2010-2011
V ERITAS A SELWYN HOUSE SCHOOL PUBLICATION
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Founder’s Day Cocktail reception for all constituents 6:00 p.m. Coristine Hall The Board of Directors and the Headmaster of Selwyn House invite you to celebrate the founding of the school and to honour the 2011 Speirs Medal recipient,
Steve Mitchell, retired Athletic Director, coach and phys-ed teacher. Thursday, November 24, 2011 6:00-9:00 p.m. Selwyn House School 95 Chemin Côte St-Antoine Presentations will begin at 6:45 p.m. Spouses and guests are most welcome. Complimentary hors d’oeuvres & refreshments (cash bar) RSVP by Nov. 19 via the Online Event Registration button at www.selwyn.ca
VERITAS published annually by the Advancement Office of Selwyn House School 95, chemin Côte St-Antoine Westmount (Québec) H3Y 2H8 Tel. (514) 931-9481 ext. 2261 Fax: (514) 931-6118 www.selwyn.ca ADVANCEMENT OFFICE JAMES F. MCMILLAN Director of Advancement RICHARD WILLS Publications Editor MARY ANN CLOHERTY Advancement Office Support Manager KIMBERLEY CORCORAN Administrative Assistant IRINA KONDRATIEVA Administrative Assistant PHOTOGRAPHY Richard Wills Thomas Königsthal ’74 James McMillan Bill Bedard Jean-Pierre Trudeau Jesse Kaminski 2011 COVER PHOTOGRAPH Members of the Old Boys’ Association Board of Directors: Created and photographed by Thomas Königsthal ’74. PROOFREADERS Evren Boisjoli 2008 Jean-Pierre Trudeau If you have any suggestions or corrections, please do not hesitate to contact the editor, Richard Wills, wills@selwyn.ca
Publications Mail Agreement No. 40026379 SHS accredited by the CANADIAN EDUCATIONAL STANDARDS INSTITUTE
Printed on recycled paper
CONTENTS Messages clés . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Steve Mitchell retires, picked for Speirs . . . . . . . . 6 Mitch and Nick: Men for All Seasons. . . . . . . . . . 7 Founder’s Day 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Jonathan Kay ’85 Among the Truthers. . . . . . . . . . 10 Old Boys design high-tech stroke rehab glove . . . 12 Bloomfields renew award boards . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Old Boys around the world . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 MontrealOuvert now open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Old Boys undertake Mongol Rally . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Shaken, Not Stirred . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Evren Boisjoli wins 24-Hour Film Race. . . . . . . . 16 Pitblado Memorial Bursary presented . . . . . . . . . 17 Endowment: making a difference . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Montreal Reunion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Chapter reunions Calgary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Vancouver. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 London. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Boston . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Ottawa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Toronto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Young Alum Barbecue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Colin No Classic 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Nicoll / Mitchell Cup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Alumni & Friends Golf Tournament . . . . . . . . . . 28 12th Annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament. . . . . 29 2011 Athletic Awards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Athletic Hall of Fame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Old Boys at Career Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 John Kelly ’83 speaks at Career Day . . . . . . . . . . 36 Graduation 2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Class of 2011 Prize Winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Academic Destinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Old Boys’ Association News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Alumni Updates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Alumni Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Class of 2011 inducted into OBA . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Message from the HEADMASTER
MESSAGES clés l’école Selwyn House, nous estimons que les élèves doivent adhérer tout au long de leur vie à la devise de Selwyn : Veritas. Il s’agit de l’essence de tout ce que nous faisons. Cette devise de vérité se concrétise par des valeurs personnelles, collectives et scolaires et elle fait partie intégrante de l’expérience de chacun des élèves. Prise au sens personnel, cette devise est fondée sur la prise de conscience de soi, qui entraîne le respect de soi et la confiance en soi. Nos garçons apprennent à être fiers d’eux-mêmes, à s’accepter tels qu’ils sont et à reconnaitre ce qu’ils peuvent offrir. Prise dans sa portée collective, elle signifie la compréhension des valeurs telles que le respect, la compassion, la bonté et l’empathie. Sur le plan scolaire, elle évoque à quel point il importe de reconnaitre l’importance de l’effort et du travail acharné, de découvrir ses passions, et de faire preuve d’un véritable sens de l’engagement à l’égard de tous ce qu’on a entrepris.
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Headmaster Hal Hannaford
Message from the HEADMASTER
MESSAGES clés La mission de l’école Selwyn House est essentiellement centrée sur le fait que nous sommes une école préparatoire à l’université, ce qui suppose une préparation sur le plan intellectuel et scolaire, ainsi que sur les plans physique, social, émotif et spirituel. Nous sommes un établissement scolaire de grande
Vision & Mission Selwyn House Vision Statement To develop a lifelong commitment to Selwyn Veritas VERITAS: True to yourself • Self-respect • Self-confidence • Self-awareness • Self-advocacy True to others • Respect • Empathy • Compassion • Kindness True to your school • Effort • Commitment • Passion Selwyn House Mission Statement Selwyn House School is a CEGEP/University preparatory school for boys combining academic and program excellence, a dedication to the French language and culture, and a compassionate and supportive environment enabling boys to develop a balanced, purposeful, and happy life. Selwyn House Commitments • To the French language and culture • To values of respect, responsibility and voice • To boys’ education • To the guarantee of “Known & Loved” • To Experiential Education
qualité. Tous les élèves diplômés chez nous se rendent à l’université (la grande majorité est admise dans les établissements et les programmes qui constituent leur premier choix), mais notre attention reste centrée sur leur véritable préparation en vue des défis de la vie universitaire.
Énoncé de vision de l’école Selwyn House Pour adhérer à Selwyn Veritas tout au long de sa vie VERITAS: Devises personnelles • Respect de soi • Confiance en soi • Prise de conscience de soi • Affirmation de soi Devises collectives • Respect • Empathie • Compassion • Bonté Devises scolaires • Application • Engagement • Passion Énoncé de mission de l’école Selwyn House Selwyn House est une école préparatoire au cégep et à l’université qui combine une formation scolaire exemplaire et un dévouement marqué au français et à la culture française. Cet établissement pour garçons offre en outre un milieu de vie encadré et bienveillant permettant aux élèves le développement d’une vie heureuse, équilibrée et réfléchie. Engagements de l’école Selwyn House • Envers le français et la culture française • Envers des valeurs telles que le respect, la responsabilité et la liberté d’expression • Envers l’éducation aux garçons • Envers l’application du principe “ connu et aimé ” • Envers l’apprentissage expérientiel
Nos cinq engagements définissent qui nous sommes : 1) Nous sommes entièrement dévoués et déterminés à promouvoir la langue française et la culture québécoise. Cet engagement dépasse le simple volet d’une langue seconde. Il englobe l’extraordinaire culture qui fait partie intégrante la vie montréalaise. 2) Nous sommes dévoués envers les garçons et l’étonnement qu’ils suscitent jour après jour. Nous connaissons les garçons, nous les comprenons et nous les mettons à l’honneur. C’est grâce à la profonde et riche relation que nous privilégions avec eux que nous pouvons les aider dans la quête qui leur permettra d’atteindre leurs buts et ambitions les plus élevés possibles. 3) À Selwyn House, nous garantissons que votre garçon sera connu et aimé, ce qui est absolument crucial si on veut que les garçons puissent réussir dans la vie. Rappelez-vous, c’est une garantie, et cela est démontré chaque jour dans tout ce que nous faisons. 4) Notre engagement à l’égard des valeurs du respect, de la responsabilité et de la liberté d’expression est toujours aussi ferme. Ces valeurs font partie intégrante de la vie et de la culture quotidienne à l’école Selwyn House. 5) Pour terminer, nous savons que l’éducation est maximisée grâce à l’apprentissage expérientiel. Notre engagement dans ce domaine se réaffirme sans cesse, et nous continuons de nous attacher entièrement à adopter cette orientation. L’expérience acquise à l’école Selwyn House va au-delà de l’éducation. C’est une aventure, un périple et en bout de ligne, un atout. Nous souhaitons que tous les garçons puissent bénéficier de cette expérience, et nous serons très heureux d’avoir l’occasion de discuter en détails de cette question avec vous dans un proche avenir. ■
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School NEWS
Steve
MITCHELL retires, picked for SPEIRS
By Richard Wills, publications editor etiring Athletic Director Steve Mitchell will receive the 2011 Speirs Medal, it was announced June 22. Steve will receive the school’s highest honour at Founder’s Day on November 24. Ironically, when Steve Mitchell applied to teach phys-ed at Selwyn House in 1984, he was not sure he had made the right move. The entire school was crammed into the Lucas Building, the school administration was in a state of flux, the senior phys-ed program was average at best, and the talent pool of athletes was a fraction of what he had at his previous job. Still, he saw a chance to make a difference at Selwyn House, and he certainly has. Steve retired as Athletic Director at the end of the 2010-2011 school year, but will stay on until December 31 to assist the new AD, Mike Maurovich, with the transition. Born in Sherbrooke in 1953, Steve attended public schools in Lennoxville before moving to Stanstead College for Grade 8. He went to CEGEP at Champlain College on the Bishop’s University campus, which allowed him to play football and hockey at the university level for three years. “I got to play with Larry Smith, later president of the Alouettes, and some of the other guys who went on to play pro football,” Steve recalls. “I was really uncertain when I was at Bishop’s what I wanted to do,” Steve admits. “My wife, Sheila, (also a phys-ed teacher) encouraged me to go into athletics. I had always had an urge to be a biologist or game warden or something of that nature, because I like the outdoors. But I guess it was easy for me to go into athletics.” Steve studied phys-ed at McGill, graduating in 1977 and immediately landing a job at Centennial Regional High School in Greenfield Park, where he coached until the spring of ’84. “I had a good thing going at Centennial,”
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Steve says, but eventually he decided to make a move. “Selwyn House seemed to have the resources,” he says. “Half my job at Centennial had been raising money for athletics.” When Steve arrived at SHS, Juvenile Hockey had one hour per week at CSL arena. He told then-AD Pierre Beauchamp he needed three 90-minute blocks per week for Juvenile, Bantam and Peewee. And he got it, along with new ice rental at Verdun Arena. At Selwyn House, the talent pool for Juvenile hockey was nowhere near the 60 to 70 kids Steve had had at CRHS. “Here, everyone who tried out for the team made it,” he says. “It was pretty thin.” “So I went from a team that was 32 and 8 to a team that won four games out of 30.” But Steve didn’t take long in turning things around that first season. “I think we only won three or four games that year. But in February we beat Lindsay Place, who were second or third in our division and had beaten the hell out of us earlier. That made our season.” After seven years teaching phys-ed and coaching, Steve became Athletic Director when Pierre Beauchamp moved on to Dawson College. The athletic program at Selwyn House today bears Steve’s stamp. He maintained the school’s hours of highschool phys-ed through a decade when most schools were cutting back, and increased the choices of phys-ed activities from 12 to 30. He oversaw the construction of the state-of-the-art gymnasium in the new Speirs Building, increased the school’s access to offcampus facilities to include 18 rented sites, and insisted on having two coaches on duty at all times for all contact sports.
