Woodstock School Alumni Magazine Vol CIV, 2011
Woodstock School Alumni Magazine Vol CIV, 2011
Woodstock School Alumni Magazine Vol CIV, 2011
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Visitors on the hillside<br />
Quadrangle - 11<br />
Here at <strong>Woodstock</strong> we have visitors every day. We would like to share some of these visitors who have contributed<br />
their talent to our wonderful community in the past twelve months. We offer just a glimpse of their visits and their<br />
generosity.<br />
Rahul Amin ‘71<br />
In December<br />
2010, Rahul Amin<br />
hosted an alumni<br />
gathering in Vadodara,<br />
Gujarat, and<br />
invited the Principal,<br />
Dr David<br />
Laurenson, and<br />
<strong>Alumni</strong> Secretary<br />
Monica Roberts<br />
to join him. Rahul<br />
had contacted<br />
Monica beforehand<br />
to discuss an idea. Realising how precious<br />
the yearbooks were for all alumni and<br />
worrying that the books were aging, he offered<br />
to digitise them to make them available to<br />
alumni and ensure their safety. Work began<br />
and class years from 1970 to 2010 are now<br />
completed, with work on the earlier books<br />
under way. Rahul then visited <strong>Woodstock</strong> in<br />
April and met with Ravi Narula, Head of Engineering<br />
and Facilities. He offered through his<br />
company to carry out environmental surveys;<br />
audits began in September monitoring water,<br />
energy, electric and sewerage. The reports will<br />
enable us to make significant reductions in<br />
operating costs by ensuring that all equipment<br />
runs more efficiently.<br />
Dan and Anne Lind (S)<br />
The Music<br />
department<br />
and the Development<br />
/<strong>Alumni</strong><br />
Office both<br />
benefit<br />
twice yearly<br />
from the<br />
visits of former staff Dan and Anne Lind.<br />
Retirement in America in 2006 gave them<br />
the freedom to spend some time in India and<br />
specifically <strong>Woodstock</strong>. Keen to volunteer but<br />
not sure what form it would take, Anne was<br />
invited by Steve Alter ’74, then Development<br />
Director, in the spring of 2009, to volunteer<br />
in the Development Office. This worked<br />
well alongside Anne’s work as President of<br />
WOSA-NA. Dan had retired from teaching<br />
but still had much to offer and began helping<br />
part-time with the young string players in the<br />
music department. He works with groups<br />
and individuals, helping them to hone their<br />
skills. After the initial visit the Linds now visit<br />
and volunteer for two months twice yearly in<br />
Spring and Fall. Head of Music Ravi Arthur<br />
comments: “Dan brings a lot of experience,<br />
but he also brings a lot of strings, sheet music<br />
and essential accessories whenever he comes<br />
– a very helpful service!” For her part, Anne<br />
recently coordinated the WOSA- 100 Celebrations<br />
in October <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
Vance George (S)<br />
Vance was invited<br />
to return to<br />
<strong>Woodstock</strong> as a<br />
Winterline Centre<br />
for the Arts Artistin-Residence.<br />
He<br />
first taught over<br />
fifty years ago at<br />
<strong>Woodstock</strong>, but<br />
has always maintained<br />
his ties with<br />
the school. The<br />
music department<br />
was thrilled to have an internationally recognised<br />
choral director working with our<br />
orchestras and choirs. With Fall concerts and<br />
the annual Christmas concerts due, Vance’s<br />
arrival in November 2010 took him straight<br />
to rehearsals and workshops and individual<br />
tuition for student musicians. Vance’s inspiring<br />
presence and wonderful zest for life, food and<br />
music enriched our campus for three weeks.<br />
Although a two-time Grammy award winner,<br />
Vance was naturally modest and his rapport<br />
with students gave them even more of an opportunity<br />
to develop their passion for music<br />
and creativity.<br />
Merryn Glover ‘87<br />
<strong>Woodstock</strong> has<br />
a record of producing<br />
successful<br />
authors, and<br />
writer Merryn<br />
Glover is no exception.<br />
As part of<br />
our immense pool<br />
of gifted alumni<br />
who constantly<br />
give back to<br />
<strong>Woodstock</strong>, Merryn<br />
visited on her<br />
extensive travels through Asia. Bringing her<br />
husband and two sons, she was keen to revisit<br />
her past and show her family the <strong>Woodstock</strong><br />
experience. She took time out to lead three<br />
workshops on short story writing. An author,<br />
playwright, teacher and poet, Merryn inspired<br />
young students to follow their dream of becoming<br />
writers and to remember to return to<br />
<strong>Woodstock</strong> and share their expertise.<br />
Jane Jolly<br />
We are not exactly<br />
easy to reach here<br />
at <strong>Woodstock</strong> but<br />
Australian author<br />
of children’s<br />
books, Jane Jolly,<br />
still managed to<br />
find her way here<br />
in August on her<br />
way to the Travelling<br />
Children’s<br />
Literature Festival.<br />
Ms Jolly, a<br />
teacher in Australia, read her children’s books<br />
to Junior <strong>School</strong> students and donated copies<br />
of her three published works to the library.<br />
This time junior school learnt what it takes to<br />
diligently persevere and become a published<br />
author. The heroes in Ms Jolly’s books are<br />
from multicultural backgrounds, as are the<br />
students who sat transfixed in the library as<br />
the stories came alive. Ms Jolly described<br />
her experience as “incredible; <strong>Woodstock</strong> is<br />
an amazing learning environment”. Ms Jolly<br />
returned to <strong>Woodstock</strong> again in October <strong>2011</strong><br />
with a <strong>Woodstock</strong>-inspired book soon to reach<br />
the printers. Good Monkey, Bad Monkey is<br />
the story of Rhesus and Langur monkeys that<br />
she encountered on her first trip. The Langur<br />
Patrol, the ‘good monkeys’, warn off the ‘bad’<br />
or cheeky rhesus monkeys. <strong>Woodstock</strong> is very<br />
proud to think that we have inspired a book<br />
that Jane will no doubt return to read to a new<br />
generation of <strong>Woodstock</strong> students.<br />
The <strong>Woodstock</strong> community<br />
benefits in many ways from the<br />
visits of alumni and others.<br />
Why not reach out to us with your<br />
skills and talents?<br />
Come back and visit us; you will be<br />
assured of a very warm welcome.