Forest Ridge Mes Amis Magazine - Spring 2013

MES AMIS TH E M A G A Z I N E F O R F O R E S T R I D G E S C H O O L O F TH E S A C R E D H E A R T

SPRING 2013

A Look Inside the FRidge

› features

features 4

A LOOK INSIDE THE FRIDGE Chef Ron Askew is cooking up something special.

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CHALLENGE SUCCESS Many hands work at bringing about welcome change in the high school.

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‘BEN, DO IT!’ HS Theater’s Ben Sherman’s message from the late Ray Bradbury.

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TEDXFORESTRIDGESCHOOL: INNOVATE Forest Ridge hosts first-ever TEDx event.

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Y JOURNEY TO GOAL THREE: ONE RARE DISEASE DAY AT A TIME M An eighth-grader’s inspirational story of learning about and living with a rare disease.

› alumnae

ALUMNAE 39

LETTER FROM THE ALUMNAE BOARD PRESIDENT – Dawn Hoffer ’87

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FAREWELL, MOTHER MAC orest Ridge says goodbye to F Virginia McMonagle, RSCJ.

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HAT MAKES A W FOREST RIDGE WOMAN? We asked the experts: Members of the Class of 2013

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ALUMNAE EVENTS

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A B-12 SHOT OF SACRED HEART Amy Sandmeyer Picciotto ’89 writes about this year’s AASH Conference in Omaha.

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CLASS NOTES

› departments

DEPARTMENTS 3

FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

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FACULTY PROFILE Dean of Academics Audrey Threlkeld looks back on the occasion of her retirement.

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WOMEN AS GLOBAL LEADERS Resources and Sustainability in Alaska.

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ACROSS CAMPUS National Merit high scorers, a Google Scholar and a State Tennis Champ, just for good measure.

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GIVING

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IN MEMORIAM

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PHOTO GALLERY e work of students from the IB and Th Spring art shows.

SPRING 2013

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MES AMIS

Mes Amis “My Friends” Magazine is published in the fall and spring.

Communications & Marketing Director Peggy O’Connor

Alumnae Relations Director Julie Lundgren, Honorary Alumna

Contributors

Janet Burns Mary B. Flaherty, RSCJ Dawn Hoffer ’87 Julie Lundgren Regina Mooney, Ph.D. Nicole Morris Peggy O’Connor Amy Sandmeyer Picciotto ’89 Mark Pierotti Margo Paddock, Copyediting Joelle Pollastro ’17

Photographers

Maren Aberle Ron Askew Taylor Durham ’11 Lexie Jones ’14 Julie Lundgren Regina Mooney, Ph.D. Bridget Rafferty Nathalia Scrimshaw ’13 Emily Skulec ’14 Sooji Son ’14 Fan Xu ’14

Board of trustees Krysta Svore ’97, President Shana Abner ’94 Jacqueline ‘Amy’ Anderson Marylou Brannan Stacy Caiarelli Brown Melody Carney Ellen McDermott Charney Sarah Chesemore ’89, Broadway Jay Coleman Leslie Decker Luann Desautel Dawn Hoffer ’87 Yuan Ling ‘Grace’ Lazarus Bob McLaughlin Theresa Moser, RSCJ J.P. Nicols Karen Patterson ’93 Gil Picciotto Mark L. Pierotti Ann Rillera Scott Robertson Cynthia Seely Kathleen Sullivan, RSCJ ’65, Duchesne Maritza Tavarez-Brown Shannon Underwood ’81 DeBora Winston-Farago Diana Wall, RSCJ ’82, Broadway

Design & Production CHM Graphics

On the Cover: The FRidge food service staff with their new garden.

Printer

Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart

Photo identification for alumnae photos on page 1: In attendance at the memorial Mass for Sr. Virginia McMonagle were (left photo) Cathleen Clampitt ’85, Colleen Clampitt Boughton ’76, Honorary Alumna Joanne Clampitt and Cristi Clampitt Aigner ’77; (center photo) Sheila McHugh Magnano ’63, Denise Frisino ’70 and Claudia Callahan ’69; (right photo) Mimi Ketcham McHugh ’78, Mick McHugh, Sheila McHugh Magnano ’63, Mud McHugh ’70 and Carol Bangasser Zarek ’68.

4800 139th Avenue SE Bellevue WA 98006-3015

425-641-0700 | phone 425-643-3881 | fax

Printed on recycled paper

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Litho Craft

› from the head of school

I

n reviewing the stories for the Spring 2013 issue of Mes Amis magazine, a familiar phrase popped into my head: “Wake up, and smell the coffee!” Bear with me, and you’ll see why.

The cover story in this issue, “A Look Inside the FRidge,” details the ambitious — and delicious — near decade-long effort by our Executive Chef Ron Askew and his staff to bring a sustainable, whole, natural food program to Forest Ridge. Walking through the Commons each day, one cannot help but smell the coffee (and the roasted tomato soup, chicken Caesar pitas, locally harvested potato jojos and every other delicious item on the FRidge menu).

Chef Ron and his crew — among them Chef Gary Banker, Sous Chef Sasha Selden, International Residence House Sous Chef Kat Schonberg-Hamar, and Chef Bonnie Chan — work tirelessly to bring our students, faculty and staff delicious and nutritious food each day throughout the year. They also want to, as Chef Ron says, “educate to a deeper understanding of the importance of balance and variety in order to promote health.”

I encourage you to read about where our food service program has been and learn more about the exciting plans Ron has in store for us.

This issue also highlights the Challenge Success program in the high school. Challenge Success came to Forest Ridge in 2011 after High School Director Dr. Carola Wittmann engaged Dr. Denise Clark Pope of Stanford University to work with high school faculty and speak to parents. Dr. Pope’s program is a process that involves students, faculty, administration and parents in a complex but rewarding effort to help students redefine success according to their own goals and strengths, rather than merely to strive for prestige. Challenge Success has been a sort of wake up call to the high school as we continue to increase student engagement, help students learn to manage their workload and, overall, to look at change as a gradual process that can and should be tied to our mission and goals.

I know you will enjoy reading about this exciting, multistakeholder effort to make a difference in the way our high school students learn. I was, and I am, so proud of how much our school community has invested in this important effort.

I hope you will enjoy these stories and more as you peruse the spring issue of Mes Amis!

Sincerely,

Mark Pierotti Head of School

P.S. Please stop by for lunch one day — I promise you’ll enjoy it!

SPRING 2013

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A Look

Inside the

FRidge Peggy O’Connor Mes Amis Editor

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Executive Chef Ron Askew is in the kitchen at Forest Ridge, and for the last 10 years, he’s been busy cooking up something really big.

Since he arrived in 2004, Askew and his staff have transformed the food service program at Forest Ridge — and not just by making things taste better. (Although anyone who has enjoyed a bowl of the FRidge’s homemade roasted tomato soup on a cold, rainy day will tell you that making things taste better was a pretty significant achievement all by itself.)

Under Chef Ron’s direction, The FRidge has morphed from mere food service to an embodiment, in the food realm, of the Goals and Criteria.

“Ron’s dedication to the girls and his long-term vision to create a whole food experience from earth to kitchen, classroom to cafeteria, is unparalleled,” says food author Marlen Bell Boivin ’72, who calls herself Ron’s “cheerleader, sounding board and best overall supporter, going to bat for him wherever and whenever possible.” Boivin is the author of Tender, farmers, cooks and eaters, with Tamara Murphy, Jody Ericson Dorow and Nancy Gellos.

Askew’s approach to going far beyond just serving food to nourishing a community begins with his focus on Forest Ridge students. “Ron knows our children are our future — the more they connect with where their food comes from and [develop] an appreciation for who grows it and how, as well as an enjoyment for how it can nourish us in so many ways — the more that will support the well-being of our entire community,” Boivin explains.

• Created an atmosphere that discourages students from skipping meals and encourages them to eat more nutritiously. The FRidge is open for business from 7:00 a.m. until Chef Gary Banker closes at 4:30 p.m.

• Worked with the school to ensure “green” status through the composting, the appropriate use of recyclables and by maintaining the most efficient ecological practices.

Askew has been building a high quality, innovative and sustainable whole food program at Forest Ridge over the last nine years. Here are just a few of his achievements: • Eliminated unhealthy, processed foods and snacks from the menu.

• Began serving the highest quality local, chef-prepared, whole, organic foods at every opportunity, including the exclusive use of meats without antibiotics or growth hormones (“never-ever”).

• Enhanced the school’s global perspective through the regular preparation and service of foods from other cultures; enhanced the Exchange and International student experiences by working with visiting students to create and serve cuisine from their home countries.

• Launched chef-prepared food service in the new Residential Life Program building.

• Increased “participation” (the number of meals served on an annual basis).

• Created a traveling cookbook program, planned cooking classes and, for two consecutive years, conducted “Breakfast with Freshmen” events that incorporate a delicious breakfast with an information class on good nutrition.

• Established a student employee program that helps teach students the importance of healthy food — and creates evangelists for the program.

• Added breakfast to the daily menu and increased breakfast participation by 40 percent in the last year. continued …

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Inside the FRidge

continued …

• Established a system to maintain a robust food service presence on the school website that focuses on enhancing the community’s knowledge of the importance of whole food and a sustainable food service program.

they’ve embraced their mission to feed and nourish our daughters’ minds, bodies and spirits.

“I’m thrilled that Chef Ron and his staff care as much about my daughter’s nutrition as I do!” Plaskon adds. “She has healthy choices and new food experiences every day to enlighten her palate and world cultural experience through food.

I’m glad to know where the FRidge food comes from and that local farms and organic foods are used as much as possible.”

• Developed partnerships with local organizations such as Bastyr University; Garden Treasures CSA (Community Supported Agriculture); local farms, gardens and meat purveyors; and notable food authors.

• Built, with help from students, faculty, administration and parents of alumnae, a FRidge garden that will be managed by students.

If Chef Ron has his way, after this year, students will always know where at least some of their food comes from … because they will have planted, tended and harvested it.

Askew’s goals for the food service program are reflected in the mission statement he developed: “Rather than obsession over calorie breakdowns or the condemnation of some foods and promotion of others, the FRidge seeks to educate to a deeper understanding of the importance of balance and variety in order to promote health.

By exposing students to the diversity and abundance of nature, we hope to inspire commitment to a lifestyle based on the consumption of unprocessed, fresh, whole foods from a variety of sources, as the most powerful way to maintain a healthy relationship with our food, our bodies and the earth.”

“My feeling is that we’re just at the tip of the iceberg in terms of what we can accomplish,” Askew says. “Our community is poised to make a huge difference by taking the ideas of natural, whole foods,

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One of those parents is Lora Plaskon, who often enjoys breakfast at the FRidge with her daughter, Portia ’18.

This year’s fifth-grade class — following their trip to Garden Treasures with Sous Chef Sasha Selden — planted potatoes.

Assisted by Farmer Mark from Garden Treasures, Chef Ron showed the students how to plant and sprout potatoes. Each fifth-grader planted a different type of potato — including heirloom varieties like “Ozette” — and when they return next year as sixth-graders, Askew says he hopes to get them started on a new crop in a new bed.

“Eating at the FRidge, enjoying the variety of high quality food that rivals most home-cooked [meals], I suspected there was a wizard in the kitchen with a vision,” Plaskon says. “I came to meet him, Chef Ron, this year in organizing a motherdaughter cooking event for the middle school. I’ve come to know Chef Ron and his passionate staff through this event and have so much respect and gratitude that

“I’d like to see each fifth-grade class take ownership of their own crop and see it through,” Askew says. “The ultimate goal would be that the seeds from each year’s harvest of all eight years (until the fifth graders graduate) would be saved and planted the next year. We’d have potatoes, corn, beans, grains, fruit tree grafts, tomatoes, peas, sunflowers, blueberries and so on.”

of eating for health, and of connecting the ‘farm to the fork’ to a whole new level of awareness and practice. The Forest Ridge parent community is onboard now, and it’s exciting to see where we can go next.”

The FRidge staff includes from left, Chef Gary Banker, Assistant Sam Askew, Taylor Durham ’11, Maria Mills ’11, Tyler Olson, Sous Chef Sasha Selden, Cashier/Catering Specialist Jennifer Quilter and Executive Chef Ron Askew.

That’s just one of Askew’s plans for the FRidge food service program going forward. It’s an extraordinarily ambitious agenda — even for a chef who routinely served 22,000 meals a day while working in Asia. Askew says he’d like to follow up the progress of the last 10 years and this year’s garden by implementing a variety of educational and wellness objectives, in phases, including: • Create, in collaboration with Seattle urban farms and parent Sherry Parry, a campuswide map of sustainable community agriculture with edible and educational spaces throughout the campus.

• Focus on a peaceful, grassy garden location as a spiritual and educational space for reflection, harvesting and foraging.

• Create nature pathways through the many bio-dynamic spaces and climate zones on the FR campus.

• Install worm bins to demonstrate nature’s ability to fertilize itself.

• Bring in honey bees to produce the school’s own honey, demonstrate the wellness properties of honey and educate students about pollination.

• Install compost bins to show students how decay feeds new life.

• Create a butterfly garden.

• Build or buy mobile chicken coops to raise chickens on campus (and obtain

organic, free-range eggs and facilitate creation of organic fertilizer).

• Begin a seed library.

• Develop a culinary arts and food sustainability program to help increase food knowledge and the respectful preparation of food.

• Complete campuswide use of exclusively organic food and garden products. continued …

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Inside the FRidge

continued …

“The fact that Forest Ridge is on a hill raises our awareness that everything runs downhill eventually and that what we do on the Ridge effects all living things below us,” Askew says. “We try to model the Goals and Criteria in terms of caring for the world around us.”

Askew’s excitement and planning for the next eight years is contagious, say both parents and alumnae who work closely with the FRidge.