Steve’s dedication to athletic excellence has been passed on to his sons. Josh 2000 now teaches phys-ed and coaches hockey at Heritage High School in St. Lambert. Torrey 2002 just completed his fourth season with the San Jose Sharks of the NHL, and was recently inducted into the Selwyn House Athletic Hall of Fame. After coaching 1,200 hockey games and 200 football games, does Steve have a favourite team of all time? At the 2011 Athletic Banquet in May, Steve said, “Yes, I do have a best team, the best team I have been ever associated with.” And he proceeded to name his phys-ed teaching staff: Marty Boyle, Steve Colwell, Pete Govan, Mike Maurovich, Jean Pruneau and Alfie Paoletti. “Having the opportunity to work at this institution and with the members of the Athletic Department has enriched my life beyond measure.” “Of course,” he added, “this is only second to my family: Torrey, Josh and Sheila.” “I expect the Athletic Department will grow and build on the standards already in place.” ■
School NEWS
MITCH and NICK: men for all seasons By Richard Wills, publications editor ne of the turning points of Steve Mitchell’s career at Selwyn House was when then-history teacher and Bantam hockey coach Tom Nicoll joined Steve to coach Juvenile hockey in 1986-87. Tom continued to coach after his retirement from teaching in 2008. Over the years, these two close friends have led the school to many moments of on-ice glory. “My first introduction to Steve was not a pleasant one,” Tom admits. “We were paying hockey against one another in the Loyola Grads League. Steve came down the ice and gave me an inside-out move. I was beaten, so I did what any red-blooded Canadian would do, I twohanded him, and Steve and I started jawing at one another. Fortunately for me, cooler heads prevailed and no fisticuffs ensued. Little did I know then, that he would become one of my closest friends.” “The thing about coaching here is, about every seven years or so you get a good team,” says Tom. “The other years you just try to keep your players competitive, but once in a while you get those good teams—and we’ve been fortunate enough to have a few—where you can step it up and you have a chance to win…and we did. There were some memorable years, such as when we won the city and provincial championships.” “Eighty-eight was the turnaround of hockey here, Mike Avedesian’s year,” Steve agrees. “We had an opportunity to go to the Provincials because another team had dropped out. So we had to go in and play the top seed right off, and we beat them. All of a sudden we’re going ‘Woah, we’re in this!’ and we won the next two games and won the Provincials, which was a big thing.” “Three years later, in ’91, we won our first GMAA banner,” Tom recalls. “Between ’88 and ’94 we started to rock ’n’ roll,” Steve says. “The word was getting out that we were competitive, and we started our own tournament and
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Men at work: Mitchell and Nicoll in the Juvenile Hockey semifinal
an all-star game with the GMAA. There were trips to Europe, and to Calgary during the ’88 Olympics.” “But when it goes dry, it goes dry,” Tom admits. “Tom and I didn’t go out and recruit hockey players,” Steve explains. “You recruit students here, and you hope you attract the family that’s concerned about academics and athletics. They come here for a good education, but part of a good education is a good sports program.” “We usually only had 20 kids come out for the team, so everybody makes the team,” says Tom. “At Loyola they may get 75 out. So it makes it a lot tougher in terms of competing. Steve has done a good job of making it as much fun as possible. Even those years when we were awful, the kids ended up really enjoying it.” “I always felt that, if a kid is good enough to make your team, you should be good enough as a coach to find the time to play him,” Steve says. “I believe every kid should get on the ice.” “Does it make a difference in the game? No. Does it make a difference to the kid? Yeah. I think that’s the sign of a
good coach at the minor level.” Steve and Tom’s approach to coaching has served the Juvenile Gryphons well, even through their final season as a coaching team: 2010-2011, when they made it to the GMAA finals. In Steve’s last year as AD, the school won GMAA banners in three other sports as well, and were semifinalists or finalists in four more. Steve sums it up: “Yes, the season record was good. Yes, we got into the city finals, but it was the character of the team that was fun to be around. That’s probably the biggest challenge as a coach is to get all these personalities to find some sort of chemistry. With some teams it never comes. But these kids liked each other, and it showed up right away in the camaraderie and work ethic.” “It was a tremendous pleasure to have coached football and hockey with Steve for 25 years,” Tom says. “Win or lose, we always had fun.” “Although I know no one is irreplaceable, I think there will be a huge void in many ways at Selwyn House when Steve retires.” ■
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School NEWS
GOLDBLOOM praises progress,diversity in SPEIRS SPEECH By Richard Wills, publications editor s the 2010 recipient of the Speirs Medal— the highest honour the school can bestow—Jonathan Goldbloom ’72 stands at the convergence of the school’s storied past and its promising future. “As an Old Boy and a member of the board of directors for the past decade, I’ve had a bird’s-eye view of how this outstanding school has adapted to the realities of modern Quebec,” Jonathan said in accepting the Speirs Medal on Founder’s Day, November 25. In the Founder’s Day morning assembly, Jonathan had given the student audience a glimpse of what school life was like when he attended Selwyn House.
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“All Montrealers, anglophones, francophones and allophones, want their children to be fluent in both English and French”
In those days, he told the students, “The student body was pretty homogeneous. Almost everyone came from the same background.” “I am telling you these stories to remind you of how much the school has changed for the better and to encourage you to take pride in the diversity that is Selwyn House today.” Jonathan asked for a show of hands of those students whose parents or grandparents were born outside of Canada. More than half raised their hand.
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Jonathan revisited this moment when addressing his evening audience, reminding them that Selwyn House students come from 27 different countries and speak 29 different languages at home. “Our school is more diverse,” he said, “but we still have work to do to become a true microcosm of multicultural Montreal.” “All Montrealers, anglophones, francophones and allophones, want their children to be fluent in both English and French,” he continued. “We now have chance to go and recruit those families.” “Students who speak French at home can graduate from Selwyn House and relatively easily make the transition to a French CEGEP. Our challenge is to ensure that this is the case for all our graduates.”
The Shannon cousins: SHS teacher Pat (left) and Craig ’71
School NEWS
Founder’s
SHS Dean of Students Minna Shulman introduces Jonathan Goldbloom
DAY
The Goldbloom family at Founder’s Day, from left: Michael Goldbloom, Lincoln Restler, Susan Restler, Sheila Goldbloom, Peter Restler, Jonathan Goldbloom, Matthew Goldbloom, Victor Goldbloom and Alice Goldbloom
Selwyn House has proven itself to be adaptable—in fact, progressive,” Jonathan said. “I am proud to have been a part of shaping the school community in recent years, and I look forward to working with you to ensure that Selwyn House remains the best boys’ school in Montreal, if not Canada.” Following in the footsteps of his parents and his brother, Michael ’69, Jonathan is the fourth member of the Goldbloom clan to receive the Speirs Medal. In his Founder’s Day speech, Jonathan paid tribute to his parents, Victor ’37 and Sheila, who were in the audience. “They personify community commitment and community involvement, and
From left: current parents Brad Romoff, Sheldon Magder and Annette Lefebvre
they set an example for me,” he said. Founder’s Day is observed as the birthday of Selwyn House and an occasion to honour the school’s founder, Captain Algernon Lucas, who established the school in 1908. During the evening ceremonies, Old Boys’ Association President Geoff Moore and Board Member Charles Bierbrier presented pins to this year’s Honorary Old Boys: retired teacher and coach Tom Nicoll, Alumni Parent and Board Member Martha Legge Fitzpatrick, Alumni Parent and Board Member Susan Einhorn, and Alumni Parent and volunteer Karma Hallward. For more photos, visit www.selwyn.ca. ■
From left: Former Headmaster and Speirs Medalist Will Mitchell, SHS Director of Studies Colin Boyle and retiring Athletic Director Steve Mitchell
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Alumni NEWS
Jonathan Kay ’85 searches for veritas among the
TRUTHERS By Richard Wills, publications editor
he truthers are out there. And Jonathan Kay ’85 has taken on the task of finding out who they are and what makes them tick. His new book, Among the Truthers, published by HarperCollins, has drawn the attention of mainstream media, as well as the ire of conspiracists who populate the blogosphere. A “truther” is but one type of conspiracist. Simply put, a conspiracist is someone who is convinced that events such as the JFK assassination or the 9/11 attacks were secretly engineered by a sinister cabal of power-brokers seeking world domination. Conspiracists take up many causes, and come in various political stripes, but, as Jonathan writes, they all share common traits. They are proliferating and threatening to dominate American politics. That is why we need to know who they are. And, as Jonathan discovered, to some extent they are us. Jonathan took two years off from his job as managing editor and columnist at the National Post to write Among the Truthers. He travelled the U.S. interviewing conspiracists, attending their conventions and surfing the Internet, poring over their endless rants. Among the Truthers, has been reviewed by scores of publications, including: Macleans, The Economist, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Rolling Stone. The Dallas Morning News called it “one of the most important books published this year.”
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The book examines the history of conspiracism, the psychology of the conspiracist mind-set, and how technology is responsible for turning a cottage industry into a mass movement. Veritas: What inspired you to take on the project of writing Among the Truthers? Kay: I really didn’t think much about conspiracy theories till a few years back, when I became Managing Editor for Comment at the National Post. Readers would email me all kinds of conspiracy theories, and I would ignore them, assuming they were crazy. But the 9/11 conspiracy theorists were different— they seemed intelligent, well-educated, articulate. They clearly weren’t crazy in the clinical sense. Their bizarre theories were the product of political and intellectual radicalization, not some psychiatric abnormality. It seemed like a fascinating phenomenon—yet no one had written a book about it. I decided to become the first to do so. In the process, I discovered a massive subculture of conspiracism percolating beneath the surface of the respectable mass media, a world that my mainstream-media colleagues were ignoring. Most people just wish and assume that these conspiracy theorists will go away, but their ranks are growing. It’s a problem we need to take seriously. If you look at American political culture, it already has become crippled by rampant conspiracism about 9/11, Barack Obama’s birthplace, health-care “death panels” and the like. Canada will go in the same direction if we’re not careful. Veritas: Does your being a Canadian
Jonathan Kay ’85 put you at an advantage or at a disadvantage in exploring this largely American phenomenon? Kay: I spent about five years of my life in the United States—three years at Yale Law School, and then a few years in New York City as a tax lawyer in the 1990s. But I was always a Canadian at heart. And that helped me regard the pathologies of American political culture at a critical distance. I think the reason an American didn’t write this book is that most Americans, being creatures of the radicalized American political and intellectual milieu—with its Glenn Becks, Noam Chomskys, Ann Coulters and Keith Olbermanns—take that cuckoo culture for granted. As a Canadian, I didn’t take it for granted. I looked upon it in all its weirdness, and decided I had to write about it. Still, I did not set out to mock anybody in my book—no matter how radical their political opinions. Anyone can make fun of conspiracy theorists. I was aiming to understand them. Veritas: Did the fact that you work for a conservative paper like the National Post, make you seem more trustworthy to right-wing conspiracists like the Birthers and some Tea Party types? Kay: The fact that these folks didn’t know anything about me made the book so easy for me to research—I didn’t have to answer awkward questions about my
Alumni NEWS
Jonathan Kay past. Now that the book has been published, on the other hand, everything has changed. It would now be impossible for me to go back and interview these people. They’d shun me. Just Google “jonathan kay” and “youtube” and you can see some of the hate-on videos they’ve made about me in the last few months. Veritas: You didn’t try to assess the credibility of any particular conspiriacist theory, but merely examined the conspiracist phenomenon. Kay: For the most part, my book is not intended as a catalogue of their debating positions. Nor is the book intended as a rebuttal to the conspiracy theorists’ debating positions. The reason I decided on this is twofold. First, it would have taken hundreds of pages to step readers through this numbing debate in any kind of thorough way. Secondly, it wouldn’t convince dedicated conspiracy theorists anyway, so the only people who might be convinced are people who aren’t conspiracy theorists...and I didn’t want my book to become a recruiting tool for conspiracy theories! I readily admitted early on in my book that there always is a tiny grain of truth behind every conspiracy theory. For example, The Project for a New American Century is the grain of truth (or one of them, anyway) behind the 9/11 Truth conspiracy theories, because PNAC shows that it really is true that there were plenty of conservative American politicians looking for a pretext to take out Saddam Hussein. That part is true. The far-fetched conspiracy-theory part is when you take those grains of truth and try to grow them by many orders of magnitude until you have something that looks like the plot of a Hollywood movie, with legions of spooks planting bombs in New York skyscrapers and murdering thousands of people. Veritas: After having met various conspiracists, you describe them in a sympathetic way, as generally affable, educated people. Do you a see a bit of them in each of us? Kay: Yes—absolutely yes, including me. From doing this project, I’ve become sensitized to the massive degree to which all of us try our best to warp reality so that it comports to our ideology. I see this all the time with, say, free-market conservatives who do their best to pretend that global warming doesn’t exist. These people aren’t conspiracy theorists per se, but they realize that the global warming hypothesis is a death knell to their mantra of unregulated industrial activity, so they subconsciously set up mental filters and tricks that allow them to pretend that global warming is a fraud. And of course, you see this on the other side of the political spectrum, too: left-wing anti-corporate types who convince themselves that this or that vaccine will kill you, even though the evidence isn’t there. Basically, every time you get people with strongly held ideological viewpoints, you are going to find people who try to tailor reality to that ideology—either through the selective
intake and acceptance of data, or through the wholesale mangling of that data. In extreme situations, such as Truthers and Birthers, these folks become full-fledged conspiracy theorists. But you don’t have to be a Truther or Birther to manifest some of the intellectual trends I am writing about. In Chapter 6 of my book “The Church of Conspiracism”—I point out some of the ways in which conspiracy theories act as ersatz religions for a post-religious age. Conspiracy theories do not supply gods. But they do supply demons, which are just as important for many people— since the presence of demons in our world answers the age-old questions “Where does evil come from?” and “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Moreover, most of the more ambitious conspiracy theories I analyze in the book owe much, in theme and structure, to the apocalyptic, Manichean narrative contained in the last book of the New Testament: Revelation. Veritas: In an age when information has become so decentralized and easily manipulated, how can the rightthinking individual recognize the truth when he sees it? Kay: I don’t purport to show people how they can get to “the truth.” Unlike the people I interviewed, I don’t claim to be any sort of prophet. What I can do, however, is show people how to recognize signs that they are dealing with information and theories that are definitely not true. I do this by showing readers how the basic structure of conspiracy theories has remained constant since the age of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. So I give readers the tools to sniff out this nonsense before they get sucked in by it. In this regard, I like to think, I have shortened their path to the truth, since they now will not have to bother with the many tempting dead ends that conspiracy theories seek to entice them with. I should add that the book would not have been possible without the education I received at Selwyn House. Byron Harker and Tom Nicoll taught me how to write logically— and by the time I graduated from high school, I was miles ahead of the other writers I came across in CEGEP. That confidence in expressing myself in print never left me, and persisted with me into my years at the National Post. Of equal value was the calculus I learned from Phil Litvack in Grade 11—which put me ahead of the curve in CEGEP, and even in my first-year engineering classes at McGill. Without my degree in metallurgical engineering from McGill, I wouldn’t have had the tools to debunk 9/11 conspiracy theories about the destruction of the Twin Towers (which inevitably revolve around the manner by which the structures’ steel girders and columns collapsed). It always comes back to education. And I had the massive advantage of having gone to one of North America’s finest high schools. ■
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Alumni NEWS
TAN, BAE, ERRUNZA, YOUSSEF design high-tech glove
Justin Tan 2004
for stroke rehab By Richard Wills, publications editor ustin Tan 2004, Shawn Errunza 2004, Alexis Youssef 2005 and Sung Jun Bae 2005 have joined forces to develop new virtual-reality technology that will help stroke victims with their rehabilitation while saving money in health care. Justin recently completed a degree in biological engineering at MIT, followed by a master’s degree in public health and public policy at Cambridge University. He is now in his first year of medical school at McGill University, and aims to become a practicing physician.
