough parents are

invited to participate in hands-on activities with the students as they explore Deering Estate’s historical, archeological and environmental preserve. Breakthrough Miami volunteers will be trained in water safety, fish dissection, and canoeing prior to the lesson so that they can properly instruct the students on all nature activities.

All Breakthrough Miami teachers are juniors and seniors from local high schools or college students from Universities across the nation.

Palmer Trinity School is now the fifth educational institution to host the Breakthrough Miami program, joining Ransom Everglades, Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart, Miami Country Day School and Cushman School. With the great support system, generous amenities and involved school community available at PTS, Breakthrough Miami looks forward to the opportunity this partnership will bring to share their program with talented students across South Florida.

Students from many different public schools arrive for their first day of the 2011 PTS Breakthrough Summer program.

This past summer, Palmer Trinity School was excited to host its first Breakthrough Miami program.

Sofia Pedroso ‘14 and Sabrina Rodriguez ’14 volunteer their time by teaching a language arts class to Breakthrough Miami students on a Breakthrough Saturday.

A Little Bit Beautiful

By: English Department members KATRINA MURPHY AND SUSANNA COATES , with contributions from CATIE CUNNING AND CATHY BLACKBURN

We all write, all the time. Whether it’s a quick communication or a carefully constructed argument, the words we choose and the order we put them in matter. We want to be clear, persuasive, and, perhaps, a little bit beautiful.

In our daily academic lives, students want their teachers to recognize their mastery of a subject. Writing is one of the most important ways we display our understanding and thoughts. It is a vital tool for expressing opinions and ideas. For this kind of academic writing, The Center for Writing, under the leadership of Mark Hayes, is an excellent resource. Mr. Hayes’s team of writing tutors help students to perfect thesis statements and expand supporting elements, while also developing their fluency with language. Likewise, David Cutler’s Journalism course helps students to sharpen their writing skills in order to create concise and informative articles. There are many of us on campus, however, who want to go beyond clarity and purposefulness in our writing. We are the ones who care most, perhaps, about the “beautiful” possibilities of language

and the stories that we can use language to tell. These are students like Lauren Patao who has chosen to take Susanna Coates’s new Upper School elective, “Topics in Writing: Writing & Voice” to help develop an eloquent, authentic voice in a variety of genres, including fiction, nonfiction and poetry. These are students like Adena Dass in Katrina Murphy’s creative writing Middle School elective. These are students like Maia Suazo-Maler, Sarah Corbishley and Adam Block, who provided the wonderful poems and stories that were published in The Plume last spring, the new Middle School literary magazine created by Catie Cunning. These are students like Shirin Razdan and Camila Victoriano who have made the Upper School literary magazine, Green Sky Blue Grass, such a success under Ms. Coates’s guidance.

Creative writing is an essential part of all English classrooms. Through creative writing, we discover the secret stories, lessons learned, and powerful images and memories that challenge and inspire us in our daily lives. But this year, more than ever, the PTS community is trying to expand its creative writing initiatives and create a community of writers on campus. Ms. Coates and Ms. Vogel are working to bring local writers and poets onto campus

As we followed the line of cars that led to the cemetery, I could hear my mom blowing her nose with the soft Kleenex tissue. The melancholic notes of music playing on the radio reminded me of the sorrow we all felt. The leather seats brought back memories of my grandfather leaning his body backwards to take a nap in his recliner. The black car came to a halt and I allowed my mom to step down before I grabbed my belongings and left the car. As I walked through the grass and heard it crunching beneath me, I tried to think of joyful memories. The sweet smell of the blooming flowers surrounded the cemetery, and the cool spring breeze made the flowers sway back and forth as if they were dancing around to the sound of the wind. But the tall green trees cast a shadow over my mom’s face that reminded me of why we were there and whom we had just lost. I tried to stop the tears from falling down my face because I knew I had to be strong for my mom and sister. I looked down and concentrated on the flowers showing signs of life.

By Lauren Patao ‘12

PTS Upper School Creative Writing Class (L-R): Damali Malik ‘14, Lauren Patao ‘12, Leonardo Rocchiccioli ‘14, Cassidy Krinzman ‘13, Jenna Martinez ‘15, Carolina Casariego ‘14, and Octavio Vidal ‘14.

In September the Middle School Creative Writing Class acted out a scene set in a yoga class, from a novel by author Aurelia Sheehan. The instructor told the class to be trees. The narrator says, “I raised my arms tentatively, just from the elbows – maybe I could be a twiggy little stunted tree. Maybe I could be a stump or a log. Well, that felt dumb.”

for Writer’s Workshops that will allow students to hone their craft with master writers. Green Sky Blue Grass is organizing an open mic night/coffeehouse to showcase students’ work. Last April’s Poetry Month celebrations, which included teachers and students reading their favorite poems during the daily morning announcements, will expand to include a poetry convocation, a partnership with O Miami! and other surprises. Cathy Blackburn, a recent addition to our faculty, has begun sending out weekly poems to faculty and staff. She speaks of her intent for the “Poem of the Week” by saying: “Poetry is the literary genre that I believe goes most immediately ‘to the heart of the matter.’ When a reader meets the ‘right’ poem, she will usually experience an immediate sense of recognition, as if the poet were

speaking directly to her. Sometimes the ‘right’ poem comes along just in time, helping us make better sense of the world and of our lives, celebrate our joys and victories, and feel less alone.” In the spring, Mrs. Blackburn hopes to offer a workshop on “Poetry and Healing.”

Together, these initiatives aim to awaken, explore and celebrate a reverence and passion for the art of writing. Their sponsors hope to help make our community, our lives and our words just a little bit more beautiful.

She had tried scrunching up her eyes. Doodling circles on the paper. Rapping her knuckles on the side of the wooden table. Drumming her pencil. Nothing had worked. Allison glanced out the window. Time is running out. She listened to the chirping birds and gazed dreamily at the green pasture. A thought walked into her mind; Allison knew what to do. She picked up the yellow pencil and began to write. The pencil flowed across the paper, like a river across land. Twisting and turning, the dark grey lead formed letters out of thoughts. Allison paused, the pencil poised an inch above the half- filled page. Thoughts filled her mind. Imaginative nouns. Juicy adjectives. Actionfilled verbs. Semi colons, periods, and commas pranced upon the page. The piercing sound of the bell filled her ears, chasing away imagination. It was finished.

By Adena Dass

‘16

Some English department members take a stab at one of the middle school creative writing class prompts: Finish the sentence, “The door closed, the lock clicked, and...”

... she stared in dismay through the car window at her keys dangling in the ignition. – Ruthanne Vogel

... Ned Taylor again found himself wondering why he had accepted the red headed man’s invitation to join him for a pint of ale. – William Stanard

... darkness enveloped the room, save for the silver slant of starlight that crept underneath the slit beneath the door. – Catie Cunning

... the company collapsed. – Bruce Musgrave

... the child listened to the clock ticking down to zero. – Kenley Smith

... my heart knocked against my chest; I knew I’d lost the contest and nothing would ever be the same again. – Adrianna Truby

A Look Back: The Beginnings of Trinity Episcopal School

By: MARK HAYES English Department

Contributing Editors: KATHERINE VALE Modern Languages Department & VIVIAN CERIONE Registrar

In order to explore the possibility of opening a new Episcopal high school, in January of 1983 a committee of Episcopal School parents from St. Stephens, St. Thomas and St. Philips invited Dr. Edward Dougherty from the University of Michigan to Miami. Upon surveying the property with Monk Terry, an early supporter, Dr. Dougherty said: “Monk picked me up in one of the worst thunderstorms I’ve ever seen, one like you only get in Miami, where it pours buckets. He took me out to the site, and we drove through eight-foot high weeds to a burned down rectory. He said: ‘This is your school.’ I said, ‘This looks great!’”

“We made a decision in June of 1983,” said Dougherty, “that we did have enough money to go ahead and get through the first year.” Over the summer, Dougherty and a dedicated group of volunteers rebuilt and renovated the old rectory and turned it into Trinity’s first building, with four classrooms. In the fall of 1983, Trinity Episcopal opened its doors, with 37 students in the 7th and 8th grades. “My first office was in a construction trailer,” Dougherty said. The school had very clear plans to add a grade each year, with the first class graduating in 1988. “In my mind, I thought: This is really a unique opportunity to start something from scratch, and build it according to the kind of principles that you really believe in.”

The original board and Dr. Dougherty offered a generous amount of scholarship money to many of those first students, to encourage them to attend. With a small, dedicated staff and an intimate institutional atmosphere, Trinity Episcopal offered a distinctive education. “It was a wonderful experience those first few years, because it was so small that we could do a lot of things that you couldn’t do in a larger school,” said Dougherty. “We took the kids camping. We’d go out to the Everglades and go canoeing. We had a lot of personal interaction and close contact with those kids.”

started working part-time, and then came over fulltime, and then [after the merger] came down [south]. She’s been a part of Trinity from the very beginning.” Manuela Flores remembers it well: “I was working at Sunset Montessori and then at a day care center,” she said. “Dr. Dougherty hired me for an hour a day, then after that, he gave me more hours. We all got along there because we were small. We ate on the patio. I was in charge of cleaning the tables after lunch. Then I would come back and clean in the afternoon.”

Also joining Trinity that first year was Katherine Vale to teach French. Dr. Dougherty explained, “I happened to meet Mrs. Vale at Ransom-Everglades School. (Our sons

In my mind, I thought: This is really a unique opportunity to start something from scratch, and build it according to the kind of principles that you really believe in.

were in the same class.) As she said she was looking for a job as a teacher, I hired her, and she came in to finish off the year for a teacher who had left mid-year. She has been here ever since.” Mrs. Vale wore a number of hats for Trinity over the years, including Director of Admissions.

One of the first people Dr. Dougherty hired in those initial days was Manuela Flores, who still takes care of the buildings and grounds at Palmer Trinity almost 30 years later. “I thought with thirty or more students, and only six faculty, we didn’t really need to hire anybody to do custodial work,” said Dougherty. “After the first week of school, the teachers began to complain. Literally, that week, Manuela knocked on my door and said, ‘Do you need anybody to help clean up around here?’ She

“Being part of the first faculty team of a new school meant having the rare and exciting opportunity to put in place the best of our combined experience in education without being held back by the status quo or layers of historical precedence. I remember implementing the advisory system, the service club to care for abused infants and children at the McLamore Children’s Center, the drama club with the assistance of Miami Dade professors, the Honors Seminar, tennis,

During the early years of Trinity Episcopal School, the students would often go on camping trips to study their natural surroundings.

perspectives

and our annual ski trip to the Laurentian Mountains in Québec. Being small gave us flexibility. We were focused on the essential elements of learning, not buildings or physical plant, so lessons ranged from observing Halley’s Comet on a camping trip in the Everglades to working with Dr. Una Ryan in the Cell Biology Lab at the

What drew me to Trinity Episcopal School was the spirit that was embodied by the staff and students.

University of Miami. Each teacher played many roles, which were redistributed, as we grew and added talent and students. That vision to look forward, to be open to change, to strive for continual improvement, and to remain flexible, is a driving force at Palmer Trinity to this day. In 1986, Dr. Dougherty wrote: ‘If we can keep open to change and view change as an ongoing activity… then we will continue to improve, making Trinity [and now Palmer Trinity!] the premier educational institution in Dade County,’” Katherine Vale recalls.

From the very beginning, it was decided that athletics were also to be part of the Trinity Episcopal School experience. Dr. Dougherty explained: “When I came down here from Michigan, I stopped in a number of schools and

talked to the Heads to get advice about starting a new school. I asked some, in particular, about sports. Somebody said to find a sport that nobody else is doing, and corner the market. At that point, there were 24 lacrosse teams in the entire state of Florida. I had hired Rick Maddox from Sea Camp to teach science at Trinity, and he happened to be a lacrosse player. So I told everyone that we were going to start a lacrosse team.” Within five years, the Trinity Episcopal lacrosse team had won a state championship under the leadership of Gary Robinson, beating the well-established St. Andrews School from Boca Raton.