“Forest Ridge has always distinguished itself as a leader in education, providing students with perspectives and values that help them become good citizens as they go forth into the world,” Marlen Boivin says. “Food is the ultimate connector, and our food systems are at the core of so many other things. By Forest Ridge becoming a leader in this area, it will be exciting to see what contributions our girls make in the world in the decades to come.”

“I hope the entire community recognizes how special and unique the food program at the FRidge is,” Boivin adds.

Chef Gary Banker, Cafe and Catering Manager, at the carving station.

Alumna Taylor Durham ’11 couldn’t agree more.

“What we have going on here is unique, and I hope that it will continue to be valued and explored to its fullest potential,” Durham says. “I would love to come back in eight years when the current fifthgraders who planted our first crop of

potatoes are graduating. I hope that commitment to the garden will offer students pride in what they’ve created and will be part of their legacy on this campus.”

That would make Chef Ron a happy man, too.

“I am so grateful to the parents, to alumnae, to Mark Pierotti for helping nurture this vision and especially to everyone on the FRidge staff for their many contributions to making our program grow and thrive,” Askew says. “It’s an inspiration to think about leaving a lasting legacy of spiritual, physical and mental wellness through food at Forest Ridge,” he adds.

“That’s pretty powerful stuff.”

Photography by Fan Xu ’14.

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Taylor Durham ’11

Taylor has worked as a food prep assistant in the FRidge since high school, and she continues to work with Chef Ron during her breaks from Occidental College, where she is majoring in kinesiology. Taylor assists with special events and helps during lunchtimes at the FRidge. Currently, Taylor’s major responsibility — both while in school and during breaks — is managing the FRidge food service web pages, where she has created fresh and dynamic content. She also promotes the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program at Forest Ridge.

Taylor plans to study physical therapy and, beginning with the fall semester, will travel on an Occidental-sponsored comparative global health trip, visiting India, Vietnam and South Africa. “I hope to focus on traditional medicine, and I’m hoping that will give me a better idea of what I want to do career-wise,” Taylor says.

“It has been my privilege to see where Chef Ron’s passion and leadership have taken the school — from the day he joined us, when I was in the sixth grade, to our recent summer trips to Arlington to meet with local farmers.”

“I have seen how lifelong learning and a commitment to educating students are incorporated into the service. I have learned so much about nutrition, sustainability and food justice from the people I have met in the FRidge,” Taylor says. “Right now, I am most excited about seeing the CSA program and the community garden completed. I remember both projects when they were just the seed of an idea, and under Chef Ron’s leadership and care they have now grown into reality. I see a tireless effort from every member of the FRidge to keep moving forward and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for our community. There is so much energy and passion in that kitchen — combined with honest, quality, whole foods. It’s a delicious combination!”

For bios on the rest of the FRidge staff, visit the FRidge webpages at https://www.forestridge.org/podium/default.aspx?t=135308

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Executive Chef Ron Askew

Looking at his early childhood and formative years, it seems inevitable that Forest Ridge’s Executive Chef Ron Askew would become the leader of a passionate group of foodies focused on feeding, nourishing and educating the Forest Ridge community.

A native of North Seattle who grew up in Kenmore, Wash., Askew is the youngest of five children. His parents provided ample space for their children to grow and play, living in homes that were surrounded by woods or tucked into farm country, complete with fruit trees, grape vines and gardens. Ron’s mother was a stay-at-home mom until he went off to elementary school. Her part-time job allowed her to be home in time to serve healthy after-school snacks like peanut butter and celery or fresh stone fruit from neighboring farms. It also gave Ron firsthand knowledge of life behind the lunch line.

“By the time I was in junior high, my mom was a cook and lunch lady at Kenmore Junior High School,” Askew says.

“I thought it was cool. I always liked the lunch ladies, and many times, they would let me go back into the kitchen to watch them produce foods like cinnamon rolls and pizza from scratch.”

The best part of growing up, he says,

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was that even in the turbulent times of the late 1960s and early ’70s, his family often ate together and enjoyed whole food breakfasts, great school lunches and family dinners.

When Ron was 11, his mother asked if he was interested in learning to cook for the family. She handed him a Better Homes and Gardens international cookbook and helped him get ready to test his skills on the rest of the family.

“Dinner for nine (my family plus my grandparents) was quite the challenge,” Ron recalls. “I chose Waikiki Meatballs since Mom and Dad had just returned from their first real vacation together in Hawaii. I still remember the feeling of making sure my timing was correct and everything was in place when my grandparents’ station wagon rolled into the driveway,” he adds. “Little did I know that this feeling of anticipation — that all was in order and timed correctly — would reflect my passion for

food and be a barometer of success or challenge in the kitchen for the next 40plus years!”

Ron prepared most of the family meals for the next several years and soon decided to make cooking his life’s work.

“It was on a trip with my parents to Rosario Resort in the San Juan Islands when the chef came out to make Steak Diane — my mom’s favorite meal — tableside, Ron recalls. “I looked across the table at my dad and said, ‘I want to be a chef!’ He replied, ‘We will support you in whatever you do.’ ” Ron’s first job was scrubbing dirty pasta dishes at Mia Roma’s in Kenmore, where the chef was prone to hitting Ron with a wooden spoon when he thought Ron wasn’t working hard enough. He persevered and soon was promoted to salad man. Next he was off to work at the Sirloin Inn in Lake Forest Park, where he met Vicki, the woman who would become his wife. Ron spent

the next five years mastering skills he learned in a variety of positions at the Sirloin Inn — from dishwasher to banquet chef — and in general, learning and growing his passion and talent for cooking. He earned an Associate of Applied Arts and Sciences with Food Service Technology, and when Vicki came home with a job offer from Holland America Line to work at the Klondike Hotel in Skagway, Alaska, Ron applied for and got a job as executive sous chef at the Klondike.

“It was an amazing job in a beautiful location. It offered an incredible experience for a young chef to manage a highvolume, fine dining restaurant serving more than 1,000 meals daily,” Ron says.

From there, Ron’s life and work might best be described using a travel itinerary. After two years with Holland America, Ron moved on to the Everett Pacific Hotel and Convention Center, where he was soon promoted to executive chef. Vicki was by then a successful travel consultant in Kirkland, which allowed the couple time to travel and seriously explore the possibility of living and working overseas.

From 1992 to 1999, Ron and Vicki Askew lived and worked in Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands and then moved on to Hong Kong. Ron worked as an executive chef /operations director for Lufthansa Airline Catering and then as corporate executive chef for Eurest Catering Services in Hong Kong.

During that period, Ron managed hundreds of cooks and food service workers, including executive chefs from France, China, Korea and the United States, as they delivered as many as 22,000 meals a day.

“We loved living in and learning about new cultures: how they lived, what they ate, how they cooked. We came home during the summer and [at Christmastime], but I remember while we were overseas, I’d dream about the simple, whole food, like meatloaf or mac and cheese or pot roast, that my mother used to make. I realized how much I missed being at home,” Ron says.

Then there was the lure of returning to work on the front lines in the kitchen.

When the Askews returned to the U.S., Ron left Eurest and started his own catering company, Culinary Cultures

LLC., providing catering, product development and kitchen tools sales. “My hope was to someday work again as a hands-on executive chef somewhere I could use my skills and passion about food to make a positive difference for that community,” Ron explains.

That somewhere was Forest Ridge. on and Forest Ridge connected a decade ago, and since then, it has been a marriage made in, well, the kitchen, Ron says.

“Coming to Forest Ridge has allowed me to create a culture of chef-prepared, whole foods,” Ron says. “It has allowed me to bring to our community not only the whole concept of food as health, but becoming educated about the food we eat, knowing where it comes from. So far, it’s been a wonderful ride. I didn’t think I’d be here for 10 years, and now, here I am planning the next eight years!

“It’s wood

been

a

knock-on-

scenario

for

me,

being in this community and allowing me to make an impact on this very special place.”

Executive Chef Ron Askew with Forest Ridge parents Lora Plaskon and Sherrie Parry.

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favorite

my

FRidge dish is …

“Ron’s in-house smoked salmon.” — Middle School Dean of Students Betsy Briardy • “Whatever’s on the menu that day … from roasted mushrooms to parsnip soup to tea-smoked cod!” — Marlen Boivin ’72 • “Roasted tomato soup on Panini Day. That’s been a favorite since I first tasted it in 2004!” — Taylor Durham ’11 • “Paninis — dunked into the roasted tomato soup … love, love, love it!” — Director of Marketing and Communication Peggy O’Connor • “Morning biscuits with fresh raspberry jam! I was raised in a Southern home, and my mother’s homemade biscuits are the ultimate comfort food for me. I haven’t had biscuits like hers anywhere on the West Coast since I had Chef Ron’s. Heaven!”— FR parent Lora Plaskon • “My favorite dessert was this incredible cupcake: white cake, buttercream icing with candied lavender flowers on top. It was last year, and I still remember the exquisite taste.

Other than that, my favorite is the country buffet. Yum: pork roast, mashed potatoes and everything that goes with. We are so lucky to have this kind of food here!”—– Music Director Alison Seaton • “I particularly love the paninis — the vegetable ones. He roasts the vegetables first, then puts pepper jack cheese on the bread along with the vegetables and grills it. It is delicious!”

— MS Registrar/Assistant Karen Jacob • “It has to be Pasta Monday — the signature food event of the week!” — Human Resources Assistant Cindy Murphy • “I’m pretty crazy about the Scotch eggs from last week.” — MS faculty member Christine Witcher • “Chicken Caesar salad pita.” — MS Learning Specialist Crissy Stemkowski • “Fish Fryday. Mostly because it means it’s Friday.” – MS PE teacher Tom Koning • “Hands down, the country buffet! If I have to choose one thing, I would have to say the kale salad with honey balsamic dressing.

But the roast beef at the sports banquet was awesome!” — HS Athletic Director Kim Eng • “I like clam chowder on top of rice — not really an entree that is offered that way; I just make it as such.” — Director of Finance and Operations Don Anderson • “Fish Fryday — the wild king salmon grilled in dill. It’s just fantastic.” — HS science faculty member John Fenoli • “I love Chef Ron’s ‘chowdah.’ It tastes as good as my mother’s. From a true New Englander, this is a huge compliment.” — MS faculty member Ann Gilbert • “Australian meat pies!” — Stewardship Director Nicole Morris, a native Australian • “My mom’s meatloaf … reminds me of home.” — Executive Chef Ron Askew

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CHEF RON’S MOM’S MEATLOAF For me, meatloaf, pot roast and tuna noodle casserole bring back memories of Mom cooking dinner for our family of seven!

The aroma of these slow-cooked comfort foods takes me back to my roots.

Some ingredients listed below are specified “organic” and “grass-fed,” which was the norm when I was a child. Recipes back then did not need to describe these details as something unique to food. Food has certainly changed a lot since then!

I love to prepare meatloaf for Forest Ridge, although it has taken some time for our younger generation to accept. But this year, slow food (the preservation of local and traditional cuisine) is cool and very much enjoyed by all. ingredients 2 pasture-raised chicken eggs 1/2 cup organic, preferably grass-fed,

heavy cream 1 tablespoon dry Italian seasoning 1/2 tablespoon finely minced garlic 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 cup finely minced fresh mushrooms 1/2 cup organic ketchup *

reserve 1/4 cup for baste 1 cup cubed, day-old, dry bread

or croutons 1/4 cup each of finely diced organic

and local celery, carrots and

sweet onion 1pound grass-fed ground beef

directions Bring meat close to room temperature (about 30 minutes). Very important!

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Brush 4-inch-by- 9-inch loaf pan with organic safflower or coconut oil.

Slice and serve with garlic-roasted mashed potatoes as an accompaniment.

Add a local, organic green salad drizzled with rosemary-infused, cold-pressed, organic virgin olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar and a squeeze of fresh lemon with some sliced heirloom tomatoes and a bit of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. It makes for a yummy comfort meal for the family, friends or both.

Start to finish: 2 hours, 45 minutes Servings: Approximately 4

In a mixing bowl whisk eggs, heavy cream, Italian seasoning, garlic, salt, pepper, mushrooms and 1/2 cup of the ketchup until blended. Add cubed bread; mix lightly with hands or wooden spoon until bread is fully incorporated into egg mixture. Let rest for at least 30 minutes. Do not overmix.

Using your hands, fold in room-temperature ground beef and mirepoix until fully incorporated. Texture should allow you to form a meatball, which you could also make. Do not overmix.

Place mixture into greased loaf pan or form into hand loaf and place on parchment-lined sheet pan.

Spread reserved 1/4 cup ketchup over top of meatloaf.

Bake for approximately 1 to 1 1/4 hours, or until internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F. After removing from oven, let rest for at least 10 minutes.

Safe minimum internal temperature is 160F; when meat rests after cooking, temperature should reach 165 degrees.

Bon Appétit!

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Chef Sasha’s RAINBOW CAKE What’s not to love about 6 layers of luscious, moist cake in the colors of the rainbow? Chemical food dyes have been shown to have several detrimental effects on our health. After much experimentation, this recipe emerged as a clear winner.

It yields a cake that is moist and flavorful with vibrant natural colors. Be sure to follow the tips and tricks to ensure your colors stay bright. ingredients 12 liquid ounces egg whites 2 1/2 cups milk 2 tablespoons vanilla 9 cups cake flour, sifted 4 1/2 cups sugar 4 tablespoons baking powder 2 1/4 teaspoons salt 18 ounces unsalted butter, softened 1 tablespoon white vinegar 1/2 cup beets, cooked till tender and pureed — red dye 3 tablespoons carrot juice — orange dye 4 egg yolks — yellow dye 3 tablespoons spinach juice — green dye 3 tablespoons blueberry juice — blue dye 3 tablespoons raspberry juice — pink dye

directions In a medium bowl combine the egg whites, 1/4 cup of the milk and vanilla.

Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake 25-35 minutes or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. Place the cake pans on racks, and let cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides with a knife and invert onto greased racks to cool completely.

Start to finish: 50 minutes Servings: Approximately 15-18

In a large mixing bowl combine the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt; mix on low speed to blend. Add the butter and remaining 2 1/4 cups milk. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase mixing speed to medium, and beat for 2 minutes to develop the cake’s structure. Scrape down the sides, then gradually add the egg mixture a third at a time, beating for 20 seconds after each addition. Scrape down sides of bowl. Divide the batter into 6 portions.

Add 1 tablespoon white vinegar to beet puree, which will keep the red dye from fading during cooking. Carrot juice and spinach juice can be obtained using a juice extractor. Blueberry and raspberry juice can be made by simply simmering berries in a small saucepan then straining them.

Add one food dye to each of the six bowls of batter. Pour batter into 6 separate 9-inch cake pans that have been greased, their bottoms lined with parchment paper, and then greased again and floured. The pans should each be about half full.

See next page for Vanilla Buttercream Frosting recipe.

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VANILLA BUTTERCREAM FROSTING This frosting, the ultimate luxury frosting and the only one worthy of a rainbow cake, takes a little extra time but is so worth it. ingredients 9 cups sugar 3 cups water 6 tablespoons extra-fine sugar 3 cups egg whites 4 1/2 pounds butter, softened 2 tablespoons vanilla extract

Start to finish: 20 minutes Servings: Approximately 15-18

directions Mix 9 cups sugar with water in a medium, heavy saucepan. Cook over high heat until the resulting syrup reaches 248 degrees F on a candy thermometer.

(Watch closely as it gets close to temperature; it will go quickly at the end.)

While syrup is cooking, beat egg whites with 6 tablespoons extra-fine sugar.

(You can make this yourself by putting regular granulated sugar into a food processor for a few minutes.) Turn mixer off until syrup is ready.

With mixer running, pour syrup into the egg whites in a thin, steady stream, making sure not to pour directly onto beaters. Continue beating mixture until it is no longer hot.

Allow egg mixture to cool to room temperature. Then beat in the softened butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it is all incorporated. The mixture may curdle at some point, but don’t worry. It will smooth out in the end; just keep adding butter and mixing. Beat in vanilla all at once.

Assemble and frost each layer, then frost entire top and sides of cake. At this point you can add sprinkles or pipe different-colored flowers or dots over entire cake. This is a very tall cake; it is easier to slice after being refrigerated for an hour.

Sasha Selden, 2013

CHEF RON’s VEGGIE LASAGNA I love to make lasagna because it has such versatility of ingredients! As long as you have farm-fresh ingredients and you make it with love, it slow cooks into a melting pot of yummy cheese, sauce, egg, veggies, and pasta. What’s better than that! ingredients 2 whole, pasture-raised chicken eggs 1/2 cup organic, preferably grass-fed

heavy cream 4 ounces ricotta cheese 4 ounces cream cheese 1 ounce grated Parmesan cheese,

plus extra for topping 1 cup each zucchini, red onions, red

bell peppers, mushrooms 1 tablespoon roasted and chopped garlic 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra Italian seasoning to taste Salt and pepper to taste 8 ounces dry lasagna noodles, cooked 16 ounces spaghetti or marinara sauce 5 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese 2 ounces cheddar cheese

directions In a mixing bowl whisk eggs, add cream, ricotta cheese, cream cheese and Parmesan cheese. Let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Bake at 325 degrees F for 45 minutes. Uncover lasagna and bake for approximately 25 minutes more, or until lightly browned.

Start to finish: 2 hours Servings: Approximately 12

Serve with organic Caesar salad sprinkled with toasted croutons and fresh lemon wedges.

Meanwhile, slice zucchini, onions, peppers and mushrooms into 1/4-inch-by2-inch strips. Place veggies into mixing bowl and add garlic, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Mix well to coat all veggies. Place in an even layer on sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Roast veggies at 400 degrees F for approximately 10 minutes until lightly browned.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Brush 8-inch-by-12-inch ceramic or stainless steel casserole dish with reserved olive oil.

Place 1/2 of red sauce on bottom of oiled casserole dish. Layer evenly with 1/3 of lasagna noodles, then place 1/2 of egg and cheese mixture over pasta.

Top egg and cheese mixture with 1/2 of roasted veggies. Cover with another 1/3 of lasagna noodles and repeat as with first layer. Top with final 1/3 of lasagna noodles and cover with final 1/2 of red sauce. Cover red sauce with grated mozzarella, additional Parmesan and cheddar cheese.

Cover lasagna with lid, or carefully and tightly cover pan with foil brushed with olive; don’t allow foil to touch top of lasagna.

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Challenge Success In 2007, Madeline Levine, Ph.D., Jim Lobdell, M.A., and Denise Pope, Ph.D., founded Challenge Success, an expansion of the highly successful SOS (StressedOut Students) Project at Stanford University. Utilizing the resources of a prominent advisory board of interdisciplinary experts, the co-founders created a researchbased organization that develops refreshingly practical curriculum, conferences and other programs for parents, schools and kids looking for a healthier and more effective path to success in the 21st century.*

In 2011, Challenge Success came to Forest Ridge. “It was time,” declared Dr. Carola Wittmann, director of the High School.

“Our students spend so much time working and studying in a high-pressure atmosphere as they look ahead to college, that it behooved us as a Sacred Heart school to ensure that we were doing our best to help students cope with these pressures and find a healthy path to success,” Dr. Wittmann says.

“We value this quality of life, as reflected in Goal V, Criteria 6: All members of the school community take personal responsibility for balance in their lives and for their health and well-being.”

Challenge Success helps schools address the concern that children and adolescents often compromise their mental and physical health, integrity and engagement in learning as they contend with performance pressure in and out of school. The goal of this program is to challenge the conventional, high-pressured and narrow path to success and offer practical alternatives to pursue a broader definition of success.

To begin to challenge that less-than-satisfactory path to success, 162 Forest Ridge high school students took and completed the Stanford Survey of Adolescent School Experiences in late January 2012, a time frame carefully selected by both Stanford and Forest Ridge to avoid exams, breaks and class trips.

The survey’s more than 180 questions covered areas such as academic engagement and worries and physical and mental health, student goals and student perceptions of school and parent goals, cheating behaviors, homework time and usefulness, as well as beliefs about teacher care and support. The survey also included open-ended questions.

“The big messages from the survey results were around sleep, making choices and decisions about how to spend one’s time, noting that multitasking during homework makes work take longer and is inefficient, and that changes around stress and mindsets around success take all constituencies: students, faculty/school and parents,” Dr. Wittmann noted in her summary of the survey in a 2012 issue of The Ridge Report.

* Challenge Success Website

Spring 2011 Dr. Denise Clark Pope speaks to high school faculty; provides parent lecture

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September 2011 Summer 2011 High School applies to become a Challenge Success (CS) school

First Forest Ridge CS team travels to Stanford University to meet Dr. Pope

January 2012 Stanford administers Stanford Student Survey of Adolescent School Experiences to FR students

What did that mean for Forest Ridge?

“To us it meant that we needed to STOP and reflect. As teachers, parents, staff and administrators we are called to model to our students how to define success for themselves, not according to someone else’s standard,” Dr. Wittmann explains.

Following the January 2012 survey, a team of parents, teachers, students and administrators have worked with Challenge Success coaches who have “helped us identify and make improvements in our environment to lessen debilitating stress for students,” says Debbie McLaughlin ’83, high school learning specialist.

“We changed our daily schedule to a full 75-minute block schedule this year with four classes each day, homework and deadlines are spread out, which helps reduce stress. We brought our grading scale more in line with other independent schools; we have made our Honors Assembly more inclusive and less focused on publicly recognizing GPAs; and we are having schoolwide conversations about the necessity of adequate sleep,” McLaughlin adds.

The changes from 2011 until now have been gradual but purposeful and, more importantly, meaningful.

“Challenge Success itself has taught me that change is a holistic and gradual process,” says Mackenzie Strafford ’14, a student leader on the Challenge Success team. “Although it will take time to guide our community towards balance, resilience and a true appreciation of learning, I know that every action the team takes will move us one step closer to our goals.”

Involving students in the Challenge Success movement was critical to its success, says Dr. Wittmann. “That’s one reason we added the book Doing School to the ninth-grade theology curriculum — so students are involved, and there is a continuity to this program from year to year.” continued…

2011-2012 HS faculty, staff and parents read Doing School

by Dr. Pope; also read The Price of Privilege by Madeline Levine, Ph.D.

May 2012 April 2012 FR CS team returns to Stanford for coaching session and spring conference

Dr. Pope presents results of the Stanford Student Survey to HS parents

summer 2012 HS adds Doing SchooI to ninthgrade theology curriculum; new HS students and families also receive the book

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Challenge Success

continued…

“One of the strongest and most influential aspects of the work [of Challenge Success] is the role of students on the team,” notes Dr. Randy Stocker, parent of Jane Huestis ’15 and a member of the CS team. “Students have the ability to raise the student perspective in a way that broadens and deepens the conversation and, consequently, the work.

The CS student leaders have taken information from the student survey and developed activities, a club and conversations for the student body. In other words, they have acted in a very thoughtful way to bring deeper awareness to the growth areas noted in the survey,” Dr. Stocker adds.

Among the student-generated changes in the high school are: • Creation of SOS — the Challenge Success student club.

• A sleep campaign in which the entire high school participated and which included sleep tips, free hot chocolate, a yoga session and a sleep seminar class.

A great deal of work is still ahead for the Challenge Success team, says team member Janelle Aberle, parent of Kylie ’13.

“Some really concrete things have occurred.

But this is a progressive, step-by-step process over a long period of time. We need to get that across to people, especially to other parents: We have to set an example for our kids on how to live healthier lives on our roads to success. We can make this work if we truly have our kids’ well-being at heart and we’re looking at unpacking and pulling off layers of culture and layers of ‘we’ve always done it (loads of homework and unceasing pursuit of getting into the top colleges, for example) that way,’ ” Aberle says.

“I would tell parents that this is important work. And that it is so completely the Goals and Criteria!”

The high school’s McLaughlin agrees.

“Challenge Success supports the Goals and Criteria and further articulates realities and best practices in the academic/classroom experience,” she explains. “Challenge Success gives us a compass or touchstone to use as we question, discuss and refine

September 2012 FR adds four members to the eight-person CS team

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our practices. The philosophy of redefining success according to one’s own goals and strengths, versus striving for prestige, fits perfectly with the Forest Ridge mission.”

To learn more about Challenge Success, visit www.challengesuccess.org

2012-2013 February 2013 Follow-up Stanford survey administered to high school students

Team meetings continue

October 2013 FR CS team will welcome incoming Dean of Faculty Alicia Ballé, additional students and faculty

What Parents and Teachers are

What students are Saying About

Saying About Challenge Success

Challenge Success

“Challenge Success is creating really purposeful connections for students about why they are learning certain things in school and how to make choices about the way they do their work. The school isn’t trying to dumb down the content. Efforts like Challenge Success are meant to elevate the content through meaning and purpose and student engagement.”

— Janelle Aberle, CS team member and parent of Kylie ’13

“Challenge Success is attempting to make change on a much deeper level by affecting the culturally ingrained tendencies toward stress, exhaustion and ‘doing school.’

My time on the team has taught me the importance of resilience, balance and fun in life — all values the team is trying to instill at Forest Ridge.”

— Mackenzie Strafford ’14

“As a parent of a Forest Ridge student, I’ve been particularly moved by the thinking around the Challenge Success team in regards to improving the school for students. FR has a long history of success yet is examining beliefs and practices in order to strengthen the educational experience for the students.”

— Randy Stocker, Ed.D., CS team member and parent of Jane Huestis ’15 “It’s great how the emphasis is on not just decreasing student workload but on increasing student engagement.”

— Chris Pesce, CS team member and high school mathematics teacher “Whether directly or indirectly, Challenge Success has impelled us to…look forward to curriculum integration that would coordinate the work in different disciplines to reinforce student learning.”

— John Fenoli, high school science teacher “One important message I received from this experience is that, as parents, we’re often doing the same thing: running down an unhealthy and stressful path to our success. We’re providing an example for our children. As long as we’re running around crazy, disregarding what we need to be healthy, our kids see that and learn from that. The most powerful change we can make is to set a good example.”

— Janelle Aberle

“What impact has Challenge Success made on my educational journey? Plain and simple: It has provided me with hope. While that may sound cliché, the Challenge Success program has instilled in me a sense of hope not only through the results yielded from participation in the program, but hope that anyone can be part of the change … including a wide-eyed, quiet-mannered junior who has a diagnosed learning disability.”

— Maddy Pollastro ’13, who joined the Challenge Success Team as a junior “Another facet of Challenge Success is the way teachers, students and parents work together: Teachers are able to realize the amount of stress students experience; parents are able to see the ways they can help reduce the stress for their kids; and students are more aware of stress and how a lack of sleep can be harmful.”

— Reeham Salah ’15 “This year, I have noticed a shift in the school’s mentality.

Girls no longer compete over who had the least amount of sleep. Students are more open to taking a study period than extra academic courses. And communication among faculty, students, administrators and parents seems more natural. I think the schedule and grading changes have engendered less tension in our community, and that has translated into comfort and openness.”

— Mackenzie Strafford

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› faculty profile

Audrey Threlkeld

Blessed to be Part of Forest Ridge Peggy O’Connor Mes Amis Editor

High School Academic Dean Audrey Threlkeld isn’t retiring from Forest Ridge this June because she’s ready to stop. She’s retiring because she’s ready to go … anywhere and everywhere and likely, at the drop of a hat.