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Using a virtual-reality glove and 3-D gaming-style software, the Jintronix sensor can digitally record a person’s hand movements as the patient practices his rehabilitation exercises, and transmit information directly to his doctor. “The glove allows patients to exercise hand movements in their homes with little supervision, and cuts down on hospital visits and costs,” says Mobile Magazine. “Accompanying software sends information directly to the doctor’s office. The software generates 3D models while the patient plays video games, allowing the
Justin watched his father have difficulty with rehabilitation from a stroke some years ago, and decided that patients deserve a better way of regaining their motor skills.
Also at McGill, Shawn is studying mechanical engineering, Alexis software engineering and Sung Jun electrical engineering. Justin watched his father have difficulty with rehabilitation from a stroke some years ago, and decided that patients deserve a better way of regaining their motor skills. He founded a company called Jintronix to harness the talents of his peers in developing a practical high-tech solution.
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patient to monitor their own progress.” Guided by their central principles of affordability, adaptability, and intuitiveness, Jintronix seeks to develop therapeutic products that are easy to use and available to anyone, anywhere. The goal is to “push the bounds of human ability” by providing “an interactive experience that draws patients into the fun of the game without even realizing they’re getting treatment.” ■
Sung Jun Bae 2005
Shawn Errunza 2004
Alexis Youssef 2005
Alumni NEWS
BLOOMFIELDS arry Bloomfield ’59 and his sons Jonathan 2003, Andrew 2005 and James 2007 gathered at the school on September 10 for a photo with the plaque that was recently hung in the Lucas Building to acknowledge the Bloomfields’ generosity for having the school’s award boards restored. The new award boards, which honour Lucas medalists, head prefects, chairs of the Board of Directors, Old Boys who died in war, presidents of the Old Boys’ Association and 20-year employees, hang throughout the Lucas Building. Harry served on the school’s Board of Directors between 1977 and 1982. “I remember sitting in meetings in the Red Room and looking at those old boards and thinking they needed to be updated,” he recalls. Renovations to the Macaulay and Lucas Buildings opened an opportunity to do just that, thanks to a donation from the Bloomfields. James is now a junior at the University of Miami, majoring in motion pictures and psychology. Andrew recently graduated from Emory University with a bachelor’s degree in
renew school’s
AWARD BOARDS
H
OLD BOYS
From left: James, Andrew, Harry and Jonathan Bloomfield with the plaque (see inset) acknowledging the donation of new award boards, seen on the wall behind the Bloomfields.
neurobehavioral biology and is currently working toward a masters of philosophy in neuroscience at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Jonathan
around the
WORLD
eoffrey Moore ’83 has come up with a terrific initiative for all Selwyn House alumni who travel. If you come across an interesting book or poster that you feel would be worth donating to the Selwyn House School Library, please keep the school in mind. The books and posters will be catalogued in a special section of the library called “Alumni Around the World” and available for any student or teacher to take out and read. Suitable materials would be books you feel might be of interest to the students (probably at the Elementary School level), but that SHS students would perhaps not know about, such as locally printed books and or bilingual books about a special local area, local folk tales or myths, etc. Examples: books for children published in two languages; an Icelandic book about trolls or local folklore, a Dutch story for children with Dutch and English text or a Belgian book with French and Flemish text. Perhaps books referring to specific local sites or famous
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graduated from New York University and is now working toward his MBA at Tel Aviv University. ■
people of interest. For example: a Dutch book about the dikes, a Swiss book on William Tell, or a catalogue of a special museum or exhibition. Posters of local interest would also be great to have for a classroom or hallway exhibit, for example: specific road signs; famous landmarks; museum posters; or warning posters (e.g. avalanches in Austria or Switzerland). What makes this initiative even more interesting and personal is that we ask that you take a picture of yourself while in the area where you purchase the book so that we can include it in a book-plate in the front of the book along with a brief description of where you were and why you were there. For more information, please contact James McMillan, Director of Advancement, mcmillan@selwyn.ca ■
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Alumni NEWS
OLD BOYS MONGOL RALLY undertake
By Russell Fraser ’99
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ome of you may know, others may have heard rumours, and for some it will come as a complete surprise to know that my longtime friends Sam Walker ’99, Dave Cameron ’99, and I will shortly be embarked on a journey of epic proportions. The Mongol Rally has beckoned, and we have answered her siren’s call. In The Mongol Rally, competitors drive an inadequate vehicle from London, England to Ulaanbaator, Mongolia this July, August and September. With the bulk of our time planned for Central Asia, we are very excited to see the historic views of the Silk Road, experience the life of the nomads, and relish in the cultures of exSoviet Russian countries. We expect to take six weeks, however plans often go awry—hence our team name, Plan B.
A big part of this adventure is fundraising for charitable causes. Though there is a minimum of £1000, we aren’t ones for minimums, and hope to decisively exceed a mere thousand. Obviously, we need help. We have chosen three wonderful charities, and 100 per cent of donations made will go directly to them. During the course of this trek we hope to be updating our website’s blog as regularly as possible. We may even be tweeting daily updates of our locations. Bookmark the page below and check it regularly for updates between July 23 and September 1 to see how we’re doing. I encourage you all to visit our website. There you’ll get an idea of our route, find some more information about the charities, and learn the ridiculous rules by which we will abide. Pictures of our freshly purchased 2002 Nissan Micra can also be found in our photo gallery.
MontrealOuvert By Richard Wills, publications editor
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onathan Brun 2000, Michael Lenczner ’94 and James McKinney 2002 are three Old Boys who have, in recent years, been involved in several projects that employ technology to increase public access to information. Their latest enterprise is MontrealOuvert, whose aim is to make municipal government more open and accessible. “We believe open access to civic information and data increases civic engagement, makes services more accessible, and creates opportunities for innovation,” reads the MontrealOuvert
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The author (left) with Dave Cameron before their departure
For more information, or to make donations, please go to: mongolrally11.theadventurists.com/plan-b
NOW OPEN
mission statement. “Through this space we hope to initiate and sustain a productive dialogue on open access between stakeholders for the benefit of all Montrealers.” Jonathan Brun 2000 is co-founder of Nimonik, an environmental regulatory website that helps companies across Canada manage their environmental obligations. His web presence is growing every day through his blog at jonathanbrun.com as well as various side projects, such as his relationship site called makeyourgirlfriendhappy.com. Michael Lenczner is a CEO of Ajah, an online funding-research service for non-profit sector companies based on public data. He is also a co-founder of
Ile sans fil, a free wireless service that has served over 150,000 Montrealers. He serves on the boards of several Montrealbased non profit organizations and he helped launch CivicAccess and CitizenFactory, an open data project to help young people learn about the activities of Parliament through realtime reporting. Michael was a guest speaker at Selwyn House Career Day in 2004. Describing himself as a “civic data hacker,” James McKinney has created or contributed to a number of publicinterest web applications like patinermontreal.ca, resto-net.ca and Votre Mairie. ■
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Shaken, Not Stirred Bain Mathieu was a glamourous spot on April 14, when 270 Selwyn House supporters gathered for Shaken, Not Stirred, a James-Bond-themed dance that raised $78,666 for the Selwyn House Student Life Centre and the Ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay Foundation.
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Alumni NEWS
Evren BOISJOLI 2-time winner in
24-HOUR FILM RACE By Richard Wills, publications editor vren Boisjoli 2008 and his Concordia film team were firstprize winners and second-runners up in recent editions of the Montreal 24-Hour Film Race. The Film Race is a competition that challenges young filmmakers to write and produce a four-minute film based on certain plot guidelines—all within 24 hours. The competition is held each year in 23 cities in North America. Twenty-two films were entered in last fall’s Montreal race. Evren and the seven-member H.264 team gathered on a weekend in early October to try their hand at this cinematic challenge.
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the main writer continues fleshing out the rest of the script. Armed only with two Canon 7D cameras, a couple of basic lenses, a recorder and a boom microphone, the whole crew then shifts into high gear, driving to four locations and shooting continuously through the night until 8 a.m. They had to improvise lighting, shooting outdoor scenes using car headlights and streetlamps. At 8 a.m. the crew grabs some sleep while their digital film downloads into the computer. From 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. they edit the film. Evren jumps into a speedy car and races to the drop-off point, making it with only eight minutes to go.
Evren jumps into a car and races to the drop-off point, making it with only eight minutes to go.
Their story plays out like this: On Friday at 10 p.m. the team members receive a cryptic email. Each city uses a unique theme that the film producers must follow. The email says that the Montreal theme is to be “curiosity” with a surprise element: “soap”. They immediately jump into an hour-long brainstorming session to come up with a plot that uses the dictated elements. The story line is sketched out and at 1 a.m. the first scene is shot in Evren’s parents’ bedroom while
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}
The finished film, Seife, is a dark tale based on an apocryphal story of soap having been made from the physical remains of Holocaust victims. “The last 15 seconds are very intense,” Evren divulges. “The soap becomes a character.” At the awards ceremony on November 3, a screening of the film is greeted with a smattering of applause that grows into an ovation. George Mihalka, director of My Bloody
Valentine, presents the award. Seife won first place overall in the Montreal race, going on to receive the award for Best Cinematography in all of North America. Pumped from the experience, H.264 team entered the 2011 Film Race with a film entitled Face Value, based on a theme of identity theft, finishing second runner-up with awards for best writing and acting. Seife was co-directed by Evren, Randy Smith and Martin Goudron. All seven members of Evren’s “guerrilla film” team attend Concordia. Three— including Evren—are enrolled in the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema; the others in the School of Communications. Before this, Evren studied film at Dawson, but he really got his start at Selwyn House in Grade 9 with teacher Bill Bedard. “Film was somewhere I could really shine,” Evren recalls. “It gave me an opportunity to acquire leadership skills and learn to work with my peers as a team.” “Mr. Bedard was a huge influence. He gave us a lot of slack, but not so much that we could kill ourselves.” “His way of teaching helped me become the film student I am today.” Evren says he now realizes that the Selwyn House Media Studies program is on par with film courses being offered at the university level. To view the competing films, go to www.filmracing.com. ■
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Alumni NEWS
Enan Ashaduzzaman receives first
DAVID PITBLADO MEMORIAL BURSARY At the presentation, from left: Headmaster Hal Hannaford, Michael Osterland ’78, Nashtia Ashaduzzaman, Salma Akter, Enan Ashaduzzaman, Mohammad Ashaduzzaman, Wendy Pitblado and SHS Admission Director Nathalie Gervais.
nan Ashaduzzaman (now entering Grade 8) has gone down in Selwyn House history as the first person to receive the David Pitblado Memorial Bursary. The bursary was presented to Enan in an assembly of Middle School students on October 19. The bursary, which amounts to $5,000 per year for two years, is named in memory of David Pitblado ’78, who died in 2004, after having battled Non-Hodgkins’ Lymphoma for six years. David’s older sister Wendy was at Selwyn House for the October 19 presentation. Speaking to the assembled students, she described her late brother as “a confident young man, a good student, an excellent athlete and an all-round spirited boy.” “David was a phenomenal leader,” she recalled, “in the classroom, on the sports fields or hockey rinks, later in the board room, and, ultimately, as he fought his cancer. He recognized the importance of leadership, and he led by example.” Michael Osterland ’78, a classmate of David who is heading up the Pitblado Memorial Bursary committee, told students that David had been an inspiration to all who knew him. David Pitblado was “an amazing man,” and “a valued friend” who “had a way of making you feel more optimistic and more determined after spending a short while
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in his presence,” Michael has said. “Selwyn House School offered David many opportunities,” Wendy concluded, “and David would be honoured to know that a student is experiencing the same well-rounded education in his memory.” At the presentation, Enan was joined by his father, Mohammad Ashaduzzaman, his mother, Salma Akter, and his sister, Nashtia Ashaduzzaman. ■
Headmaster Hal Hannaford with David Pitblado’s widow, Katherine Priestly.