With the rapid increase in enrollment, the need for more administrative help became clear. Trinity had graduated its first high school class, so Dr. Dougherty needed to find someone to help with scheduling classes, as well as handling grades and transcripts. Vivian Cerione, currently Palmer Trinity’s Registrar, was hired, and she remembers her first visit to the Trinity Episcopal campus:

“What drew me to Trinity Episcopal School was the spirit that was embodied by the staff and students. After meeting with the headmaster,

In 1984, its second year of existence, Trinity Episcopal School only had nine faculty members.

Trinity Episcopal School students visited McLamore School to play with young orphan children.

I soon realized that I wanted to be a part of his vision for the school. I found that Trinity was a beautiful sampling of the community that is South Florida. We were a spiritual community. Although the students came from many different countries and religious backgrounds, the Episcopal identity tied us together. It was at Trinity Episcopal School that I first experienced core values lived out on a daily basis.”

By 1990-1991, its final year, Trinity Episcopal School had a strong academic, value-based curriculum and a burgeoning athletics program, as well as an overall need to find more space for its students. Although Trinity had several acres of undeveloped land in South Miami, the property was deemed to be environmentally protected due to the presence of a rare stand of Dade County pines, which had been used extensively by the early settlers, as the lumber is resistant to rot and insect infestation. The

planned expansion onto this land was no longer feasible.

The world of prep schools is a small one, with parents, board members, faculty, and students often in contact and conversation with each other. The conventional wisdom of the time suggested that Trinity Episcopal had the financial resources, and Palmer Trinity School, several miles to the south, had a campus with plenty of room for growth.

A merger between Trinity Episcopal and Palmer Trinity School was in the works.

I found that Trinity was a beautiful sampling of the community that is South Florida.

“Trinity’s last year was a very good and positive year,” said Dougherty. “I remember—in the last pages of the last Trinity yearbook—there was a picture of the old campus, with the caption: ‘Good.’ Following that, there was a picture of the Palmer Trinity School campus, with these words beneath it: ‘Very good.’ I think everybody believed that the merger was going to be a very positive thing.”

Vivian Cerione, Manuela Flores and Katherine Vale, who were there at the beginning of Trinity Episcopal School, continue to work at Palmer Trinity School, today.

During a time when lacrosse was not popular in South Florida, Trinity Episcopal School became champions.

Palmer Trinity School Here and Abroad

By: DANNY REYNOLDS Director of Admission, Financial Aid and College Counseling

Palmer Trinity School is a unique institution that emphasizes global education as a vital part of its mission. As our students come from 35 different foreign countries, nearly half are bilingual and twenty percent speak more than two languages.

For the past twenty years, Palmer Trinity School has welcomed exchange students from across the globe—hosting over 100 high school exchange students from Iceland, Germany, China, Serbia, Australia, France and Spain. With an Upper School population of fewer than 400 students, this exchange program has further enriched our already diverse student population. When considering these achievements, combined with the international programs PTS continues to cultivate, it should come as no surprise that Palmer Trinity School was selected by The Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET) to receive the 2011 Global Classroom Award—recognizing schools who emphasize global understanding and international education. Our dedication to global study speaks for itself when we review our history of international development. In 2004, our desire to establish working relationships with schools around the globe led to a partnership with two schools in Sydney, Australia— meaning that students from Abbotsleigh School and Trinity Grammar would spend our fall semester at Palmer Trinity School, and our students would spend the second semester in Sydney. This program would not only build a connection between PTS and Abbotsleigh, but would also foster a year-long relationship between our host families. Almost forty students have participated in the program on both sides of the world. This program has not only become a student exchange,

Left: Flora Achille, one of our visiting French exchange students, was voted Homecoming Junior Princess this fall. Homecoming is an American tradition that does not occur in France.

Right: Director of Admission, Danny Reynolds, presents the 2011 Global Classroom Education Award to Head of School, Sean Murphy.

but an exchange of ideas and friendship for our school faculty and administration. In 2008, we added Colegio Marista Champagnat, in Salamanca, Spain, to our exchange network. In this program, students from Palmer Trinity School go to Salamanca in the fall, and Champagnat students attend PTS during our spring semester. As Colegio Marista Champagnat is a traditional Spanish school, our students must be fluent in the language to attend. Over twenty-five students have participated in this Spanish exchange program. In 2010, we added Lycee Georges Duby, in Aix-en-Provence, France. As a result of this collaborative program, we have been fortunate, for the past two years, to send six students to France and welcome six French students to campus for the fall semester. Students must be partially fluent in French in order to enroll. In addition to the semester programs in Salamanca and Aix-en-Provence, we also exchange up to 15 students each year for a short-term, three-week summer language immersion program with each of those European sister schools. Throughout the duration of the program, those students live with host families.

This past summer, seventeen PTS students traveled to Salamanca, Spain, to study at Colegio Marista Champagnat.

Today, these programs continue to flourish, and in addition, we offer several servicelearning and cultural opportunities abroad. While some students have participated in service opportunities in Costa Rica and Honduras, for the past ten years, we have sent many to Nicaragua to build homes during our winter and spring breaks. In March 2010, 85 PTS student musicians performed in three cities in China. For the past

Opposite page: Miranda Ricart ‘13 and Lea Aftimos ‘13 took a weekend trip to Paris while studying at Lycee Georges Duby, in Aix en Provence, France.

several years, we have held a week-long cultural exchange with Omiya High school in Saitama City, Japan. In fall of 2010, we welcomed forty students from Omiya High School to our campus, and this spring, again will go to Japan to reciprocate. In the past year alone, there have been eleven different opportunities for students to study abroad through a Palmer Trinity School exchange, lasting from a week to a semester. We are currently in the process of developing an exchange program with a school in China, as we have been teaching Mandarin at Palmer Trinity School for the past five years.

On October 29th, 2011, I was honored to attend the 4th Annual National School Conference on International Student Exchange, on behalf of Palmer Trinity School, where CSIET Board of Directors Chair, John Doty, presented me with our Global Classroom Award. Aside from the recognition this award provides, Palmer Trinity School also received money to help fund a student’s study abroad. Though we are a small school, our receipt of this award demonstrates our true commitment to cultural growth, and we are proud of the strides we have made, thus far. As a founding member of the Global Education Benchmark Group, which promotes increased global opportunities for students, PTS continues to emphasize the importance of global learning in the Palmer Trinity School community, and we welcome students of all nationalities to become a part of our family.

Cristina Hernandez ‘12 works with young children on the annual PTS Nicaragua Mission trip.

As part of our exchange program, PTS was fortunate to have two junior French exchange students on campus during the fall semester, Floriane Soulie and Flora Achille.

Virginia Hester's Gift: Palmer Trinity's Future

By : SUZANNE GOTTLIEB CALLEJA Director of Communications and Community Relations

Mrs. Hester currently resides in Cutler Bay

No one is more responsible for the new frontiers beckoning Palmer Trinity School’s future than Mrs. Virginia Hester. The wife of Captain William “Warfield” Hester, Jr. once a co-pilot for the Navy and Pan American World Airways (Pan Am), Mrs. Hester lived with her husband and their three children, William Warfield, III (1944-1965), Caroline H. Loken and Jane H. Dougherty on the 33-acred property that is now the site of Palmer Trinity School’s South Campus.

At age 94, Mrs. Hester is still full of spunk, verve, and love for her community. She retains her Southern charm, friendly smile and warm disposition. Most important, she is a source of inspiration for those close to her, and to this day, represents a beacon of faith and progress for all faculty, staff, students, parents, alumni, and friends of the Palmer Trinity School community.

Virginia Ayres (Hand) Hester, the daughter of Albert Powe Hand, a physician, and Rhoda Catherine, a piano teacher, was born on September 26, 1917, in the small town of Shubuta, Mississippi. Her parents raised four children there: her older sister, Caroline, older brother, Robert and twin brother, Albert Powe Hand, Jr. “I had a wonderful childhood,” she recalls. “It was like living in a park—children just kept running round and round.” When it came time for college, Virginia

spent two years at Belhaven College in Jackson, Mississippi and then transferred to Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia, where she graduated, having majored in English and minored in Latin and History. While there, she had the opportunity to study under the same professor her father once had at another university. “He told me my father was the most brilliant man he ever taught,” Virginia says. “I had a lot to live up to.”

During these college years, Virginia first met Captain Hester. Home on a school break, she was surprised to see that one of her brothers—a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity at Millsaps College, in Jackson, Mississippi—had brought home a fellow fraternity brother, Warfield, to spend the weekend in Shubuta. After returning to their respective schools, they kept in touch by writing each other letters, a habit that allowed their relationship to continue as Warfield attended naval aviation cadet training in Pensacola, and was thereafter stationed in Hawaii. He proposed to her, then 20 and a college graduate, while on leave. Parting ways again, Warfield returned to Hawaii and Virginia began work in her father’s medical practice until arrangements could be made for a wedding. In 1939, when

Upon becoming Mrs. William “Warfield” Hester, Jr., Virginia began her life on the road. After a month in San Diego, Warfield was stationed for a second time in Hawaii. Though he was able to fly out immediately with his squadron, Virginia lived with three other Navy wives until she sailed on the Matsonia, a popular cruise ship at the time, which took a week to get to Honolulu. “When I finally arrived, Warfield was waiting for me with leis,” Virginia remembers. After a short time in Hawaii, Warfield’s entire squadron was transferred to the naval air base in Manila, in the Philippines. “It was quite an undertaking,” she recalls. “There were 12 planes in the Patriot squadron, and they flew in formation all the way out. It was the first time the Navy had done that across the entire Pacific.” When his contract ended, Warfield left the Navy and accepted a job with Pan Am, flying out of Miami. The newlyweds returned to Hawaii for a few weeks before they were able to secure transportation back to the United States, eventually moving to Coconut Grove. It wasn’t long before Warfield was again transferred to California, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the couple spent much of the succeeding years moving between Miami, the west coast and New York. Returning to Miami for good in 1946, Virginia and Warfield lived in many neighborhoods, including High Pines, Coconut Grove, and Coral Gables—eventually purchasing the South Dade property that Palmer Trinity owns today, in 1951.

Returning to Miami for good in 1946, Virginia and Warfield lived in many neighborhoods, including High Pines, Coconut Grove, and Coral Gables—eventually purchasing the South Dade property that Palmer Trinity owns today, in 1951.

Captain Hester couldn’t get leave from his next station in San Diego, Virginia, her mother and her college roommate flew to California for the nuptials in Coronado, California.

When the Hester family first acquired the property, in what was then known as Cutler, with the intent to farm it, there were few residents for miles around. “Down further on Old Cutler Road, Mr. Williams had some mangos,” she says. “But that was it as far as Cutler area farms or groves were concerned. The nearest schools in 1955, when we built our home and moved to the grove in Cutler, were Perrine Elementary, Cutler Cove Private School, and Westminster Presbyterian Academy.” Devout Episcopalians,

Captain William Warfield Hester in July 2002.

the Hesters knew they needed an Episcopal church in their area. Thus, in the late 1950s, Virginia and Warfield became founding members of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Coral Gables. “I remember Sunday school in a movie theater before there was property,” her oldest daughter, Caroline, recalls. “There was a tent, where the current church is, before any buildings.” The Hester family soon became accustomed to their new life in Cutler, and lived happily on their South Dade property until 2002.

In 2001, Captain Hester was diagnosed with cancer, and the couple began exploring options to sell their acreage. As soon as they put it on the market, offers from builders started pouring in. “There had been all this building all around us,” she recalls. “Building, building, building. We didn’t want any of it.” They were determined to sell the land as a whole, and not in pieces. Warfield was initially approached by Tony O’Donnell, a

We had plenty of chances to sell, and developers wanted to give us a lot more money than Palmer Trinity. But we decided we'd rather sell it to Palmer Trinity.

family friend (his dad also flew for Pan Am) and member of the PTS Board of Trustees. Thereafter, “angels” in the Palmer Trinity School community contributed significant funds to enable the Board of Trustees to seriously entertain the possibility of acquiring the property. Following Captain Hester’s death in 2002, Jack Brumbaugh, PTS Board Chair, began a series of conversations with Virginia and her daughters, which ultimately resulted in the sale of the Hester property to Palmer Trinity School for future expansion.