That’s not surprising for someone like Audrey, world traveler and student of all things global, who, for example, spent 2012 Spring Break in Kenya. What might be surprising is that Audrey isn’t planning any big excursions or around-the-world journeys when she leaves Forest Ridge after 34 years.

“I have no big plans. I just want to be open to opportunities,” Audrey says. “Opportunities like — as funny as this sounds — one I had recently with my daughter. The only thing on my schedule was a book swap in Puyallup. We ended up spending seven hours together. ...I worked with her in the garden of her new home, teaching her how to prune. Then we went to the Hobby Lobby, which is like Michael’s and Joanne’s on steroids. Then...the Super Mall and a terrific lunch at a barbeque joint called Dickie’s. Nothing really was planned…but it was a fabulous day.

“I just want to have the freedom to respond when people say to me, ‘Let’s go!’ ” Audrey says.

That’s a familiar invitation for Audrey. She inherited her love of travel and learning about other cultures from her merchant mariner father, who often spoke of his enjoyment of other cultures and inspired her desire to visit other places and learn about their similarities or differences from ours. “I’ve enjoyed visiting every continent except for Antarctica…and it might stay that way,” Audrey chuckles.

Her love of other cultures inspired Audrey’s passion for the Sacred Heart Exchange Program in which Forest Ridge has fully participated for years. “I’m passionate about the Exchange Program,” she says. “It’s a wonderful reminder of how many elements of our own Sacred Heart culture are alive and well every day out there in the world.

“It’s so refreshing to see the other girls who visit Forest Ridge and take home their impressions of our community. Often, they don’t want to go home. Classes at their home schools are often mostly lecture and not much discussion. When they come here, they love our hands-on approach, the discussions that occur in the learning process.”

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High School Academic Dean Audrey Threlkeld at her desk this May.

It’s a learning style that Audrey herself fell in love with as a young teacher who came to Forest Ridge in 1979 to teach part-time in the middle school. “I spent my mornings with my 2-year-old daughter and my afternoons with seventh-graders who were on the edge of their seats, eager to learn the mysteries of rhetoric,” Audrey laughs.

Forest Ridge was a perfect destination for Audrey, who graduated from St. Benedict School, Holy Names Academy and Seattle University.

“I grew up in Catholic schools, so I wanted to give back. I’d left my public school teaching job after eight years to come to Forest Ridge, and at that time, my husband teased me about changing schools after three years,” Audrey recalls. “I guess that stuck in my mind because here I am, 34 years later!”

Audrey attributes her longevity at Forest Ridge to the fact that she has played so many roles over the years: middle school teacher, high school teacher, college counselor, high school director, academic dean.

“Over the years I’ve witnessed so many changes on the Forest Ridge campus, within the academic program, the length of school year, among faculty and staff and in the composition of the student body,” Audrey says. “During my time at Forest Ridge, we’ve grown and changed in so many ways under the diverse leadership of the different heads of school: Sr. Clair Kondolf, Sr. Sandy Theunick ’64 (Stoneridge), Sr. Suzanne Cooke ’72 (Manhattanville), Mrs. Mona Bailey, Dr. Mary Magnano Smith ’61 and Mark Pierotti.

“But the constants we use in everything we do at Forest Ridge remain the same: the Goals and Criteria for Sacred Heart Schools and the needs of our students. As long as we remain true to our roots and our mission, change will move us forward, ensuing the viability of Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart,” Audrey wrote in a farewell column in a recent school newsletter.

So, while Audrey, too, will move forward into retirement (which thrills and surprises her family, she says), she won’t be going too far away just yet. She has agreed to consult with the high school on a variety of matters and will continue to oversee the Sacred Heart Exchange Program. “It’ll be nice to stay involved with Forest Ridge but get used to not having to live by the school calendar,” she says.

But she won’t miss reading progress reports, she says. She will miss working regularly with the St. Martin dePorres Shelter in Seattle.

Audrey has spent nearly two decades leading this Forest Ridge service project, which involves every constituency from the school working to prepare and serve home-cooked meals to the homeless men at the shelter every month.

“Years ago, after some of the groups who had been providing the Sunday meal at St. Martin’s had to step down, the volunteer coordinator asked me if Forest Ridge could help by taking responsibility for one Sunday a month. That began our commitment, as one way of living out our pledge of providing opportunities for every member of our school community (child and adult) to serve the poor and marginalized,” Audrey explains.

Just as Forest Ridge has treasured Audrey’s presence over the last three decades.

“Her reputation in the Network of Schools was that she always went ‘above and beyond,’” says former Head of School Dr. Mary Magnano Smith ’61. “She served on many of the national committees and was a leader in the exchange programs both in Audrey in 1982. the United States and worldwide. Audrey never learned the word no. She always jumped in and was so positive and had the belief ‘it would all work out’ or ‘it was in God’s hands,’ ” Dr. Smith adds.

“It is time for Audrey to step back and accept all the recognition she so deserves … but, knowing Audrey, a task will pop up that no one can do, and she will say yes,” Dr. Smith says.

Head of School Mark Pierotti also knows how much Audrey has meant to Forest Ridge. “Audrey is one of those rare educators whose tenure is timeless and whose impact will be missed on a daily basis but felt for generations to come,” Pierotti says.

And that’s something that Audrey has already experienced, long before her “official” retirement, which begins in late June.

“Our St. Martin’s involvement has shattered any possible stereotypes our students might have had about the homeless and, at the same time, it has meant so much to the men, who enjoy interacting with the students who smile and talk with them,” Audrey adds.

“I have treasured my St. Martin’s experience.”

Audrey with two recent Exchange students.

“The greatest feeling is having alumnae come back to Forest Ridge and talk about their realization of the kind of education they received when they were here,” Audrey says. “When you mow the lawn, you see the effect immediately. As a teacher, you don’t have that reward. … You have to wait.

“But when I see the girls I’ve taught come back as grown women and talk about the effect that Forest Ridge had — and still has — on them, well, that’s something I treasure,” she adds.

Audrey with some of the men of St. Martin dePorres Shelter.

“It’s just one of many reasons why I feel so blessed to have been part of Forest Ridge for 34 years.”

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› women as global leaders

Finding a Voice in

Alaska Peggy O’Connor Mes Amis Editor

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It’s possible that when Forest Ridge students find their voice during their Resources and Sustainability experience in Alaska and the Arctic Circle in June, it will be a very quiet one. And yet, it might speak volumes.

Cultural engagement with the Gwich’in people of Arctic Village, Alaska, will be a very different experience for most Forest Ridge students, says Woman as Global Leaders Director Kisha X. Palmer, who will lead Forest Ridge students in an exploration of issues that face Alaska, its people and our planet.

in January. The June 13–20 trip is the culmination of the work done in the classroom and during common meeting times this winter and spring.

There, they met Princess Lucaj, a Gwich’in Athabascan Native from Arctic Village. As executive director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee, she works to build awareness of life in

When the group arrives in Alaska, Princess will again meet with Forest Ridge Resources and Sustainability students to offer suggestions on how to communicate with the people of her village. For Forest Ridge students, relying on their listening skills — rather than on their natural tendency to ask questions — will be key, Palmer adds.

“The native way of life and their cultural norms are so different from what we are used to,” Palmer explains. “The way we have learned to get to know people is to ask a lot of questions and talk a lot. The Gwich’in people use silence and different types of eye contact to communicate, so it will be interesting to see how our students will adapt as they learn about and try to know this community.”

“We’re not used to silence.”

Learning about cultural differences like these is one goal of the Resources and Sustainability program, which was added to the Women as Global Leaders curriculum this year. Another is to develop a better understanding of the environmental issues impacting the Arctic Circle and Alaska. Students participating in this .75-credit program met weekly beginning

speak for all animals because they cannot speak for themselves.” Grasping this belief of the Gwich’in people is fundamental to understanding the people, Palmer says.

“Our focus was on building a foundation of dialogue and understanding in preparation for our time in Alaska,” Palmer says.

Helping shape that foundation was a scoping trip to Alaska in June 2012 by Palmer, high school science teacher John Fenoli and international language teacher Nui Nishida (all three of whom will accompany students on the upcoming trip).

the Arctic Circle. She and her community in Arctic Village will welcome Forest Ridge students in June. As a prelude to the trip, Princess visited Forest Ridge, where she introduced her people and their work to the Forest Ridge community at the “People Who Make a Difference” assembly in January.

She told Forest Ridge students that she and her people “speak for the porcupine caribou…we

“The Gwich’in have lived there for thousands of years. They are still doing the same things and living in the same way that their forebears did. They understand the earth’s cycles and rhythms in a way that we don’t. They understand the importance of stewarding our resources in ways that we might not. They live in harmony with the earth and their environment, which doesn’t come as naturally to us,” Palmer says.

“I hope that our students are exposed to a way of looking at these things and discussing them that is not yet in their vocabulary,” she adds. continued …

The wildlife in Denali National Park; above, Arctic Village Church.

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Leading the scoping trip are, from left, Sense Nui Nishida, Kisha Palmer and John Fenoli.

Fenoli with an Athabascan child.

The Forest Ridge contingent of 13 students (three of whom are student leaders) and three faculty will spend two nights in Fairbanks, two nights in Denali National Park and three nights in Arctic Village. The girls will experience the beauty of the wilderness, learn from the environmental science community at the University of Fairbanks, explore the Arctic 24

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National Wildlife Refuge, meet the community’s tribal council, and learn side-by-side with Gwich’in students at a Fish and Wildlife Day Camp, exploring the issues that the village and its people face each day.

“Our hope is that by engaging in conversations with native people about the impact climate change has on how they live, we

can begin to contribute ways to cope with the effects of climate change on our world,” Palmer says. “We can discover so much from being at the table with the Gwich’in and learning from their experiences with climate change.”

It is Palmer’s hope that Resources and Sustainability students will return to the Seattle

area able to apply what they’ve learned in Alaska here at home.

“I want our students to be empowered by their experience in Alaska and become engaged in local climate change efforts, perhaps by partnering with Seattle University or the University of Washington.

The village smoke house.

Arctic Village water containers.

Below, fresh fish for dinner.

“It’s just the first year for Resources and Sustainability, but I am excited about the possibilities.”

Such opportunities would mesh perfectly with the Goals and Criteria, and Goal III, Criteria 5, in particular: “The school teaches respect for creation and prepares students to be stewards of the earth’s resources.”

“The Alaska experience provides us, as students of the Sacred Heart, with a wonderful opportunity to build an awareness of the bounty of our resources and draw upon personal relationships — which we hope to build with the Gwich’ins — to be leaders in the true Sacred Heart way and make a difference in our world,” Palmer says.

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Sherman met the author in 1976 at a youth retreat where Bradbury was invited to speak; Sherman was a cabin counselor assigned to drive Bradbury around during his twoday stay. “He believed in rockets but didn’t drive,” Sherman says with a chuckle.

“I was an aspiring writer … and I talked to Ray about wanting to write and being a writer,” Sherman adds. “He said, ‘Why are you talking to me? Just write.’ That had a huge influence on me,” Sherman says.

The next time the pair met was when Sherman was working as activities director at Chapman University. Sherman engaged Bradbury to speak three different times over the years — partly because Bradbury was an interesting speaker and partly so Sherman could spend time with him talking about

writing. During one of those visits, Sherman asked Bradbury’s advice on a writing project he had in mind.

“I knew Walt Disney from my days working at Disneyland, and I had met (futurist and author) Buckminster Fuller earlier.

It turned out that Ray, Walt Disney and Buckminster Fuller worked together on the Epcot project,” Sherman recalls. “I told Ray the story of meeting them both and wanting to write about the three of them, but people kept telling me that everything I was writing about them was bull. Ray said, ‘Write those stories. I know those guys, and they are my best friends. I don’t think it’s bull; that stuff is true!’”

So, Sherman wrote three stories about Bradbury, Disney and Fuller in his first

book, Restore Breathing. “When that was published, Ray wrote a note back to me urging me to go forward and keep writing.

So I did. Now I give copies of Ray’s letter with my books.”

Sherman then lost touch with Bradbury until 1993 or so, when the author turned up in Tacoma, in failing health and in a wheelchair, to speak at a local church. Sherman attended the show, walked backstage and found Ray’s helper; Sherman identified himself and gave a note for the man to give to Bradbury.

After the show, Sherman stood up as the author was leaving, and Bradbury spotted him and said, “Ben, oh my God, it’s you!”

“It had been 15 years since I’d seen him, and we had a half-hour conversation sitting there. That was the last time I saw him,”

“Ben, Do It!” No one does a stage production of the classic Ray Bradbury novel Fahrenheit 451.

There’s too much dialogue, and more than half of it is spoken by one character.

Audiences don’t like to sit for a drama with lots of talking and not much action (well, other than the book-burning scenes, that is).

No one does it … except Ben Sherman. And Sherman did it because Ray Bradbury told him he should.

Peggy O’Connor Mes Amis Editor

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Sherman says, although each time Sherman wrote a book (he’s written and published six) he’d send them to Bradbury, often receiving a note in return.

Sherman’s book group read Fahrenheit 451 last year, and he remembered that Bradbury had written a stage play based on the book.

He searched catalogs and online sources but couldn’t find the play anywhere.

“Frustrated, I wrote Ray a note and sent it to the last address I had for him. On June 6, 2012, after waiting two months for a reply, I found a package in my home mailbox with Ray’s 451 script and an inscription on the title page that said, simply, “Ben, Do it! Ray Bradbury, 6/1/12,” Sherman explains.

“On the way to Forest Ridge the next morning, I heard on the news that Ray had died the day before … the very day I took the play and his note out of my mailbox.

Needless to say, I figured we’d better do it.”