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School NEWS
ENDOWMENT: Making a difference
By James McMillan, director of advancement. enjoy my work at Selwyn House. I particularly enjoy it when people ask me what I do and I tell them that I am the Director of Advancement. The usual response is, “What does a Director of Advancement do?” I tell them that I work with all the constituents of the school and that the headmaster, Hal Hannaford, and I travel all over Canada, parts of the USA and even to London, England to meet with alumni and friends of the school and bring them up-to-date about what the school has done and where it is going. I also tell them that I spend a lot of time fundraising. This is usually when they start looking nervous, but I tell them that the fundraising part is a natural progression after friendraising, because good fundraising is usually the result of good friendraising and, when people understand what the school is doing, they will want to help in some way because they believe in what we are doing. The exciting part about fundraising at Selwyn House is that we have been fortunate to have been very successful over the last decade at raising funds for new construction, renovations and endowment. Most people can understand when money is needed to build or renovate, but endowment is a topic that I tend to spend more time explaining to people. Selwyn House’s endowment is just over $10 million in cash and pledges. Although we do not have the highest endowment of all the independent schools in Canada, we are ranked quite high. Our goal is to double our endowment to $20 million so that the school can depend on a steady annual income of about five per cent, or $1 million, to support bursaries,
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professional development, and program enhancements. The school’s endowment is managed by The Veritas Fund, which has its own board of trustees, chaired by Thomas Birks ’61, and the board is responsible for supervising and managing the investment of the funds. They choose the portfolio managers and review the performance of the fund. The endowment fund has been accumulating donations and interest since the early eighties, but the majority of our present endowment has been raised since about 2000. Each year, the school launches various types of fundraising programs or special campaigns, and each year our alumni, parents of alumni, current parents, students, faculty and staff, friends, foundations and corporations respond with amazing generosity. Donors give for many reasons, but primarily because they believe in what the school is doing or planning to do. However, when it comes to endowment, some donors would like their gift to be designated to a named fund. A named fund is created by a class, family or group to either honour someone who has passed away, honour a staff member who has retired, or to create funding for a specific purpose within the school. Within the endowment fund, about half of the school’s endowment is designated as general, and the other half is designated towards named funds. As of 2010, all bursaries are needs-based and must be applied for each year. If the financial situation of his family has not changed dramatically, a student may continue to receive a bursary until he graduates or leaves the school. There are no more merit-based scholarships at Selwyn House, except for those that were given out prior to 2010. Since these bursaries were for five years, they will be completed by 2013. The General Endowment Fund accounts for about 70 per cent of bursaries issued each year. The remaining bursaries are covered by the named endowment funds. Some of these funds have the capacity to offer full bursaries to a student for anywhere from one to five years, and the other named funds offer partial bursaries for anywhere from one to five years. All of these funds, the general and the named, continuously grow. Donations are received each year and the interest earned in the endowment fund is always added proportionally to each named fund. A named fund will not be used until it reaches a minimum total of $25,000. At this point, five per cent of the fund will be included in each year’s disbursement for bursaries or its designated use. The named funds in the Selwyn House Endowment Fund are divided into two categories: full and partial bursary. A full bursary is one that has the capacity to offer the equivalent of a full tuition for any grade level. A partial bursary can be anywhere from $1,250 up to about 50 per cent of the annual tuition.
School NEWS
one student at a time FULL BURSARIES The Conrad H. Harrington Fund is named in memory of Mr. Conrad H. Harrington, father of two Selwyn House students. Mr. Harrington always felt it was important that the Selwyn House experience enjoyed by his sons should be made available to more students. This fund gets its funding from individual donors, and has the capacity to offer the equivalent of one full three-year bursary to a new student entering Grade 9. The Old Boys’ Endowment Fund gets the majority of its funding from the proceeds of the annual Selwyn House Alumni and Friends Golf Tournament, as well as from individual donors. This fund has the capacity to offer the equivalent of two full five-year bursaries starting in Grade 7. The Pathy Family Foundation Fund has the capacity to offer a full five-year bursary to a student entering Grade 7. Paul ’88 and Mark ’86 would like to provide this special opportunity to an exceptional student who seeks the value of a Selwyn House education in order to fulfill his potential and establish a successful pathway for his future. PARTIAL BURSARIES The Addy Pathak Endowment Fund bursary is awarded in recognition of academic excellence, in memory of Aditya Pathak, a Grade 9 student who was a valued member of the Selwyn House community and was greatly appreciated by his peers and teachers for his sense of humanity. This bursary gets its funding from the Pathak family, as well as from Addy’s classmates and friends. This fund has the capacity to offer a one-year partial bursary to a student in Grade 7. The Colin No Endowment Fund was created in 2005 by the classmates of Colin No ’97 and named in his memory. It gets its funding from his classmates, his family, and individual donors. This fund has the capacity to offer a one-year partial bursary to a student in Grade 7. The David Pitblado Endowment Fund was created in 2004 by the classmates of David Pitblado ’78 and named in his memory. It gets its funding from his classmates, his family, and individual donors. The Pitblado Family wanted the fund to be used to help a student get started in Grade 7 and 8. This fund has the capacity to offer the equivalent of a two-year partial bursary starting in Grade 7. The Edgar C. Moodey Endowment Fund gets its funding
from the estate and friends of Edgar Moodey. This fund has the capacity to offer the equivalent of a one-year partial bursary starting in Grade 7. The Gaelan O’Donnell Endowment Fund was created by the classmates of Gaelan O’Donnell ’83 in 2009 and named in his memory. This fund has the capacity to offer a one-year partial bursary to a student in Grade 7. The Gaelan O’Donnell Fund gets its funding from his classmates, his family, and individual donors. The Hallward Family Endowment Fund is funded by the Hallward Family. This fund was created not as bursary for tuition, but as a special needs-based assistance fund to be used by the Director of Elementary School or Middle School to assist students who may require additional tutorial help or educational testing in order to be successful at their grade level. The Nancy Pitfield Endowment Fund gets its funding from the friends and family of the late Nancy Pitfield, as well as from the school’s annual Gryphon Sale of used uniforms. This fund has the capacity to offer a one-year partial bursary to a student in Grade 7. The Will Mitchell Endowment Fund was created by the Old Boys’ Association in 2008 from the proceeds of the Centennial Alumni and Friends Golf Tournament, in tribute to Will Mitchell’s retirement from the school as headmaster after 24 years. Additional funds are received from individual donors. This fund has the capacity to offer a five-year partial bursary to a student starting in Grade 7. Friendraising, fundraising and making a difference. The goal to reach $20 million in the Selwyn House Endowment Fund is an ambitious one, but I am confident that it can be achieved. Anyone can designate their gift to the general fund or a named fund. More of our constituents are becoming interested in creating a named fund and making a difference to the life of one or two students at a time. Named funds can be created by using planned giving, long-term pledges, stock transfers and many other options that are available. Selwyn House is also a registered charity with CAFAmerica in the USA, so donations may be made through them and an IRS tax receipt is issued. For more information about endowment or named funds, please call me at 514-931-9481 ext: 2269 or email me at mcmillan@selwyn.ca. ■
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Alumni NEWS
New initiatives, old friendships celebrated at
MONTREAL REUNION By Richard Wills, publications editor ne-hundred twenty Old Boys, staff, former staff and guests attended the 32nd annual Old Boys’ reunion in Montreal on October 1. This year marked the special anniversary of the following classes: 1965, 1970, 1975, 1980, 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2005. In his final function as president of the OBA, David Skinner ’82 enumerated a list of initiatives by the OBA in the past year, including the establishment of the OBA Professional Development Fund, which allows for 10 per cent of proceeds from the Alumni and Friends Golf Tournament to go toward professional development programs at Selwyn House. David officially steps down as president at the OBA board meeting on October 19, to be replaced by Geoff Moore. Incoming Old Boys’ Association Directors for 2010-11 are: Geoffrey Moore ’83, president; Matthew Beckerleg ’94, vice-president; Charles Bierbrier ’93, secretary; Yan Besner ’96; Tomas Kaufman ’77; Thomas Konigsthal ’74; Sean McKinnon ’98; Matthew Munzar 2000; Bart Sambrook ’79; Marc Schwarz 2001; Sean Sofin ’84; Ben Spencer 2000; Kyam Shell 2001; and David Skinner ’82, past president. The reunion began with tours of the new school by Grade 11 student ambassadors, followed by a cocktail in the Rossy Agora. The group adjourned to the lawn in front of the Speirs Building for the official unveiling of the new “Veritas” sculpture, an initiative of the Old Boys’ Association made possible by the family of Vince Guzzo ’86. Dinner in Coristine Hall was followed by the OBA Annual General Meeting. Incoming OBA President Geoff Moore announced his “Alumni Around the World” project, in which Old Boys are asked to purchase
Cary Miller ’67 with David Skinner ’82
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Old Boys tour the school.
Members of the Class of ’85
Alumni NEWS
Montreal Reunion
2010
Top row, left: Jonathan Birks of the Class of ’60. Middle: Geoff Chambers and George Stinnes of the Class of ’70. Right: Chris Shannon of the Class of ’75. Left: Eugene Kovalik and Glenn Fong of the Class of ’80.
For more photos, visit www.selwyn.ca
books from interesting locations they have visited and donate them, along with a photo of the purchase location and an explanation of its reason for being chosen, to the Wanstall Library. Headmaster Hal Hannaford introduced the Old Boys to the school’s new Mission and Vision Statement, concluding with enthusiastic words of praise for the Association and its outgoing president. “David Skinner’s effort and work on your behalf has contributed to this amazing profile of the OBA” to become “a force amongst students and staff. You guys really do mean something.” Guest speaker for the evening was Jonathan Kay ’85, who gave a very funny and heartwarming account of the close friendships that are the principal benefit of being a Selwyn House Old Boy. These friendships were revisited at the after-dinner pub, and afterwards at various locations around the city. ■
Above: Ray Ayas of the Class of ’95. At right: the Class of 2000.
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Alumni NEWS
Chapter Reunions
Calgary ix Old Boys, guests and staff members gathered at the Calgary Petroleum Club on October 13, 2010 for the annual Calgary reunion. Attending were: Sebastian Gault 1982, Alexander Gault 1980, Kasey Fukada 1984, Taylor Gray 1973, Geoffrey Lehman 1943, Andrew Weldon 1973, James Meadow (alumni parent), Elissa Meadow (alumni parent), Hal Hannaford (staff ) and James McMillan (staff ).
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From left: James Meadow, Elissa Meadow, Taylor Gray, Alexander Gault, Hal Hannaford and Andrew Weldon
Vancouver
ighteen Old Boys, guests, staff and former staff members gathered at The Rogue Kitchen and Wet Bar on October 14, 2010 for the annual Vancouver reunion. Attending were: Danny Naami 1999, David Miller 1980, Erik Austin 1977, Ian Robertson 1955, J. E. Hooton 1981, James Pitblado 1981, John Schwenk 1977, Kenneth Palko 1987, Leonard Colman 1984, Nicholas LeMoine 1956, Noah Bloom 1996, Richard Bennetts 1951, Thomas Mezey 1999, Greg Simmons (guest), Michele Sinclair (guest), David Williams (former staff ), Hal Hannaford (staff ) and James McMillan (staff ).
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Erik Austin, left, and John Schwenk
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From left: Nicholas LeMoine, Ian Robertson, Leonard Colman and Richard Bennetts
Kenneth Palko, left, and James Pitblado
Alumni NEWS
Chapter Reunions: London T
wenty Old Boys, guests, and staff members gathered at the Royal Automobile Club on March 17, 2011 for the annual London, England reunion.
