10 minute read
Class Notes
HOMECOMING 2020 POSTPONED
Over the summer, the school made the difficult decision to postpone the 2020 ’0s & ’5s Alumni Reunions (originally scheduled for the weekend of October 31) to a later date. While this will be disappointing to all alumni, the decision was made in the interests of the health and safety of our entire community — faculty, staff, parents, students and alumni — during these unprecedented public health challenges.
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We hope to be able to gather and celebrate the Classes of ’0s and ’5s in the spring. Contact Alumni and Annual Giving Associate Julia Bowling (juliabowling@trinityes.org) if you have any questions or would like to serve as a Class Chair.
Class of 1976 Bruce Meyer ’76 surprised the development staff in February when he sent in his 1970s Trinity varsity baseball jersey. Thanks for the great surprise, Bruce! Class of 1978 Tom Duke ’78 writes: “I am the proud Grandfather of three smart, beautiful, fun and creative granddaughters: Audrey (12), Arya (7), Devan (1 year 3 months). Early last year I was promoted to senior associate principal at Wendel. We cover all disciplines of architecture, engineering, interior design, energy, landscape architecture, transportation, waste water management and construction management. I continue as needed to do pro-bono services for Side By Side providing professional services for
DUKE
MEYER
architecture and design. I have also made jewelry as an artist for the last 30 years and continue to do art shows when time allows. My happy oasis is my river place on the Potomac River so I am there as much as possible when I am not spending time with my adorable granddaughters.”
BROWN
NUCKOLS
Class of 1981 The Trinity community is grateful for the remarkable recovery from COVID-19 by local physician and alumnus Jeff Brown ’81. An in-depth article by Eric Kolenich in the Richmond Times-Dispatch details Brown’s experience battling the virus. “I’m incredibly grateful I got the care that I got, both from the shift-to-shift bedside nursing and staff and from my physicians,” Brown said. Class of 1988 Melinda Sandkam ’88 writes: “I’m excited to be pursuing a library and information science master’s through online studies at University of Tennessee. Pursuing the degree has brought me back to Virginia to be with family.” Class of 2004 Stuart Raper Nuckols ’04 and husband Joey welcomed their second daughter on April 3, 2020. Big sister Lena was very excited to meet Martha Mae.
Class of 2005 Sarah Goldstein Taylor ’05 writes: “My husband and I purchased a tiny farm in Powhatan. We are enjoying country life while raising our two kids, Easton (5) and Tegan (3), 9 ducks, 10 chickens, 4 cats, 2 dogs, 2 rabbits, and 10 goats! We love keeping up with Trinity!”
VIRTUAL ALUMNI GATHERINGS
Trinity’s held its first-ever virtual alumni event on April 21, 2020. About a dozen alumni (representing every Trinity decade) gathered in virtual space on Tuesday, April 21 to hear an update from Head of School Rob Short and share their own experiences adjusting to work and school online.
Alumni gathered virtually again on June 4 for the annual Green, White and Brew! While guests couldn’t try Rob Short’s homemade brew this year, each participant brought their favorite drink of choice on screen with them. Cheers!
TICKLE
JOHNSON YOUNG
Class of 2007 Nika Bejou ’07 writes: “I graduated in 2007 from Trinity and then to VCU for undergrad and Western New England University for pharmacy school. I did two years of pharmacy residency training at Yale and specialized in infectious diseases. I am now a board certified infectious diseases specialist (BCIDP) and work as a medical science liaison at Janssen. I still work part time at Yale and am actively involved with infectious diseases research. My significant other, Rahul, is a transplant pharmacist and we have an adorable golden retriever named Cyrus.” Class of 2009 Rebekah Hupp Martin ’09 writes, “The Martin family moved to Lexington, Virginia this summer because I start as an assistant professor in the Department of Civil Engineering this fall at the Virginia Military Institute.”
2020 has been an exciting year for Philip Tickle ’09 and his family, thus far. Philip and Chelsea happily welcomed their first child, Michael Sutherland, on April 23. In May, despite the school and college closures, Philip finished his master’s in education from the University of Richmond, including a Pass with Distinction Award for his comprehensive exam. Finally, in July, they celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary! Class of 2010 Caroline Lewandowski Altier ’10 and her husband welcomed their first child, Madison, on June 8, 2020. Class of 2014 Tyler Johnson ’14 was featured in the Richmond Times-Dispatch in March for his training plans amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The non roster White Sox player stayed busy and in shape by working out at “public parks and open fields around Glendale, Arizona.” Class of 2015 Kathryn Young ’15 began working at CBS19 News in Charlottesville in January 2020 as a news reporter after graduating from Washington and Lee University in May of 2019.
In an interview on April 22 on ABC 8 during the exciting leadup to the NFL Draft, reporter Natalie Kalibat called Jack Freudenthal ’15 “one of the best stories in college football, going from walk-on as a freshman at Wake Forest to team captain as a fifth-year senior.”
ALUMNI BOOK CLUB WITH FRANCIS DECKER
Alumni joined English teacher Francis Decker virtually on October 7 for Trinity’s first-ever alumni Book Club!