Years later, in 2008, when Palmer Trinity wished to begin expanding onto their new property, the first Public Hearings took place between PTS and the Village of Palmetto Bay. Mrs. Hester shared a story with me about a group who was sending letters asking her to change her mind about supporting Palmer Trinity.

“They used to come over to me and complain,” she remembers. “One time, two women came, and they had a plate full of cookies. They said that Mr. Hester had no idea [Palmer Trinity] was going to build ‘this’ and ‘that,’ but—‘won’t you take the cookies?’ I had no interest in the controversy,” she recalls. “And I said ‘no thank you’ to the cookies.”

For the Hester family, preservation and community were more important than money. “By that time, there were houses being built all around, and I didn’t want to see anymore development. Warfield felt the same way I did,” she recalls. “We had plenty of chances to sell, and developers wanted to give us a lot more money than Palmer Trinity. But we decided we’d rather sell it to Palmer Trinity.” And with that said, Virginia Hester sold the land to the school, giving PTS the opportunity to provide students with additional learning facilities on the now combined 55 acres of land. Thus, 2003 marked an important year in Palmer Trinity School history—expanding the school’s horizon, shaping the future, and allowing us to dream and grow.

We will be forever indebted to the Hester family.

This oak tree, brought from the Hesters property in Mississippi in 1951, is preserved on the South Campus, today.

Captain and Virginia Hester with youngest daughter, Jane, in 1955 on their newly acquired 33-acre property (Courtesy of Caroline H. Loken)

Head of School, Sean Murphy and Mrs. Virginia Hester

Virginia Hester sold the land to the school, giving PTS the opportunity to provide students with additional learning facilities on the now combined 55 acres of land. Thus, 2003 marked an important year in Palmer Trinity School history—expanding the school's horizon, shaping the future, and allowing us to dream and grow.

Homecoming Day

On Saturday, October 29th, 2011, Palmer Trinity students, alumni, faculty, staff, parents, alumni parents and friends visited campus to celebrate our Homecoming festivities. The PTS Booster Club hosted a delicious BBQ, and fans came out to watch the Falcons take on the Northwest Christian Eagles in a highly-competitive, nail-biting football game. The 2011 Homecoming Court was announced at halftime, and the weekend festivities concluded with the Homecoming Dance at Alcazaba Lounge, later that night. A special thanks to all those who made this weekend possible. We look forward to seeing all of you again next year!

Stefano Aime ‘12 and Gina Tomasetti ‘12, 2011 Homecoming King and Queen

Top, left: Before the big game, our PTS Boosters Club hosted a BBQ .

Top, right: Our Varsity Cheerleaders stood on the sidelines to cheer on our Falcons.

Left: The PTS Falcons took on the Northwest Christian Eagles for the Homecoming 2011 football game.

The PTS Varsity Boys’ Football Team.

development

Let Imaginations Soar

In 2007, the Board of Trustees launched the Imagine Campaign, a comprehensive fundraising initiative to grow the school’s endowment and provide a foundation to help develop the new South Campus. We invited our school community to imagine how far we could go with an ambitious fundraising initiative that featured, at its core, lasting financial security through endowment growth.

Today, the campus is as bright and bustling as ever, and we now celebrate the successful completion of a major step forward for this amazing educational institution.

Palmer Trinity is proud to announce the Imagine Campaign raised a total of $9,043,702. The general endowment is currently at $4,442,047 which is a significant increase from $500,000 just four years ago. This first-ever, phased, multi-year, fundraising effort ended in June 2011 and we are most grateful to each and every donor who participated in this exciting campaign. In particular, we appreciate those families who invested in Palmer Trinity by giving to the school’s general endowment.

In May, we opened the “Hester property”, now called South Campus. The true blessing of opening the South Campus involves a far greater opportunity for potential donors seeing their “dollars at work” whether in support of a new front gate, a new entrance and roadways, several beautiful athletic fields, new tennis and outdoor court complex, and more than 1,000 new native trees. We thank you for your support in helping us finish the Imagine Campaign. In the days and years to come, we look forward to offering new opportunities for our continued progress and development on the South Campus.

Mr. and Mrs. Rashid Abbara

Ms. Gail Ackermann

Ms. Terri Agress

Mr. and Mrs. Ricardo Albarran

Mr. William Allen, Jr.

Ms. Patricia Almodovar

Dr. Ibrahim N. Al-Rashid

Mr. and Mrs. Juan Andreu

Mr. and Ms. Graham Andrew

Ms. Ashley Armato

Mr. and Mrs. John Arrien

Mr. and Mrs. Michael Baiamonte

Dr. and Mrs. Gerard J. Barrios

Mr. and Mrs. Ralph B. Bekkevold

Mr. Alex Bellanton

Drs. James and Susan Benenati

Mr. Joshua Blumenthal

Ms. Brook Bodie

Mr. Nick Bonheur

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Bonner

Mr. Chris Bradt and Mrs. Tania Castro-Bradt

Mr. David Bradt

Mr. and Mrs. Gregory Breen

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Brockway ‘82

Mr. Jack Brumbaugh

Mr. and Mrs. Victor Calderon

Mrs. Barbara Calev

Mr. and Mrs. Jose Calleja

Ms. Teresa Campos

Mr. Thomas Capo

Mr. Humberto Casariego and Dr. Teresa Carreno

Mr. and Mrs. Rafael Casas

Mr. Tim and Dr. Tricia Cassel

Ms. Cristie Castellano

Mrs. Erica Cerione

Ms. Vivian G. Cerione

Ms. Laurette Cestare

Mr. and Mrs. Karl Cetta

Mr. and Mrs. Jose Chao

Mr. and Mrs. Ashley Chapman Chevron Corporation

Mr. and Mrs. Ariel Chimelis

Mr. and Mrs. Douglas J. Chumbley

Mr. Jorge C. ColindresMarinakis

Ms. Christina Colon-Marrero

Mr. and Mrs. Michael A. Contreras

Rev. and Ms. Frank Corbishley

Mrs. Heather Coule Bardier

Ms. Catie Cunning

Mr. Dave Cutler

Mr. and Mrs. James W. Davidson

Mr. and Mrs. Mateo de Sola

Mrs. Joanna R de Velasco ‘98 and James Kohnstamm

Ms. Elena De Villiers

Mr. Paul K. Dean and Mrs. Rosa Castro-Dean

Mr. Brian Diaz

Mrs. Odalys Diaz

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Duarte

The DunspaughDalton Foundation

Mr. Victor Fasciani

Ms. Rita Feild

Mr. and Mrs. Jose Flores

Mrs. Alyse Fogarty Ferrer

Mr. and Mrs. Daniel H. Forman

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Fox

Mr. Samuel Friedman

Mr. and Mrs. Victor Fuller

Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Fullerton ‘95

Mr. Marc Barcelo

Mr. Carlos N Garces

Dr. and Mrs. Edmund Geller

Mr. and Mrs. Esteban Gerbasi

Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Godley

Mr. and Mrs. Howard L. Goldstein

Mr. and Mrs. Raul Gonzalez

Mr. and Mrs. William Gonzalez

Ms. Caroline R. Goodwin

Dr. and Mrs. John Griffin

Mr. and Mrs. Douglas A. Gross

Mr. and Mrs. Marcelo Guerra

Mrs. Helen Guo

Dr. and Mrs. Corey Harvin

Mr. Kirk Hatcher

Mr. Mark Hayes and Ms. Pamela Roza Hayes

Mrs. Robert C. Hector Hercules Tire and Rubber

Mr. and Mrs. Christopher O. Hew

Mr. and Ms. Edward Hibshman

Mr. Dwight L. Hill and Mrs. Mary A. Kennerk

Mr. and Mrs. Brett Hixon

Mr. Bennett W. Hoke

Mrs. Anne Jackway

Ms. Judi Jennings

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Johnson

Mr. Clint Jones

Mr. Dominic Jones

Dr. Douglas Jordan

Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Kalbac, Jr.

Mr. and Ms. Mitchell Kaplan

Mrs. Alexandra Katzman

Ms. Sarah Kemeness

Mrs. Gwendolyn K. Zanakos

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Klenk

Mr. and Mrs. Duane Kujawa

Mr. and Mrs. Fernando Lauria

Fr. Julian Jay Lentz

Dr. and Mrs. Leopoldo Llinas

Mr. and Mrs. Chris Locke

Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Loiacono

Mr. Stephen Ludovici ‘08

Mr. and Mrs. Edward P. Ludovici

Mr. and Mrs. Steven Lumish

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Lundgren

Ms. Tanya Manfrediz ‘00

Mr. and Mrs. Larry Marbert Marriott International, Inc.

Mr. Anselme Martino

Laura Massa and Horacio Alfano

Mr. Peter Masteller

Mr. and Mrs.

Mr. and Mrs.

Ms. Rashelle McGiboney

Mr. Robert McGlynn

Mr. Brian Mealey

Mr. and Mrs.

Mr. and Mrs. Marc A. Milgram

Mr. and Mrs. Harold Mock

Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Monson

Mr. Robert Moorhouse

Mr. and Mrs. William L. Morrison

Mr. and Mrs. Sean Murphy

Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Musgrave

Dr. Julianne Nagel

Mr. and Mrs. Mauricio Nicholls

Mr. Jeramy Nichols

Ms. Vicki A. O’Meara and Mr. Dale Gassaway

Mr. Waldo Ortega

Mr. Junior Park

Mr. Michael Pena

Mr. and Mrs. Pablo Perez

Mr. Michael Perlmutter

Mrs. DeAnna Pledger ‘85

Mr. and Mrs. Bernardo A. Portuondo

Mr. and Mrs. Orlando Quant

Mrs. April Queen

Mr. and Mrs. Carl Rachelson

Dr. and Mrs. Aldo Regalado

Mrs. Ana Regalado and Mr. Carl Hefley

Mr. Benjamine and The Rev. Jennie Lou Reid

Mr. Danny Reynolds

Mrs. Maria Trinidad Rittenhouse

Mr. Akbar Rizvi

Mr. Leonard Roberts and Dr. Elaine Klein

Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Robertson

Mr. James Robertson ‘83

Mr. and Mrs. Darryl Robinson

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Robledo

Mr. and Mrs. Alex C. Rodriguez

Ms. Emily Rolling

Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey A. Rose

Mr. and Mrs. Richard Rosen

Mr. and Mrs. Marc Rothfeldt

Mrs. Bronwen Rutter

Mr. and Mrs. Gus Sabogal

Mrs. Barbara Ceuleers Salazar

Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Sanchez

Mr. and Mrs. Hector Sardinas

Mr. Skylar Saucedo

Mr. and Mrs. Rainer Schael

Bishop and Mrs. Calvin O. Schofield

Mr. and Mrs. Chris Schollmeyer

Mr. Charles Scurr and Mrs. Barbara Ibarra-Scurr

Mr. and Mrs. Raul Segredo

Senior Class Gifts

Mr. Felipe Serrano ‘01

Mr. Brad Showalter

Ms. Kenley Smith

Mr. William Stanard

Ms. Julie Suris

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Tarbe

Ms. Mercedes Terranova

Ms. Eva Thompson Salas ‘04

Mr. W. James Tillett and Ms. Mary Burke

Mr. and Mrs. Roger Titley

The Rev. and Mrs. Roger Tobin

Mr. and Mrs. Peter Tolmach

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas M. Torbert

Mr. Joseph Traba

Mr. and Mrs. Fred Truby

Mrs. Joan Trujillo

Mr. and Mrs. Robert A. Vale

Dr. and Mrs. Guillermo Valenzuela

Mr. James Valle

Ms. Maria Vanegas

Dr. and Mrs. Paul Vignola

Mr. and Mrs. Luis Villanueva

Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey D. Vogel

Dr. Jake von Scherrer and Mrs. Jan Murphy

Mr. and Mrs. Marcelo Waisberg

Dr. and Mrs. Donald Watson

Mr. and Mrs. A. J. West

Ms. Leann Winn

Mrs. Sandi Wood

Mr. and Mrs. Arturo Xiques

Mr. and Mrs. Serafin Yanes

Mr. and Mrs. Mario Yanez

Mr. Greg Zamarripa

“The greatest gift we can give Palmer Trinity School and our students is the gift of education.”