Attending were: Alexander S. Wagner 2002 Andrew N. Medalsy 2004 Conrad R. Harrington 2000 Alan Cameron 2000 David Seward 1978 George H. Stinnes 1970 H. N. Tingley 1983 Hal Hannaford (staff ) James E. Phillips 1983 James F. McMillan (staff ) Joshua I. Rosenstein 2004 Kenneth D. Clark 1978 Lawrence M. Moquette 1996 Michael E. Dalgleish 1997 Nicolaus A. Harnack 1987 Paul A. Tsoukas 2004 Peter H. Norris 1981 Pierre B. Baillargeon 1978 Stuart A. Szabo 1996 and Susan Doherty (parent).
From left: Pierre Baillargeon, Conrad Harrington and Lawrence Moquette
Chapter Reunions: New York wenty-four Old Boys, guests and staff members gathered at The Princeton Club on February 10, 2011 for the annual New York reunion. Attending were: Andrew Webster 1982, Anthony Brown 1990, Benjamin Shell-Schnitzer 2004, Daniel Delmar 1968, Eloi-K’Ai Bernier-Chen 2011, Eric Martz 2002, Fenton Aylmer 1983, Filip Papich 1977, Eric Foch 1973, Geoffrey Adams 1983, Geoffrey Moore 1983, Hal Hannaford (staff ), I-Ni Chen (guest), Ivan Neilson 2004, James McMillan (staff ), Marc Schwarz 2001, Marc Andersen 1990, Mary Ann Cloherty (staff ), Matthew Munzar 2000, Morgan Ball 1999, Philip Hospod 1999, Seth Ross 1999, Shawn Trudeau 2001 and Doris Hsu (guest).
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From left: Shawn Trudeau, Geoffrey Adams and Daniel Delmar
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Alumni NEWS
Chapter Reunions Boston ight Old Boys, guests, staff and former staff members gathered at the Elephant and Castle Pub and Restaurant on February 9, 2011 for the annual Boston reunion. Attending were: Arnold Engel 2002, George Sopel 1986, Hal Hannaford (staff ), James McMillan (staff ), Jamin Kerner 1994, Mary Ann Cloherty (staff ), Morgan Lackenbauer 1997 and Taylor Lloyd 1995.
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From left: Taylor Lloyd and Jamin Kerner
Ottawa irteen Old Boys, guests, staff and former staff members gathered at the Rideau Club on November 18, 2010 for the annual Ottawa reunion. Attending were: Anthony Maxwell 1954, Carl Dholandas 1997, Ferenc Andai (former staff ), Gurinder Samrai 1999, Hal Hannaford (staff ), Ivan Ralston 1961, James McMillan (staff ), Mary Ann Cloherty (staff ), Michael Sanford 1999, Philip Oliver 1999, Rodney Moore 1958, Sean McKinnon 1998, and William Turner 1973.
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Toronto hirty-one Old Boys, staff members and guests attended the 2011 Toronto Reunion on April 28. Attending were: Thomas Antony 1983 James Brooks 1997 Mary Ann Cloherty (staff ) Denton Creighton 1972 Susan Doherty (parent) Ken Eakin 1987 Hal Hannaford (staff ) Andrew Horsman 1992 Tom Johnson 1994 Ammar Khan 1995 Otto Mark 1992
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From left: Gurinder Samrai, Hal Hannaford, Michael Sanford, Anthony Maxwell, Sean McKinnon, Philip Oliver, William Turner, Carl Dholandas, Ivan Ralston, Ferenc Andai and Rodney Moore
Mark McCans 1996 Patrick McEntyre 1992 James McMillan (staff ) J. Corey Nicholson 1973 Roger Osmond 1977 Theresa Osmond (guest) Wendy Pitblado (guest) Christopher Roper 1972 Craig Shannon 1971 Sean Sofin 1984 Greg Speirs 1989 Lee Watchorn 1959 Bruce Williams 1977 Beatrijs Williams (guest) David Marler 1970 Chris Hoffman 1964 Michael Nessim 1995 Chris Rochon 2002 Mike Whitehead 1978 Ted Nash 1980
Greg Speirs (left) with Sean Sofin
Alumni NEWS
46 Old Boys at Young Alum BARBECUE orty-four Old Boys from the Classes of 20052009 dropped in to the school on August 19, 2010 for the Old Boys’ Association Young Alum Barbecue. Two older graduates, eight staff members and two guests rounded out the attendee list. The barbecue has become a very popular event for recent graduates, as it gives them an opportunity to catch up with classmates and former teachers before heading off to school in the fall. Photos from the Young Alum Barbecue are posted on the Selwyn House website at www.selwyn.ca.
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Old Boys in attendance: Jordan S. Altman 2005 Sung Bae 2005 Samer Balaghi 2006 Sebastien M. Beard 2007 Matthew Beckerleg 1994 Julian S. Beh Pold 2007
From left: Simon Leblanc, Luca Melnychuk, Karan Chhatwal, Sebastien Beard and Jordan Altman
Aaron J. Besner 2005 Charles C. Chan 2009 Tim Charron 2007 Wynnyn Chan 2006 Karan Chhatwal 2007 Phil Clark 2005 Aaron Esterson 2005
Sean Finnell 2009 Louis Gervais 2008 Camille Hamel d’Entremont 2005 Karim Kaidbey 2009 Bronson C. Kiu 2005 Thomas Konigsthal 1974
Standing, from left: Jack Melkerson, Michael Cohen, Shahrukh Ahmed and Stephen Letko. Seated: Abhinav Gupta, Sean Finnell and Cyril Simmen.
Sebastian Krolik 2009 Frédéric Langelier 2009 Olivier Laroche 2007 Simon Leblanc 2005 Patrick Malouf 2005 Zachary Martin 2007 Jack Melkerson 2009 Luca Melnychuk 2007 Marco Melnychuk 2009 Marc Minogue 2007 Ramin Mohsenin 2007 Brendan Munzar 2005 Thomas Nichols 2008 Max Rosenstein 2005 Olivier Saleh 2005 Nicholas Schouela 2005 Philip Smith 2005 Benjamin Spencer 2000 Kyle Spiller 2005 Kyam Shell-Schnitzer 2001 Ross Gelber 2006 Stephen Letko 2009 Abhinav Gupta 2009 Ian Levine 2009 Karl Schroeder 2009 Michael Cohen 2009 Shahrukh Ahmed 2009 Courtney Beckerleg (guest) Cyril Simmen (guest) Veritas, page 25
Alumni NEWS
Colin No Classic 2011
ourteen Old Boys came out on January 20 to play in the Seventh Annual Colin No Classic basketball tournament. Proceeds from the event go toward the Colin No Fund to provide financial assistance for students attending Selwyn House. Under the direction of Elementary Basketball Coach Marty Boyle, participants were divided into two teams playing four ten-minute games. Over post-game beer and pizza, Advancement Director James McMIllan brought the participants up to date on the fund. Videos and photos on www.selwyn.ca.
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Participants and Guests: Abibou Ngom 2003 Andrew Fitzpatrick 2007 Andrew Funamoto 2006 Bryan Guinness 1993 Dylan Brophy 2007 Hal Hannaford - staff James McMillan - staff Jeffrey Barkun 2003 Kevin Boyle 1997 Kimberley Corcoran - staff
Martin Boyle - staff Mary Ann Cloherty - staff Masaud Kakkar 1993 Miguel Burnier 2003 Po Yen B. Lin 2006 Richard Wills - staff Richard Martz 1997 Stephen Tsoukas 2006 Tobias No 1997 Vanessa Valente - guest Ziad Kaedbey 1997
Alumni NEWS
Record turnout for 13th Annual
Tom Nicoll / Steve Mitchell Cup
he 2010 Alumni and Friends Hockey Tournament saw a record turnout, with 86 people taking part in the pre-holiday event.
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Enough players turned out on December 22 at the Denis Savard Arena in Verdun to form six teams to compete for the Tom Nicoll/Steve Mitchell Cup.
The coveted cup went to the Black Team, comprised of Old Boys from the classes of 99-2007. Photos and video at www.selwyn.ca.
Old Boys in Black, from left: Chris Wong 2004, Steve Mitchell, Dylan Brophy 2007, Kyam Shell 2001, Sean Brophy 2004, Andrew April 2004, Josh Wisenthal ’99, Sam Walker ’99, Tom Nicoll, Zach Shiller 2007, Rod Leider 2000, Andrew Funamoto 2006, Thomas Mezey ’99 and Andrea Piccollo 2000.
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Alumni NEWS
ALUMNI&
FRIENDS
GOLF TOURNAMENT raises $84,000
he 13th Annual Selwyn House Alumni and Friends Golf Tournament was held on May 30 at Kanawaki Golf Club, with 78 golfers and 28 guests attending. The event raised $84,000 for school endowment, for the Selwyn House Alumni Trip Fund, and for the Montreal Canadiens’ Children’s Foundation. Prize winners: Closest to Pin (Hole 3) - Sheila Jablonski, Steve Colwell Closest to Pin (Hole 9) - Jim Wuest Longest Drive - Rosanna Bruni
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Low Gross (staff ) - Pat Shannon 80 Low Gross (ladies) - Sheila Jablonski 99 Low Gross (guest) - Noah Norton 77 Old Boy Champ - Daniel Knight 2010 - 71 Beat Champion Jeff Barkun 2003 Brendan Keefe 2010 Most Honest Staff - Matt McCarney 115 Winning Foursome - Daniel Knight, Matthew Jablonski (both 2010), Marty Boyle and Steve Colwell (both staff ).
Top of page: Peter Morton at the 18th hole. At left: Jim Wuest on the practice range. Above, the winning foursome, from left: Daniel Knight 2010, Matthew Jablonski 2010, along with Selwyn House Phys-Ed teachers Marty Boyle and Steve Colwell.
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Alumni NEWS
Brophy & Ramsey take 12th Annual
TENNIS TOURNAMENT Last year’s winner Nick Kaulbach
he 12th annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament, held at Hillside Tennis Club on June 15, came down to a hard-fought final with Dylan Brophy 2007 and Andrew Ramsey ’84 edging out Stefan Papich 2006 and Headmaster Hal Hannaford. Playing in the tournament were: Dylan Brophy 2007, William Daly ’52, Tim Fitzpatrick ’77, Georges Greiche 2007, Hal Hannaford (headmaster), Nick Kaulbach ’94, Brendan Keefe 2010, Chris Matossian ’90, Stefan Papich 2006, Sasha Papich 2008, Nikki Papich 2010, Charles Porteous ’84, Andrew Ramsey ’84, Bart Sambrook ’79, Ben Wearing ’94, and Ted Claxton ’73. Joining the group for dinner were: Andy Lumsden (former SHS math teacher, tennis coach and four-time tournament champion) and previous tournament winner Clive Hooton ’73.
