SPRING 2021
TITAN TRAIL
SILVER LININGS
FROM THE
HEAD OF SCHOOL Helping young people grow, stretch themselves and express wonder in exploring the world is at the heart of why we educate. In a year filled with firsts, we have witnessed tremendous student growth, especially in the areas of leadership, self-knowledge and community inclusion. In the pursuit of fairness, justice and a sense of belonging for all, we have seen student leadership that lifts others up, that invites and that inspires those around them. We have seen deep learning and growth in conversations with students who are putting together the pieces of a complex world and making sense of it through what they have learned in their classes. This is a testament to the work of dedicated instructors, and it is evident in the arts and the music they create, the stories they write and the conversations they have.
MISSION STATEMENT: Our charge is to challenge Trinity students to discover their paths, develop their talents and strengthen their character within a dynamic academic community.
At Trinity we encourage all students to become self-directed learners, yet this is not something that comes naturally to all students in ninth grade, and for some it can be a real challenge. When students take ownership of their learning in the classroom, they build a stronger sense of themselves and how they fit into the broader whole of Trinity and beyond. Over and over, I’ve seen students follow this path toward embracing leadership, nurturing their wonder for exploration of the world and building a sense of anticipation for what may come next. This year especially, students have stepped into leadership roles and embraced extra work not out of self-interest but out of a sense of urgency to make the world a little better each week. Trinity leaders are galvanized to action through a love of our community and the opportunities we have each day to treat each other with kindness and respect. These moments are not unusual in ordinary years. Trinity has always been a place where learning occurs both inside and outside of the classroom. What is unusual is that these giant steps are ever present in a year where little was normal. Despite the challenges the world has faced, we see profound growth in our young people. I am grateful, proud and humbled by students, faculty and staff who have served so well in all they do. Parents whose world was turned upside down made sacrifices for their children. Teachers and staff who reinvented school and worked tirelessly morning through night, on weekends and through their time off to make this year work. Our students and our community showed character, growth, and grace and reminded us all of why we love Trinity.
Robert A. Short Head of School
SPRING 2021 CONTENTS
TITAN TRAIL ADMINISTRATION
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Robert A. Short Head of School Lee Sprague Associate Head of School Brian Phillips Head of Campus Life Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00 Head of Community Engagement Anna Prillaman Athletic Director Anne Hurt Director of Development Margie Vaughan Snead ’85 Director of Admission Joseph M onaco Director of Operations BOARD OF TRUSTEES
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22 www.trinityes.org The Titan Trail is published twice yearly by Trinity Episcopal School’s communications and development offices. Development: Communications: Anne Hurt David Ready Director of Development Director of Communications & Marketing Julia Bowling Malcolm Bell Alumni and Annual Giving Associate Marketing & Communications Specialist Photography: David Ready, Malcolm Bell, Bridget Hazel Photography, Heather Machut Photography, Alicia Raymond, Kristine Clopton, Charlotte Morris
15 FEATURES 06 10 12 13 14 15 22
Silver Linings Joining In College Knowledge Taking Great Care A Retreat Close to Home Grandparents Day DEI Update
Jeff D. Elgin, Chair Charles T. Hill Jr. ’98, Vice Chair, Treasurer Leesa Witty Gregory ’93, Secretary Lisa J. Acquaye Beth Williamson Ayers Cynthia L. Coleman Chris Ellis ’81 Kyle W. Hendrick ’05 Kelly Johnson, Trinity Parents Association Representative David C. Kearfott ’94 Elizabeth Kelley, Faculty Representative Matthew Majikes Gayle C. Marget Anne McCray Robert T. Methven John G. Mills ’90 Mary-Beth L. Nash Jennifer M. Parker Ann Marie Petrucelli William Isler Sanderson ’94 Charles Randolph Sullivan ’83 Tracy Teal John T. Willett ADVISORY BOARD
SECTIONS 02 Around the Courtyard 04 Faculty News 05 Taking Five 16 The Arts 24 Athletics 20 Philanthropy 32 Class Notes
Mary Bliley J. Read Branch, Jr. Otis L. Brown Milton Cerny Swannee Goodman Ericson ’75 Carol Estes-Williams Daniel Allen Gecker Kathy Graziano Mary Jane Hogue Stephen E. Hupp Joseph C. Kearfott Kelly J. O’Keefe W. B. Perkinson, Jr. Martha V. Singdahlsen Gary E. Thompson Henry I. Willett, Jr. Richard Thweatt Wilson, III Charles F. Witthoefft
AROUND THE
COURTYARD
HONOR CHAPEL
SPINACH HARVEST
In August, the Honor Committee held sessions during orientation for students to sign Trinity’s Honor Code. Due to the COVID-19 protocols, this was essentially a modified version of Trinity’s annual Honor Chapel, a beloved Trinity tradition.
In October, students in Mrs. Phillips’ IB Bio class harvested spinach in their plots for a lab project. Each group explored a different variable fertilizer type or amount, depth of seed planting, type of seed (spinach compared to other leafy greens) and distance between seeds.
MR. SHORT’S OUTDOOR OFFICE In the fall, Head of School Rob Short moved his office to Dunn Courtyard to enjoy the fall weather and be more accessible to students and faculty.
CRAWFISH ON CAMPUS Students in the 9th grade Science Research class spent an afternoon exploring the creek near campus to find and identify creatures that live there. The first haul they pulled up contained huge crawfish!
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SNOW, SNOW, SNOW
GIFT WRAPPING On December 1, student volunteers lent their lunch hour toward spreading some holiday cheer by wrapping gifts for the ASK Childhood Cancer Foundation. ASK provides Assistance, Support and Kindness to children and their families undergoing cancer treatment and cancer survivors. This was the second year that Trinity has partnered with ASK. Each year, student leaders help select five grade-level community partnerships with local nonprofits.
Ahead of a winter snowstorm in January, Head of School Rob Short and the Science Society convened in the courtyard during lunch to see if they could use the powers of a silly scientific experiment to induce some meteorological madness.
EAR SAVERS The creative wizards in the Technology Office printed a set of “ear savers” on the school’s 3-D printer for faculty and staff to use on their masks.
