"See You in September"

To the Great Class of 1969:

News of the Academy

With the arrival of the last issue of The Scroll today and the Academy's 207th Commencement looming this weekend, this seems like a fitting time to put my pencil down for the academic year. The teams finished their seasons earlier this week, and the Boys' Lacrosse program was once again a standout. By a total of only four goals, the Varsity lost an unprecedented three games this year and, as a result, finished #3 in New England and #11 nationally. The JV lost a single game by one goal, and the Boys' Reserve went 11-0. There is discussion in The Scroll of actually fielding two Boys' Varsity Lacrosse teams next year! Among the Girls' teams, the Tennis program excelled, with the Varsity finishing 9-2 and the JV going undefeated, 6-0.

As I previously have mentioned, Deerfield substantially distanced itself from the competition this year in terms of its desirability as a private secondary school. The admittance rate of 16.6% was lower than that of Andover by 4% and Hotchkiss by 5%. While the Koch Center remains behind schedule, the Academy is preparing to break ground next month on 8-10 new international squash courts which will be constructed between the wooden stairs leading from the locker room to the lower level and the Koch Natatorium which was built in 1995 to replace the pool as we remember it and which is the largest facility of its kind at any New England boarding school.

The 31st annual debating championships which I mentioned in my last e-mail went without a hitch, although the results made it apparent that the current generation could use some tutoring from O'Gara et al. The Academy, which has been drenched by the rain this Spring like many parts of New England, hosted its first Triathlon the following weekend. The event attracted 36 participants despite the conditions, and the diehards are already making plans to hold the event again next year, hopefully under better conditions.

By the Numbers

Given the time of year, I thought it appropriate to do a little year-end accounting:

- Number of Classmates currently on the e-mail distribution list: 105.

- Number of Classmates on the e-mail distribution list when School opened: 90.

- Number of Classmates mentioned (some multiple times) on Albany Road: 58.

- Number of Classmates whose photos appear in the Online Yearbook: 44.

- Number of donors last fiscal year: 55.

- Number of donors this year (with five weeks still to go): 40, including 6 new donors.

- Number of Classmates we have no way of contacting: 8 (Guthrie, Harding, Lawrence, Marx, Mitchell, Moore, Updike, White)

- Number of Classmates lost in cyberspace this year: 6 (Andresen, Grosvenor, Lee, McWilliams, Moriarty, Morine)

- Number of Classmates deceased this School year: 1 (Poirier)

- Number of Classmates registered on the new Deerfield Alumni website: 16.

Class News

As you know from prior e-mails, Rusty Young is now CEO of the Count Basie Foundation and, as such, is in charge of a fundraising drive to restore the Count Basie Theatre and provide operating funds. On Saturday, June 24th, he once again has arranged for the The Fab Faux to stage a benefit concert in Red Bank at The Count Basie Theatre. This would be a great time to see some classmates and support Rusty who has promised to allocate to Deerfield a portion of the proceeds from tickets purchased by Deerfield alumni. In order to encourage Rusty, I have offered to match the first $250 he allocates. Do both of us a favor and head down to Red Bank to hear some great Beatles music and relive an era. You can stay at the tony Blue Bay Inn if they still have any rooms (and you're feeling flush).

If you're looking for something to do this summer, you might consider a vacation at Wintergreen Resort near Charlottesville, VA where President Bob Ashton has overseen a $45 million upgrade over the past seven years. To combat higher gas prices Wintergreen decided to offer as much as $75 in free gasoline this summer as part of its "Get Away Soon," or GAS, special. The Wall Street Journal spoke with Bob last week who said the promotion was a way to "be ahead of the curve and offer people an incentive".

Earlier this year David Colker was re-appointed Chief Executive Officer and President of the National Stock Exchange for a seventh consecutive one-year term. Founded in 1885, the National Stock Exchange (known as the Cincinnati Stock Exchange for the first 118 years of its existence) became the country's first all-electronic stock exchange when it replaced its physical trading floor with a completely automated market in 1980.

Former congressional candidate and two time gubernatorial nominee of the Green Party Jonathan f/k/a "King" Carter is in the news again as part of a coalition opposed to the legalization of slot machines in Maine. Jonathan cuts a wide swath in Maine where he is one of six directors of the Maine Green Party. In his campaign bio he traces his Maine roots back five generations, although I remember him as being from New Canaan, CT. In any case, King went to Williams after graduating from Deerfield, received a M.S. in Botany and Forest Pathology from the University of New Hampshire, did doctoral work in Botany at the University of Maine and Environmental Studies at Antioch. Somewhere along the way to populism, King became the less regal "Jonathan" and taught, of all places, at Exeter. As a result, Jonathan unofficially becomes the 17th member of the Class to go into education, the largest single vocation.

Last night I was in Providence where I had the chance to catch up in person with Zech Chafee for the first time in 37 years. Over the course of a three hour dinner I learned, not surprisingly given his heritage, that Zech has spent most of his career since graduating from Harvard in the public sector, the longest stint of which has been spent in his beloved Providence as a US Attorney. Zech was characteristically modest in recounting the ceremony in which he christened the USS Chafee (which Mr. Lambert attended) as well as the little known fact that in May 1975 he was among the Marines sent to rescue the SS Mayaguez in which 15 Americans were killed.

Class Trivia

1. While this is not exactly "new" news, can you name the Classmate who was named by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to a panel to assist NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service in developing a comprehensive management system for pelagic longline fishing vessels that participate in highly migratory species fisheries? Hint: His grandfather was named "Man of the Century" by the International Maritime Hall of Fame.

2. Bonus Question: What exactly is "pelagic longline fishing"?

In Closing

This weekend Barry Berg P'02 '06 will be back on Albany Road to watch his daughter graduate. Barry's next door neighbor in Dean Hall, Will Colwell P'97, will be there as well to see his nephew graduate. I'll be back in touch this Fall after we have dropped off our son as a newly enrolled member of the Class of '09. Unofficially, I will be the 13th member of the Class to send a son or daughter to Deerfield and will join Mark Ewing P'07, Frank Henry P'08 and Steve Sheresky P'08 as part of the current alumni parent body.

I hope that all of you make the most of the summer and that you will remember Deerfield by June 30th by going to Giving to Deerfield before heading off if you have not already done so and are on the solicitation list. I am always interested in getting news that would improve the Class e-mails, photos for the Class blog, the coordinates of lost Classmates or any suggestions you might have.

Until September, all the best.

DWS