To the Grand Class of 1969:
News of the Academy
By all appearances, the Academy returned to normalcy this term. Students were required to be vaccinated, and masks were not required. Sit down meals and interscholastic sports resumed, and the Thanksgiving break will not be extended as it was last year. One pandemic-induced change that seems permanent is that the school day now consists of three 90-minute sessions as opposed to seven 45-minute periods with the dual objective of providing greater engagement and a more intensive learning experience.
On the Lower Level, Varsity Football continued a revival of the program that began to take shape in 2019 after a lost decade at the hands of Choate. In what would have been the centennial game of the rivalry but for the cancellation of interscholastic games last fall, Deerfield easily defeated Choate 50-26 and finished the season 8-1. The only loss this fall was to Loomis Chafee in an away game. From a quick glance at the roster, many members of this year's winning team will be back next year.
Another item worth noting is that the Class of 1970 finally got to celebrate its 50th reunion in person last weekend. I was told about 50 attended but I doubt their experience matched the buzz of past classes under the Great Tent or that a swim in the River in November held the same allure as it would have in June.
News of the Class
While many of us have retired by now, some classmates have embraced e-commerce and created attractive websites to market their offerings. Read on for a sampling.
As I first mentioned in 2015, retirement allowed Tim Truby to turn an avocation for travel and photography into a fulltime pursuit. Although COVID-19 put a temporary hold on travel, he did manage to get back on the road and spent time this year in the Faroe Islands off of Denmark and the Dolomites in Italy, two of his favorite spots. Tim also lined up an exhibition of his work at bG Gallery in Santa Monica in June. Since I first commented on Tim's work, he upgraded his website where you can view (and purchase) his photos.
The twentieth observance of 9/11 was a particularly solemn remembrance in New York and elsewhere. As part of the commemoration, the NYC Culture Club at the Oculus in the World Trade Center featured a solo exhibition of Renewal, the work of Todd Stone. Todd has substantially revamped his website where you can view (and purchase) his work.
Hurricane Ida was unkind to Ed Grosvenor in September when torrential rains flooded his home in Rockville, MD and ruined archival materials of American Heritage. You can read about it in the WaPo and, if you would like to help out, you can contribute to American Heritage which is a 501(c)(3) by going here. Alternatively, if you would prefer to buy a copy of a black and white photo from our era, you can visit Ed's SmugMug site where Ed has organized most of the photos he took in his three years at Deerfield.
After an 18-month hiatus due to COVID-19, Rusty Young is back in business and has scheduled concerts in eleven different cities in Florida this season. If you're in Florida and are game, you can book an event here.
Our son (Deerfield '09) celebrated his wedding one year after the pandemic-induced, family-only legal ceremony. I was pleased to see that his Deerfield education had paid off when I surveyed the couple's wine selections and saw that they had selected a Cabernet from Alexander Valley Vineyards. When I passed this along to Hank Wetzel, he confirmed their excellent judgment and indicated that this year's harvest had produced a small, but high quality crop. You can view Hank's offerings by visiting his online store (after verifying that you are of legal drinking age).
Happy Thanksgiving to all.
DWS