SHOW OFF YOUR BEST MOVES
BATTLE OF THE BRAINS
In October, the SGA helped organize a culminating event of Spirit Week in place of our traditional Homecoming Dance. Kickin’ Country Line Dancin’ visited the campus to give students a chance to enjoy and explore the art of line dancing while also being able to socialize with all three groups (A, B, and C) in a safe and distanced way on campus!
The four members of the Trinity Battle of the Brains team competed on CBS6 in November against James River High School. The Titans racked up an impressive 190 points en route to a victory, including a sweep correct answers by team captain Joe Talley ’21 in the category of “American Vice Presidents.”
÷ AND CONQUER Seventy-five students participated in the annual 2v2 Math Tournament co-sponsored by the math department and the Mathletes Club. Through four rounds of competition, teams collaborated on SAT-type math problems in geometry, trigonometry, algebra and precalculus in quick, five-minute heats. Two winning teams were crowned, one for each oncampus group. Group A champions were seniors Garland Moorman and Graham Guerette. Group B champions were juniors Sophie Dolan and Cole Pridgen. T I TA N T R A I L
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NEWS FA C U LT Y
Mandy Augst, librarian, was a presenter at the annual conference of the Virginia Association of School Librarians (VaASL) in November 2020. In her session on “DIY Breakout Boxes,” Augst shared costeffective ways to recreate the “breakout box” experience where students solve online puzzles together and teachers can create fun alternative assessments.
Wealth Building in Richmond. After the viewing, participants met in small-group discussions of the film, facilitated by VCIC as well as HandsOnGreaterRichmond, where participants discussed the film and action steps that could be taken in our own communities. Kimberly Ryan performed with local String Quartet “Rosette” in a special Valentine’s Day concert as part of a local concert series presented by Bon Air Presbyterian Church. Their “box of chocolates” program featured music by a diverse group of composers spanning from Mozart in the classical era to Florence Price in the 1920’s to Lang Zhou in the modern day. Chris Markunas ’01 and his band Cheap Comfort live streamed a virtual concert as a fundraiser for a cancer research organization called C-TREC on September 23, 2020.
Stefanie Jochman, English teacher, presented at the NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) Annual Convention, held virtually in Denver, CO in November 2020. The theme of the conference was “Confluencia! Songs of Ourselves,” and it focused on how teachers foster community and individual voices. Co-presenting with two other teachers, Jochman discussed her work with community outreach projects and bringing poets and writers from around the world into the classroom. “To present, we collaborated on a slide show and then recorded our portions of the presentation individually,” said Jochman. “I knit the pieces together in iMovie, and teachers could access our presentation ‘on-demand’ over the course of the conference.” On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00 attended a panel seminar to watch and reflect on the VPM documentary Heard with Thad Williamson from the University of Richmond’s Jepson School of Leadership and the former leader of the Office of Community 4
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In Vogue’s September version of 73 Questions, Joe Sabia interviewed singer and entertainer Lizzo. During the video recorded interview on September 24, the artist began making tea and pouring it into ceramic mugs made by Molly Sanyour ’01! The video has reached over 1 million views on YouTube. In October, a Lizzo decal mug created by Sanyour was featured on David Letterman’s segment “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.”
FACULTY MILESTONES Jenny McQueen and husband Rome became parents of twins on January 7, 2021! Lena weighed 6 lb 14 ounces and Jaxon weighed 7 lbs., 12 oz. Laura Swiatek and husband Kevin welcomed Connor David on October 9, 2020. He weighed 8 lbs., 5 oz and was very excited to meet big sister Emily!
MCQUEEN
SWIATEK
Wendy Williams welcomed her first grandchild, Asher Wesley, on October 6, 2020. Her son Jake Williams ’06 and wife Brittney are new parents and soaking up every minute! WILLIAMS
Julia Bowling earned her master’s degree in nonprofit studies from the University of Richmond in December 2020. BOWLING
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With the aid of technology and the enthusiastic participation of students and teachers, Chaplain Brian Griffen builds community through weekly Five-Minute Chapels With visitors to Trinity highly restricted this year, Brian Griffen was forced to throw his carefully crafted Chapel playbook out the window. Looking back on the previous spring’s virtual Morning Meetings and Chapels, Griffin anticipated that he would need to be creating a lot more video this year. “I am not a tech savvy person and had very minimal knowledge of how to create videos on iMovie going into this school year,” admitted Griffen. “I must say that my videos have improved in terms of quality over the course of the year.” Building on the success of his springtime weekly Five-Minute Chapels, Griffen devised a schedule that would allow student participation, touch on a broad array of topics and visually engage the audience. Griffen intentionally chose to begin the year with a Five-Minute Chapel series from Micah, an Old Testament prophet, who sums up God’s divine charge to mortals: do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly. “In this series, I shared that in the midst of this pandemic and our national struggle with racial injustice, we must find ways in our daily lives to practice restorative justice, to be kind to one another, and to practice humility,” he said. “We should make our
existence less about our needs and more about the needs of others. If we do this then we create a community where everyone feels cared for and included on our campus.” Many student organizations have also created digital versions of their traditional annual chapels. The Honor Committee created two Five-Minute Chapels educating our community on the pillars of the Honor Code. Perrin Gilman ’22, shared on the value of honesty and how it’s important to her as a tennis player to always tell the truth when calling balls ‘in’ or ‘out.’ She provided voice over narration while she filmed herself playing tennis. Students like Ella Browder-Jones ’21 shared ways that they had given back through community service over the summer. Kiera Fisher ’21 created an informative and authentic video on recycling for her Chapel on stewardship. In February, in honor of Black History Month, the Black Alliance Initiative sponsored a chapel entitled “Our Hairstory,” in which Seylon Duncan ’24 shared the story of African-American oppression and expression through exploring African-American hairstyle. Another Black Alliance Initiative chapel focused on “Black History and Music.”
“I have been encouraged by every student who has contributed to Five-Minute Chapel!”
said Griffen. “From honor to service, from environmentalism to Black history, our students have shared causes that they are passionate about in unique and authentic ways. I have also been encouraged by my colleagues who look forward to the series each week and appreciate that we continue to affirm our Episicopal identity and our community values even though we can’t do that in a large chapel gathering like we used to.”
