2016 Distinguished Alumni Awards David Schoonmaker ’62 and Frederick S Downs Jr. (Rick) ’79 In 2003, the Board of Directors established the Woodstock School Distinguished Alumni Program as a way to celebrate meritorious alumni for exemplary and recognized lifelong achievement in their given fields and/or in voluntary philanthropic activities or service. These alumni represent the values that Woodstock School has strived to engender in its students. The 2016 award recipients were David Schoonmaker ’62 and Frederick S Downs Jr. (Rick) ’79
David Schoonmaker ’62 During 2016 Friends of Woodstock Annual Meeting and Reunion at UCLA, David Schoonmaker ’62 was recognized as one of two recipients of the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award for his outstanding achievements and career in medical waste disposal, his philanthropy, and his volunteer service. David will formally receive the Distinguished Alumni Award at Woodstock in 2017. Mr. Schoonmaker was Founder, Executive Vice-President, and Board Member of Healthcare Waste Solutions, Inc., a leading medical waste management company in the USA. As the oldest son of Joseph Schoonmaker, a missionary doctor in today’s Assam, David attended Woodstock from 1954 and graduated in 1962. He then went to the University of California at Berkeley where he received a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Business and followed it up with an MBA in Finance from California State College at Los Angeles. David is a former member of the Board of Directors and General Body of Woodstock School, and has served as a Board Member of KW International, Medical Waste Institute, and American 3CI in the past. He is currently a member of the Friends of Woodstock School Foundation Board. Mr. Schoonmaker brought his business experience and acumen to bear during his tenure as a Woodstock Board member, contributing revenue and budgeting expertise that has benefited the School long after his term ended, and he has donated generously to the School’s endowment and scholarship funds. His expertise continues for Friends of Woodstock School as a Board officer and Finance and Investment Committee membership. Many of Mr. Schoonmaker’s classmates nominated him for the Distinguished Alumni Award along with three longstanding friends
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14 - Quadrangle
the practice of law to join an Oberlin classmate in Boston to start an investment firm with which he is still involved today.
who wrote in hearty support of his achievements and nomination.
Frederick S (Rick) Downs Jr. ’79 In April 2016 Rick Downs was presented with the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award at Woodstock School in a ceremony attended by friends, family, Woodstock administration, faculty and students. Born in Jorhat, Assam in 1961 to missionary parents, Rick went to Woodstock in 1968 and graduated with the Class of 1979 as Valedictorian. He was the second generation of Downs to attend Woodstock. His father and an aunt attended Woodstock in the 1940s and 1950. Another aunt, Carol (Downs) Mumby was the school nurse at Woodstock and married the gym teacher, Win Mumby. The current school gym was built in his memory. Rick’s siblings, Milton and Susan, also attended Woodstock. His sister Susan returned to teach at Woodstock for a number of years. After graduating from Woodstock, Rick attended Oberlin College. He graduated in 1983, majoring in History and Philosophy. At Oberlin, he met his wife, Sadhana, who grew up in Old Delhi. After college, Rick studied law at the University of Virginia and graduated with a JD in 1986. That led to a job at an international law firm in New York City where he practiced Corporate Law for six years. In 1992, Rick left
In the 1990s, Rick reconnected with Woodstock by joining the board of two different North American non-profit organizations which supported the school, KWI and its successor, Friends of Woodstock School (FWS). Ultimately, Rick also served on the Woodstock School board for a number of years as a representative of FWS and North American alumni. During his tenure on the board, in addition to other duties he participated in two principal search committees. This included the committee which selected Dr. Jonathan Long. In addition to serving on the boards of KWI, FWS and Woodstock, Rick has financially supported a number of projects at the school. First and foremost, he created and financed the Master Teacher Program. Rick was passionate about improving teacher compensation and retaining and recruiting the best teachers. Accordingly, the original purpose of this program was to provide additional financial support to very experienced teachers to provide incentive for them to come to or stay at Woodstock. This program now supports professional development opportunities for teachers. Rick also created the Oberlin Scholarship. Under this program, Oberlin College selects one Woodstock graduate each year to receive a four year grant as part of their financial aid package to attend the college. Rick has financed a number of other initiatives at Woodstock, including the creation of the new school website. Last, but not least, the biggest project that Rick was involved with both personally and financially, was the building of the Win Mumby Gym. Today, Rick and Sadhana reside in Dover, Massachusetts. Their children, Arjun and Julia, have both graduated from college and work and live in New York City.
We’d like to hear from you: The nomination process is confidential. We encourage those submitting nominations to not inform nominees as award grants are highly selective. Awards are granted once a year. Please contact the Alumni Relations Office to request nomination forms: alumni@woodstock.ac.in