WILDERNESS
Annual Pecos trip plans to return in August
Back again Fifty years after being a part of the first wilderness school experience, John Williams ‘75 hopes to reunite with his former classmates to go back to this same spot that provided an unforgettable experience for the members of the class. Will Pechersky: Can you give me a basic overview of what you’re trying to organize? John Williams ‘75: Yeah. When I was a freshman at St. Mark’s in 1971, the school had organized the first wilderness trip to Big Bend ever. Prior to that, there was a tradition called Freshman Day, which was one day on campus where the new freshmen and the upperclassmen would have water balloon fights, spray shaving cream, chase each other around campus and silly activities like that. That was the rite of passage to Upper School. A lot of people didn’t particularly care for it; they thought it was a bit juvenile and silly. And so the idea was, ‘Let’s have a true experience that the incoming freshmen will have, that will be
WP: What do you think can be said about the sense of brotherhood at St. Mark’s, given your continued relationship
The ReMarker
WP: What do you hope to gain from this experience with your former classmates? Are you more hoping to recreate some of those same memories? JW: Yes, I think that’s part of it. I think also, as the years go by, I am constantly reminded of my days at St. Mark’s. Some of my instructors and teachers and activities and things I did and how that impacted me or led me through my different studies and careers in life. I was at St. Mark’s for five years, eighth grade through 12th grade. It was a tremendous experience, and I think most of my classmates feel the same way. And to be able to talk and interact with somebody that you knew pretty well, when they were ages 14 through 18, and now they’re 64 and 65, it’s not common that you have a group like that. Some of the stuff you can do on social media, but a lot of it is done better in person. I would really like to be able to spend that kind of quality time with my fellow classmates.
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WP: Was there anything specific that gave you the idea to try and organize something like this? JW: I think that just reconnecting with the class five years ago, our 40th reunion, made me realize how close we were and how we were able to hear about old people, talk to somebody you hadn’t seen in 20 or 30 years, and pick up where you left off. I went to college, I went to medical
school, I went to graduate school, I was in the military for 22 years. The friends that I made at St. Mark’s, I think, are some of the people I’m closest to because we shared common experiences growing up. We played sports together, we did extracurricular activities, I was on The ReMarker. And some of those shared experiences, I think, make you much closer than perhaps maybe a college roommate or somebody you knew in medical school or the military. 50 years is a milestone for anything. I’m just thankful to be alive at this point, because not everybody in our class is, and I think there’s a window of opportunity where you can do something like this that involves physical activity that is closing, and 50 years seems to be an appropriate milestone to commemorate it.
October 29, 2020
Headmaster David Dini explains why the Wilderness Program is such an integral part of the school’s education. I think there are a variety of aspects of the wilderness program that we believe are really valuable and important. That’s why we start in the Middle school and build up to the Pecos in ninth grade. A lot of it has to do with building stronger deeper relationships with classmates and being out of the routine of being in school, and, for some boys who perhaps might not have been involved in the outdoor activities, if they weren’t in Scouts or other things where you camp or hike, then it provides an opportunity to be outside and actually sleep under the stars and and have an experience that might otherwise not have been a part of their life. It’s also, I think, an opportunity to learn important skills, including teamwork and working collaboratively with your neighbor and many of the things we talk about on campus all the time.
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their rite of passage for Upper School.’ And so that’s how the trip started. WP: Do you know how similar this trip will be to the original trip? JW: We spent about five days backpacking in the interior of the Big Bend National Park and about another four or five days on the River. The backpacking trip was pretty physically demanding. I’m an outdoorsman. I hunt, I camp, I backpack, I’ve looked at the trails in the mountains we climbed, and a lot of what we did, I don’t think it may necessarily be suitable for some of the people who haven’t done that sort of thing for a long time. What we’re trying to do is to retrace some of our steps, and perhaps some of the easier hikes where we can maximize the number of people who could attend. What we’re planning on doing, is a brief hike, set up in a base camp, then for those who are so inclined, some additional day hikes on top of that, maybe climb a couple of mountains we’ve climbed before and then after that transition to a float trip on the river, which is physically demanding, but not like carrying a 40 or 50 pound backpack.
by Jonathan Yin lthough previously delayed by the pandemic, Pecos trips are planned to continue in August with minimal changes for both the incoming and current Freshman Class. “It’s early in the year, so we’re doing gear inventory, looking at our routes, looking at our menus, making tweaks here and there,” Wilderness Program ON THE Director Mark Sullivan PATH Members said. “We have started a of the Class dialogue with the Forest of ‘75 as Service about making sure freshmen that they will allow us to hike along a trail during do what we need to do to the newlydo.” created trip. The wilderness program operates under a permit with all these classmates this system from the United many years later? States Forest Service, JW: I think we had some typically allocating enough common values instilled in hours for one class’s trip to us at St. Mark’s in terms of the Pecos a year. working hard, fairplay, pretty “We’re currently workcliche, simple stuff, that I ing with the Forest Service think pretty much everybody to expand those permit followed through in their hours to allow us to take lives. Certainly, we don’t all both this year’s ninth grade think the same, we’re not all class as well as last year’s in the same political party or ninth grade class on their support the same presidential Pecos trip,” Sullivan said. candidate, but I think we’re “The big emphasis right able to get past that sort of now is just making sure thing and be able to interrelate we can even operate in the to each other. wilderness area based on permitting guidelines, as WP: What do you think is well as safety guidelines.” the most beneficial aspect of Despite these issues, the wilderness program for Sullivan maintains that students? each class will be able JW: I think being able to be to have its own trip, if with somebody for 24/7 for conditions with the current several days. When you’re in pandemic allow. school with another person “We’re going to keep for six or seven hours, you the trips separated, so this can get along with them, but year’s freshmen and the sometimes when you’re with rising freshmen will have a somebody 24/7, they can really trip unique to their class,” get on your nerves, and you Sullivan said. “Years and probably really get on their years ago, when I first nerves as well. I can remember started the Pecos, which people getting into arguments was 35 years ago, we over silly things, and I think if would do multiple trips you’re able to be in a situation in one summer. We have where you’re with somebody a pretty good relationship for 10 days, 24/7, and you with [the Forest Service] can come out of that and because we have been still be good friends, you’ve there for so many years, accomplished a lot, because I so we’re confident we’re think you’ve, seen that person going to get what we need at their best and at their worst, to get done.” and that’s not something that While nothing has we we typically see in other changed directly as a result experiences. of the virus, Sullivan and I think about people his team are constantly who were on the trip, now looking for ways to imsuccessful attorneys, NFL prove the trip. football team owners, space “We are changing scientists, and I can think back how we acclimate to the to, ‘Hey, I remember the first elevation, which really time I met you, I really didn’t has nothing to do with the like you, and you didn’t like pandemic,” Sullivan said. me, but when we finished at St. “But those are changes Mark’s, we were pretty good that, quite frankly, nobody friends.’ When you’re a young would ever really know kid in high school, there’s we made except those who not that many opportunities go on it all the time. They for that, and I think that was aren’t going to change the unique in that regard. dynamic of the trip in any way.” STORY Will Pechersky, At the moment, howevJonathan Yin er, nothing is set in stone. PHOTO Courtesy John “We can only just sit Williams ‘75 and wait like everybody else and watch the situaContact tion and make our decisions in a timely fashion Info based on those,” Sullivan email: johnmwmd@msn.com said. “At this point in time, phone: 719-651-6944 we have to think like we’re going.”