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At right, three-time winner William Daly ’52
Two-time winner Stefan Papich 2006
From left: Charles Porteous ’84, winners Dylan Brophy 2007 and Andrew Ramsey ’84, with Andy Lumsden
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School NEWS
2011 thletic
Alexander Brais (left) and Joseph Zammit (right) receive the McMaster Cup from Senior School Head Mike Downey. McMaster Memorial Cup Senior School Athlete of the Year Alexander Brais & Joseph Zammit The Alumni Award Grade 9 Athletic Achievement - Nicolas Domingue The Cassils Memorial Cup Middle School Athlete of the Year - John Molson The Athletic Department Award Karim Belkhou The David Tobias Team Award Varsity Hockey Team FALL AWARDS 2010 Grade 7 Football Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Angelo Guzzo Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Malouf MVP.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jordan Phillips Senior Football Best Lineman . . . . . . Maximilien Garneau Pillet MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alexander Brais MVP Offence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joseph Zammit MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alexander Brais MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . Christopher Malouf Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Smith Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David De Cotiis Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicholas Andrei Bantam Football MVP Offence. . . . . . . Alexandros Nikolopoulos Best Lineman . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thomas Jablonski Best Lineman . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicolas Domingue MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Kounadis Most Improved . . . . . . Jeremy Lafontaine-Fokas Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Palayew Most Promise. . . . . . . . . . . . Nikolas De Stefano Elementary Soccer Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sébastien Hamdy Most Improved. . . . . . . . . . Giuliano Cucciniello Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hamza Fevens MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mathieu Leblanc MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jonathan Colaco Carr Bantam Soccer MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Molson MVP Offence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Karl Valentini MVP Defence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hadrien Espiard Grade 7 Soccer Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carlo D’Angelo Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gianni Marini MVP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sammy Lamanuzzi Midget Soccer Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeffrey Fitzpatrick MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amanpreet Atwal MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stephan Smirnov Juvenile Soccer MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Kendrick Most Promise . . . . . . . . . Jean-Sebastien Dackiw
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Awards
WINTER AWARDS 2011 Wrestling Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sam Barmish Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Justin Hebert MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tong Yi MVP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex Moore Wrestling (Gr. 7-8) MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sammy Skinner Most Promise. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nathan Palayew Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eli Dannenbaum Grade 5 & 6 Basketball Most Promise. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeremy Chow Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Evan Egger MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ethan Daoust Grade 7 Basketball Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carlo D’Angelo MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nolan Bedard Bantam Basketball Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . Sammy Lamanuzzi Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jules Gagnon MVP Defence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Molson Most Improved. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Wen Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thomas Leblanc Midget Basketball Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ulysses Pamel Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . Thomas Jablonski Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Samuel Fagen Senior Basketball MVP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Smith MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Noah Daoust Elementary Hockey MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conor Shannon MVP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jonathan Colaco Carr Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kyle Oberfeld Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Henri Lajeunesse Grade 7 Hockey MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kiriakos Primbas Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vito Salvo Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Malouf MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Malouf Bantam Hockey Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Liam Nicol MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jason Miller MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Geoffrey Parsons MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Caleb Tse-Lalonde MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Clayton Sequeira Senior Hockey MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Timothy Shaw MVP Defence . . . . . . . . . . . Christopher Malouf MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Matti Parnanen MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Kendrick MVP Offence . . . . . . . . . . . . Sean Hatzigeorgiou Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . Wyatt Marchildon Most Promise . . . . . . . . . Bernard Béchard-Torres Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Matthew Rossy Curling MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Forian Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Cape Most Promise. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dev Sumbly
SPRING AWARDS 2011 Bantam Tennis MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Molson Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeffrey Lehberg Coaches’ Award . . . . Etienne Henrichon-Goulet Juvenile Tennis MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Antoine Duong Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicholas Millot Coaches’ Award . . . . . . . . . . . Jonathan Mashaal Track & Field Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ulysses Pamel Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hou Ji Yao MVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeremy Obrand Bantam Rugby Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Smith Most Promise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nolan Bedard Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . Cameron Anderson Best Back. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael McHenry MVP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Patrick Bourque Best Forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris Jones Midget Rugby Best Forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alexander Hadjis Best Forward . . . . . . . . . . . Joshua Dannenbaum Best Back . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Matthew Rossy Most Improved. . . . . . . Jeremy Lafontaine-Fokas Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicolas Vit Senior Rugby Borner Award MVP . . . . . . . . . . Joseph Zammit Borner Award MVP . . . . . . . . . . Alexander Brais Coaches’ Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Smith Coaches’ Award . . . . . . . . . . . . David De Cotiis Baseball Most Promise. . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicholas Stavrakis Most Improved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Angelo Rizzolo MVP Offence. . . . . . . . . . . . . William Kendrick Phys-Ed Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . Karim Belkhou
Middle School Head Carol Manning presents the Cassils Memorial Cup to John Molson.
Alumni NEWS
HALLOF FAME
Robertson and Mitchell inducted into
At left, Colin Robertson is inducted into the Selwyn House Athletic hall of Fame by Athletic Director Steve Mitchell. At right, Torrey Mitchell in action with the San Jose Sharks (Sharks photo)
By Steve Mitchell, Selwyn House Director of Athletics olin Robertson ’91 spent nine productive years at Selwyn House. He was what we refer to as an “allrounder,” excelling academically, athletically and socially. Colin was a three-sport student; he played soccer, basketball and he was an outstanding rugby player. For five consecutive years, Colin led Selwyn House rugby to undefeated seasons. He captained the midget and senior teams and in the senior championship game against archrival LCC, Colin scored the winning try; in addition, he received the Coaches’ Award in his final year. Colin was accepted at Mount Allison University in 1992 and graduated in 1996, majoring in honors history and religious studies. At Concordia University, Colin obtained an MA in human systems intervention. While attending Mount Allison, Colin played four years of university rugby, leading the Mounties to a Maritime University Championship in 1996. At the pro level, Colin continued his development into an international player. Colin represented Canada in the Under17 and the Under-19 teams. He also entered the Elite Athletic Development Program and, again, played for Canada in the Under-20 team. To be capped in international rugby is a major accomplishment. Colin was capped seven times as a member of the Under-20 program. He then became a member of the first Under-23 residential program in Victoria, B.C. At age 22, Colin was capped seven times and scored three times for Canada in international competition. Colin is married to Kimberly Archibald, an artist and soonto-be-certified rugby coach. They have two children, Nathaniel (4) and Luke (2). Colin works as an organizational and community consultant.
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pon entering Selwyn House in Grade 7, Torrey Mitchell 2002 made an immediate impact on the athletic program. He was an all-round tremendous athlete. In Grades 7, 8 and 9, Torrey played football and rugby, but his passion always was hockey. At the end of Grade 7, he was the co-winner of the Cassils Cup, which is awarded to the top athlete in the Middle School. In the Senior School, Torrey continued to excel at hockey and Bantam football. He led the Bantam hockey team to the GMAA Championship game. In Grade 10, he led the Senior team in scoring. During Torrey’s senior year, he played for Charles Le Moyne Midget AAA, leading them to a bronze medal representing Quebec at the National Tournament. In addition, he was named the team’s MVP. Torrey chose to go to Hotchkiss prep school and to pursue a university degree and a hockey career. Torrey led the team in scoring in both seasons he played at Hotchkiss. In the summer of 2004, Torrey was drafted by the San Jose Sharks. He was pursued by several universities, but chose Vermont to play hockey and to pursue his commerce degree. Torrey's three years at UVM were a tremendous success both academically and athletically. Torrey was the top scorer and, in his junior year, was named team captain. In Torrey’s first NHL training camp, he was chosen to play for the San Jose Sharks. He enjoyed a tremendous rookie season. Beset by injuries in his second and third years, Torrey showed tremendous resilience and determination to return to the Sharks’ lineup. We are extremely proud and pleased to induct Colin Robertson and Torrey Mitchell into the Selwyn House Athletic Hall of Fame. ■
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Alumni NEWS
Old Boys at
CAREER DAY
ine Old Boys and two Selwyn House parents took part in this year’s Career Day on May 4, engaging Senior School students in frank discussions about the career options that exist today. Participants were:
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Michael Wexler ’88 Chief Investment Officer of Maple Leaf Capital LLP, which he founded in May 2002. Prior to this, was at Credit Suisse First Boston in London for four years, establishing and managing the single-stock derivative trading group and as a proprietary trader focusing on global single-stock volatility and correlation Michael Wexler ’88 trading. He began his career in currency derivatives with Citibank Toronto and London, trading Canadian dollar options, Japanese Yen exotic options, and Dollar/Euro options for five years. Geoff Moore ’83 An entrepreneur in the financial services industry, Geoff was hired by Bank of Ireland to open and manage its Canadian investment management office in 1996. In 2001, Deutsche Bank hired him to launch and run its Canadian investment management business. In late 2010, he left to co-found TBC Capital Inc. (Thinking Geoff Moore ’83 Beyond Consensus), a firm with a special focus on impact investments (investments that aim to solve social or environmental challenges while generating financial profit). Geoff recently founded a community initiative called EYE4IMPACT, a forum to explore the emerging asset class of impact investments and social entrepreneurship. He was selected as a delegate at this year’s Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship in Oxford, England. The Skoll World Forum is the premier international platform for accelerating entrepreneurial approaches and innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing social issues.
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Mike Bruneau ’88 Currently serves as leader of Pratt and Whitney APU programs with Hamilton Sundstrand, a United Technologies Corporation aerospace division in the auxiliary power business. Responsible for managing multiple programs with Airbus and Boeing from the design stage through product sustainment with the airlines. Mike Bruneau ’88 Prior to this, he worked in a variety of operations roles with United Technologies Corporation. He spent 12 years on active and reserve duty in the U.S. Navy as a Special Operations Officer in the Explosive Ordnance Disposal community. He spent more than seven years overseas in mine warfare, counterterrorism and contingency-planning functions. He is certified as a Master Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician, Naval Parachutist and Surface Warfare Officer. Dr. Prosanto Chaudhury ’91 After graduating from McGill University’s medical school he completed training in general surgery, laboratory research, and transplant and hepatopancreato-biliary (HPB) surgery. He has completed his M.Sc. in evidence-based health care at Oxford University, plus an additional fellowship in organ transplantation at Northwestern University in Dr. Prosanto Chaudhury ’91 Chicago. He then returned to take a full-time position at the MUHC. He is involved in outcomes-related research and clinical trials in the realm of both transplant and HPB. He is involved in several provincial and national committees focusing on organ donation and transplantation. His primary research focuses on the outcomes of colorectal cancer metastases treated with an aggressive combination of pre-operative chemotherapy, surgery, and followed with adjuvant (post-operative chemotherapy). In addition, he has several ongoing projects prospectively examining outcomes after liver, kidney and pancreas transplantation.
Alumni NEWS
CAREER DAY
Dr. Anand Sahai ’80 Chief, Division of Gastroenterology, Campus Saint Luc, University of Montreal. In 1995, he completed a year of training in ERCP and a Master’s Degree in clinical epidemiology at the University of Montreal. In 1996, he was awarded the American Society for Dr. Anand Sahai ’80 Gastroenterology (ASGE)/Olympus Advanced Endoscopic Training Award and trained in endoscopic ultrasound at The Medical University of South Carolina. He was awarded the American Digestive Health Foundation Outcomes Training Award and numerous research awards from the ASGE and the American College of Gastroenterology. In 1999, he returned home to Saint Luc Hospital of the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montreal (CHUM). His practice is devoted almost exclusively to endoscopic ultrasound and to endoscopic research. The CHUM EUS unit is currently the busiest in the world (Dr. Sahai performs approximately 2,600 endoscopic ultrasound procedures per year) and is host to an internationally recognized EUS training program. He has trained more than 500 endosonographers, from all five continents of the world, and recently opened a private endoscopy clinic devoted to primary and secondary GI procedures. Tim Fleiszer ’92 Tim Fleiszer is one of few players in Canadian Football League history to win four Grey Cup championships with four different teams. Selected first overall in the 1998 CFL Draft, Fleiszer won more championships than any player, coach or executive in the CFL during his decade-long career. A leader on and off the field, Tim Fleiszer ’92 Tim was a team captain on three teams (Montreal, Ottawa and Edmonton) and a CFL Players’ Association representative for four years. Throughout his ten-year career, Fleiszer was passionate about his involvement in community-building initiatives. He was twice nominated for the Tom Pate award, given to the CFL player who reflects outstanding community service. Even today, Tim
remains a consultant for the CFLPA, directing their National Community-Building Programs initiative. A cum laude graduate of Harvard University in 1998, Fleiszer joined Gil Scott Sports Management as a partner in January 2008. Roberto Gibbons Gomez ’99 Freelance photographer, producer, company owner, extreme athlete. Started his own company fresh out of university, selling to Costco Canada and Ebay. Used Facebook to begin making inroads into the adventure market, providing photography for magazines and websites. Landed contract to produce The Expeditioners for CBC.