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Teaching and learning in the pandemic year
“M
y grandfather was a boxer. He taught me — you’ve got to bob and weave,” says Cheri Bradby, Spanish teacher. “This has been the kind of year where you have to keep bobbing and weaving and just work your way through it and keep fighting and get to your goal. There are days when tech is great, and things go perfectly smoothly, everyone gets all the material, and they’re engaged. There are other days when the storm clouds roll over and no one can figure anything out including me. Those are the days when you have to bob and weave, roll with it, laugh at yourself and keep moving.”
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Since the day Trinity reopened in late August, roughly half of the student body has taken turns coming to campus every two days. While this parallel model allows for safe distancing in classrooms, hallways and shared spaces, it means that teachers have the added responsibility of managing two groups of learners — in class and at home — simultaneously. The success of the model has relied on lots of technology: screens, microphones, video conferencing tools, and more. Like so many others, Bradby says she was slightly pessimistic at first for how the year would turn out. Over the last half a year, students and teachers have bobbed and weaved; they
Silver Linings
adapted, become more efficient, supported one another, and even found a few silver linings among the dark clouds of a pandemic school year. “We have come so far,” says Associate Head of School Lee Sprague. “I am continually in awe of the creativity and persistence of my colleagues in reimagining what teaching and learning looks like. It has been exciting to see how teachers have adapted to this environment and the renewed gratitude of our students toward their teachers. This year has shown the continued value of personal relationships – something still shining through all of the challenges.”
virtually, especially during lectures, due to the many distractions and an overall different atmosphere at home.” Rowe appreciates the work of teachers like Bartz and Bradby who have made adjustments to improve the engagement of online students. “For example, in Spanish, we often watch videos, do listening activities, or complete worksheets in class,” she says, “and then both virtual and in class students are asked to participate and answer questions, which fosters engagement while improving speaking skills.”
ENGAGING THE ONLINE LEARNER “At Trinity, success comes from the relationships you build with students,” says Maria Bartz, who teaches English to 9th graders. This year she found it took longer than usual to build the rapport that normally allows her to give the kind of thorough and honest criticism that student writers need to improve. To help build this trust, she intentionally devoted more class time to ice breaking activities. “I ask fun questions, like ‘what’s your Starbucks order?’ ‘What’s your guilty pleasure TV show?’ or ‘What’s your favorite Disney movie.?’ Slowly, it gets them to open up, and they trust me to get to know them.” An added bonus, she says, has been increased engagement with the remote participants. “Those at home are just as invested in the answers when we do fun questions,” she says. “My biggest challenge with learning at Trinity this year has been engagement on virtual days,” says Lucy Rowe ’23. “While virtual classes allow students to see and hear the teachers as they teach the in-person class, it is not the same experience that one gets in the classroom. Personally, I have found that it is much harder to focus
Bradby says that when she needed to teach from home for a couple of days earlier in the year, she got a taste of how challenging it can be for those remote students to participate. “I had to put my ear up to the computer speaker,” she says. “I often end up repeating what students in class say [so that the kids at home can hear].” As a guitar teacher, Chris Markunas ’01 recalls facing similar challenges last spring when instruction was all virtual and at the beginning of the new school year. “There’s no replacement for in-person interactions as a musician,” he says. “We could get everyone together on the computer, with their instruments in their hands. But you pretty quickly discovered that you could not all play together at the same time. Even when everyone was playing their parts right, it was just a train wreck.”
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Silver Linings your sources? Are you finding info that is intriguing to the audience? I can look for all of that in a two-minute presentation just as much as I can in a 20-minute presentation.”
Eventually, Markunas developed a strategy that worked: sharing a recorded track of an audio file and playing along with it in real time — while everyone participating remotely kept their microphones muted. “They could hear me keeping in time with the audio that was playing,” he says, “so that whatever latency happened, they could all hear it together and they could play along with that.” For Bradby, providing frequent opportunities for group discussions in breakout rooms, followed by students reporting back to the larger class, has been an effective model of keeping everyone engaged and prepared. “Everyone gets a participation grade,” she says. “I want to be sure the students at home are getting the same amount of attention. I try to go back and forth between in class and online. The folks online can’t zone out because they could be called on at any time.”
ADAPTING PROJECTS/LESSONS Like many teachers, Bradby has had to adapt projects that might have traditionally been produced on paper or poster board into online tools like Adobe Spark, PowerPoint or Google Slides. In her Spanish 2 class, the “lo que me gusta’’ project required students to compile a series of selfies, with Spanish captions using verbs they learned in the chapter. The students then shared the presentation with either a recorded voiceover or a live in-class presentation. For Bartz, presentations have always been a major part of her curriculum, however this year she has found herself adapting the assignments to keep them shorter and more efficient. “Instead of making them do a handful of big presentations, students have done more smaller, shorter presentations. But they are still being held to the same skill set. Are your transitions fluid? Are you referencing
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Few classrooms have seen more adaptation than the band room. “During normal times, there is always a performance looming. There are things you always wish you had more time to work on,” says Brian Rollins, band teacher. This year, however, with performance opportunities severely curtailed, Rollins says he has focused more on individual musicianship and active listening skills. “The essence of being a successful musician is listening, always being a critical listener. That’s a skill that can’t be overstated,” he says. “Every virtual day, part of their assignment is to practice at least 30 minutes working on a variety of skills based on literature or their own personal development.” When students have collaborated, they have used recording tools and software to combine individual tracks recorded on their own. “What makes this difficult is that you have to record your part perfectly,” says Joe Crews ’21. “Sure you can record as many times as you want but the process is still tricky. This whole process made me become better at expanding my knowledge of an instrument. It helped me play more in time and it helped me avoid mistakes in a song in order to be a better musician. I think I’ve learned how to become a more technical musician.”