— JACK BRUMBAUGH, Past Board of Trustee Chair

LEGACY GIVING

The greatest gift you can give to Palmer Trinity School, to our students and faculty, and to our mission and vision, is a legacy gift. This type of gift may offer valuable tax and financial benefits to your family and beneficiaries, as well as to Palmer Trinity. It may be as simple as a bequest in your will. We can help you plan a gift to support your priorities, take care of your family, and leave a legacy for generations of students. We are grateful for your generosity and contribution to Palmer Trinity School.

For more information, contact Lauren Dowlen at ldowlen@palmertrinity.org or (305) 969-4282

— PRESENTS — MONDAY APRIL 16

PALMER TRINITY SCHOOL GYMNASIUM

ABOUT THE BOOK FAIR

For twenty-one years, Palmer Trinity School has hosted the annual Book Fair, a wonderful event that brings approximately 250 people together to enjoy engaging speakers, book sales from Books & Books, student artwork, a delicious brunch, and the opportunity to view 30 tables decorated in a variety of different themes! Book sales will also take place throughout the week in the small dining room.

7:30 a.m.

BOOK SALES, COFFEE, AND TABLE VIEWING

9:00 a.m.

BRUNCH SERVED TICKETS: $50 .00

PLEASE MAKE RESERVATIONS BY APRIL 6TH CONTACT: PEG MUSGRAVE (305) 969-4242

Class Notes strengthen the connection of our Alumni community to their classmates and their alma mater.

Class Agents

as of 11/07/11

1973 DAVID WOOD mdavidwood@comcast.net

1974 JULIE (COLEMAN) MANSFIELD juliemansfield@comcast.net

1975 LISA (LOMBARD) HAYDEN lisa@2haydens.com

1976 ANDY HESSEN hesstang@aol.com

1977 CRAIG ZIMMETT cazfla@aol.com

1978 TOM MAGENHEIMER tmagmai@aol.com

1979 LORI (FOGEL) LA FORGIA ljlaforgia@gmail.com

1980 DAWN (HOYT) KIDD dawn_kidd@teachnet.edb.utexas.edu

1981 LEE STERLING psports@bellsouth.net

1982 TRACY (TABOR) SHELOWITZ tracy@martintabor.com

1983 MARY (JOYCE) WILBURN marywilburn@bellsouth.net

1984 PETER CUTTER guycutter@aol.com

1985 DALE BENNETT RB9999@aol.com

JOHN MALLOY jcmalloy@malloylaw.com

1986 JOELLE (WAGSHUL) STEINBERG jwagshul@aol.com

1987 ETIENNE FONT etienne@claimscounsel.com

1988 ELENA (ESSEN) ENDARA partyuv5@bellsouth.net

AlumNews is the first section Alumni turn to when they receive the Aerie Magazine, so this section is full of exciting and updated information. To send us news for our next issue, please log on to www.PalmerTrinity.org and click ‘Alumni.’

1989 SCOTT SHELFER scott@exactaland.com

1990 PETER BAUMBERGER psb@rbrlaw.com

ALDEN (DUNWODY) PIMENTEL Pimentel@bellsouth.net

1991 DEREK FISHER derekfisher7@gmail.com

1992 JOY (BERG) JOHNSON jeremyandjoy@yahoo.com

1993 AMANDA MATALON amatalon@arnoldoil.com

1994 CHARLES BAUMBERGER catcay@yahoo.com

CAMPBELL WALKER cwalker@lincolnharris.com

1995 KAITLIN BLAZEJACK kkblaze@gmail.com

1996 LYNLEY (WALKER) CIOROBEA lynley3@yahoo.com

1997 BRETT FRENCH brettfrench@yahoo.com

1998 BRIAN GERSHEN briangershen@gmail.com

PRESTON DICKERSON prestond@hotmail.com

NATHAN ZEDER nz1305@aol.com

1999 BELINDA FRIERI belifrieri@yahoo.com

2000 SOOZIE KLOCK seklock@gmail.com

2001 WES FARRELL wesfarrell@floridaattorney.com

AlumNews

2002 ADRIA (JENKINS) YOUNG juiceeasapeach@aol.com

2003 DAX TEJERA dax.tejera@gmail.com

LAURA ATECA laura.ateca@gmail.com

2004 CORINA LOPEZ celopez721@gmail.com

2005 KATEY O’REGAN katey613@yahoo.com

2006 BRANDON MCNARY bmcnary@citco.com

ED LUCKMANN luckmann.e@neu.edu

AMANDA OMACHONU amandaom22@gmail.com

2007 WILL MORRISON willmorrison07@yahoo.com

2008 ARIEL MOGER aem2178@columbia.edu

MEGAN CUNNINGHAM megan215@gwu.edu

2009 JESSICA MAZON jessica.mazon@gmail.com

MARCEL CONTRERAS marcelc28@aol.com

NATALIA MATALLANA natismata@hotmail.com

2010 VICTORIA FERNANDEZ vifer18@gmail.com

2011 ALEXA CAJIGA acajiga@gmail.com

KATIE DIFEDE krdifede@loyno.edu

1973

Marretta (Waln) Chuechunklin teaches Pre-Kindergarten at Whispering Pines Elementary School, in Cutler Bay.

1974

Lisa (Arnold) Franklin currently lives in Augusta, GA, working in an architectural firm called Woodhurst Architects.

1975

Lisa (Lombard) Hayden writes, “I’ve been in Atlanta since mid-1993, but still miss the ocean very much. Met my husband, John, here and we are going on 15 years of marriage! We live in Virginia Highland, just down the street from Piedmont Park, in a little brick bungalow. We really enjoy our in-town neighborhood. I do Environmental Compliance consulting work in Marietta, GA for various industrial facilities, and on my days off, I enjoy traveling and scuba diving.”

1977

Craig Zimmett was on campus for Homecoming 2011, and lent his convertible Mustang for the Homecoming Court Halftime Presentation. Thanks, Craig!

1979

Steve Veingrad visited campus during Homecoming weekend to watch former teammate, Lee Sterling ’81, get inducted in to the Athletic Hall of Fame. Steve was inducted last year and it holds a very special place in his heart.

1980

Suzanne Graves lives in Homestead, FL and earned her BA in Communications from USF. Craig Silverman lives in Buford, GA.

1981

Andy Vorzimer writes, “My wife and I welcomed the birth of our son, Ethan. Our daughter, Haley,

recently graduated from high school, and is now a freshman at Indiana University. I recently had an article published by the International Court of Justice on International Surrogacy Agreements, and have been invited to give speeches in Barcelona and London, this summer, on crossborder reproduction issues.”

Lee Sterling was inducted in to the Athletic Hall of Fame during Homecoming weekend, with many family and friends in the audience.

After graduating from Palmer, Lee attended Southwest Texas State University, now Texas State University, and played football as a quarterback and punter. He graduated from the University of Miami in 1985, with a degree in Finance. He is the President of Paramount Sports, Inc. and appears on over 25 sports radio stations nationwide each Friday during football season. Every Friday, Lee is a featured writer in the “Joe vs. The Pro” column of the Miami Herald. He is married to Kim Levin and has two daughters, Sidney (14) and Brooke (12).

1982

Hart Baur has participated in Alumni College and Career Day for the past three years. As a result, he has been able to work with current PTS students by offering them internship opportunities writing for his website www.insidecelebrities.com. It’s a great opportunity for students to connect with Alumni while receiving vital experience in the writing field.

1983

James Robertson is working in New Delhi, India with Alliance India. The India HIV/AIDS Alliance (Alliance India) is a diverse partnership that brings together committed organizations and communities to support sustained responses to HIV in India. Complementing the Indian national program, they work through capacity-building, knowledge sharing, technical support and advocacy. Through their network of partners, they support the delivery of effective, innovative, community-based HIV programs to key populations affected by the epidemic.

1984

Roy Weinfeld played with former teammates in the Alumni Soccer Game and later cheered on the Falcon Football Team.

1985

Beth (Brockway) Serrate and husband, Phil, have their 7th-grade triplet boys, Brock, Chad, and Hunter, at PTS this year. Beth is Booster Club President, Alumni Annual Fund Ambassador, an event volunteer and sits on the Admission Advisory Board.

Kevin Russo played in the Alumni Soccer Game and had a great time reconnecting with old friends.

Craig Baur was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame during

Homecoming weekend. Craig and his family drove to Miami from Virginia, where they own commercial real estate, to take part in the event. After graduating from Palmer Trinity School, Craig attended James Madison University and played varsity soccer all four years. He made the CAA AllFreshman Team in 1985, Third Team in 1987, and Second Team in 1988. He finished his career tied for third all-time in JMU assists. He and his wife, Ginger, have two kids, Gunner (6) and Isla (3). Craig is also is involved in the family business, Nicamaka, with his brother Hart Baur ‘82.

1986

The 1986 Cross Country Team was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame during Homecoming

ALUMNI REUNION WEEKEND 2012

Mark your calendars for the upcoming Reunion Weekend!

FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2012

7:00 – 10 p.m.

Cocktail Reception in the PTS Dining Room

SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 2012

11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Alumni Field Day Alumni Coed Softball Game Alumni Lacrosse Game

7:00 p.m. Class Reunions

If you would like to help with your Class Reunion, please contact Monica Sanchez, Director of Alumni and Event Relations at (305) 969-4210 or msanchez@palmertrinity.org

weekend. Those inducted were Coach Mike Becker, Tony Gargano ‘87, Mike Reynolds ‘88, Clifton Thompson ’88, Todd Snyder ‘88, and Kevin Mahan ’87.

1987

Tony Gargano and his family came all the way from Bellingham, WA to participate in the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Kevin Mahan owns his own restaurant in NYC and enjoyed catching up with old teammates during Homecoming weekend.

1988

Russell Mofsky is currently teaching Pre-Kindergarten. When asked what he loves about his job, he said: “The amazing and creative things I learn from my students.” Russell has been at Country Day for three years now, and outside of work, he enjoys guitar, music, and sleight of hand... Passions that he brings to the school with him!

Stephen S. Bodden, P.A. owns his own law practice on Miami Beach.

1989

Scott Shelfer, his wife, Carrie, and their two kids, Cami ‘26 and Beck ‘28 moved to Cleveland so that he can oversee Exacta Drafting America, as well as Exacta’s new land-surveying companies in Texas, Maryland, Virginia and Illinois.

Darren Zemnick works at Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, CA.

1990

Peter Baumberger, Ricky Jofre, Victor Balestra, and Virgil Guma attended the Alumni Soccer Game during Homecoming Weekend. All had a great time catching up with Coach du Feu and former teammates.

1991

Cheri (Simpkins) Gardner currently lives in Maryland, and was recently married.

1992

Mark Murray owns The Murray Law Firm, in Atlanta, GA.

Tony de Velasco was one of four University professors who received the 2011 University of Memphis Alumni Association Distinguished Teaching Award for providing classroom excellence. Each accepted a $2,000 prize during Convocation in April. Tony is inspired by the classical ideals of liberal education, and strives to equip students for an active life in the public arena by training them in the art of rhetoric. He has earned praise for his passionate pursuit of this civic mission. One of his students was quoted saying, “His ability to engage the class, as a whole, is unique and creates an environment where everyone leaves learning something every class. I will apply his teaching in my interactions for the rest of my life.”

1993

Corey Hunter, M.D. is living in NYC. Corey specialized in Pain Management and has his own private practice.

1994

Charles Baumberger, his wife, Diana, and daughter Olivia (3), came to PTS for the Alumni Soccer Game during Homecoming weekend.

