I truly admire and appreciate that Williston still has a strong commitment to the arts. In an increasingly pragmatic world, I think that is absolutely fundamental to what it means to be really educated. Williston,” he says. Mr. Fragola joined the glee club. He dove into books. His head soared with ideas and inspiration. At Williston, Mr. Fragola found that he could be himself – a gift that he says has stayed with him throughout his life. “Williston was a major step forward to allow me to feel like I could venture into the world and be successful at it,” he says. Successful, indeed. Mr. Fragola is now a professor of media studies at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a published author.
As a teacher of screen writing, he says he’s most interested in crafting a strong development of character. “When I think about the idea of exploring a character and letting a character come alive, it goes back to my time at Williston,” Mr. Fragola says. “It’s a reflection of my own journey.” Mr. Fragola, who speaks and translates Italian, is also a filmmaker documenting the anti-Mafia movement in Sicily. His films include A Beautiful Memory: A Mother and Her Sons Against the Mafia and Another
Corelone: Another Sicily. When he’s not teaching, writing or making films, Mr. Fragola is working the land of his 72-acre farm in the Blue Ridge Mountains. He owns five miniature Sicilian donkeys and plants what he calls a “very Italian” garden of tomatoes, garlic, herbs, fingerling potatoes, peppers, and onions. Reflecting on his post-grad year, Mr. Fragola says he was most impacted by the community at Williston. “At Williston, [I learned] the idea of accepting people based on who
they are, and not based on race or class or economics,” he says. “We were taught the idea of a commitment to the world beyond our immediate concerns. There was sense of responsibility; there were higher ideals. It wasn’t just about going out and being successful.” * A Charitable Gift Annuity provides a fixed income for life while minimizing market risks. It also allows donors to take an income tax charitable deduction and reduces capital gains tax on appreciated assets.
To Learn more about Charitable gift annuities or other ways to support williston northampton through gift planning, please call Sharon davenport at (413) 529-3075 or email sdavenport@williston.com.