LEARNING ABOUT TECHNOLOGY Crews is hardly alone in feeling a sense of accomplishment for climbing a steep technological learning curve. “At the beginning of the year was a challenge because I was used to writing homework on the board,” says Bradby, who now sings the praises of Google Classroom for tracking assignments. “I did not think I would be able to master the technology, and I have found it not as challenging as I thought it would be.” While Bartz says she initially benefited from having the majority of her lessons already digitized, she has picked up even more. She thanks colleague Betsy Reid for introducing the English department to “mote,” a web browser extension that allows her to insert voice recordings into the comments of a paper she is grading. “With my comments, they can hear my inflection, hear my excitement about something good.” In the music department, finding ways to eliminate feedback and latency from playing and teaching music over video conference has led teachers to do a lot of experimenting. All three music teachers,
Silver Linings calendar, can sign up for slots and ensure they will get help. The kids who really need it are getting the help. “They’ve really taken advantage of the technology to help those students,” says Bartz, who also serves as Trinity’s student services coordinator. “This year has been tough for many students in many different ways,” says Bartz. “For some it took longer to find a groove with virtual learning or hybrid learning. For others, not having a whole sports season was tough. Or not being able to see friends. All the things that make teenagers happy. We’ve certainly seen some struggling academic performance, and social emotional issues, and we have resources to support those students. Mallory Ballard, school counselor, is meeting with more students, because she can do it on RingCentral, which for some students can be less intimidating. She is constantly in touch with students and parents helping them manage all of this.” Markunas, Rollins and Kimberly Ryan, choral and strings teacher, have found external devices (e.g. audio interfaces, microphones and cameras) to improve audio quality and transmission. “There was a lot of creative energy put into figuring out combinations of technologies and approaches to let those at home be a part of what is happening here,” says Markunas. “One of the greatest resources we have is our tech department. They have been consistently available for questions and willing to try new things to help bridge the gap.”
Bartz also has high praise for the culture of collaboration and support that has only strengthened during the pandemic. “We’ve all felt like first year teachers again, between planning, grading and figuring out technology. There just wasn’t time for everything,” says Bartz. “We now have more of an open-door policy of sharing tips, popping into each other’s classrooms to check on each other. Emotionally, too, we just keep an eye on each other a little bit more than we normally would.”
SUPPORTING EACH OTHER
LOOKING AHEAD
Support is the name of the game for the Academic Resource Center, whose two counselors, Maureen Mauck and Sue Crews, have used a creative combination of the digital and natural world to make themselves available to the students who continue to need them. Throughout the fall, weather permitting, the duo set up a “Mobile ARC Cart” in the plaza outside of the library, allowing for some safely distanced mask free instruction. “They have a digital
When asked if she sees herself using some tools when things are back to normal, Bartz is enthusiastic “Absolutely 100%,” she says. “Some of the things I’ve figured out with technology have been amazing.” She says she is glad she was forced to reevaluate every part of her teaching and update some things that might have been overdue. “I’m almost thankful for the year, because I don’t think I would have taken the time to trash something and start from scratch.” “I’m really hoping the collaboration of our whole school among teachers will continue,” she says. I think it will. I think we all realize that we are all stronger as a faculty together rather than on our own little islands. We realize that we all have the same challenges.” Lucy Rowe agrees: ”After the pandemic, I have realized that any area in your life is subject to change, so it is important to be ready to quickly adapt to whatever situation I am put in and focus on doing the best I can with what I have instead of dwelling on the negative side of things. I feel like after this year no task or change in my life will seem too daunting because I have learned how to deal with and accept adversity.”
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Silver Linings
JOINING IN
Student clubs and organizations survive and thrive through a challenging year
Every year, the International Film Club curates an International Film Festival which highlights art from around the world to give the Trinity community an opportunity to learn more about various cultures and historical events that they may have never learned about. This event usually takes place inside of Trinity’s Academic Building in World Language classrooms. However, adjustments had to be made this time around due to the COVID-19 protocols. “In order to overcome logistical challenges, we had to reformat our original plan for the festival and convert our physical resources to digital ones,” said Rebecca Short ’21, student-leader of the club. “We made a website and a virtual brochure and also decided to host the festival over Netflix Party,” said Short. Other clubs such as the Sci-Fi Club have used the platform too. “We were really excited about having the chat feature, which would allow students to interact during the films, and that students could join the festival from anywhere and still receive the cultural enrichment that is such a key part of the Film Festival,” said Short. The International Film Festival helps bring awareness about the world around us, allowing students to share their thoughts and discuss different topics — something that makes Trinity such an inviting and warm place.
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The Film Festival is just one of many examples of how Trinity’s student-led clubs have overcome the significant logistical challenges of the pandemic to keep traditions alive while building and maintaining community. Clubs and activities have always been a strong piece of the Trinity community but they have grown to be even stronger during the pandemic. With events and gatherings limited, clubs have become the way to stay in touch and interact with students around campus outside of the classroom. With Trinity’s parallel instruction model, students have been very creative and innovative to keep everyone engaged in person as well as virtually. Many clubs have turned to platforms like Google Classroom, Zoom and Remind to communicate and collaborate. At the beginning of the year, there is usually a huge Club Fair in the Auxiliary Gym, with music, costumes and huge poster boards encouraging students to sign up for as many clubs as possible. This year, students created and shared clever videos, testimonials and Google Classroom codes each morning in virtual Morning Meeting to drum up interest. In some ways, the virtual formats have made club participation more accessible to students. “It has been impressive to see how committed club leaders are to continuing their work even with challenges like shorter meeting times and hybrid meeting formats,” said Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00, head of community engagement. “The students drove these adaptations and were quite innovative”
Silver Linings
Clubs are where student interests and passions emerge. “Something we love at Trinity is that our clubs are student-driven,” said Weiler. “If a student or group of students has a passion to share that can benefit the greater community, they have the opportunity to channel that in a club.” Clubs like Theater Club, SciFi Club, Science Society, Culinary Club, and Model UN are providing fun and creative outlets for students to pursue these passions. For example, Model UN held a FUNMUN in January with a mock conference designed to prepare students for interscholastic Model United Nations conferences. In October, the Science Society hosted a socially distanced, outdoor stargazing event in the evening on the baseball field, inviting students to “BYO-Binoculars.” Also, Shields in Service continues to look for ways to boost community spirits with projects like holiday card making, food drives, and delivering goodies for Valentine’s Day. The fact that all clubs are student driven also allows students to connect with those who have similar experiences as well as creating safe spaces to grow and support others. For the past two years, during the annual GSA chapel, club members have the space to share information with the broader student body and promote acceptance and support of the LGBTQ+ community. “With student-led organizations, members have far greater input because they are so crucial for the continuation of such groups,” said Nicole Dhindsa ’21, student leader for the Gay/Straight Alliance. “Student leadership allows clubs like the GSA to have a greater awareness of the topics that are important to Trinity students.”