1995

Anne Beaumont (Nichols) Neithhardt works at Akerman in Miami, in their marketing department.

Andrew Bennett and his family moved back to Miami from Honduras in June. He ran the Chicago Marathon in October and raised money for a charity called Glasswing International. While living in El Salvador, he volunteered for Glasswing International as an English teacher in the public schools. Glasswing does many great things for El Salvador that foster volunteerism and involvement from the private sector, NGO world, and the government to move El Salvador forward with respect to education and health issues.

Corey (Krissel) Gonzalez, her husband, Rene, and son, Jack (age 2), welcomed their second son, Reid, into this world on October 7th

Chris Block and his wife, Catherine, welcomed their second child, Annabelle, in April 2011. Their son, Sander (age 2), is thrilled to be a big brother!

1997

Annabelle Rinehart and Emily Kollars were married on Saturday, September 23 at Emporio, a restaurant in New York. Annabelle is a managing director at Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher, a New York public relations firm. She develops and implements investor and media relations programs for clients. She graduated from Skidmore College.

1996

Eva (Hinton) Hartman writes, “I left Silver Hill Financial, in 2005, when we were living in Manhattan, and we lived in London for a year after that. In 2008, we moved to D.C. for my husband’s job at a law firm.” Eva graduated with a master’s degree from Georgetown in May.

Emily is a freelance exhibition and set designer in New York.

Christina (Rosas-Guyon) Hart will sing at Grandparents Day at Palmer Trinity School, this November. She will be accompanied by husband, Jason. Come join the PTS community as we watch Christina and celebrate this very special day!

TONY DE VELASCO '92

CAROLINE GOODWIN, COSTA GRILLAS '97, ELENA DE VILLIERS AND BRIAN ALONSO '97

ANDREW BENNETT '95

PROFILE :

Dawn with her husband, Kelly, and two children, Colton (24) and Mary Dawn (19) in Berlin

Dawn Hoyt Kidd '80

Math Teacher, Texas School for the Deaf

Dawn Hoyt Kidd joined Palmer Trinity School in her eighth-grade year, the first year middle school grades were added, and was graduated from Palmer Trinity School in 1980. She attended Vanderbilt University until her graduation in 1984, where she pursued a double major in Special Education and Spanish Education in the Peabody College of Education and Human Development. In 1985, Dawn received her Master’s in Deaf Education from The University of Texas at Austin, and later earned her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the same university. Currently, Dawn is a math teacher at Texas School for the Deaf, a residential school for deaf or hard-of-hearing students in Austin, TX.

Like most of our students today, when Dawn was at Palmer Trinity School, she was overly-involved and extremely motivated. Between her classwork, club participation and athletic involvement as a Palmer Trinity School cheerleader, Dawn recalls, “I spent more time at Palmer than I spent at home.” On her summers off, she was already preparing for a future in teaching by working as an Arts and Crafts Counselor at Ransom Everglades Day Camp. It was during those summers that her desire to teach was affirmed—the joy she gained from teaching her students and witnessing their sense of accomplishment continues to inspire her today.

Dawn’s decision to work specifically with hearing-impaired children stems from her fascination with American Sign Language (ASL), which she saw at length for the first time in 1979, during Hurricane David, when an ASL translator on a local news station piqued her interest. As a student, she studied Spanish and French at Palmer Trinity School and welcomed the opportunity to learn more methods of communication. She took two semesters of ASL in college, later perfecting her abilities when she worked as a teacher’s aide for a deaf teacher. By the time her position ended, Dawn had attained her interpreter’s certification, and she later worked as an ASL interpreter during graduate school. Though there are many challenges associated with her unique teaching position, they are little compared to the rewards she gains from her students. “Deaf people can do anything except hear, so the communication aspect is vital,” Dawn says. “The challenge is getting all of my students to look at me at the same time.” Teaching at Texas School for the Deaf for over twenty years now, Dawn has made many lasting memories with her students. Her favorite experience was traveling to Rochester, New York, with her middle

school math team, for a competition at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf. Competing against twenty other teams of deaf and hearing-impaired students from around the United States, Dawn’s students placed first! “[The students] were certainly proud of themselves,” she recalls. “This is my favorite experience because they were able to meet and compete against other deaf students who were all excited about learning and furthering their knowledge.” Throughout her tenure, Dawn has also had the opportunity to build lasting relationships with her students. “I have been in this position long enough that I have taught children of my former students!” She says. “I enjoy seeing how [my students] have grown, landed wonderful jobs, and started families.”

Looking back on her memories of Palmer Trinity School, Dawn attributes many of her positive career choices to the people she met, and experiences she had, at Palmer Trinity School. “I have a treasure trove of memories I will always remember about Palmer Trinity School,” she says. “Palmer was such an enjoyable school to attend, with an environment of positive support.” Her inspiration to teach, however, came from a very special English teacher whom PTS continues to recognize today: Mr. Bob Yarbrough. “Mr. Yarbrough was the biggest influence. He was an educator with high standards, and he worked with students individually to help us succeed,” Dawn recalls. “I worked hard in Mr. Yarbrough’s class, as well as classes with my other Palmer teachers. Today, I know it still takes hard work to do a good and thorough job, and I have carried this with me through college, graduate school and in my professional life.”

From one Palmer student to hundreds of others, what final piece of advice would this Pirate give our current Falcons? “Well, of course it is crucial to do your best and learn as much as you can,” she says. But most importantly: “Get to know at least one teacher very well—he or she can be a wonderful mentor to you.”

Dawn and her middle school students at the Rochester Institute of Technology, for a math competition, in 2010

By:

MIKE BECKER

TWENTY ONE team points tallied at The Florida State High School Cross Country Championships! A FHSAA record for the fewest team points scored in a state meet since the inception of the “Fall Only” Cross Country Championship in 1954.

On the morning of November 18th, 1986, when Palmer’s fifth runner crossed the finish line in 7th place, it all came into focus for the coach of this “Off-theWall Seven,” a team which undeniably must be considered one of the most unusual championship teams ever. Twenty one points totaled at a state meet was more outrageous than any coach could have dreamed of, even in his wildest of fantasies. Though twenty five years have passed since that day, not only does that record still stand, but so do the memories and lessons of that day—at least to those who were part of that infamous season.

The season did not really begin on September 8th 1986, when seven runners from Palmer Trinity School (a school of only 200 boys) defeated 25 schools at the University of Miami’s Greentree Invitational. Nor did the team’s momentum truly get rolling when this rag tag bunch defeated 51 schools of all sizes at the prestigious John I. Leonard Meet at John Prince Park. No, the seeds of this championship team were sown in the years prior. The seeds were sown from the hundreds of miles run on the hot, South Florida concrete. They were sown from the hills run during the team’s summer training camp in New Hampshire, and they were sown from remembering the lingering disappointment of several “runner up” finishes leading up to the prolific 1986 race. After backto-back Class A Cross Country “runner up” finishes in 1984 and 1985, it was apparent that 1986 would be Palmer’s year, the year of the “Off-the-Wall Seven.” To the coach, it was no surprise that by the time the fall of 1986 had arrived, the stage was set and the comedic cast was ready to perform.

Rent” on the chest, rather than “Palmer Trinity School.” Of course, this group of harriers needed to have shorts that matched their rebellious tops. After unanimously voting down the coach’s suggestion for plain green running shorts, the seniors went to a local dollar store, bought and ran in $1.00 Mickey Mouse Boxer shorts—yes, that’s right—Mickey Mouse boxer shorts.

The uniforms were only the beginning of this group’s desire to assert its affably rebellious spirit. In the days before computer timing, when meets were often scored by tongue depressors given to runners standing in long lines in chutes, this group would take off their bib numbers after their race, and replace their names with titles such as Chuck Wagon and Frank N. Stein before turning in their places. Somehow, we all lived in a less serious age back then, and the meet directors were usually laughing too hard to disqualify the kids. After one race, the team’s captains ordered a birthday gram to be sung to a beloved local

In retrospect, one might think that this group would have been perceived by their competitors as pompous and inappropriate. Upon hearing of their antics today, one would surmise that this group would have been disqualified on many occasions for sportsmanship issues. But just the opposite was true.

meet director, but only after the meet director appeared to be getting fined by that same singer (dressed as a policeman) for administering a meet in a public park without proper zoning. At another meet, before present-day uniform rules, each runner painted his body with water paint to resemble his favorite Smurf, and subsequently proceeded to bleed his colors over the entire 3-mile course.

The job of “coach,” I felt, was to allow all of the individuals on a team to be loose, and to permit them to develop into the type of champions that each was destined to become. It was not the coach’s role, I believed, to try to make each runner to conform to his standards, and to force each to “act and to run” in a certain way. What a year it could be for that coach with this talented group! I have always believed that being a champion first requires knowing who you are, and then staying the course. The individuals on this team certainly always knew who they were, and were comfortable with being rebellious. Cross country runners often rebel, so as to appear to some observers to be a “little out of the mainstream.” But for this team to conclude its season as the most dominant team in its classification in FHSAA State Meet history, it was only fitting for these guys to be “way” out of mainstream. In fact, these guys swam in their own stream.

The “Off-the-Wall Seven” possessed an identity and image that were reflected in their uniforms. Though the school had bought team uniforms five years earlier, there was a need for new ones in 1986. But although there was enough money for new football jerseys every year, cross country jerseys needed to last five years. Such logic may make sense to conformists—but not to this team. The 1986 Palmer Cross Country team’s response to this line of reasoning? The design and printing of seven tank tops that read “Space for

In retrospect, one might think that this group would have been perceived by their competitors as pompous and inappropriate. Upon hearing of their antics today, one would surmise that this group would have been disqualified on many occasions for sportsmanship issues. But just the opposite was true. In fact after every race, the other teams would mingle with this gang that couldn’t run straight, and actually warm up and cool down together. Other teams, and many other coaches, gravitated towards this magnetic bunch so as to see what shenanigans would come next.

This team left its mark all throughout South Florida in 1986. Losing only one race all year, to a strong AAAA team, on a day when the its fourth and fifth runners were being rested, Class A Palmer was the top team in all of South Florida that year, defeating many of the state’s powerhouses. But what was more important to the coach than the victories was that this group defined a different way of achieving success; a philosophy that would guide his coaching philosophy for years to come.

It has now been twenty-five years since the finest team race I ever saw was completed. Although I have not seen most of the “Off-the-Wall Seven” in years, I have been blessed to have coached hundreds of other successful athletes and dozens of successful teams in the years since. Yet, to be honest, rarely does the week come when my thoughts do not drift back to the team that helped me learn the lessons that I would need to evolve into the coach I am today. When I retire from coaching someday, I am sure that no season will mean more to me than 1986 did.

1998

Jason M. Baur, J.D. was admitted to practice law in Florida. His areas of concentration are in Real Estate Law, International Probate and Estate Law, and Corporate Law. He received his B.A. from Florida State University, Cum Laude and his J.D. from St. Thomas University School, Cum Laude. He is a member of the Florida Bar Association (Member: Real Property Probate and Trust Law division) and the GermanAmerican Lawyers Association.

Gladys Hernando was married in July 2011.

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda has been given a three-year $350,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She is currently an assistant professor at the University of Miami School of Nursing & Health Studies and will use the grant to develop and test an intervention for preventing teen dating violence among Hispanics. This Nurse

Faculty Scholar Award, given to only 12 nurse educators throughout the United States, honors junior faculty who show outstanding promise as future leaders in academic nursing. To receive the award, scholars must be registered nurses who have completed a research doctorate in nursing or a related discipline, and who have held a tenure-eligible faculty position at an accredited nursing school for no more than five years. “Being named a RWJF Nurse Faculty Scholar is

a huge honor,” Rosa stated. “As a Nurse Faculty Scholar, I am looking forward to being connected to other scholars, as well as an extraordinary network of mentors and resources. I am doubly thrilled because so many of my professional role models through the years have had a connection to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Under the program’s guidance, I hope to become a better faculty member and leader in my institution and area of research.” For her research project,

JOVEN: Juntos Opuestos a la Violencia Entre Novios (Together Against Teen Dating Violence), Rosa will create a community-based participatory intervention addressing the prevention of teen dating violence among Hispanic high-school freshmen.