“And the whole time, I felt that Ray was saying, ‘Do more with it … mess with it.’ So I did. I felt that what I was doing was good.”

What would Bradbury have thought of Sherman’s production?

Sherman says that his production of Fahrenheit 451 took some liberties with Bradbury’s script. “One character had almost all the lines…so I split up the parts and the lines, used screen projections and smoke. Our sound tech, Nathalia Scrimshaw ’13, had 170 cues, which is amazing. We had fun with it.”

“He would have howled … he would have loved it,” Sherman says with a laugh. “He’d be howling about how another person could take and do what they want with his work without changing the words but by just having other people speak them,” he adds.

“Knowing Ray’s sense of humor, I felt like it was sort of his ‘Goodbye and Good luck’ message. And that’s pretty cool.”

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Forest Ridge Theatre 2012-2013 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever – Middle School Drama, Fall 2012

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Annie – Middle School Musical, Spring 2013

3

Godspell – High School Theater, Spring 2013

Godspell – High School Theater, Spring 2013

Godspell – High School Theater, Spring 2013

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Speaking of innovation …

Elly Schofield ’09 served as emcee for this first-ever TEDx event at Forest Ridge.

A senior at Harvey Mudd College, Elly believes that strong math education, particularly early math education, should not be a rare privilege, but rather a civil right. Motivated by the feeling of privilege from the strong technical instruction and role models she’s had throughout her education, she has focused her attention on beginning a career in mathematicseducation reform in the U.S. After giving a talk on this topic in September 2012 at TEDxClaremontColleges, Elly began connecting with leaders in the field of educational technology. This summer, she’ll begin to work with faculty at Harvey Mudd to design “massively open online courses for physics and computer science, targeted to high school students,” Elly explains.

Now completing her final year as a math major at Harvey Mudd, Elly has made the most of her studies of both mathematics and visual art, alongside numerous activities outside her classes. Her closest friends call her a “leadership addict, referring to her frequent and varied roles in campus life, including class president, student body vice president, orientation co-director and, this year, proctor for her dormitory.

In addition to these roles, she delights in tutoring at the Writing Center, performing improvisational comedy, drawing and singing.

And she makes a daily effort to make people laugh as much as possible.

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Innovate!

TEDxForestRidgeSchool:

“You can innovate now. … You don’t have to wait. But you have to be yourself, be true to yourself. Show up as you are.

Use your imagination. Any kind of innovation that’s worth anything came from somebody’s imagination.”

– Trish Millines Dziko

TEDx speaker Chanel Summers, co-founder, Syndicate 17, adjunct professor, USC School of Cinematic Arts, Interactive Media Division.

“Dr. T,” Maritza Tavarez-Brown, speaks at TEDxForestRidgeSchool.

W

omen as Global Leaders at Forest Ridge celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8 by hosting the school’s first-ever TEDx event.

The event combined TED Talks videos and live speakers to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group setting (albeit with the potential of millions watching via live streaming video). Forest Ridge chose Innovate! as this inaugural year’s theme in an effort to recognize what it takes to make a positive difference in the world.

“Our speakers represented a cross section of innovative thinking in the Puget Sound region. These women have

pushed for change in a diversity of ways, all with the goal of changing our world for the better,” said Kisha X. Palmer, Director of Women as Global Leaders at Forest Ridge.

“Our goal is to celebrate this innovative thinking and inspire our young women of the Sacred Heart to dream big, risk spectacularly, fail fantastically and constantly innovate their way forward,” Palmer added.

Speakers included: Trish Millines Dziko, founder/CEO, Technology Access Foundation; Rebecca Lovell, interim CEO at Vittana Foundation, mentor at TechStars and adjunct faculty

member at the University of Washington; Jessica Markowitz, high school senior, activist and advocate for global education; Maggie Orth, artist, technologist and founder/ CEO, International Fashion Machines, Inc.; Chanel Summers, cofounder, Syndicate 17 and adjunct professor, USC School of Cinematic Arts, Interactive Media Division; and Maritza Tavarez-Brown, Ph.D., teacher of physics and mathematics, Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart.

TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission: “ideas worth spreading.” The program is designed to give communities,

organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level.

At TEDx events, a screening of TED Talks videos — or a combination of live presenters and TED Talks videos — sparks deep conversation and connections.

TEDx events are fully planned and coordinated independently, on a community-by-community basis.

Videos of the inaugural TEDx event at Forest Ridge are archived for viewing at: http://www. tedxforestridgeschool.com/

SPRING 2013

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My Journey to Goal Three,

One Rare Disease Day at a Time

By Joelle Pollastro ‘17

As I was called on stage, my arms shook, my fingers tingled and my feet perspired; I looked out among my friends in the crowd. Each one smiled, wondering what I was doing on the stage of our middle school theater during homeroom announcements. The slideshow began to turn on; it was finally my turn. I knew I had do it, because if I didn’t, who would?

Joelle Pollastro

The title of my PowerPoint came on for everyone to see: Rare Disease Day. I introduced myself and continued with the next slide. I explained what a rare disease was and included facts and statistics, the numbers no one could change: “Thirty percent of children with a rare disease don’t live to see their 5th birthday.”

The audience was completely silent as that reality slowly began to sink in. Finally, the slide that was most nerve-racking came up. It was labeled, “Why am I talking about this?” I took a deep breath and began talking. The bitter words came out of my mouth. “I have a rare, genetic disease.

This means a part of my DNA is flawed in an uncommon way. My disease is called “Polyostotic Fibrous Dysplasia.”

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As I write, I think back to each memory I have from last July when I got my diagnosis. It was summertime, of course, and for us Seattleites, we spend our few days of sunshine like they are our last.

For me, that meant playing tennis. Some days, I would play for nearly five hours; it was something I loved. Summer was also a time to swim with friends in the nearby lake. We brought the old boombox down to the dock and blasted music while eating as much sugar as possible. We basked in the sun amidst hot soda cans and greasy potato chips. We challenged each other to flips and back dives and to see who could stay in the roughly 70-degree water longest. Our neighbors gave us odd stares, but we didn’t care. We were in our own carefree world.

I had a large surgery on Aug. 15, 2012, and was hospitalized for five days — the one week in the summer that was above 90 degrees, and I was stuck in a hospital bed on narcotics. The procedure involved jamming an intramedullary rod down my femur and into my knee, along with a nail going straight through my hip. Due to another medical complication, I have not been able play any sports since July. I watch the other kids go to PE as I walk to the library for my study period, instead. I see the other kids wearing their bathing suits with flawless legs and no scars.

Joelle with fellow middle school students who participated in Rare Diseases Day on February 28. To raise awareness of how many people in the U.S. and across the world suffer from rare diseases, the middle school girls who chose to participate wore blue jeans (i.e., genes) with their uniform options.

Participants also wore ribbons bearing the name of Joelle’s disease: Polyostotic Fibrous Dysplasia.

Then there was the sunny day, July 5, 2012, when I went in for some X-rays at Children’s Hospital. I had had leg pain for years, and this appointment was supposed to confirm that I was fine, that there was nothing wrong with me. I wanted to get my X-rays over with so my friend Lizzy and I could spend the rest of the day tanning and swimming. At 13, I was an official teenager yearning for independence. I told my mom I was fine doing this alone, so I left her in the waiting room.

As I sat on the ghostly white table in my “beautiful,” saggy hospital gown, feelings of anxiety and fright began to fill my mind. Then, the doctors told me they saw something and needed more X-rays of my leg — the opposite leg I had come in for. I sat there while white coats surrounded my X-rays. I was utterly and completely oblivious of how my life was about to change.

The next day, we got the phone call saying that they had found a benign tumor in my right femur. I was not allowed to run, jump — not even hop. I was restricted from doing anything physically active — my femur was

at risk for fracture. That was the last time I was able to run: July 6, 2012. I had to cancel my tennis classes and instead got an appointment with the head of orthopedics at Children’s Hospital. Looking back at my X-ray appointment, I remember the nice, young doctor who smiled back through the shiny glass that separated us. I am so glad he did, because from getting the X-ray to the unforgettable phone call, he gave me hope that everything was going to be OK. Fast forward to February 26, 2013, as I stood on stage in front of my classmates.

I explained that roughly 9,000–18,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with this disease. I told my audience that Middle School would soon participate in the “Wear that you Care” event sponsored by the Global Genes Project, a nonprofit organization that raises awareness, funds research and builds community for patients and families affected by rare, genetic diseases. Each person would wear jeans to school that day to remind them of the genetic aspect of rare diseases. Goal III had inspired me to make a difference, to share my knowledge about rare diseases with my community.

But in the end, I know that this experience has made me more resilient, inspired and passionate about the important things in life: my friends and family and how lucky I am to just be here. I know that going to an all-girls Sacred Heart school has boosted my self-confidence; I have to say I don’t think I would have been making this presentation if I went to the local public school. My Sacred Heart education has empowered me to continue on to my next chapter in life, changing the world one Rare Disease Day at a time. I wanted for our community to be aware of those 350 million people worldwide who struggle with the same thing I do, being rare. This presentation was outside my comfort zone, but I knew that this wasn’t all about me.

I want to leave behind the legacy that to truly follow Goal III, we have to stop, notice and advocate for others whose voices cannot be heard. As my mom always says, “God works in mysterious ways.” As a child of the Sacred Heart, I know that, just maybe, my diagnosis is one of them.

SPRING 2013

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› across campus

Photography Competition Finalist Junior Maggie Coit’s image of a Palestinian woman photographed during the 2012 Peace and Reconciliation trip has been selected as a finalist by Photographer’s Forum magazine for its Best College and High School Photography competition. Maggie’s photo will be published in a hardcover compendium this summer.

Congratulations, Maggie!

National Merit High Scorers Seven Forest Ridge juniors have qualified for the National Merit Scholarship academic competition as high scorers. High scorers are in the top 3 percent of juniors who took the PSAT in October 2012. Of these 50,000 students, about 16,000 will advance to semifinalist standing; that status will be announced in late August. Congratulations and good luck to Olivia Cero, Haley Griese, Nivu Jejurikar, Galen Moller, Shailly Pandey, Madeleine Rossi and Christine Shoemaker.

Generation Google Scholar

Middle Schoolers Participate in Catholic Advocacy Day in Olympia

Google has selected senior Yasmin Adams as a Generation Google Scholar.

Out of all the HS-senior applicants nationwide, only 60 were selected this year! Google will award Yasmin a college scholarship plus an all-expensespaid residency at its Computer Science Summer Institute in Cambridge, Mass., this summer.

In March, eighth-graders Divya Seth, Natalie Contreras and Ananya Tomar and sixthgrader Audrey Sarin joined middle school teachers Ms. Patricia Waltner and Ms. Brigida Swanson on a trip to Olympia to participate in Catholic Advocacy Day. Forest Ridge was the only school group to play a part; our students joined more than 600 members of Catholic parishes in the Archdiocese to learn about issues of economic and social justice and to meet with legislators to discuss the students concerns on behalf of the poor and vulnerable. Students received briefs of issues related to economic justice, housing, healthcare and religious liberty during their trip. In Olympia, they heard the stories of people who have struggled with and advocated for these issues. Students then created questions to pose to District 41 legislators and aides at an appointed time. “We are proud that these students expressed interest in the issues and took time to advocate for others in our community,” noted Middle School Director Julie Thenell Grasseschi.

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Aerospace Scholar Junior Rachel Krause was selected for the Washington Aerospace Scholars (WAS) program Summer Residency in June. Rachel’s academic performance in the first phase of the WAS competition that began in December 2012 earned her an invitation to participate in the summer program; she was among the 160 top scoring students.

The WAS program is a free, competitive STEM education program for Washington state high school juniors. Its distance learning curriculum was developed in partnership with NASA and the University of Washington. The program is affiliated with NASA’s Johnson Space Center’s National High School Aerospace Scholars program and has partner programs in Texas, Virginia and Idaho.

Its primary goal is to excite and prepare students to pursue careers pathways in STEM fields.

Michelle Lui Wins 3rd State Title Michelle Lui ’14 won the Girls’ Singles 1A state championship tennis title in May. She breezed through the competition winning 6-0, 6-0; 6-0, 6-0; 6-1, 6-2; 6-0, 6-0. It was Michelle’s third straight state tennis championship. Congratulations, Michelle!

First STEM Fair A Success Forest Ridge’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Fair was a resounding success; more than 150 people attended the late-February event. Students in grades 7, 9, 10 and 12 created more than 60 fascinating projects.

Ribbons were presented to the top three projects in each category, with additional awards presented to the top technology, math, people’s choice and best overall science projects. We look forward to an even bigger event next year. Special thanks to Dr. Karen Hinkley for her vision and hard work and making this event a reality.

Congratulations to our HS Student-Athletes!

It was a fantastic spring for Forest Ridge teams and individual athletes. Here’s a summary: A pair of FR high school athletic teams won the WIAA Academic State Championship for having the highest GPA among teams in their sports. The Golf Team, with a 3.81 average, led all 1A teams in the state of Washington, and the Varsity Lacrosse Team achieved the highest GPA of any girls’ lacrosse team in the state of Washington with an average GPA of 3.78!

The Varsity Tennis Team won the Emerald City League Championship and advanced to the District Championship in May. Michelle Lui ’14 took home the girls singles title and a number one seed going into the district tournament. In addition, Tiffanie Chai ’14 finished third; the doubles team of Stephanie Nicholson ’13 and Adele Parsons ’14 placed third; and the doubles team of Fanny Anderson ’13 and Olivia Cero ’14 took fourth in the league championship.

Sidney Spencer ’14 finished 20th in the state and Nina Sharp ’15 was 25th in the Golf State Championship finals.

Riley Brown ’16 ran the 100 meter dash in the in the 3A State Track Meet. Her time was 12.83 and she finished in 13th place in the entire state – amazing finish for a freshman!