Over the past year, many difficult social issues have been brought to the forefront, and Trinity students have fully embraced it and understand that change starts within the school community. “Several clubs have tackled very difficult social issues and have found ways to share different perspectives as well as education so that our entire community can be better informed,” said Weiler. “Engaging in this work takes commitment and courage, and we are incredibly grateful to those club leaders for their efforts.” For example, Chandler Grant ’21 and Chaz Sutton ’22 are the pioneers behind the creation of the Black Alliance Initiative, a club that serves as a space for open dialogue on the issues of systemic racism and the historic Black experience in America. “We receive constant support and praise from faculty and students,” said Sutton. “I’ve had so many conversations with different faculty members on the organization, the message behind it, and how grateful they are that this has finally come to Trinity.” The Trinity community benefits from having so many different students from various backgrounds, and bringing them all together through clubs and activities throughout campus is a critical piece of the school’s culture. “Everytime we make an announcement, have a meeting, or give a chapel, I get so many emails and texts from people expressing their support and gratitude,” said Grant. The club is open to any Trinity student to participate and has over 75 active members and continues to see growth and interest in their club. “Since the pandemic began, clubs have become even more important as we seek ways to safely connect, to engage in dialogue and discussion, to educate one another, to learn, to serve others in the greater Richmond community, and to have fun,” said Weiler. “The power of connection and of understanding has never been more important.”
Students are also able to share their experiences and ideas with one another and to push themselves to learn more about others and to do more for others through clubs. This happens weekly with clubs like the Black Alliance Initiative, Cultural Awareness Association, the Gay/Straight Alliance, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Feminist Club, and SEA Club.
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Silver Linings
COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE Director of College Counseling Dr. Dan Geary discusses the unique challenges and trends of the pandemic year in the college search process sterilized documents beforehand and had separate exits for students in Groups A, B or C. Again, there was no playbook, but we made it work. What about the SAT? In normal years, students take the SAT twice in junior year. This year’s seniors could not do that because all testing sites shut down in spring. When colleges found out that test centers were severely limited in capacity, across the board, approximately 90% of all colleges have gone to test-optional admissions. What has college counseling been like this year? Adaptability has been the name of the game — along with creativity and maintaining a high standard of service for students and parents. Over the summer and into the fall, we brainstormed about how we could take what was an in-person process and adapt it through videoconference online. We had no playbook. It had never been done before. So we created a new process. How have you used technology to bridge the gap? By creating a Google Classroom for all the seniors, we could post information to all seniors on a daily and weekly basis about college visits, deadlines, dates or changes to the application processes. We digitized all of the forms we needed to counsel and track all of the students through the college application process and used Google Sheets to create a database where students could post and log their own activity about transcripts, recommendations and applications. College counseling is usually a meeting intensive process. How have you held meetings? We went from hosting nearly 80 visits from college reps each year to doing everything via videoconference. We were also able to switch from in-person to virtual meetings for students and parents — along with evening programs to get the information we would normally provide in a physical meeting. We’ve held a variety of webinars (financial aid, all junior parents, senior parents, juniors, seniors) along with two panel discussions with panelists from various colleges to meet with our parents. What have been the biggest challenges this year? Because of distancing and precautions, many schools just canceled their PSAT. We were way out in front with that, and the whole junior class (all 130 students) was able to take the PSAT this year on the designated day, October 16. We did it in the gym, socially distanced. We had plastic bags for phones, we washed down all the desks and 12
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What impact does test-optional admissions have on the process? Knowing they have been impacted by COVID-19 and all the restrictions that have come about as a result of it, many colleges are saying they are shifting to a more holistic review of our students. Colleges will have to make a decision based on all the other factors: essays, letters of recommendation, rigor of courses, grades, extenuating circumstances, the track record of the high school, demographics, etc. In addition, because the SAT/ ACT has been waived as an admissions requirement, students from around the country have applied to the landmark and flagship universities in record numbers. What trends are you noticing in this year’s applications? Students are not applying to as many schools. Instead of 8-10, we’re now seeing 5-6. In a previous year, it would not be unusual for someone to apply to the midwest, west coast, deep south, northeast. Now we are seeing people are tending to stay closer to home. What trends are you hearing about nationwide? Enrollment on college campuses this fall was significantly down (as much as 20%) for incoming freshmen class. At the same time that enrollments have dipped and applications pool has changed, on college campuses, costs have actually gone up significantly in several areas. Meanwhile, revenue (from dining halls, residence halls, tuition, sporting events, conferences) on campus has gone down. We don’t know yet if that will mean college costs will go up. Any other thoughts? Nationwide, so many students are not on campus at all. By Trinity being in a hybrid model, where kids can come on campus, socially distanced, and still participate to a significant degree in a traditional classroom environment, and have a teacher check up on them — these are all advantages that they have compared to the vast majority of students in the general population.