1999

Brittney (Hoffman) McCabe is serving as an Alumni Annual Fund Ambassador, for the PTS Alumni Office, this year.

John Zavitsianos had a great time visiting old friends and making new ones at the Alumni Soccer Game during Homecoming weekend.

2000

Tanya Manfrediz is traveling overseas to capture her family roots, through photography, in Cuba. She currently has family that still lives in Cuba and will visit them for the first time in 29 years. Tanya currently lives in South Beach and works as the Gallery Director of the Peter Lik Gallery. You may have seen the artist she works for on a television series that appears on the weather channel every

Thursday night called From The Edge with Peter Lik. Tanya studied photography and also freelances for National Geographic’s television series Dangerous Encounters. Tanya says, “If you are ever on Lincoln Road, please stop by the gallery and say hello. I would love to see fellow alumni.”

ADMISSION ADVISORY BOARD

The PTS Admission Advisory Board (AAB) was formed in 2009 with the direction and collaboration of Danny Reynolds, Director of Admission, Financial Aid and College Counseling, and Monica Sanchez, Director of Alumni and Event Relations. The purpose of this organization, which consists of 20 active alumni and several community leaders, is to discuss the school’s current Admission standing, events occurring at the school, school statistics and ways to get parents involved in promoting the school to the community. The AAB met on October 13th, 2011, at Egg & Dart in the Design District, which is owned by alumnus Costa Grillas ‘97. Head of School, Sean Murphy greeted our alumni and gave an update on the overall progress of Palmer Trinity School. The AAB gathers twice a year and will meet again in May 2012.

The PTS Admission Advisory Board met for dinner at Egg and Dart, in the Design District.

Monica Sanchez and Amanda (Chrycy) Thompson ‘96

GLADYS HERNANDO '98

CLASS

Rebecca Williams moved to Venice, CA and is working for Crispin Porter + Bogusky out of their LA office.

2001

Jacob Fuerst writes, “My first publication is available online and the manuscripts for my next two publications have been submitted and should be available by December.” His article is titled, “LASER Deposited Engineered Surfaces for Orthopedic Implants for Increased Device Longevity.”

Jonathan Blackmore graduated from Nova Southeastern Law School in 2009 and passed the Florida Bar that same year. He is an associate with Phelan Hallinan, PLC in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

2002

Tamara Rutter will be taking the writer’s training for Motely Fool starting in July. She was one of only six writers chosen from many candidates. She has also started a social media marketing company called SocialMe and has several clients already. As she is expanding her networking, she would love it if you would “like” SocialMe on Facebook!

Alexis (Jenkins) Reeves lives in Alpharetta, GA and married Antonio Reeves on May 28, 2011. Antonio works as an Accountant for WoodGroup Power Plant Services.

Rachel Brown recently moved to Sarasota, after living in Mississippi and Louisiana, and is working at a real estate office.

at the University of Chicago, and I’ll finish in June of 2012. I’m also recently engaged to Robert Douglass, whom I met as an undergrad at Haverford College. He’s an architect in Philadelphia and we plan to wed September 29th, 2012.”

Sarah Brown graduated from UM with a degree in Sports Administration and Political Science in May 2006. Since getting her Masters in Marine Affairs and Policy at UM in May 2008, Sarah has been working for Royal Caribbean. She began as an intern, and was later hired full

Santiago Tenorio writes, “I recently moved to London from New York. It’s going great so far. London is a wonderful city, a lot less hectic than NY! I’m working on a new internet venture called Epicurely.com that aims to make it easier for anyone who loves to cook to organize food-related events with people in their community. We are launching in London to focus on the European market initially, but hope to expand to the U.S. soon!

The project is still in its infancy, but we are moving along quickly and hope to launch a private Beta site by the end of this year. It’s an exciting venture for me because it touches on my passion for food, technology and social entrepreneurship. I’ll make sure to keep you all posted!”

2003

Jessica Johnson writes, “I just started a master’s program in Humanities

2004

Chris Sanz was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame during Homecoming weekend. Chris graduated from Boston College with a BA, attended FIU College of Law, and is now attending the University of Miami School of Law LLM Real Property Development Program for a Masters of Law. He passed the Florida Bar in July, and was recently hired by Shutts & Bowen, a law firm in downtown Miami. He still plays basketball and recently spent a lot of time traveling. He lived in Europe for six months, traveled through Asia for three months, toured in Africa for two months and climbed up to base camp on Mount Everest.

2005

Lene Staertzel works as a summer intern at the United Nations in New York.

Katherine Wood is in her third year at Juilliard and is doing great. Faculty member, Elena De Villiers, had the chance to catch up with Katherine in NYC over the summer, while she was visiting her daughter Christina (Rosas-Guyon) Hart ’97.

time. She was then sent to work in San Diego with Royal. A great opportunity was presented to her by Royal to come back to Miami and work aboard one of their Caribbean ships as a Marine Engineer First Captain. She has been working on the ship for over a year.

Mariana Foley completed her Post Graduate degree in Interior Architecture at the Inchbald School of Design, London in 2010. She also did a short course at the New School of Design Parsons, NY and received a Bachelor of Arts in Art History from Boston University in 2009. Over the past two years, her personal

(continues

ALEXIS (JENKINS) REEVES '02 AND ANTONIO REEVES

TINA LANE, MANUELA FLORES, WILLIAM PITTINOS '02 AND MARIN BROWNELL

OF 2000 ALUMNI GATHER IN MIAMI, FL

Athletic Hall of Fame

Each year, on Homecoming Day, Palmer Trinity School recognizes exceptional athletes in the school’s history by adding PTS alumni to the Athletic Hall of Fame. The purpose of the Athletic Hall of Fame is to honor the achievements of men and women who have been associated with the School by properly recognizing those individuals who have made a major contribution to the success of the overall athletic program. Each year, the Athletic Hall of Fame Selection Committee meets, reviews nominates candidates and votes. This year, we were proud to induct three individuals, as well as an entire team, to this prestigious group of athletes. Lee Sterling ’81 played on championship football teams from his eighth-grade to senior years, was an All-Conference and All-County baseball player, and qualified for States in track. Craig Baur ’82 was All-Conference in soccer, cross country and track all four years at Palmer Trinity School and set a school record in soccer, scoring 44 goals in one season. Chris Sanz ’04 made the Miami Herald All-Dade Team for both football and basketball, and currently holds the school record for scoring over 2,130 points as a five-year Varsity Boys’ Basketball starter at PTS. Finally, the 1986 Palmer Boys’ Cross Country Team was Palmer’s first and only true FHSSA sponsored State Championship team. Congratulations to all of these extraordinary athletes for your outstanding contributions to the Palmer Trinity School Athletic Program.

1986 Cross Country Team

LEE STERLING ‘81

- Football, Baseball, Track, Basketball, Soccer

CRAIG BAUR ‘85

- Soccer, Cross Country, Track

CHRIS SANZ ‘04

- Football, Basketball

1986 CROSS COUNTRY TEAM

STEVE VEINGRAD ‘79

- Football, Wrestling, Basketball

DIANA FAHMIE ‘90

- Volleyball, Soccer, Softball

NATHAN ZEDER ‘98

- Tennis, Basketball

KYLE RUTTER ‘04

- Baseball, Football

LIZ CORSON ‘78

- Basketball, Softball, Volleyball

CINDY GARGANO ’81

- Volleyball, Softball, Basketball, Track

HART BAUR ’82

- Soccer, Track, Cross Country

REID KLINE ’96

- Lacrosse, Football, Soccer

PERRY SMITH ‘85

- Football, Baseball, Basketball

RICKY JOFRE ‘90

- Football, Soccer, Track

SARAH (FERGUSON) SHEPPARD ‘92

- Softball, Volleyball, Soccer

GARY LESNIK ‘84

- Football, Soccer, Baseball, Tennis

DAN SARMIENTO ‘89

- Football, Basketball, Track

CHARLES BAUMBERGER ‘94

- Football, Soccer, Track

MARK OLIVER (COACH)

- Varsity Baseball, Varsity Softball, JV and Varsity Football, Women’s Varsity Basketball

JOE MANCUSO ’90

- Football, Track, Basketball

DENISE (CIPRIANO) HINMAN ’91

- Softball, Soccer, Volleyball

PRESTON DICKERSON ’98

- Lacrosse, Football, Basketball

TRACEY KING ’00

- Volleyball, Soccer

JIM MAHER ‘75

- Soccer, Baseball, Basketball, Football

DEB (FRIEDMAN) MARGOLIS ‘88

- Softball, Basketball, Volleyball, Track

MIKE REYNOLDS ‘88

- Cross Country and Track

LARRY HOUSEHOLDER ‘75

- Baseball, Basketball, Football

JULIE WALDO ‘78

- Golf, Volleyball, Softball

LARRY JACOBSON ‘84

- Baseball, Basketball

JOHN LEDERMAN ‘87

- Football, Basketball, Baseball

SPENCER (SHELFER) MOORMAN ‘92

- Tennis

CAMPBELL WALKER ‘94

- Football, Baseball

Lee Sterling ‘81

Craig Baur ‘85

Chris Sanz ‘04

development in the field of Interior Design has led her to confirm that this is where her passion strongly lies. She aims to work within a challenging environment where she can show her ability to work well in a team with good time management and at a high standard under pressure. Having lived in the Philippines, Taipei, Buenos Aires, Orange County, Miami, Boston, Venice and London, Mariana has an understanding of International Design and its relation to culture. To further this understanding, her MA is focused upon the rapidly changing Interior Design market in China. For inspiration, she draws upon the influences of where she has resided and travelled, as well as photography, music and film to create concepts that take a life of their own within her spaces. She is bilingual in Spanish and English, proficient in Italian and learning French. Mariana has worked for Hunt Hamilton Zuch and is currently a Junior Designer for Lynne Hunt London where she is involved in multiple Hotel and Leisure projects around the world.

She is also working on a private residence in Alabang, Philippines. After graduating from College of the Holy Cross in 2009, with a degree in Psychology, Alejandro Melean decided to pursue a pro-soccer career in Bolivia, where he is having great success. On April 2nd, 2010 he had his professional debut, playing for La Paz Futbol Club, where he played until November 2010. In January 2011, Oriente Petrolero—reigning national champs at that time— signed him to play, and he has been having a very successful year!

Noelle Robillard and Brock Blue ‘01 are currently living in Denver, CO. They announced their engagement in May and are planning a Spring 2012 wedding in South Florida. Noelle and Brock both graduated from Southern Methodist University and met while living in Fort Lauderdale. They moved to Denver in September 2010, where Brock is a product manager for an electrical manufacturing company and Noelle works at a public relations agency.

Morgan Sleeper was recently awarded a Watson Fellowship at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota for the coming school year. The fellowship, a one-year grant for independent study and travel outside of the United States, is awarded annually to graduating

university seniors. The Thomas J. Watson Fellowship offers college graduates of “unusual promise” a year of independent, purposeful exploration and travel, in international settings new to them, to enhance their capacity for resourcefulness,

Alumni Soccer Game

HOMECOMING DAY – OCTOBER 29 TH , 2011

On the morning of October 29th, 2011, Homecoming Day, forty PTS alumni soccer players gathered at Falcon Field for the annual Alumni Soccer Game. Coached by PTS Soccer Coach, Scott de Feu, the players divided into teams, played a fun game of soccer and reminisced about their days at PTS. When the game was over, the participants received a commemorative T-shirt and were introduced on the field. A special thanks to all who attended!

imagination, openness, and leadership and to foster their humane and effective participation in the world community. Based on a project that they have designed, the students are awarded a $25,000 stipend to execute and evaluate their project over the year. Morgan is a Linguistics major and said getting the Watson was exciting. “It’s an incredible opportunity to be able to travel wherever your passions take you.” His project proposal, titled “Ceol agus Comhrá: Music & Language Revitalization in the Celtic Fringe,” will take him to the United Kingdom (Wales, Scotland, Cornwall), Argentina, Isle of Man, Canada, France (Cape Breton) and Ireland. “I’ll be traveling to all these Celtic nations and Diaspora regions (Scottish Gaelic is spoken in Cape Breton & Welsh in Patagonia) to look at all the ways people are using music to help revitalize the endangered Celtic languages,” said Morgan. He is majoring in Linguistics and Asian Languages and Culture. He is minoring in Chinese Languages and Culture.