Amira Douglas ’15 ran the 4 X 100 meter relay in the 4A State Track Meet. Her team finished 9th in the state.

A number of high school athletes also earned all-league recognition this spring, including: Sydney Spencer, First Team All-League Golf; Fanny Anderson, Olivia Cero, Tiffanie Chai, Michelle Lui, Adele Parsons and Stephanie Nicholson, First Team All-League Tennis; Amy Wray ’13 and Mary Carroll ’15, First Team All-League Softball. Kelly Brennan ’13 was named to the All-Conference Team Lacrosse.

SPRING 2013

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› giving

Millennium Club: Celebrating Our Donors The 13th Annual Millennium Club Event was

Dr. Mary Magnano Smith ’61, Karen Patterson ’93, Jamie Patterson ’94, and Head of School, Mark Pierotti.

David and Amy Anderson with Cynthia and Dan Seely.

Shannon Underwood ’81 and David Gartland.

Sampada and Vin Bhalerao.

Mary Frances Feider and William Blazer.

Kathleen Sullivan, RSCJ, and Mary B. Flaherty, RSCJ, ’49.

held April 18 in the Columbia Room atop the Columbia Tower in downtown Seattle.

All donors who gave at the leadership level for the 2012–2013 school year were invited to join us to celebrate. We are grateful to all those members of our community who support Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart and propel us forward to be the worldclass, global education program for women in the Pacific Northwest.

Meet Regina Mooney Regina Mooney is an educational administrator with experience at both colleges and independent schools. Raised in Connecticut, she earned a B.A. in philosophy and environmental science at Southern Connecticut State University before entering Yale Divinity School in 1976. Upon receiving her M.Div. she became a lay minister at the Newman Center in St. Cloud, Minn. Realizing she was gravitating toward more scholarly passions, Regina pursued a Ph.D. in theology and social ethics at Claremont Graduate University, receiving the degree in 1992.

Dr. Regina Mooney joined Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in July 2012 as the new Director of Institutional Advancement.

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Dr. Mooney has taught religion and philosophy at Harvey Mudd College, Mount Holyoke College and Reed College, where she was also vice president and dean of student services and lecturer in philosophy and religion. Transitioning to the independent school realm, she began her career in development at Miss Hall’s School in Pittsfield, Mass. She then took the helm at the development office at Stoneleigh-Burnham School in Greenfield, Mass., her post prior to accepting the position at Forest Ridge.

As she nears the end of her first year at Forest Ridge, Dr. Mooney notes that she is “grateful for all the help I have received from staff, faculty, students, parents and alumnae, who have been so generous with their time, wisdom and friendship. I am grateful to be working in an environment in which girls come first and spiritual values guide our interactions with each other.”

We Have SPIRIT, Yes We Do! “Spirit,” the theme of Auction 2013, energized this year’s attendees and made our event a roaring success. Heartfelt thanks to our co-captains, Mary Frances Feider, parent of Estelle ’15, Chiara ’17 and Francesca Feider-Blazer ’20, and Terry Nix, parent of Andrea van Ginneken ’15. Mary Frances and Terry along with first-stringers Wendy Costello, Gabrielle Gerhard, Kim Merino, Leslie Decker, Pam Kimball and Susan Meier, ran the auction like a top-level major league team!

Forest Ridge Athletics), celebrated at the tailgate party by bidding on auction items, cheering on friends competing to win bids, playing ring toss, buying raffle tickets and socializing with friends. The energy was high, the generosity overflowed and the spirit permeated the far corners of the room.

Highlights of the evening included sipping beverages from the back of an old pickup truck, raffling the use of an electric car for a year and auctioning box seats to Rihanna and One Direction concerts.

More than 240 guests, sporting a wide range of cocktail finery and athletic gear (a nod to this year’s Fund-A-Need recipient,

Emcee and Forest Ridge CFO Jamie Patterson ’94 led the live auction festivities along with returning auctioneer Laura Michalek. Lisa

Brummel, co-owner of the Seattle Storm and Microsoft’s chief people officer, gave inspiring testimony to the role athletics has played in her own life and coached us all toward more generous donations in support of Forest Ridge. Together, they motivated bidders and the rest of the team, helping to raise more than $280,000, including $100,000 for our special “Fund-A-Need” benefitting Forest Ridge Athletics.

Thank you to all of our generous donors and bidders for hitting it out of the park. The MVP award goes to our amazing volunteers, without whom none of this would have been possible. Thanks again for a winning season!

Annual Fund – Thank You! We are most grateful to the donors who supported the 2012–2013 Annual Fund campaign, “She’s Unstoppable!” Our donors made a difference — their gifts supported teaching tools, technology improvements, professional development, athletics, the arts, academics and so much more. Thank you!

SPRING 2013

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Stay Connected with Forest Ridge Alumnae and Network with

In this day when the number of jobs an average person can expect to hold over a lifetime is in double digits, networking is the most important tool you can have when conducting a job search.

Tapping into your Forest Ridge Alumnae network can help. Become a member of the newly formed Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart Alumnae Association LinkedIn Group. Alumnae are happy to support other alumnae — you are all sisters who share a bond. Helping each other just makes sense: Building community is Goal IV! More than 225 alumnae are already members. You can search the site by location or industry. It’s a great way to make new connections — and new friends, too. You don’t need to be a graduate, just an alumna who has spent some time at Forest Ridge.

Visit our LinkedIn profile at www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=226438658&locale=en_US&trk=tyah2 and get connected today!

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› alumnae board president

Dear Alumnae and Friends, I had the privilege to attend the biennial Associated Alumnae/Alumni of the Sacred Heart (AASH) Conference in Omaha, April 11 - 14, and have returned with a renewed appreciation for the Society of the Sacred Heart’s commitment to the Goals and Criteria. The infusion of these goals into the learning and life of every student of the Sacred Heart has created a bond among us that is timeless. In Omaha, the generosity of our hosts, the fantastic speakers, the very real and demonstrated faith in the Sacred Heart Society and Cor Unum, the home dinners and the deep, strong St. Philippine Duchesne-like strength of alums from around the country all had the Sacred Heart goals and spirit at their core. It was a truly wonderful and enriching experience.

I would like to warmly welcome the 2013 Forest Ridge graduates into the fold of the Sacred Heart alumnae network and encourage you to consider your part in the network as you boldly embrace the power awakened in you by your Sacred Heart education.

I hope the spring and summer months will encourage all Forest Ridge alumnae to reflect on how you can help grow and enrich the network by participating in any way with the Forest Ridge Alumnae Association, AASH or AMASC (World Association of Alumnae and Alumni of the Sacred Heart).

In my next year as Forest Ridge Alumnae Board president, I will strive to bring greater awareness to the powerfully unique, intelligent and spiritual community that all Forest Ridge alumnae are a part of and have the passport to participate in locally, nationally and internationally. I look forward to seeing and hearing from you in the coming year. I also want to encourage you to join the Alumnae Board. Please let me know if you are interested; we are always looking for new members.

I wish all of you and your families a warm and wonderful summer!

In the Heart,

Dawn Hoffer ’87

SPRING 2013

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› farewell

Farewell, Mother Mac

Sr. Virginia McMonagle, left, with Sr. Mary B. Flaherty in 1965.

Virginia McMonagle, RSCJ, ’39, passed away peacefully on Easter Sunday, March 31, after a brief illness. Known for her strong leadership and can-do attitude, Sr. McMonagle helped to build two schools of the Sacred Heart. She also spent many years following her heart in a hands-on ministry to the poor in Haiti. Sr. McMonagle’s life was celebrated at a memorial Mass at Forest Ridge on April 19.

The Lord’s acts of mercy are not exhausted, His compassion is not spent; they are renewed each morning.”

(Lamentations 3:22-23)

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Following is an excerpt from the homily written and delivered by Mary B. Flaherty, RSCJ, ’49: This passage, taken from today’s first reading, shouted to me of the life and tireless ministry of Sister Virginia McMonagle.

Born in Roslyn, Wash., on August 9, 1921, to George and Rose Virginia Tierney McMonagle, Virginia was the oldest of three children. After the family moved to Seattle, the children attended school at Blessed Sacrament Parish, and the two girls went on to graduate from Forest Ridge. Virginia attended the San Francisco College for Women for one year before entering the Society of the Sacred Heart at Kenwood in Albany, N.Y. After her first vows, in 1943, she returned to Forest Ridge to teach in the Junior School until her final profession, made at our Mother House in Rome in February 1949.

She and her sister, Marguerite, who that same month had pronounced her first vows, returned together to Forest Ridge to teach in the Elementary and Junior Schools.

In 1963, Mother McMonagle — or “Mother Mac,” as she was often affectionately called by the students — was appointed mistress general of our school in El Cajon, Calif.

That was a role she loved and where she excelled. She made a tremendous impact on the students and their families and followed them faithfully long after they had graduated. She exercised this position [mistress general] for 14 years, both there and at Forest Ridge from 1963 until 1965 and again from 1971 to 1977.

Between the two latter stints, she served as superior of the community. Virginia never really enjoyed being superior, as her heart remained with the students. However, two events highlight her impact in that capacity.

She began the Forest Ridge Auction, which today continues to benefit our students. And she obtained permission from the mother general and her council to search for a new and larger site for the school. It had outgrown its beautiful home on Interlaken Boulevard with no possibility of expanding on the existing campus. In 1966, this magnificent property in Bellevue, with its pristine land and magnificent view atop Somerset, was purchased. First as superior, then again as mother general, Virginia oversaw the design and construction of the new campus and in 1971 made the move of the school onto its present site.

The year 1977 brought closure to that phase of her life, and after a year of sabbatical in England she returned to Southern California.

Dr. Arthur Hughes, the first lay president

at the University of San Diego, offered her the position of events coordinator. As such she organized all his meetings and special events. At this same time, she worked with the former students of El Cajon to ease the pain from the closing of their school and bonded them into a strong and vibrant alumnae group.

In 1988, she began the second important phase of her life — her first trip to Haiti.

She immediately fell in love with the people, especially the numerous abandoned and terminally ill children begging on the streets. Using her unfailing charm and powerful writing skills to contact her friends, Virginia raised funds to construct both an orphanage and a hospital. There, these children received the first real love and care they had ever known. Haiti became her second home and where she seemed happiest and most fulfilled.

Virginia’s strong attraction to the missions dated back to her years in Blessed Sacrament Parish, staffed by the Dominicans, where the seed was sown. Dominican Fr. Hofstee went to work on Molokai among the [leprosy patients] at a time before penicillin and other wonder drugs offered a cure for that dread disease. While at Forest Ridge, she organized clothing and toy drives for the benefit of these [patients]. All would be packed and sent on its way by the students.

Thus the missions and their needs became a reality for [the students], and it is many of those same students who later rallied most generously to support her work in Haiti.

But wherever or whatever her other involvements might be, at no time did Virginia ever forget her wonderful friends in Seattle. How many of us were recipients of her beautifully penned notes? These later evolved into often ragtag missives written on

Sr. Virginia McMonagle in 2012.

anything she could find: a Halloween card at Christmas or a Valentine at Easter. But they kept coming! How those words touched those who received them — [whether] they [were] a simple greeting to stay in touch, words of encouragement, comfort in a sorrow, rejoicing in a birth or wedding — all were full of interest in the recipients and their families.

In later years, when one went to see her, she was always avid for news of her dear Forest Ridge friends. A piece of her heart always remained in the Northwest.

So many scripture passages come to mind as I reflect on Virginia’s life. “Suffer the little children to come unto me.” (Luke 18:16) And “Whatever you did for the least of my people, you did for me.” But especially, “Come ye blessed of my Father, for when I was hungry, when I was thirsty, when I was naked, you fed Me, gave Me to drink, clothed Me...For whatever you did to these my little ones, you did unto Me.” (Matthew 25: 40) There are many more passages one could quote, but all are aptly summed up in these words from today’s second reading: “None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. For if we live, we live in the Lord, and if we die, we die in the Lord.”

(Romans 14:7-9) Today we celebrate the lifelong and far reaching gift of herself by a tireless and valiant woman. How blessed we all are in her: her love, her life and her ministry.

How fitting it is that Father Foster, who she hired to teach at Forest Ridge, celebrates her memorial liturgy in the beautiful Chapel of the Sacred Heart, which, at the time of the School’s centenary, was lovingly dedicated in honor of Virginia McMonagle, RSCJ. May she rest in peace.

SPRING 2013

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› alumnae

What Makes a Forest Ridge

Woman?

We asked members of the class of 2013 for their thoughts

on what makes a Forest Ridge woman. We thought that, as they reach the end of their four (and for some, eight) years on the Ridge, they might be experts on the subject.

Here’s what they said:

Rasika Bhalerao A Forest Ridge woman has … foundations for free thinking.

Kelda Byrne To be a Forest Ridge woman and, by extension, a Sacred Heart woman, is to be a woman of empowerment, wisdom and grace. The women who receive a Forest Ridge education develop character unique to that of a Sacred Heart education and are women who will, no doubt, leave an impression.

Rachel Dekman Kelda Byrne

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Being a Forest Ridge woman means being a leader in not just your [own] community but also globally.

Nicole Durham Forest Ridge taught me how to speak up for myself. Being a Forest Ridge woman means that you are willing to put yourself out there for yourself and others.

Ellen Jacobus To be a Forest Ridge woman, question everything, lead with confidence and do right, especially in the face of difficulty. Follow your passion, even if it’s the road less traveled.

Yeon (Younhee) Kim Being a Forest Ridge woman means …

Ellen Jacobus

being an adventurous woman who isn’t afraid of new opportunities.

Kathryn O’Meara To be a Forest Ridge woman is to be: Strong. Outspoken. A Global Leader.