Silver Linings
TAKING GREAT CARE A conversation with Suzanne Winefordner, RN, Trinity school nurse about managing the on-campus health of students, faculty and staff during a pandemic year Do you remember the moment last spring when you realized just how disruptive and life-changing this all was going to be? When we started virtual school and were unable to gather on campus for prom, graduation, sports, art and music events and so many more activities that would usually bring us together as Titans was when I realized it would not be the same. The moment that I realized it would be so disruptive and life-changing came to me more during the summer while I was taking in all the information to be able to help open the school in August safely. I knew with all the mitigation that was being put in place just to be in school, it would change lives forever. School would look so different to all of us and we would all need to support each other during this challenging time to be able to be together on campus. How has your day-to-day work changed from last year (or a normal year) to this year? What do you spend the bulk of your day working on now? My day-to-day work is ...all COVID, all the time... with a few times of normalcy in the clinic. Keeping up to date with VDH (Virginia Department of Health) and CDC (Centers for Disease Control) is the most time consuming part of my day due to the constant changing recommendations. Contact tracing has become a large part of my day as well. Most recently, I have added vaccination scheduling for our faculty and staff to make sure everyone that wants the vaccine has the opportunity to schedule both appointments so they are fully vaccinated. Have you seen a noticeable decrease in other illnesses (cold, flu, etc.) this year as a result of the safety practices? How has foot traffic in your office changed? I definitely have seen a decrease in other illnesses this year due to the mitigation strategies in our community and beyond. As well as the decrease in the number of students on campus each day and using caution to stay home if you are not feeling well has helped to decrease the traffic in the clinic. Who/what have been the most helpful resources (external) for guidance, information and support over these months? During the beginning, after schools closed, Virginia school nurses, private and public, gathered on weekly Zoom calls to discuss new developments over the week. Some calls were over 400 participants. It was always filled with information, guidance and lots
of support. Their support is still seen monthly or more whenever needed. After starting in person learning, VDH became the weekly Meet calls for guidance on all things COVID. I can not express how much gratitude I have for all the people at VDH that have supported our school during this journey and still continue to be there anytime day or night, weekday or weekend for us. What are the things that community members have done well — that have helped us the most — that you would like to applaud and thank them for? What are you most proud of? I am proud of all the hard work each and everyone has done to make sure we were here for our students and families. I am grateful for all the support from teachers, parents, students, and staff so we could open and remain open during this pandemic. It takes the whole Titan community to be here and it shows. What has been the most consistent/persistent challenge? The most consistent challenge has been not knowing when it will end and keeping COVID fatigue at a minimum. I would not have guessed at the beginning we would have been in this for over a year. Is there anything else you think the wider community would appreciate knowing about how the school has managed the pandemic from the perspective of health and safety? All in all, numbers have been remarkably steady. Because our community has been so consistent about mask-wearing, distancing and following contact tracing protocols, when inevitable cases have arisen, we have been able to mitigate the potential spread and limit their disruption to school.
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A RETREAT CLOSE TO HOME
Trinity’s annual Freshman Retreat looked a bit different for the Class of 2024. On September 3-4, 2020, students were greeted by counselors from Camp Horizons who facilitated team-building activities both on campus and at the nearby James River Landing Park. Smiles could be seen behind masks, as students were able to explore the outdoors, learn more about one another, and come together as a class at the beginning of the school year. 14
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A GRAND EVENT Virtual program ensures the tradition of Grandparents Day continues
Keeping families safe and healthy has been paramount this year, and the annual fall tradition of Grandparents Day was no exception. On Thursday, November 12, grandparents of all current Trinity students were invited to attend a virtual program, featuring remarks from Head of School Rob Short, reflections from three current students and a performance by Trinity’s acclaimed student Jazz Band.
“Grandparents are such a special part of the Trinity community,” said Development Associate Julia Bowling, one of the event’s hosts. “We miss their presence and support on campus for games, art shows, and musical performances. It was so great to host them for virtual Grandparents Day and we can’t wait to have them on campus again in the future!”
During a brief Q&A, grandparents were interested in hearing more about the health and safety measures taken by the school as well as how teachers and students have adapted to the challenges of a parallel instruction model. Daniel Eliasek ’21, student body vice president, thanked grandparents for attending and expressed how much he has enjoyed welcoming them to campus in year’s past. Chandler Grant ’22 spoke about her extracurricular involvement with issues surrounding mental health and social justice, expressing appreciation for Trinity’s inclusive and encouraging school environment. Ann-Sidney Ragsdale ’23 shared how Trinity’s academic, athletic and extracurricular opportunities have allowed her to grow as a leader and community member. The jazz band, under the direction of Brian Rollins, music instructor, concluded the program with a performance of the song “Hot Potato” by Bob Turner. T I TA N T R A I L
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ARTS THE
Although there was not the opportunity this year for the traditional Winter Fine Arts Festival, students in all mediums and at all levels have been busy making art in the Perkinson Arts Center this year. Here are just a few of their inspired creations.
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LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION! The thirteen-year tradition of the annual Grand Illumination and Holiday Concert was able to continue this year — virtually! Thanks to some technical wizardry from the music department, some creative lighting from the theatre-tech crew and some video editing and streaming from the communications department, Trinity hosted the live event on Youtube. After the big countdown by Head of School Rob Short, the production featured four musical performances by Trinity’s student Orchestra, Chorus, Tritones, Concert Band and Jazz Ensemble. In the interests of student safety and sound quality, all instruments and vocals were recorded separately by the students themselves and mixed using Logic Pro X and GarageBand by instructor Kimberly Ryan and Brian Rollins. The Trinity campus was illuminated with over 100,000 all-LED energy-efficient lights. Special thanks to “Father Christmas” (a.k.a. Joe Monaco) and Santa’s Elves (Brendan Behrens, Rob Chaplin ’88, Julian Morriss and Chip Shelton ’89) for their weeks of work decorating every square inch of campus with holiday cheer.
“I am so grateful to everyone that came together to keep this tradition going and to bring a little bit of holiday light to everyone during a dark time,” said Head of School Rob Short.