(continues on page 52)

2011 Alumni Soccer Game Participants

Current PTS soccer players came out to watch the game.

At the game, past PTS athletes were forced to test their current athletic abilities.

MORGAN SLEEPER '05

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda graduated from Palmer Trinity School in 1998, and went on to receive her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Georgetown University.

After graduating in 2002, she earned a Masters of Science in Nursing and Masters of Public Health from John Hopkins University, and finally obtained a PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies (Nursing, Epidemiology and Psychology) from the University of Miami in 2008. Currently, Rosa is an Assistant Professor of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Miami, and she was recently awarded a three-year, $350,000 research grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop JOVEN ( Juntos Unidos contra la Violencia Entre Novios/Together Against Dating Violence), an intervention program for teen-dating violence among Hispanics.

Looking back on her years at Palmer Trinity School, Rosa can recall many fond memories and lasting friendships. “My experience at Palmer Trinity was one filled with opportunities to learn, grow and lead,” she says. As a member of the

PROFILE:

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda '98

PTS Girls’ Volleyball, Basketball and Softball teams and Treasurer of Student Government, Rosa still found time to work on the school yearbook, engage in multiple service opportunities and attend various French State competitions. Her classmates and teachers became vital figures in her development as a student, and continue to influence her today. “I enjoyed developing friendships with peers who came from across the globe and had diverse socioeconomic, religious and cultural backgrounds. I was also inspired by teachers, coaches, and mentors that taught me by their examples, motivated me, and provided me with the knowledge, confidence and skills to be successful in my professional and personal life.” Of all of these memories, her favorite was playing Varsity Girls’ Basketball under Coach Judi Jennings, now Dean of Upper School Students. “I loved being coached by her,” Rosa says. “During my senior year, she lifted me onto the basketball hoop, where I sat for our team photo. She made me feel like I was on top of the world. I would never forget that.”

Among many mentors who continue to inspire her success, one person at Palmer Trinity School stands above the rest: Danny Reynolds, Director of Admission, Financial Aid and College Counseling. “He opened my eyes to the possibility of going to Georgetown University, when I had not even imagined going away for college, and encouraged me to apply,” she says. “If I had not gone to Georgetown, I would not have gone to Johns Hopkins. If I had not gone to Johns Hopkins, I would not have developed a commitment to evidenced-based public health nursing practice and uncovered the responsibility I had to address health disparities through research. Johns Hopkins actually led me back home, as my mentor there urged me to contact the Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Studies at UM. The Dean at UM inspired me to obtain my PhD and become a faculty member. The faculty member role has allowed me to conduct research, mentor students, serve my community, address health disparities, and influence health policy. Danny opened the first door for me at Palmer Trinity. I just decided to walk through it and ended up here.”

Rosa was first attracted to nursing as a high school student, when she began conducting mission work in the Dominican Republic. “Seeing the avoidable causes of disease and death that affected these communities made me aware of the importance of public health prevention efforts—such as clean water, sanitation and health education,” she says. It is this same compassion for others that drives her position as Assistant Professor. “My responsibilities are to conduct research, teach and serve my community, all things I receive tremendous rewards from doing,” she says. As a result of her tremendous success, to no one’s surprise, Rosa has had many memorable experiences. Working with the Institute of Medicine Committee on the Future of Nursing, Rosa was able to recommend specific changes in State policies associated with nursing education, practice and leadership—ultimately benefiting the health of the U.S. population as a whole. She also became a leader in the UM-Coordinated Victim Assistance Center, a communityacademic partnership that assesses the needs and preferences for domestic violence prevention in South Florida’s Hispanic community, which she continues to work with today. Most importantly, she started JOVEN. When Rosa began studying the behavioral health disparities (e.g., substance abuse, HIV, violence) in the Hispanic community of Miami-Dade County six years ago, she realized the prevalence of teen-dating violence there and the harmful effects it has had on the community. With the help of her grant, she hopes to make JOVEN the first evidence-based teen-dating, violenceprevention program for Hispanic youth, and is excited to further her research by working with high school students at Hialeah Senior High School. “Research is always strengthened from these types of partnerships,” she says. Rosa currently lives in Coral Gables, FL with her husband, Luis, and two sons, Sebastian (2) and Marco Andres (2 months). Staying true to her alma mater, Rosa continues to show her support by serving on the Admission Advisory Board for Palmer Trinity School.

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda ‘98 is an Assistant Professor of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Miami.

PROFILE:

When it comes to “breaking boundaries,” Garrett deRosset is no exception. Graduating from Palmer Trinity School in 2005, he continued his education at the University of Florida—earning a Bachelor of Science in Building Construction in 2010. Today, Garrett is living in Tokyo, Japan, where he teaches classes at the Tokyo HackerSpace, a community center that provides opportunities for research and scientific exploration in a variety of areas.

Under the leadership of Mr. Carl Rachelson, currently a member of the Middle School English faculty and Assistant Varsity Boys’ Basketball Coach, Garrett went to Japan in his senior year. Visiting historical icons like Kyoto and Tokyo, and living with a Japanese host family, Garrett had the opportunity to learn about Japanese culture firsthand—and has since always dreamed of living and working there. Upon his graduation from UF, it was time for Garrett to start chasing his dreams. “I learned about the Tokyo Hackerspace from one of my Google Reader subscriptions,” he says. “Before the earthquake happened, I believe I had read an article about their open source Geiger counters. I definitely starred that article and kept the place, Tokyo HackerSpace, in the back of my mind.” Applying for a position, Garrett was ready for an adventure. “Two weeks after I found the job, I was on a flight to Japan.”

by invaluable educational experiences, like the one he had learning about RGB LEDs, a semiconductor light source that incorporates red, green and blue lights, a longtime personal interest that he had never had the opportunity to explore. “When I went on a trip to Akihabara, I picked up a RGB LED just to mess around with. With a little help at the HackerSpace—amid some hilarious bickering amidst the hackers about the best way to manage the process—I was able to control every independent color of the LED,” he says.

This experience has driven me towards an independence I would never find in America. It has certainly driven me out of my comfort zone, and I love Japan for that experience, aside

The Tokyo HackerSpace is a community-operated environment where people can meet and work on a variety of projects, be it technology, building, gardening, cooking, science, sewing, digital art, gaming, and more. At the Tokyo HackerSpace, programmers, engineers, IT administrators, artists, chefs and musicians alike can find the space, the like-minded people, and the infrastructure needed to work on their projects and share their interest in geek culture. As a teacher there, Garrett has the opportunity to teach students about a variety of subjects, while simultaneously learning more about his own educational interests. “If you want to learn about something, you ask if someone knows anything about it,” he says. “Most of the time, people are already passionate about their knowledge and have classes going already.” Foremost, Garrett loves the open communication he finds at Tokyo HackerSpace and the willingness with which everyone learns from, and helps, one another. “I could send out a question and expect a very knowledgeable response within the hour,” he says. “I love the passion I find at the HackerSpace.”

Living in Japan as a working American, and not a tourist, Garrett has had many memorable experiences. “Things are more special [here in Japan],” he says. “When your eyes meet with those of another foreigner, there is a special gaze. You have a conversation with a Japanese person, and this is something you couldn’t have with that foreigner you just passed.” His trip has also been marked

from the beauty to be found here.

Nothing is more exciting to see than something you’ve desired to learn about come to fruition, in this case, being able to control the color spectrum with an LED. It’s experiences like these that keep me excited about what happens next.

With that being said, his greatest experience has been one of personal growth. “This experience has driven me towards an independence I would never find in America. It has certainly driven me out of my comfort zone, and I love Japan for that experience, aside from the beauty to be found here.”

His travels are a testament to Garrett’s hard work and dedication; Garrett owes his time in Japan to two very special teachers.

“There are two teachers at Palmer who influenced my life in a very large way—those teachers are Mr. [Robert] Moorhouse and Mr. [Carl] Rachelson,” he says. “They opened the gateway to my first experience in Japan.” With his earliest return date set for next May, and even that date set in question, his first experience has become one with lasting effects. “I’ve always stuck with these three rules: have something to do, have something to look forward to, have something to cherish,” Garrett says.

“These days I always have something to look forward to and something to do. Cherishing myself has kept me going.”

Garrett deRosset '05

Garrett deRosset ‘05 at the Tokyo HackerSpace, in Tokyo, Japan

Daniela Helcer writes, “I left the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, where I was a Sales Manager, and started with Lululemon, this past January, to assist with the opening of our new store on Sunset Drive. I am part of the leadership team and help run the business and develop our people. The company is absolutely amazing. I’m studying to become a holistic health counselor, so this has been a great way to meet my future potential clients.” Daniela graduated from FIU with a BS Hospitality Management.

2006

Brittney Fyffe and Wilson Hernandez were married in Miami, FL, on July 16th, 2011. Several PTS alumni were in attendance, including Patty Lehtinen ‘06 and Samantha Evans’06. Brittney and Wilson took their honeymoon in the Dominican Republic.

BRITTNEY (FYFFE)

'06 AND

'06

2007

Will Morrison was named to the Southwestern Lacrosse Conference First-Team midfield squad. A captain and four-year member of Chapman University lacrosse team, Morrison’s Panthers have won four consecutive conference titles and berths in four MCLA (Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association) championship tournaments, including two title game appearances. Will also received Chapman University’s 2011 MVP in Men’s Lacrosse, 1st team All-

American Midfielder for MCLA, and 1st team Midfielder in SLC!

Delfina Guemes moved to New York City and was hired as an Account Coordinator for a PR agency called M. Silver Associates. Stefi Romero taught at the Breakthrough Miami summer Program at PTS.

A student at Tulane University, Melissa Hew was recently selected as finalists for the New Day Social Venture Challenge—a program that chooses two undergraduate and two graduate Tulane students to help develop innovative solutions for pressing social problems in New Orleans. The NewDay Challenge annually awards both graduate and undergraduate students up to $20,000 in seed funding, which enables student innovators to turn their social impact ideas into reality.

Along with colleagues Doug Jacobs, Kevin Morgan, and Stephanie Stefanski, Melissa developed a project called Aquaponic Modular Production Systems (AMPS). The goal of this project is to efficiently deliver nutrition where food is unavailable as a result of disasters, or where social inequities have resulted in “food desert” shortages of fresh, nutritious foods. AMPS provides a reliable source of fresh produce to communities where soil degradation, water shortages, pollution and other environmental and anthropogenic factors prevent the cultivation of healthy food. It re-circulates organic nutrients in a closed loop system; as a

result, it does not leech harmful pollutants into the environment and water is not lost through evaporation and runoff, as is the case with traditional soil farming. AMPS are modular, small footprint, high output farms designed for urban settings.

Elizabeth McNichol is attending Harvard Law School and writes, “I’m excited, but I’m definitely going to miss Atlanta and Emory!”

Lainie Rosemond is currently interning in Pittsburgh, PA in the corporate office of Dicks Sporting Goods as a buyer for Men’s Under Armour Apparel. Some highlights of the internship consist of meeting with vendors, completing purchase orders, and forecasting sales to predict future buying patterns. She has one more year left at the University of Florida and plans to continue to work in retail after graduation.

JP Gilbert writes, “I graduated from the University of Central Florida in May 2011 with my BSBA in Economics. I’m currently attending law school at Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida.”

Christian Ehrenhaft recently graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and a certificate in Criminal Profiling. He will be going to the Police Academy and plans to work as a police officer in Miami-Dade or Broward County for a few years.