“I chose Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng because it meets at that strange intersection of great writing and great television. The book was adopted as a series on Hulu earlier this year and I thought its popularity might help foster curiosity about the book. I like to teach books that ask the reader to make ethical decisions that don’t have an easy answer, Little Fires Everywhere certainly qualifies.” — Francis Decker
Mark your calendars for the rest of this year’s Book Club meetings: • January 14 (book title TBD) • March 18 (book title TBD) • May 6 (book title TBD)
If there is one thing that’s for sure, the Titan community loves to stay connected with one another. The new Titan Connections online career directory is the newest way to do so! No matter the industry you’re in, we’d love to feature you. Fill out your career networking information on the Alumni page of the website trinityes.org/arts or send it to alumni relations associate Julia Bowling at juliabowling@trinityes.org and let the connecting begin!
DEAR SENIORS In a blog post entitled “Dear Seniors” last spring, Ellis Mumford ’16 thoughtfully articulated the common emotions of so many college and high school seniors during these unprecedented disruptions to schools around the world.
Class of 2016 Avery Archibald ’16, like many college seniors, had their year end abruptly due to COVID-19. To make light of the heartbreaking situation, Archibald created a Tik Tok dressed in her cap and gown picking up her diploma from the UPS delivery driver. Amanda Tarkington ’16 recorded the viral video which was later featured in JMU’s newspaper along with TMZ. Class of 2017 Bizzy Hyatt ’17 is a teaching assistant for Frost Montessori School in the Toddler Room.
COURAGE IN Leadership
It was no surprise to the Trinity community when Henry Coleman ’20 took to the stage at a racial injustice protest at Duke University on August 27. As a Trinity student, Coleman was a charismatic leader in the classroom, on the basketball court, and was elected Student Government Association President his senior year. His peers and teachers described him as a passionate learner and a good listener. At the protest outside of Cameron Indoor Stadium, he shared his own experiences as a Black man and spoke out against the racial inequality happening across the country today. He stated, “We will demand change. We will demand justice. We will gain equality. We will be great.” Hundreds of students listened in person while thousands of people viewed online. His speech has since reached over 140,000 views on Instagram. —Photo by Reagan Lunn/Duke Athletics
SPORTS EQUALITY
Robert de Wolff ’12 and Bryant Drayton ’12 were recently featured in Richmond Inno regarding the rebrand of their company SEQL, formally known as STAC. Begun as “a pathway for student-athletes and college coaches to connect,” said Drayton, they would like the company to grow from a recruiting platform to “building an athletic community.”
“SEQL, which derives from Sports Equality, represents a platform to elevate the next gen athlete,” said Drayton. “Every athlete now has the opportunity to promote their name, image and likeness through this platform. They will learn the value of being a marketable athlete, while never allowing someone’s analysis tell their story.”
ONE TO WATCH
Josef Kuhn ’19, a freshman at Belmont University in Nashville, recently released his first single, “Ahead,” on Acrophase Records and was featured on Ones to Watch by LiveNation. The site called it “a breezy track built for effortless backyard days, and listening to it will easily be the best three minutes of your day.” —Photo: Tyler Krippaehne
PRO MOVE
Congratulations to Zane Lewis ’16 on becoming the first Trinity Titan to reach the NFL! Lewis signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Arizona Cardinals following the 2020 NFL Draft in April and has since been acquired by the New York Jets and is currently on their practice squad.
In Sympathy
The Trinity community offers its condolences to the families of the following people who have recently passed away. We apologize for any unintentional omissions. As of September 10, 2020.
Thomas Ebeling, father of Steve Ebeling ’12, died on January 1, 2020.
Bronwen Zwicker ’00, sister of Vicki Zwicker ’97, died on March 4, 2020.
Stephen Byrd ’79 died on March 20, 2020.
Billy Stevens ’78 died on April 13, 2020.
Robert Jacobs, husband of former Trinity faculty member Liz Jacobs and father of Richard Jacobs ’82 and Katherine Jacobs Cockerham ’87, died on April 21, 2020.
Janie Clark, mother of Catherine Clark ’86 and Elizabeth Clark ’00, died on May 11, 2020.
Sundra Faber, mother of Beth Faber ’75, Christine Faber Shuman ’76, Aileen Faber Cooke ’79, died on May 17, 2020.
Former Trustee Chair Richard Sage, father of Kathy Sage Oden ’78, Ansley Sage Gift ’81, and Laura Sage Stewart ’86, died on May 21, 2020.
Elizabeth Burks, mother of Steve Burks ’79 and Sharon Burks Pastore ’81 and grandmother of Roy Burks ’10, died on May 25, 2020.
Christine Garrison Guise-Wright ’94, sister of Drew Garrison ’98 and mother of Peyton Guise ’20 and Davis Guise ’23, died on June 6, 2020.
John Wood, father of Hillary Wood Grotos ’77 and Rachel Wood Russell ’80 and grandfather of Lya Zeno Sinclair ’02, Kristen Grotos Spain ’03 (Josh ’00), Clair Zeno Carpenter ’05 (Will ’05), Falor Zeno ’08, and Tappe Grotos ’15, died on June 9, 2020.
Randolph Totten, husband of former Trustee Chair and Advisory Board member Virginia Totten and father of Fitz Totten ’91 and Caroline Totten Gary ’94, died on June 22, 2020.
Captain Michael Ott, husband of Shawn Chatfield Ott ’84, died on July 10, 2020.
Francis White, father of Liz White ’77 and Mindi White Carter ’78, died on July 23, 2020.
Amanda Jones, mother of Laura Jones ’84 and Will Jones ’87, died on August 16, 2020.
I GIVE because…
Brian Rollins Trinity Band and Music Director Trinity Parent
pictured with son Matthew ‘22 and daughter Magovern (behind the camera: spouse Beth Murphy Rollins)
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