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SCHOLASTIC REGIONAL AWARDS FOR TRINITY ARTISTS FIVE TITANS RECOGNIZED FOR EXCEPTIONAL ART AND WRITING BY SCHOLASTIC Five Trinity artists have been recognized in the annual Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, described as “the nation’s longestrunning, most prestigious educational initiative supporting student achievement in the visual and literary arts.” “Submissions are juried by luminaries in the visual and literary arts, some of whom are past award recipients,” reads the official award description. “Panelists look for works that best exemplify originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision.” Recognizing exceptional artwork by students in grades 7–12 throughout the U.S., Scholastic provides the largest source of creativity-based scholarships for middle and high school students. This year, Henry Bruns ’22, Izzy Perago ’21, Rebecca Short ’21, and Riley Winefordner ’21 represented Trinity as a Gold Key honorees, making them eligible for national recognition by a panel of creative–industry experts. Along with the work of other gold-key winners from around the city, Gold Key artworks were on display at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond from February 6-21, 2021. Emerie Loftis ’21 earned Silver Key recognition. Trinity’s 2021 Regional Scholastic Art Award Winners: Henry Bruns ’21 — Gold Key (photography) Emerie Loftis ’21 — Silver Key (drawing) Izzy Perago ’21 — Gold Key (sculpture); Silver Key (portfolio/collection: “Your Emotions Can Kill You”) Rebecca Short ’21 — Gold Key (2) (ceramics); Silver Key (2) (ceramics); Silver Key (portfolio/collection: “Art and the Natural World”); American Vision Nomination (ceramics: “Midnight Cloud Vase”) Riley Winefordner ’21: Gold Key (film); Honorable Mention (printmaking)
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FINDING STRENGTH
THROUGH SUPPORT The Trinity Parents Association continues to spread joy all over our campus. Throughout the school year, the TPA has distributed fun and delicious packaged treats for students, faculty and staff and organized a Homecoming line dancing event that brought many “smizes” and laughs. Construction was also completed on Trinity’s outdoor amphitheater that was made possible through the TPA’s generous support. We appreciate all our Titan volunteers for their tireless efforts to bring joy this year.
This year has taught us a lot. It has taught us just how much we need each other—our family, friends, co-workers, teachers, coaches and community. Despite the distance and challenging circumstances, the Titan community has remained strong and connected through the generous and selfless acts of others. As early as October, Trinity’s board of trustees who include parents, past parents and alumni reached 100% annual giving participation. Their leadership, forward-thinking and support of all things Trinity during this historic year has provided comfort and stability. Our amazing faculty and staff continue to blow us away with their compassion, creativity and innovation. During this ever-changing year, they haven’t wavered. When asked to make an annual giving gift in support of our students this year they, again, were up to the challenge and reached 100% participation in a mere two weeks. They remain all in, every day.
Like so much this past year, our athletic programs have been modified to ensure the health and safety of our student-athletes. While this has brought much disappointment, the Titan spirit has never been more apparent. With live streaming and cutout “fans in the stands,” our athletes have been able to feel the love from their adoring and loyal fans.
Our strength comes from those that support our community through selfless acts both big and small such as these. We cannot thank our Titan community enough for helping us navigate through this challenging year, and giving us so much to be thankful for.
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Let’s do it again!
Titan alumni, are you up for the challenge?! On May 26, we will host our second annual alumni Giving Day to increase support for families who are currently in need. Last year, our alumni surpassed both goals for the day before 6 p.m. Can we do it again? YES WE CAN! This year our goal is 116 gifts (in honor of our 116 graduating seniors) and $20,000 (twice as big as our goal last year of $10,000!).
We’ve got this, Titans! For more information check out our Giving Day webpage at: www.givecampus.com/schools/TrinityEpiscopalSchoolVA
If you would like to be a Giving Day ambassador, please contact Julia Bowling at juliabowling@trinityes.org.
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STEADY PROGRESS Through student organizations, faculty professional development, alumni outreach and commitment from school leaders, Trinity dives into the important work of building a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community A group of Black alumni has continued to engage with administrators and faculty to share perspectives and ideas for Black alumni engagement. These sessions have been key in learning from alumni and strengthening connections. “They have all been very excited about coming back and sharing your experiences with younger kids,” said Sam Mickens, admission associate and head football coach, who has attended and helped facilitate these online meetings. “And the school has been very open to ideas about ways to get alumni of color involved and more connected.”
“Students thrive when they have a sense of belonging in an environment of mutual respect and understanding. This has always been a strength of Trinity. Our community is richer when everyone is “here now” and invested. Our students are empowered to take risks, try new things, learn from failure and build confidence to tackle the next steps in their lives.” — Honor the Mission: A Strategic Plan for Trinity 2018-2023 Approved by the board of trustees in 2018, these words reaffirmed the school’s ongoing commitment and aspiration that every student find a sense of belonging at Trinity. With the nation’s renewed focus on issues of systemic racism and social justice over the past year, this commitment has been continued by students, faculty, alumni, staff and friends of Trinity through the sincere work of building diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). “We really are trying to look at everything we do through inclusion — coming back to the strategic plan and building a sense of belonging.” said Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00, head of community engagement, who has been coordinating Trinity’s DEI initiatives this school year. “This year has provided renewed clarity and focus for things that have always been foundational for Trinity.” Trinity’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, comprised of 19 faculty and staff who have met regularly throughout the year, is committed to examining all aspects of the school through the lens of DEI. Subcommittee work includes increasing diversity among faculty and staff as well as collecting qualitative data through personal interviews and conversations to enable the administration and faculty to better understand the experience for those in varied socioeconomic backgrounds, people of color, and other traditionally underrepresented groups.