Roberto Gibbons Gomez ’99
Adrian Schauer ’96 As President and CEO of Vortex Connect, responsible for establishing the vision of mobile technology’s role in business-to-employee communications. In 2004, co-founded Vortex Mobile, which would spin off into Vortex Connect in 2009. Vortex Mobile has been recognized for two consecutive years as one of Adrian Schauer ’96 Canada’s 50 fastest-growing companies by Profit Magazine, with Adrian also among Marketing Magazine’s Ones to Watch in 2007. Prior to founding Vortex, Adrian was a manager in New Product Development at Rogers Wireless, Canada’s largest mobile phone provider. In this role, Adrian owned the SMS and Mobile Content portfolios, counting among his accomplishments the launch of North America’s first Mobile Music service. Mark Lamorey ’92 Electrical engineer, IBM U.S. System and Technology, specifically microelectronics. Contributed to success of processors for the PS2, PS3, GameCube, Wii, Xbox and Xbox360. “My passion is the science/math/engineering that goes along with semiconductors.” Keynote speaker for Career Day 2011 was John Kelly ’83 (see following page). ■
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Alumni NEWS
John Kelly ’83 at
CAREER DAY
John Kelly ’83
By Richard Wills, publications editor n your careers you will be asked to contribute to the problems we face,” John Kelly ’83 told Senior School students in his keynote address at Career Day on May 4. John describes himself as “CEO and self-declared Emperor Penguin” of Neko Harbour Entertainment Inc., a Torontobased company that “finances and produces popular-culture media intended to entertain while also educating positively about climate change.” Neko Harbour produced the award-winning documentary, The Antarctica Challenge: a Global Warning, which has been broadcast in seven countries. Their newest release is The Polar Explorer, which is slated for broadcast on CBC later this summer. Once a Bay-Street lawyer, John now works in the film industry as a consultant to other producers in Canada and the United States. A feature film he co-produced, The Year of Getting to Know Us, starring Jimmy Fallon, Sharon Stone, Tom Arnold and Lucy Liu, was invited to the 2008 Sundance Festival. In his Career Day speech, John recalled having heard a similar talk from Apollo 15 astronaut Jim Irwin, who visited Selwyn House in December 1982. This was a great inspiration to John, whose best subjects in
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school were math and science. When John graduated from Selwyn House and went to UCC in Toronto for Grade 13, he changed his academic focus to English literature and art. He went on to earn a degree in English literature from McGill, followed by a master’s degree in English literature from Durham University in England, with a specialty in 17th-century poetry. All this took an abrupt turn when, at his father’s urging, John enrolled in Dalhousie University, earning a law degree and joining a Toronto law firm. “But it didn’t feel like a good fit,” John says now, so he left after two years. Now he was free to pursue a desire to work in film while still applying his legal skills, so he became a producer. “Day to day, what I do now is not too dissimilar to what a business person or lawyer does,” he told the students. “All the same skills are applied to each.” At this stage in his life John saw the film Antartica Challenge by Mark Terry, and was inspired by the urgency of the message about global warming and the antarctic. So he signed on to produce Terry’s next film, Polar Explorer. Both films have influenced international climate change conferences, and the company has been invited as a partner to the United Nations at their conference on climate change to be held in Durbin, South Africa in December. While there, John said he intends to do a little “crowd sourcing,” interviewing scientists about climate change. John did a little crowd-sourcing of his own among his classmates from the SHS Class of ’83, to glean their advice to the students of Selwyn House. Their recommendations? “Hire people who are better than you.” “Build relationships that last a long time.” “While at university, spend your time working.” “Learn languages.” “Your path is determined by the determination of your walk.” John prefaced his own bit of advice with a quote from German filmmaker Werner Herzog, who said, “No other planet (in our solar system) is inhabitable. It would take us 100,000 years to get to the nearest one that is.” That is why John has dedicated his professional career to ensuring “as secure and sustainable a planet as possible” for his two children. In this way, he has done what he recommended to Selwyn House students: “Build a career that you are happy to live with.” ■
Graduation 2011 “Yes, we were the class to take showers ead Prefect and Headmaster, Fernand under the chem-lab chemical rinser, and to Le Fèvre and Hal Hannaford both Saran Wrap the whole school! And yes, maybe chose to emphasize relationships—the our most commonly used sentence was ‘Oh importance of friendship and kindness—in my god, is that due tomorrow?’ But we were their speeches at the graduation ceremonies also the class to get things done.” for the Class of 2011. “Merci pour dix années de plaisir, de rires “Notre passage à Selwyn House sera l’un et d’amitié,” he concluded. “You have made des plus mémorables voyage de notre vie. this ten of the best years of my life.” Parce qu’une éducation à Selwyn House est Hal Hannaford approached the same vraiment un voyage,” Fernand began. subject from the point of view of the school’s That voyage was made possible, he motto: Veritas—truth. continued, by the camaraderie among the “If I were trying to convince our classmates of 2011. graduating class to make a choice, an effective, “What made our grade special was our Fernand Le Fèvre life-altering choice, I would tell them all you acceptance of each other,” he said. It’s an enormous advantage, he said when “you know that no matter have to do is choose Veritas. Embrace the concept of our new vision for Selwyn House: developing a lifelong commitment to who you ask, you will receive the help you need.” “Our class looked for opportunities to make a difference,” Veritas. “If you follow the veritas path, high achievement will he recalled. “To us, it seemed only to be the sensible thing to follow you, not the other way around.” do.” Veritas, he explained means being true to yourself, true to “There was always work to be done, this we knew. And work we did, enjoying ourselves all the way. Success was not others, and true to your school. “Look around you,” he said. “Many of your classmates will only a game or practice, it was lending a helping hand offduty, giving assignments to friends, or catching them up on be, and have the potential to be, friends for life. commit yourself to friendship. Commit your self to those who care.” notes. No need to ask, we had each other’s back.” “Good guys who work hard and embrace kindness are “All of our creative talents brought us together, because everyone needs a good laugh, a great concert, or a piece of guaranteed to be successful.” ■ artwork to be proud of.”
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School NEWS
Prize Winners, Class of Distinction Awards Biology: Angelo Rizzolo D. W. Christie History Prize: Jesse Kaminski Chemistry: Alex Krolik Physics: Alex Krolik McGill Science Award: Aditya Mithani Creative Writing: Julian Lo McCall Prize for Art: Fernand Le Fèvre, Michael Di Genova Economics: Fernand Le Fèvre Calculus: Alex Krolik French: Langue Maternelle: Fernand Le Fèvre, Eric Liu Langue Enrichie: Matti Parnanen, Adam Shiri The Consul General of Spain Prize for Distinction in Spanish: Alex Ignacz Byron W. Harker Prize for Distinction in Literature: Vincent Iacono The Moodey Prize for Mathematics: Aditya Mithani Patricia Marsh Drama Prize: Julian Lo Special Awards • The Governor General’s Bronze Medal for Academic Distinction to the student with the highest academic average for the year: Alex Krolik • The Thomas Henry Pentland Molson Prize for General Excellence to the student with the second-highest academic average for the year: Jake Levy • The YMCA Community Service Award to a student who has consistently volunteered his services within the school or community: Angelo Rizzolo • The Massi Prize for Effort for sustained effort and appreciation in academics: Jon Mashaal • The Millennium Prize (donated by the Class of 1999) to the student who best exemplifies—in the judgment of his peers—tolerance, compassion, generosity of spirit, kindness and concern for others: Angelo Rizzolo, Adam Shiri • The Thomas Chalmers Brainerd Memorial Award to the Senior who, in the opinion of the staff and of his classmates, has combined an exceptionally enthusiastic and purposeful approach to school activities with the consistently generous concern for the welfare of others: Jeremy Micheletti, Justin Tabah • The Jeffrey Russel Prize, awarded to the Senior who is considered by the Staff and his classmates to have shown outstanding all-around ability and character: Jon Aziz, Alessandro Cappello • The Lucas Memorial Medal, in memory of the founder of the school, awarded to the Senior who is deemed by the staff and his classmates to have made the most outstanding contribution to the life of the school by way of academic achievement, leadership in games and activities, and by good example: Sean Hatzigeorgiou, Fernand Le Fèvre
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2011
Senior School Head Mike Downey (left) and SHA Board Chairman Ted Claxton ’73 (right) present the Lucas Memorial Medal to Fernand Le Fèvre and Sean Hatzigeorgiou.
Alessandro Cappello and Jon Aziz receive the Jeffrey Russell Prize from Senior School Head Mike Downey and SHA Board Chairman Ted Claxton ’73.
Jeremy Micheletti and Justin Tabah receive the Brainerd Memorial Award from Mike Downey and OBA Board President Geoff Moore ’83.
School NEWS
Gr. 11 academic
DESTINATIONS
A. Assimakopoulos . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Johnathan Aziz . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Nicholas Aziz . . . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Wassim Bedrouni . . . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . . Arts and Science Karim Belkhou . . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Alexander Brais. . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . First Choice Science Alessandro Cappello. . . . . Marianopolis . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Dominic Carbone . . . . . . Vanier . . . . . . . . . . Developmental Sci. Anthony Cassia. . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Anthony Chiné-Ciarlone . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Jacob Cohen . . . . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Liberal Arts Charles Coutu . . . . . . . . . Vanier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Social Science Grégory Dépatie. . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Michael Di Genova . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Brandon Di Perno . . . . . . Tabor Philippe Douyon . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Sean Egger . . . . . . . . . . . . St Paul’s Fayez Elian . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Alexandre Ferland. . . . . . . Brébeuf. . . . . . . . . . Sciences humaines Michael Forian-Zytynsky . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . Social Science Maximilien Garneau Pillet Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Sean Hatzigeorgiou . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . . Arts and Science Justin Hebert . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . Social Sci. (Psych) Sean Hess . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Vincent Iacono . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . . Arts and Science Alexander Ignacz . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Jesse Kaminski . . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Liberal Arts Anthony Karaplis . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . . . Social Sci. (Psych) William Kendrick. . . . . . . Holderness Farhad Khan. . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Alexander Krolik. . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Jonathan Kwok. . . . . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . . Arts and Science Fernand Le Fèvre . . . . . . . Hotchkiss Jake Levy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis. . . . . . . Arts and Science Eric Liu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Westminster Julian Lo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Liberal Arts Robbi Maar . . . . . . . . . . . Returning to Germany Alexandr Magder . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Christopher Malouf . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Wyatt Marchildon . . . . . . TCS Jonathan Mashaal. . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . Social Science Christopher-Denny Matte Marianopolis. . . . Pure & Applied Sci. Jeremy Micheletti . . . . . . . TCS
Aditya Mithani . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Panagiotis Mylonakis . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Huu Thinh Nguyen. . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Jonah Palevsky . . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Liberal Arts Matti Parnanen. . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Angelo Rizzolo . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Thomas Rohan. . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . Health Science Cameron Romoff . . . . . . . Gunnery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grade 12 Andrew Rossy. . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Matthew Samberg . . . . . . LCC Thomas Savvas . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Timothy Shaw . . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce Adam Shiri . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Gregory Stern . . . . . . . . . . Dawson. . . . . . . . First Choice Science Ryan Stetiu-Otis. . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . Honours Commerce Justin Tabah . . . . . . . . . . . Dawson . . . . . . . . . . . . Health Science Cairn Tse-Lalonde . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Erik Vincelli-Gregory . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . Social Science Tsz Fung Wan. . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . . Social Science Tong Yi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianopolis . . . . . . . . Health Science Joseph Zammit. . . . . . . . . Vanier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commerce
Jonathan Mashaal receives his diploma from physed teacher Alfie Paoletti.
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Alumni NEWS
Old Boys’ Association
NEWS Forty-seven Old Boys, friends and staff took part in the First Annual Old Boys’ Ball Hockey tournament, held in the Speirs Gym on October 23. The Blue Team, comprised of G. Archambault, D. Brophy, S. Brophy, W. Davis, M. Hendy, S. Papich, K.ShellSchnitzer and M. Sweibel emerged as the winners. Best Goalie: Hung Lee. Top Scorer: Emanuel Simon.
Upcoming Old Boy EVENTS Thursday, August 18, 2011: 12th Annual Young Alum Barbecue (Classes of 2006-2010) 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Speirs courtyard
Saturday, October 22, 2011: 2nd Annual OBA Ball-Hockey Tournament 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Speirs gym
February, 2012 (Date TBD) New York Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Old Boys’ Tuesday Night Basketball Runs October until May: 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. Macaulay gym
Thursday, November 17, 2011: Ottawa Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 22, 2012: London Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Thursday, November 24, 2011: Founder’s Day Cocktail reception for all constituents 6:00 p.m. Coristine Hall
Thursday, April 26, 2012: Toronto Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, December 21, 2011: 14th Annual Old Boys’ Hockey Tournament 1:00 - 5:00 p.m. Verdun Auditorium
Wednesday, May 2, 2012 Career Day 8:15 - 11:15 a.m. Macaulay Building
Friday, September 30, 2011: 33rd Annual Old Boys’ Reunion & AGM in Montreal 5:00 - 11:00 p.m. Wednesday, October 26, 2011: Calgary Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Thursday, October 27, 2011: Vancouver Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Thursday, October 20, 2011: Grade 11 Old Boys’ Association Induction Dinner 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Coristine Hall
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Thursday, January 26, 2012: 8th Annual Colin No Basketball Classic 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Speirs gym February, 2012 (Date TBD) Boston Old Boys’ Reunion Location TBD 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Monday, May 28, 2012: 14th Annual Alumni & Friends Golf Tournament 12:30 p.m. Kanawaki Golf Club Tuesday, June 12, 2012: 13th Annual Old Boys’ Tennis Tournament 5:30 p.m. Hillside Tennis Club
Alumni
UPDATES already been offered a position with the firm of Dewey LeBoeuf. Anyone who has not seen a video of Torrey Mitchell 2002 scoring his amazing game-tying goal against Vancouver on March 10 should check it out on YouTube. Selwyn House Athletic Director Steve Mitchell and his wife, Sheila, were on hand in San Jose to witness their son’s feat first-hand.
From left: Mike Avedesian ’88, Peter Higgins ’89, Jonathon Feilding ’89, and John Mulder ’88 are seen here at the Heritage Classic in Calgary on February 20. “The last time these four guys were here, we were representing SHS hockey at the Calgary 1988 Olympics with Steve Mitchell and Tom Nicoll coaching,” Avo recalls. The 2011 NHL Heritage Classic was a scheduled outdoor regular-season NHL game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Calgary Flames. The game was played at McMahon Stadium, located on the campus of the University of Calgary. Despite the turnout of Habs fans, the Flames won the Classic 4-0.