Nicolas Guerra-Mondragon will be graduating from Purdue University in May 2012. He majored in Environmental & Ecological Engineering and is interested working on Sustainable Design and Environmental Engineering Consulting.

2008

Joe Masterman was a writer this summer for an online blog called letsgo.com. He had the opportunity to travel all over the west coast, from LA, to San Francisco, Napa Valley, and ending in Las Vegas. Joe is now back at Harvard for his senior year and on the rowing team.

Alexandre Lang-Willar was selected as one of only five UM students for an internship at Goldman Sachs in their department of Wealth Management. Over 200 students applied for this most coveted internship. He worked as a Summer Analyst at their

downtown Miami office. Alexandre is a Junior at the University of Miami, majoring in Finance.

Alex Sachs, a member of the Fordham University Sailing Team, is one of

STEFI ROMERO '07

JOE MASTERMAN '08

SAMANTHA EVANS '06 AND ROBERT MOORE '05

two college sailors selected by the Intercollegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) to represent the United States in the 2011 Korea Cup International Yacht Race. The event was held in the Sea of Japan, off the eastern coast of South Korea, from May 30 to June 6, 2011. A sailor with prior international experience, Alex has been a member of the Sailing Rams for two years and was the team’s A Division skipper this past year. His selection was based upon his Sailing resume and the recommendation of his coach who stated that, “As a result of his hard work and improved mental discipline, Alex Sachs has performed exceedingly well this spring and emerged as one of the elite sailors in our Middle Atlantic conference.” Alex stated, “I’m very excited to participate in this once-in-a-lifetime event and extremely proud to represent my country and the Fordham Rams!”

Cameron DiFede, who plays football for Dickinson College, was featured in The Sentinel for leading the Dickinson College Red Devils to victory over the McDaniel College Green Terror.

On Friday, November 18th, 2011, Joey Coulter will drive the No. 22 Chevrolet in the 2011 Ford 200 at Homestead Miami Speedway. Coulter is currently the leading Rookie of the Year, and is ranked

in English and French and is continuing on her pre-med track.

Michael Borguss is the proud father of MacKenzie Cole Borguss, born on Monday, July 18th, 2011.

Hugh Morrison had an article printed in the June/July 2011 issue of Surfer’s Path. The article was written about his summer 2010 experience with Serf Academy in Padang, Indonesia.

7th in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points standings. Congratulations, Joey!

2009

Jaquen Castellanos is attending Columbia University in New York and worked as a summer intern for MSNBC online. She writes, “I’m having a great time here in the city. I interned with the Grio at MSNBC and I learned a lot.” Check out her articles at www.thegrio. com/author/jaquen-castellanos/.

Gaby Verwaay was awarded the MacArthur Leithauser Travel Award from Amherst College. She will be traveling throughout Haiti and researching her thesis. She declared a double major

is currently Assistant Editor of the Computer Science Department at Springer Science + Business Media.

Ariel Suazo-Maler is attending school at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. She is currently studying abroad this year at the London School of Economics.

Mark Allen attends American University in Washington, DC, and recently finished 6th, in an 8K race, out of a total of 82 competitors. American University placed 2nd as a team.

2010

Kisten Titley was named to the all-tournament team following play that racked up 29 kills (2.64/ set) at Bucknell University.

Dexter Carr landed a role in the ensemble cast with the national tour of Bring It On: The Musical. The show opens in Los Angeles on October 30th, 2011, and will eventually make it to Broadway. Bring It On is the explosive new musical comedy that raises the stakes on over-the-top high school rivalries.

Belle Verwaay designed a $300 house for Haiti in her Architecture class at Dartmouth. Her group project was singled out and she was asked to present the project to the Tuck School of Business along with a board of Architects and engineers working on hospitals, universities, and housing in Mirebalais, Haiti. Landon Michelson is playing golf for Birmingham-Southern University, and recently placed 3rd at the Royal Lakes Invitational in Flowery Branch, GA. As a team, Birmingham-Southern

Courtney Clark graduated from the University of Georgia in May and received her B.A. in Journalism (Cum Laude), majoring Journalism – Magazines. She attended the NYU Summer Publishing Institute and

placed 7th. Royal Lakes was the last tournament of the fall season for the Panthers, who return to the links in February when they host the ‘Southern Shootout, beginning February 28th, at Oxmoor Valley Golf Course in Birmingham.

MARK ALLEN '09

LANDON MICHELSON '10 AT THE ROYAL LAKES INVITATIONAL

DEXTER CAR '09 JOINS THE CAST OF BRING IT ON

CAMERON DIFEDE '08

Thomas Torbert ’08 is a senior at the University of Miami. Eric Torbert ‘10 is a sophomore at Florida Gulf Coast University and David Torbert ‘11 is a freshman at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College at the University of Georgia. Alex Torbert ‘13 is a junior at PTS. Mom, Michelle, is on the PTS Board of Trustees and runs the Willie Prader Syndrome Foundation.

2011

Sophia Faiella represented the Diocese of Southeast Florida, over the summer, at the triennial Episcopal Youth Event in Minneapolis. She begins her freshman year at Eckerd College where she plans to major in Theatre and Human Development.

Matthew Benenati writes, “I am so grateful to have had excellent teachers at PTS such as Ms. DV and Dr. Griffin. My calculus professor at Notre Dame is beyond terrible and is impossible to follow. As I sit in his class, unable to understand him, but recognizing the concepts and theories he has written on the board, I praise the PTS faculty for giving me the best possible foundation. I miss you guys and can’t wait to visit in October.”

Alexis Ferraro, who plays tennis at Babson College, has been named the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Doubles Team of the Week.

Wilson Valle and the Madril Family were able to spend some time together during the Navy vs. Air Force Football Game, at the Naval Academy, on October 1st, 2011. Wilson is a 4th Class Midshipman at the U.S Naval Academy. He is thrilled to be at the Academy and considers it quite an honor to be part of its history and traditions. He reports he is managing well in his classes and credits, thanks to the preparation provided

by Palmer Trinity School! He just participated in the annual Navy Day Regatta, where his 4-man and 8-man freshman boats placed first

Past Faculty

Abigail W. Moon writes, “Well, it’s official. I am a priest. I can bless, consecrate, marry, absolve, bury people... oh yeah watch out! Here are pictures: https://picasaweb. google.com/110548543844957417 264/20110906. Ordination Life is

good. The fullness of ministry is intense on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. By Thursday, I get to do the things I need to get done!”

Josh Blumenthal married Cherlynn Farmer on July 16th at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Connecticut. Many PTS Alumni attended, including Oliver Garcia ‘08, Angel Diaz ‘08, Joe Masterman ‘08, and Judd Smith ‘08. Josh stated, “Having these guys fly up for my wedding meant so much to me.”

Pam and Mike Zavada live in Georgia with their three kids, Wyatt (age 6 months), Etta Collette (age 4 ½), and Zeke (age 2 ½).

In Memoriam

Gary Smith, father of PTS alumni Riley ‘07 and Drew ‘10 Smith, passed away July 2011. He was honored at a Mass at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary-St. Richard Catholic Church in Palmetto Bay, Florida.

JOHN MADRIL, WILSON VALLE '11, JD MADRIL '15, DANI MADRIL AND DAVID MADRIL '17

WYATT, ETTA COLLETTE AND ZEKE ZAVADA

ALEXIS FERRARO '11

LESLIE, TOMMY AND THOMAS TORBERT '08 AT THE FIRST PTS FOOTBALL GAME OF THE 2011 SEASON.

ELENA DE VILLIERS, SHIRIN RAZDAN '11 AND FELICIA BURKE '11

OLIVER GARCIA '08, ANGEL DIAZ '08, JOSH BLUMENTHAL, JOE MASTERMAN '08 AND JUDD SMITH '08

NYC Alumni Gathering at The Aspen Social Club

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20TH , 2011

On Thursday, October 20th, 2011, Palmer Trinity School hosted a “Happy Hour” for PTS alumni in the New York area, at The Aspen Social Club, in NYC. Twenty-five alumni attended the event, along with Danny Reynolds, Director of Admission, Financial Aid and College Counseling. It was a fantastic event and one PTS hopes to continue for years to come.

ALUMNI COLLEGE & CAREER DAY

FRIDAY, MAY 11TH 1 P.M. – 3 P.M.

The purpose of Alumni College and Career Day is to cultivate Alumni relationships and educate upper school students on college and career paths taken by graduates. The program includes college age Alumni and those from multiple industries.

If interested in participating, please contact Monica Sanchez, Director of Alumni and Event Relations, at 305-969-4210 or msanchez@palmertrinity.org

NYC Alumni Gathering

Danny Reynolds, Monica Sanchez, Adam Wilson ‘10 and Christina Ludovici ‘10

Katrina Barrios ’06, Brandon McNary ’06, Maria Luiza Barreto ’06, Tracy Wilk ’06, Christina (Rosas-Guyon) Hart ’97, Danny Reynolds, Dan Pimentel ’03 and Dr. Corey Hunter ‘93

Cori Capik ’08, Tom Hashagen ’03, Danny Reynolds and Ariel Moger ‘08

Kelly Chester, Alex Chester ’01, Tom Hashagen ’03, Brian Fernandez ’03, Dax Tejera ’03 and Danny Reynolds

Monica Sanchez, Christina (Rosas-Guyon) Hart ’97, Dan Pimentel ’03 and Michael Pinto ‘03

Christina (Rosas-Guyon) Hart ‘97 and Dr. Corey Hunter ‘93

Andrea Buhler ‘09, Monica Sanchez, Danny Reynolds and Jaquen Castellanos ‘09

PTS Remembers: Jean Ellen DuPont Shehan

FEBRUARY 23 RD , 1923 – AUGUST 1 ST , 2011

Jean Ellen DuPont Shehan, noted philanthropist and good friend of Palmer Trinity School, died on August 1st, 2011, at the age of eighty-eight. Jean Ellen served on the board of Trinity School from 1989-1991 and continued to support the school financially long after the merger.

Contributing her time, energy and financial resources to over forty non-profit organizations, civic work was always at the cornerstone of Jean Ellen’s life. At the age of thirteen, she engaged in what became a life-long service to the Red Cross, and later joined the Junior League and Visiting Nurses’ Association. She served on a number of boards and organizations, including: the American Cancer Society, the Boys and Girls Club of America and the Children’s Bureau of Delaware. In 1984, her love of horses encouraged Jean Ellen to become Chairwoman of the Marion DuPont Scott Equine Medical Center, and in 1997, her concern for wildlife and nature led her to donate her family farm in Maryland—a thousand acres of largely undeveloped wildlife habitat—to the National Audubon Society. Used as a haven for environmental enjoyment and study, this donation led to the birth of the Jean Ellen DuPont Shehan Audubon Sanctuary. Since then, Jean Ellen became a Board member for Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens, and

is known today as one of its largest contributors in history. As a result of her generosity, the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens opened a new visitor’s center, in 2000, affectionately named the Jean DuPont Shehan Visitor Center. Today, Jean Ellen’s legacy is continued by her three children: James H.T. McConnell, Jr., Susan McConnell, and Marion McConnell Lassen. For Palmer Trinity School, Jean Ellen gave $500,000 to the Capital Campaign for Land Acquisition in June 2003. According to Jack Brumbaugh, chair of the board at the time, “Jean Ellen was an incredibly generous woman whose contribution to PTS was the lynchpin permitting our purchase of the Hester property.” The school honors her spirit and contributions every year by presenting The Jean Ellen Shehan Award to a female student, usually a senior, who best exemplifies our values of service and citizenship. We will always remember Jean Ellen for her generosity of spirit, respect for the environment, and the love she gave to Palmer Trinity School.

(Left to Right) Former Virginia Tech President William Lavery, former Westmoreland Davis Memorial Foundation Trustee Leonard T. Scully, Sen. John Warner, Mrs. Jean Ellen DuPont Shehan, University of Maryland President Dr. John Toll and Dr. G. Frederick Fregin cut the ribbon at the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center’s dedication ceremony in October 1984.

Head of School, Sean Murphy and Jean Ellen DuPont Shehan