A Hard worker. Intelligent. Caring.

Maddy Pollastro I think being a Forest Ridge woman means that you are part of an international community of global leaders who have the

Maddy Pollastro

capacity to serve, lead and inspire others.

Nathalia Scrimshaw A Forest Ridge woman is compassionate, intellectual and kind.

Aeva Wilkes

Amy Wray

To me, being a Forest Ridge woman means

A Forest Ridge woman is a critical thinker,

being unafraid to share your opinions and to

invested leader and dedicated learner who

speak out, but also knowing when to listen.

is engaged in her community.

Aeva Wilkes

SPRING 2013

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Garrett Okrasinski ’07

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To Stay or Not to Stay:

That is the Question Julie Lundgren Director of Alumnae Relations

F

or many middle schoolers and their

global issues. This led to her participation in

Garrett acknowledges that her personal

parents, the decision to attend high

several school-sponsored trips to Uganda,

transformation occurred in high school at

school at Forest Ridge or to go

where she gained a new perspective: “In

Forest Ridge. She credits world history as

elsewhere isn’t even a question. The high

the United States, misrepresentations of

taught by Will Segall and Sue Turner with

school at Forest Ridge is the next logical step.

other cultures and people are rampant, yet

exposing her to global issues. She recalls

For others, the decision is not so proforma,

one would never know until they implanted

their passion and energy, their Socratic

but rather, a thoughtful calculation. Do

themselves in another place,” Garrett recalls.

method of encouraging class discussion.

Garrett’s mother, Moira Scully, remembers

most truly transformative experiences — those that imbue intellectual curiosity,

Garrett went on to study Arabic in college

when global affairs took a seat at the family

critical thinking and self-confidence —

and to spend a semester in Egypt and

dinner table.

occur during middle school or during high

travel to Palestine. She graduated from the

school? Is what’s best for middle school

University of San Francisco in 2011 with a

years always what’s best for high school? It

degree in international studies. She lived on

depends on the individual, of course, but

a sailboat at Pier 39 in San Francisco Bay.

anecdotes abound. One of them is the story

And in no time at all she landed a job as

R

recently graduated, I was given a lot of

of Garrett Okrasinski ’07. Many high school

a program analyst for the Consortium of

responsibility.” Now she’s looking to go

alumnae share a similar story, and it begins

Universities for Global Health.

abroad again and work directly with people

in middle school.

eflecting on her job as a program

analyst, Garrett says, “I am very

proud that, for only having

in the global health arena. Her memories of living in Uganda and Egypt continue

Garrett was a typical middle schooler,

to inspire her. “I love learning about new

carefree but also a bit shy. She chose to stay

cultures and taking my time living in a place

at Forest Ridge for high school because

to get a feel for how a local might live and

she enjoyed her friends, her teachers and

their daily routine. It has also helped me

the volleyball team. But sometime during

to more closely examine my life and the

high school she developed an interest in

culture I live in.”

Forest Ridge High School has its own culture and personality. But that doesn’t mean it’s the best fit for every high school girl. For the right girl, the experience can be transformative.

Garrett advises current students to “explore any opportunities that push your comfort level.

Don’t settle for what is easy or safe.”

SPRING 2013

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SAN MATEO

1

SANTA CRUZ

140

140

San Jose

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› alumnae events

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SANTA CLARA

280

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41

165

5

99

MERCED

17 152

145

152

Forest Ridge travels to

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168

MADERA

152

152

25

41 33

Southern California!

145

168

99

156

180

101

180

180

180

SAN BENITO

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FRESNO

Fresno

63 99 5

25

201

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145

201

43

99

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1

63

198 198

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198

MONTEREY

137

41

198

33 5

101

1

99

KINGS

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43 41

155

46

6

Julie Lundgren Director of Alumnae Relations

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41 46

1

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101 58

When she stepped into her role as Director of Institutional Advancement last summer, Dr. Regina Mooney knew immediately that she wanted to take Forest Ridge on the road. A trip to Southern California seemed like a

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43

5

33

58

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SAN LUIS OBISPO

119 119

227 166 1

166 33

good place to start — there are about 150 Forest Ridge alumnae living

1

there, and, admittedly, a chance for some much-needed sunshine seemed like a good idea, too. So, in late March, Head of School Mark Pierotti, Dr. Mooney and I headed to Pasadena and San Diego to visit alumnae.

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SANTA BARBARA

Mark Pierotti and Patsy Kelly Shumway ’46.

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VENT

154 101

Lucia Rosling Shaw ’85 hosted our first gathering in Pasadena, bringing together alumnae from the early ’80s as well as some graduates from last year who are attending college nearby. Being in the company of such talented and interesting women reaffirmed that a Forest Ridge education molds young girls into women of confidence and substance. It also offered alumnae an opportunity to meet Mark and Regina, who are leading Forest Ridge into the future. They had an opportunity to discuss current school initiatives, such as Women as Global Leaders, which includes a trip this summer to the Arctic Circle as part of its Resources and Sustainability track. This second phase of Women as Global Leaders complements the already established Peace and Reconciliation trip that culminates in travel to Jerusalem over Midwinter Break. The gathering also discussed the school’s exploration of new Middle School construction, noting the increasing cost of maintaining the older buildings on campus.

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MES AMIS

The next day we traveled to San Diego and met with Patsy Kelly Shumway ’46, Sharon Carey LeeMaster ’53, Nancy Scott Jackson ’70 and Sr. Virginia Rodee at the University of San Diego.

Sharing stories from the early days of Forest Ridge along with continuing our discussion of Forest Ridge today made for a delightful evening together.

We plan to take more trips in the future to bring Forest Ridge alumnae together. Recognizing that this Sacred Heart bond is one that nurtures and sustains alumnae throughout their lives, we want to encourage and strengthen the bond in all our alumnae, no matter where they live. Mark, Regina and I came away impressed with the interesting lives Forest Ridge alumnae lead and the value they place on the education they received at Forest Ridge.

150

150 101

33

11

168

168

395

O

180 180

0 63 245 198

INYO

136

201 63

190

395 190

395

TULARE 65

190

127

190 178

190

99

43 127

155

155

178

65

178

178

99

43

15 395

58 14

KERN

58

119

223 99

58

166 58

95 15 58

5

14

SAN BERNARDINO

The group at Lucia Rosling Shaw’s home included, from left, Carolyn Crosse Hays ’93, Melissa Rice ’00, Alexis Chong ’06, Lucia Rosling Shaw ’85, Natasha Tomich ’04, Jacquie Ochoa-Rosellini ’85, Taylor Durham ’11, Mark Pierotti, Annie Lundgren ’11 and Julie Lundgren, Alumnae Relations Director.

VENTURA

126

150

150

01

33

138

14

18 138

2

LOS ANGELES

23

247

18

5

23

38

39

18 18

101 1

23

247

18 138

2

118

40

15

395

33

40

40

138

330

38

30

Los Angeles

62 62

62

10

1

62 142

60

Anaheim Long Beach

91

91

15

74

5

111

74

215 1

RIVERSIDE

111 243

ORANGE

Santa Ana

It was a very worthwhile trip: we

177

10 79

79

10

74

74 371 79

made new friends, strengthened 111

past connections and reaffirmed

86

79

76 76

The group at at the University of San Diego included Dr. Regina Mooney, Sharon Carey LeeMaster ’53, Mark Pierotti, Sr. Virginia Rodee, Julie Lundgren and Nancy Scott Jackson ’70.

our faith in each other.

78

78

78

111

86

5

67

15

SAN DIEGO

San Diego

IMPERIAL 78

79

86

111

SPRING 2013

8

115

47 8

8

75

115

805

94

94

98 98

› aASH conference

A ‘B-12 Shot’ of

Amy Sandmeyer Picciotto ’89 Forest Ridge Alumnae Board AASH Representative

SACRED HEART What do the Midwest, Moscow Mules and Mary Moeschler have in common? Omaha.

This April 10 – 14, I had the honor of attending the 39th Biennial Associated Alumnae & Alumni of the Sacred Heart (AASH) conference in Omaha as the Forest Ridge Alumnae Board representative. While thanking the Board and the Executive Committee prior to the conference, I truly had no idea what, exactly, I was thanking them for. As it turns out, the AASH conference was, as one officer described it, a “B-12 shot of Sacred Heart.”

The Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart hosted many conference activities. Duchesne features, as one would expect from a school founded in 1881, a traditional brick exterior, wooden stairways and a display of fine art in the hallways.

Duchesne is also home to Ms. Mary Moeschler, my former Forest Ridge 8th-grade English teacher. Upon my arrival, one of the administrators offered to sneak me down to Ms. Moeschler’s classroom. Just my luck, they were working on Romeo and Juliet.

Suddenly, I had an overwhelming urge to skip the rest of the conference and sit in on her class, discuss Shakespeare, perhaps re-read A Separate Peace. (God bless teenage angst!) The reconnection was an emotional one for me, although I may have scared a classroom full of teenagers.

The author with (from left) Sr. Diana Wall ’82 (Broadway), Dawn

Hoffer ’87, and (far right) Karen Patterson ’93.

The day continued its inspirational theme, featuring three

veterans, a joint effort between the Department of Housing and

young (what I consider young) alumnae. One alum, working in

Urban Development and Veterans Affairs. The third alum

Uganda, began a bakery with a local orphan support group that

founded an organization to care for orphans and widows in

also supports HIV-positive mothers. After having worked in

Nigeria and then went on to work for the Obama campaign as

Afghanistan for Catholic Relief Services, another alum now

well as to manage a mayoral campaign in Pittsburgh.

manages HUD-VA Supportive Housing Program for homeless

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As if this weren’t enough, while reaching for coffee during the break, I came face to face with Sr. Diane Roche. Currently working in New Orleans, Sr. Roche was dean of students at Forest Ridge from 1985 to 1989. She was relatively new to the religious order then and, God help her, had to deal with our class. Flashbacks of Sr. Roche watching The Breakfast Club with our class or toting her guitar around campus came to me. Reminiscing gets old, so we entered into a quick discussion on faith and service. We even discussed that dirtiest of all dirty words: progressive. I learned a small bit about the amazing life of service she continues to lead, working in the trenches. While talking with her, I felt a sense of regret. Many young women, including myself, had never fully appreciated all that Sr. Roche had to offer during her tenure at Forest Ridge.

What is a B-12 shot of Sacred Heart? It is revitalization.

Amy Sandmeyer Picciotto ’89 with Sr. Diane Roche (center) and Dawn Hoffer ’87.

Meeting fellow Sacred Heart alumnae from diverse backgrounds and lives reminds us that we are part of something much bigger than ourselves. The conference

And, yes, I realize I addressed

inspired its attendees to keep asking how we are going instill the core value of service into our lives.

“Midwest” and “Mrs. Moeschler,”

As a mother of young children, my daily life is often

but as far as the Moscow Mules

overtaken by never-ending grocery trips, carpool runs and

… what happens in Omaha, stays

dealing with a lot of feces (both literally and figuratively).

However, my hope is that a next phase of this journey

in Omaha.

includes the mission of service. While still unsure of exactly how, when or what that looks like, I am more inspired to make that a reality.

SPRING 2013

49

Christmas Goûter Every winter break we look forward to welcoming back recent alumnae and hearing about

their time at college. In December 2012, we started a Christmas Goûter, held before school let out for Christmas break, in addition to the College Alumnae Panel we have in early January.

Faculty and staff experience great joy seeing the alumnae and finding out about their lives

Allegra Del Matto ’12, Chanel Farago ’12, Rachel Perna ’12 and Demi Carson ’12 with current students Kayliana Prioleau ‘15 and Evan Box ‘15.

after Forest Ridge!

Vicki Liao ’12 and Cady Moris ’12 with High School Athletic Director Kim Eng.

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MES AMIS

Hannah Thorson ’12 and Vicki Liao ’12 with high school biology teacher John Fenoli and High School English teacher Sr. Marcia O’Dea.

› cl ass notes

53

Sonya A. Quitslund ’53 continues working on her heritage barn, built circa 1905. The City of Bainbridge Island is considering adding the barn to its registry of historic buildings as the oldest surviving barn connected with the once-thriving strawberry farming industry on the Island. (The barn currently houses equipment and bottles from Perennial Vintners, a local winery where Sonya volunteers.) Passionate about preserving historic buildings, Sonya lobbied on Capitol Hill last February with the Washington state delegation for the preservation of historic buildings. In addition, Sonya, along with two friends associated with the V St. Center in Washington, D.C., were interviewed for a documentary on the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on Aug. 28, 1963. This documentary is expected to air around the country on PBS on or around Aug. 28.

Moe Romano ’72 with, from left, Marian Middleton Brown ’72, Jeannie Boddy ’72, Kristi Colman ’72, Sue Heffernan ’72, Anne Romano Sarewitz ’71 and Mary Smith Smith ’72.

63

75

72

81

Sarah Hennes Clark ’63 is a busy grandmother of five. Her husband will retire this year.

Kate Alexander ’72 recently moved to Kodiak Island, Alaska, where, among other things, she surfs.

Janet Reilly Beard ’72 traveled to New York City in May for her son Stephen’s graduation.

He majored in vocal performance from NYU’s Steinhardt School of Education. See him perform by going to YouTube and looking up Stephen Beard.

Moe Romano ’72 joined classmates Marian Middleton, Jeanie Boddy, Kristi Colman, Mary Smith, Sue Heffernan and sister Anne Sarewitz ’71 to celebrate her birthday at her residence at Providence Mount St. Vincent.

Helen Alexander Phillips ’75 was pleased when her garden was voted best garden in Vashon by the garden club. She built her garden, all seven acres, from scratch!