1979
Bart Sambrook ’79 won silver in the men’s 40-and-over category at the Canadian Doubles Squash Championships, held at the Atwater Club in Westmount March 4-6. Selwyn House Alumni Parent Judy Martin, mother of Keith Martin 2002, won bronze for women over 50 in a team with her twin sister, Susan Bell. The Canadian Championships drew 150 squash players from all over North America.
1987
Sywa Sung 1987 is one of 24 specially chosen alumni of The University of Toronto (including such esteemed people as Norman Jewison and Atom Egoyan) to be featured in a Portrait Video at the university’s alumni website, talking about his career and U of T experiences. Check it all out at: http://alumni.utoronto.ca/about/alumn i-portraits/#sung
2002
Jonathan Medalsy 2002 received his Juris Doctorate degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. in May. Afterward, he intends to move to New York City, where he has
Nick Niro 2002 was featured in “Trendsetters,” a column in the March 15-16 issue of the Westmount Independent, giving his views on fashion. As an example of the modern styleconscious man, Nick was discovered by columnist Veronica Regrave in the Stuart Weitzman shoe store in the Rockland Mall, where he is manager.
2003
Benjamin Fombonne 2003 writes: “I hope that things are well with you and at Selwyn. I work for a small office within the National Cancer Institute in Rockville, MD called the Office of Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research (OBBR), which deals with setting best practices/funding for research using biospecimens (considered the critical factor in novel cancer research and drug development) and the key to translational research (bringing benchside research/science to bedsides of patient care). “Currently, the office is setting up the first public biobanking resource in the US, in the hope of eliminating the lack of access to quality biospecimens for cancer research. As a Scientific Program Analyst, I work primarily on the Ethical and Regulatory Affairs and Partnerships teams, essentially developing policies and forming partnerships with appropriate groups and organizations. “It is all rather interesting and a fun
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Alumni work environment. Certainly a wonderful opportunity right out of university.
2004
In August, Andrew Medalsy 2004 will complete an intensive course for a Master’s Degree in Digital Marketing at Hult International Business School in London, England, where he was on hand to attend the Old Boys’ London Reunion on March 17. Jonathan Merritt 2004, who recently completed a stint as a Social Sciences teaching assistant at Selwyn House, was the subject of a March 3 interview in the Montreal Gazette on the subject of his other career: coaching basketball. Jon has an honours degree in history at McGill, where he still studies, with the aim of teaching at the high-school level. At the same time, he has been coaching for five years, and is currently coach of the West Island midget AAA Lakers (9-4) and assistant coach of John Abbott Islanders.
2008
Greg Rossy 2008 won the 120-kg weight class at the Canadian Junior Greco-Roman Wrestling Championships in Edmonton, Alberta on Sunday, March 27. Greg is the first Old Boy to win a national wrestling title. In April of 2008 he won a silver medal in Greco-Roman wrestling and a bronze medal in freestyle in the heavyweight division at the Canadian Juvenile Wrestling
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UPDATES
Championships, held in Fredericton, New Brunswick. In November of 2009 he was named Amateur Athlete of the Week by the Montreal Gazette. Greg also won a silver medal in Greco-Roman wrestling and a bronze medal in freestyle in the heavyweight division at the Canadian Juvenile Wrestling Championships, held in Fredericton, New Brunswick on April 3, 2009. Greg is currently training at Vanier College.
in the fifth round (150th overall) by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
2010
2009
Yasin Cissé 2009 is getting a lot of attention in the hockey press. If predictions come true, he could become the second Selwyn House Old Boy to play in the NHL. In June 1990, Yasin was drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers. Later that year, he suffered an injury in his second season with the Des Moines Buccaneers, ending his season in December 2009. Growing up in Westmount, Yasin was already getting a lot of attention on the ice when he attended Selwyn House from 1997 to 2008. Starting in Grade 4, he was a star of the Elementary School team that won the 2007 GMAA banner for the first time in 20 years. He was named top rookie scorer in 2007-08 in the Quebec Midget AAA ranks with 58 points (20g, 38a) in 44 games for the Lac St. Louis Lions. He helped the Lions reach the 2008 AAA finals and was named the league’s top 15-year-old. Yasin was rated the fourthbest prospect for the 2008 QMJHL draft and played for Quebec at the 2008 World U-17 Challenge in British Columbia. Yasin left Selwyn House after Grade 10 to go to prep school. He played in 31 games with the Des Moines Buccaneers he scored two goals and added six assists for eight points. His second season with the Buccaneers ended when he was injured after 18 games with 13 goals and six assists for 19 points. While on the roster with the Terriers at Boston University, Yasin was selected
Nicholas Backman 2010 who was skip of the A Team at Selwyn House, has continued with his curling success after graduating. He teamed up with some players from other high schools he met during his GMAA days and formed a team that finished fifth in the Quebec Junior Provincials in Chicoutimi. In the photo, from left, are: Alex Hall, Adam Freilich, Nicholas, Matthew Mitchell, and coach Robert Philion.
2011
Julian Lo 2011, a mainstay in every drama production during his Senior School years, has a major role in the award-winning Canadian film High Cost of Living, starring Zach Braff and Isabelle Blais. ■
Alumni
OBITUARIES
Donald Philip Durnford ’37 peacefully passed away in his eighty-eighth year on February 7, 2011 at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital in Oakville, Ontario. Beloved husband of Joann (née Curphey) for over sixty years. Loving father of seven children: Cathy, Philip (Sheila), Galt, Anne (Jeffrey), David (Leslie), Eric (Brenda) and Andrew (Janet), grandfather of Brian, Jeffrey (Chris), Alexandra, Katie and William and great-grandfather of Jayden. Survived by his sister Peggy Turcot (Elliot) and brother John Durnford (Elizabeth) and many nieces and nephews, he was the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Philip E. Durnford of Westmount, Quebec and great-grandson of Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, a father of Confederation. Those who knew Donald would agree that he was a unique and remarkable man who will be fondly remembered and deeply missed. He was a passionate skier whose biggest disappointment over the past few years was having had to hang up his skis after 80 years of skiing. He was also an avid and competitive sailor, which no doubt influenced his decision to select the Royal Canadian Navy when he volunteered to serve as a commissioned officer in the armed forces during World War II. Donald was seconded to the Royal Navy, where he saw active duty in the North Atlantic aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Trumpeter. Born and brought up in Montreal, Quebec before moving to Oakville, Ontario, Donald attended Selwyn House School, Bishop’s College School and McGill University (BCom). Donald’s heart was in Nova Scotia, where he first started spending his summer holidays in the 1930s. For the past 40 years, Donald and Joann have had a summer home in White Point, where the family congregates every summer. He is expected to be laid to rest in White Point later this year. As per his wishes, the family will not be having any formal services or visitation. As expressions of sympathy, donations can be made to The Nova Scotia Nature Trust (www.nsnt.ca), a nongovernmental charitable, land conservation organization whose mission is to protect Nova Scotia’s outstanding natural legacy through land conservation. Colin Mackenzie Stairs ’44 died September 29, 2010 in Peterborough, where he has lived since 1948. His wife, Elizabeth Webster, predeceased him in March 2000. He attended Selwyn House School and Bishop’s College School. After serving in the Canadian Navy, he went to McGill and obtained a degree in engineering physics. Upon graduation in 1948, he went to Peterborough, where he was employed by General Electric, and where he was given the first Steinmetz Award. He is survived by his daughter, Jennifer, the wife of David Whittlesey of Vancouver, and his son, Denis Webster Stairs of Vancouver Island, and his six grandchildren, also by
his two sisters, Dorothy Stairs and Elizabeth Durnford of Montreal. Stephen William Andrew MacLean ’72 passed away February 15, 2010 after a courageous battle with cancer at Credit Valley Hospital in Mississauga. He is survived by his wife of over 27 years, Patricia (née Lamontagne). Originally from Toronto, Stephen grew up in Montreal, where he graduated from Selwyn House in 1972 and McGill in 1979 in mechanical engineering. Stephen’s extensive career in information technology incorporated his keen analytical and design skills and love of automobiles in various executive IT positions. Stephen also leaves behind his parents, Ilsa MacLean and Hugh (Giovanna) MacLean and sisters Heather (Joe) Gonzales and Carol (Ron) Lyon, along with many much-loved relatives. Leslie Marc Layman ’73 died suddenly on Friday, May 6, 2011. Beloved husband of Benita Goldin and devoted father of Olivia and David. Loving and cherished son of Norma and the late David Layman, and son-in-law of Estelle and Paul Goldin. Adored brother and brother-in-law of Melanie and Leonard, Carissa and Michael, Paulana and David, and brother-in-law of Maureen and David, Gayle and Jeff. Fun-loving uncle of Jenna and Brent; Devon; Sophia and Owen; Zack and Jonah. Leslie will be greatly missed by his family, friends, colleagues, employees, and many animals. Contributions in his memory may be made to the Leslie Marc Layman Memorial Fund for Endocrinology Research, c/o the Montreal General Hospital Foundation, (514) 934-8230. Juan Pablo Hartwig ’75, died on July 27, 2010. Soon after graduating from Concordia University he returned to his native Chile. He was good friends with classmates George Iny, Robert Marie, Robert and Jamie Goodall, each of whom have very fond and great memories of Pablo. He will always be remembered as the joyful, entertaining, loyal, outgoing friend to all who knew him. He is survived by his parents, Alejandro and Laura Hartwig, as well as his three siblings: Christian, Cecilia, and Alejandro Hartwig. (Continued on next page)
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Alumni
OBITUARIES
Selim Saab ’76 passed away suddenly on December 16, 2010 at his home in Paradise Valley, Arizona in his 51st year. Predeceased by his parents, Jacqueline and Gabriel (Bob) Saab of Montreal. Sadly missed by his dear wife, Andrea, and her daughters Alexandra and Amanda Maw. Dearly loved brother of Rhea Saab and Bechara El Khouri. Selim spent his youth in Montreal. He lived for many years in Vancouver and most recently near Phoenix, Arizona in a place aptly named for what he often called his paradise.
Andrew Thomas Ridout Malcolm ’78 passed away surrounded by family, children and friends at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto on February 21, 2011. He is survived by his wife, Karen White, his sons Thomas Andrew James and Jamie Ross Ridout, and his daughter, Heather Laura. He leaves to mourn his mother, Nancy Ridout Hooper and his father, T.R. Anthony Malcolm. He will also be deeply grieved by his sister Jennifer Ann Sinclair, his brother Dugald Ross Anthony, stepmother Bonnie E. Penhale Malcolm, stepfather Peter Hooper, his mother-in-law Margaret White, sister in law Lynda Carpenter and several nephews and nieces. He will be sorely missed by his many teaching, camping and musical friends in Montreal and Toronto and particularly by his longtime friend Steven Perry and his wife, Elizabeth, who stood so firmly by his side during these last difficult days. ■
School publications archives now online A large collection of Selwyn House publications from the past are now online in a searchable database. Members of the SHS community can now go to the website listed below, choose a publication and read it online, print selected pages, or search the publication for a name or other keyword. Publications online include yearbooks, back issues of Veritas and Parents’ Newsletter magazines, programs from
Class of 2011 inducted into OBA At the Induction Dinner for the Class of 2011, held on April 26, members of the Old Boys’ Board welcomed class representatives into the OBA. From left to right: OBA President Geoff Moore ’83, Fernand Le Fèvre, Jonathan Kwok, Sean Hatzigeorgiou, Alexander Ignacz, Angelo Rizzolo, Thomas Savvas and OBA Vice-President Matthew Beckerleg ’94.
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events and plays, student newspapers and donation reports. Soon, the site will allow for global search, so that one can search for a keyword throughout all publications at once. If anyone has a copy of a missing document, please lend it to the school. We can scan it to add to the database, and return the hard copy to you. Go to: http://www.archive.org/details/SelwynHouseSchool
Selwyn House School 33rd Annual
Old Boys’ Reunion Friday, September 30, 2011 Come back to campus in September and reconnect wth your old teachers and friends. Share stories of adventures old and new over dinner and drinks. All Old Boys, their guests, and former and current staff are welcome. We hope to see many of you celebrating a special anniversary year: 1961, 1981, 1986, 1991, 2001, or 2006. 5:00 p.m. Tours of Selwyn House campus 6:00 p.m. Cocktails 7:00 p.m. Annual Meeting and Dinner 9:30-11:00 p.m. Pub (Cash Bar) Tickets: $50 by September 23 $60 thereafter (tickets available at the door) $25 for recent grads (2006-2011) Complimentary dinner and cash bar for former staff RSVP at www.selwyn.ca via the Online Event Registration button. Cancellations: Full refund for all events before September 23. No refunds thereafter. For more information, contact the Advancement Office at 514-931-9481 ext. 2242