Sara Ramseyer Klein ’81 writes, “My husband, Tom, and I still live and work in Oakland, Calif., where we practice law together and raise our teenagers Julia, 18, who is headed to NYU in the fall, and Will, 16, a high school sophomore. I teach intellectual property law locally at John F. Kennedy University and have taught a couple of January-term classes on the subject at my alma mater, Middlebury College, in Vermont. We still spend time on Vashon Island in the summer, and I would love to see FR classmates there any time!”

Shannon Underwood ’81 has been nominated to “run the chairs” at Meydenbauer Bay Yacht Club in Bellevue and will serve as Commodore in 2016. Her daughter

Kylie, a senior at Forest Ridge, will attend Washington University in St. Louis in the fall. Shannon and her husband and business partner, David, are busy working on their new industrial project in Everett, a planned 400,000-square-foot manufacturing center.

86

Beth Graham Inghram ’86 lives in northeast Seattle, raising her two daughters and working as a part-time editor for Microsoft.

88

Christa Hewitt Fleming ’88 writes, “I’m still doing graphic design and have been thrilled that my husband, Brian, has officially joined me, handling all the web and other electronic work for our business.

In other news: Henry and Leo recently turned 8 and 6. Just before their birthdays, we were lucky enough to travel to Disneyland with grandparents. It was a special and fun trip!”

SPRING 2013

51

› class notes

01

Beth Phillips ’01 writes, “I’m doing well, working for the Carter Center in South Sudan on the South Sudanese government’s Guinea Worm Eradication Program. I serve as a technical advisor in a county with 87 percent of the world’s remaining guinea worm cases. Pretty intense and rewarding work! In May 2012 I completed my master’s degree in global health from the University of Arizona. From 2005 to 2010 I worked with the Peace Corps community health program in Namibia and Uganda.

02

Henry and Leo, children of Christa Hewitt Fleming ’88 at Disneyland.

93

Carolyn Crosse Hays ’93 lives in Los Angeles and keeps busy as an artist; she is currently working on a children’s book. This past winter, Carolyn entered a group art show at The Loft at Liz’s in LA and showcased her work, pictured below, which is a comment on the natural, organic world transposed against the plastic, structured created world.

Additionally, Carolyn writes a food blog with a fun, kitschy title: www.theboozyhomemaker. com. The theme is cooking with alcohol, which cooks out, of course.

98

Deanna Lynch Finch ’98 and her husband, Michael, welcomed their second daughter, Lisette Grace Finch, on Jan. 12, 2013.

Lisette’s big sister, Claudia, eagerly awaits having a playmate.

Nicole McDermet ’98 married J.J. Grob in Brooklyn, N.Y., in May 2012 before moving to Portland, Ore., for her job in the sales development department at Pandora. Classmate Alexia Vernon ’98 was a bridesmaid.

Hayley Hubert Bowman ’02 is living in Issaquah with her husband, Juston, and their first child, Jaxon.

Rhea Mac ’02 completed her bachelor’s degree in biology at California State University, Northridge (CSUN) and is currently completing her master’s degree in biological anthropology with an emphasis in primatology, at CSUN. “Basically, I chase monkeys in the jungle,” says Rhea. The focus of her master’s thesis is woolly monkeys in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Rhea plans to pursue a Ph.D., too, but in the interim, she hopes to travel to Peru to conduct research with woolly monkeys and to Nicaragua to conduct a monkey census in the rainforest.

While in Nicaragua, she wants to help create

95

Georgette Bhathena ’95 works at JPMorgan Chase’s philanthropic grant program.

Kendee Yamaguchi ’95 was recently hired

by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson to lead the governmental affairs team as the director of policy, legislative affairs and external relations.

52

MES AMIS

Nicole McDermet ’98 and her bridesmaids, including Alexia Vernon ’98 (second from right).

and implement a conservation course for students at the local elementary school. For her Ph.D. she would like to focus on conservation biology to create and implement habitat conservation programs within the tropics and within Los Angeles.

Rhea tutors elementary through high school students and works on campus in the Dean’s Office for the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

03

Neha Mac ’03 graduated in 2006 from University of San Francisco, where she obtained a B.S. in international business with an emphasis in finance. From there she worked in finance and marketing, and, in 2009, she began attending the McGeorge School of Law at the University of the Pacific. She recently completed her J.D. from McGeorge with a business law concentration and an international legal studies certificate.

She is currently in the process of furthering her studies by completing an LL.M. (a Master of Laws degree) in transnational business practice. To supplement her education, Neha has obtained legal internships domestically and abroad. Over the summer of 2012 Neha interned with the Secretariat for Environmental Matters of the Dominican Republic, Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) in Guatemala, where she gained experience in international business and legal affairs.

Currently, Neha is living in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where she is interning at a law firm and gaining further experience in international transactional law. She will be sitting for the July 2013 California Bar Exam.

04

Nina Wallace Finter ’04 will graduate from Johns Hopkins University this spring with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. It will be her third bachelor’s degree; the other two are in French studies and elementary education.

Nina shared, “I hope to use both my teaching and nursing in international work. I always drive through Forest Ridge’s campus when I am in Seattle. It has such a special place in my heart.” Nina and her husband will move to California this summer.

05

Rachael Brown ’05 graduated on the dean’s list from Santa Clara University School of Law. After a cross-country vacation touring the United States by car with her fiancé, Chris Binder, Rachel began work as an intellectual property attorney at a law firm in San Jose, Calif.

Elyse Whitney ’05 graduated as a pastry chef from the International Culinary Center in Manhattan. She will be working at a French bakery in Brooklyn called Trois Pommes where they serve red velvet twinkies!

06

Jessica Gil ’06 earned her J.D. from Creighton University School of Law in May.

07

Matthea Brown ’07 ran several races last year: the 10K Bridge to Brews and the 5K Color Run, both in Portland, and the 5K Turkey Trot in San Jose. Before graduating from Linfield College last spring, Matthea traveled to New Orleans to volunteer with Common Ground Relief for wetlands restoration. Matthea lives in Portland, Ore. Satie Wallace ’07 was the maid of honor at the January wedding of her sister Nina Wallace Finter ’04.

08

Lauren Graves ’08 will graduate this spring with her Master of Arts in Teaching and a Bachelor of Arts in sociology with a minor in child studies from USF. She’s living in San Francisco, planning to teach elementary school.

09

Aaron Kitchen ’09 made the Engineering College dean’s list at the University of Idaho — again!

She will graduate in the spring of 2014 with a B.S. in mechanical engineering and minors in materials science and engineering and creative writing. For the second time, Aaron received an Engineering Leadership Award from the University of Idaho for her service as both vice president and president of the University of Idaho Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers. (attached photo of chapter crest). This past summer, Aaron interned at the Boeing Wind Tunnel in Seattle/Tukwila as a manufacturing engineer making service plans for machineshop parts.

Taylor Mattheisen ’09 coxes for Gonzaga’s Division I men’s crew team. As their coxswain, she has traveled all over the country, including New Jersey, where she coxed in the varsity boat at nationals last year. Taylor is serving a nursing internship as she finishes her studies to become a nurse.

Elly Schofield ’09 auditioned and won a spot as a speaker at the September 2012 TEDx event at Claremont Colleges, her alma mater. “The organizers picked three students from Claremont Graduate School and me to speak alongside about 10 other invited speakers. I feel really lucky that the organizers held those auditions,” writes Elly. To view Elly’s talk, visit: http:// tedxtalks.ted.com/video/A-Passion-forMath-Elly-Schofie

Katherine Francisco ’08 has completed the five-year Dual Degree Teacher Preparation Program at the University of San Francisco and will receive her Master of Arts in Teaching with a multiple subject credential.

Last May, she graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in French studies and minors in music and African studies.

Elly Schofield speaking at the TEDx event.

SPRING 2013

53

› class notes

Elly also was invited to Forest Ridge in March to emcee the school’s inaugural Tedx Talk broadcast in honor of International Women’s Day. See full story on page 30.

Xanda Schofield ’09 shares that last February she attended a programming competition in Abu Dhabi with themes around making mobile apps to help the Arab world. Xanda interned at Yelp last summer and will work for the company after she graduates in May. Sam Totton ’09 is graduating from the University of Oregon with a business administration major and communications minor. She spent last summer studying in Ireland. During this past school year, Sam has worked an on-campus job as a note taker for disabled students and served as the VP event planner for the UO chapter of the American Marketing Association.

10

Jomeka Bland ’10 attends Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Ga. She recently shared, “Being back on an all-women’s campus reminds me of my Forest Ridge days. I told myself I didn’t want to be on an all-women’s campus again, but I just couldn’t stay away; I am a lot more productive. I think FR prepared me well, and I get better one-onone teacher interaction, which is great for building relationships.”

Renee Marpert ’10 spent spring semester in Morocco, where she studied Arabic and migration.

11

Nikita Jejurikar ’11 and her sister Neha Jejurikar ’09 spent their spring break leading a medical service trip to rural Panama through Georgetown Medical Brigades and the school’s Center for Social Justice. The group of approximately 50 Georgetown students, who raised funds for medications during the school year, spent a week in Panama with doctors providing medical services to two rural villages. Next year, Nikita will lead a new group of students to rural Honduras, and Neha will be enrolled in medical school.

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MES AMIS

Nikita Jejurikar and her sister Neha Jejurikar led a medical service trip to rural Panama.

Hannah Brown ’11 is in her sophomore year at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. In addition to her mechanical engineering major, Hannah has added a theater minor.

She has performed in three theater productions as well as traveled to New York City with her choir to perform at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine.

12

Emma Murphy ’12 was one of three freshmen selected as a fellow in the Mortara Undergraduate Research Fellows Program at Georgetown University. The program identifies talented students in the School of Foreign Service early in their college years and provides the opportunity to partner with professors as research assistants and co-authors on complex research projects throughout their undergraduate careers.

Marriages: Nicole McDermet ’98 married J.J. Grob on May 12, 2012.

Nina Wallace ’04 married Landon Finter on Jan. 3, 2013.

Births: Kristen Orlowski Christensen ’03 welcomed Kalenn Nicole Christensen on Sept. 15, 2012.

Deanna Lynch Finch ’98 welcomed Lisette Grace Finch on Jan. 12, 2013.

In Memoriam: Caryn Asplund ’88, sister of Janelle Asplund ’91, on Feb. 10, 2013.

Patrick Callahan, father of Claudia Callahan ’69, on March 28, 2013.

Steve Caputo, brother of Pamela Caputo Glenn ’62 and Jill Caputo Delaney ’70, on Feb. 14, 2013.

Molly Greif ’47, sister of Susan Greif ’54, on Feb. 23, 2013.

T. C. Pat Hentschell, husband of the late Bonny Halloran Hetschell ’48 and father of Lisa Hentschell and Molly Hentschell Yogi ’69, on March 6, 2013.

Nicole McDermet ’98 and J.J. Grob with their wedding party.

Isabel Foster Hopf ’53 on March 14, 2013.

John Isaksen, husband of Patty Bannon Isaksen ’49 and brother-in-law of Carol Bannan Schifsky ’52, on April 15, 2013.

Nick Kloze, stepfather of Susan Barnhart Kennedy ’65, Cheryl Barnhart Goetz ’68 and Barbara Barnhart Killian, on April 11, 2013.

Paul Oscar, husband of Patty David Oscar ’57 and brother-in-law of Jo-Anne David Shanahan ’59, on April 9, 2013.

Nina Wallace ’04 and Landon Finter.

Lisette Grace Finch with sister Caudia.

Elizabeth Sinnott Palmer ’36, mother of Nancy Palmer Lobberegt ’63, on Jan. 14, 2013.

Frankie Runzo, grandmother of Laura Levings Hooper ’99, on Sept. 1, 2012.

Forrest Shumway, husband of Patsy Kelly Shumway ’46, on Dec. 4, 2012.

Brooks Shumway, daughter of Patsy Kelly Shumway ’46, on Jan. 4, 2013.

Sandy McLaughlin Spurlock ’59 on Feb. 4, 2013.

Dr. John Wiegenstein, father of Mary Wiegenstein ’67, Jane Wiegenstein, Ann Wiegenstein Fleischman ’70 and Margaret Wiegenstein, on Oct. 28, 2012.

Kalenn Nicole Christensen

SPRING 2013

55

Grandparents

and Special Guests’

Afternoon

The school was abuzz in April as 160 grandparents and special guests visited Forest Ridge for an afternoon of education, entertainment and fun. Students and their special guests beamed as they explored together a day in the life of a Forest Ridge student.

Festivities began with performances from our Fine Arts Department. The Chamber Choir set the tone, followed by the hand bell choir with three songs ending with the fun pop tune, “Just Because you’re Beautiful.” Then the cast of Godspell thrilled the audience with their energetic rendition of “We Beseech Thee.” A graceful ballerina floated across the gym floor whimsically; and a Highland dancer clad in traditional costume elegantly wove her way around the floor; followed by a Middle School performance of the heartwarming classic ”The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow” from the musical Annie. The combined middle school and high school choirs concluded the program with a vocal medley that ended with rousing applause from the audience.

Enthusiastic guests attended classes with their students for a sneak peek at the kind of excitement and stimulation experienced here on a daily basis. The program culminated in an afternoon tea reception in the Sacred Heart Center, which provided a glimpse of the talent exhibited at the International Baccalaureate Art Show. Dedicated volunteers and Forest Ridge parents Kirstin Larson, Sarah Riley, Nanthaka Kiehn and Elizabeth Hall welcomed and directed visitors, while parent Maren Aberle was on hand to take photographs commemorating this annual event. It was a “Grand Afternoon” indeed!

Nicole Morris, Stewardship Director

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I n t h e N e x t I ssue o f M e s A m i s :

Commencement, Promotion, Prize Day Global Leadership in the Middle School Photos from June’s Alumnae Reunion Weekend Four Under 40: Women Who Lead