Another significant theme of 2020-21 has been to develop and formalize opportunities for both students and faculty to engage in conversations with one another to share perspectives, tell their stories, and most importantly learn about someone else, someone different from themselves. Inspired by the “One Small Step” listening project created by the founder of NPR StoryCorps project, Chapels, Morning Meetings, club meetings and more have been focused on people connecting and sharing stories. “That’s been a major theme for us this year,” said Weiler. “Because we feel like this work is best done at Trinity through telling stories and listening to and learning from other people’s stories, finding common humanity and understanding through different perspectives.” New to campus this year, the Black Alliance Initiative has very quickly created meaningful platforms for students and faculty to listen, learn and engage. Meetings have featured whole group and small group discussions around a range of topics. In February, the students from the BAI Executive Board started a series of lunchtime conversations with teachers, beginning with the social studies department. Among the goals are to share what it is like to be a Black student in a history class, and to better understand what it is like for a teacher to approach a topic like slavery when there might only be one Black student in the class. “The courage of these students in initiating conversation with their teachers around incredibly difficult topics is remarkable,” said Weiler. “They are eager to continue discussions with other faculty and staff.” In addition to providing targeted facilitation with both the faculty and the board of trustees, Trinity’s relationship with the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC) has continued with thematic work with the student body at large and its leaders. In early October, Jonathan Zur led an all-school virtual assembly on
“This is essential work that must occur every day and every year, on our campus and beyond to be successful and enduring.” — Rob Short 22
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the difference between equality and equity. Returning for a second virtual assembly in January, Zur and his VCIC colleague Charm Bullard shared anecdotes to illustrate the differences between being a bystander (someone who witnesses an act of bullying or harassment and says nothing), an upstander (someone who takes some kind of action in the moment to stop it, and an ally (someone who actively supports these efforts over time). Thanking Zur for his facilitation and leadership, Head of School Rob Short echoed the importance of deeper learning. “Watching and listening is learning at one level, but there is a deeper kind of learning that occurs when you think, reflect and put things in your own words,” said Short, “and there’s a third level when you’re intentional in what you do.” After each session, students reflected through a series of questions that asked them to think about their own actions in building and supporting inclusivity at Trinity. Benefitting from additional support and training from VCIC were nearly 30 student leaders from student government, class office and clubs, as well as the Honor Committee, Student Conduct Committee, the Feminist Club, the Black Alliance Initiative, and the Gay-Straight Alliance. Student leaders learned how to facilitate difficult conversations on their own, establishing norms for communicating, and practicing principles, like using “I statements” and responding to differing perspectives “with wonder rather than judgement.” “Saying ‘I wonder why you feel that way’ instead of ‘I think you’re a terrible person’ can be the difference between starting a conversation or starting an argument,” said one facilitator. School administrators will continue to partner with VCIC to create a roadmap for the future for Trinity specific to diversity, equity, and inclusion. This will build off of work begun in the latest strategic plan, particularly the initiative of creating a sense of belonging and will include but is not limited to curriculum, professional development, recruitment and retention, school climate and experience and alumni engagement. “I’m so grateful for the daily efforts of our students, faculty, and staff leadership, each doing their part to establish a sense of belonging in all we do,” said Head of School Rob Short. “This is essential work that must occur every day and every year, on our campus and beyond to be successful and enduring.”
REACHING OUT Trinity students bring personal experiences, commitment to dialogue, to national and regional diversity leadership conferences Six Trinity students attended the National Association of Independent School’s (NAIS) Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) in early December, held virtually for the first time this year. SDLC focuses on self-reflecting, forming allies, and building community. Led by a diverse team of trained adult and peer facilitators, participating students develop cross-cultural communication skills, design effective strategies for social justice practice through dialogue and the arts, and learn the foundations of allyship and networking principles. “Everyone there was open to hearing other people’s stories and the amount of support was incredible,” said Chaz Sutton ’22, one of the Trinity student participants. “It made everyone happy and it felt so good. The support in the chat was so strong.” Cameron Walker ’24 and Naya Shams ’24 were among the younger students to attend the conference, yet both felt empowered and inspired by their respective experiences. All of the participants concluded with ideas and momentum for continuing to create change and space at Trinity. Also in early December, the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC) hosted a Diversity Dialogue Day (DDD), featured speakers and then breakout groups to discuss issues and ideas around inclusion in high schools. Trinity’s attendees were Andy Mutoti ’22, Camryn Sutton ’22, DJ Covington ’22, and Aaliyana Carr ’23. Trinity also had two faculty members volunteering as facilitators. Steve Dowell and Aparna Harger volunteered as group facilitators and encouraged conversation from adolescents in their various groups. Both are also members of Trinity’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. The day ended with a session specific to Trinity, in which Sutton, Mutoti, Covington, and Carr met with school administrators to discuss ideas for increasing awareness and inclusivity on campus — specifically bringing fresh ideas for the school’s new-student orientation activities. T I TA N T R A I L 23
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ATHLETICS
Planning for the fall athletic season, administrators and athletic officials from the League of Independent Schools (LIS) and the Virginia Prep League (VPL) divided sports into three risk categories: low, medium and high. The sports categorized as “low-risk” (tennis and cross country) were able to schedule interscholastic competition in the fall, and the field hockey team competed in four modified (7v7) contests against Richmond area independent schools. In late September, the LIS and VPL voted to attempt a condensed fall season in March, to give the other medium and high-risk teams more opportunities to compete. As of this issue’s printing, boys soccer was scheduled to participate in approximately six additional games in March versus local opponents with like-minded mitigation strategies and protocols (e.g. masks). Varsity football began practicing again in late February for a two-game season (St. Christopher’s and Benedictine) set to end on March 27. In the winter, all four winter programs held consistent daily practices and participated in some form of interscholastic competition. “Several of our winter coaches have commented on their ‘memorable’ seasons, where bonds were strengthened, team cultures were maintained, and collective hurdles made us grateful for one another’s face to face support,” said Anna Prillaman, director of athletics. “Titan coaches report the unique experiences they’ve shared within their programs have been challenging yet rewarding, frustrating yet empowering, and mentally trying yet physically energizing. Although many of us had hard days of digesting news of league and state meets going virtual, or not being able to participate in a full slate of regular season and tournament games, it has been incredible to see our community come together and remind one another of all we do have.” 24
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Athletics were implemented. We reshaped our goals to be about personal improvement and team support, and we did an excellent job on both this season. We cherished every practice and the chance to be together, outside, enjoying running. We also had many personal records (PRs) set throughout the season, especially at Pole Green Park. It was one we’ll always remember for the challenges and the unexpected moments of joy and strength of our family.
VOLLEYBALL FOOTBALL HEAD COACH: Sam Mickens (8th season) CAPTAINS: Daniel Eliasek ’21, Andrew Duhart ’21, Walker Ferguson ’21, Shawn Riley ’21 COACH’S REMARKS: The 2020 football team was primed for a breakout season following the first Division 1 playoff appearance a season ago. Led by seniors AJ Anderson, Daniel Eliasek, Walker Ferguson, Shawn Riley, and Andrew Duhart the football team held socially distant, competitive practices during October, culminating with an exciting 7v7 win over rival St. Christopher’s School. Throughout the offseason, the team remained focused on improving team chemistry and setting goals for the upcoming season. And despite not having a formal fall season, the football program continued to take positive strides forward.
HEAD COACH: Steve VanHuss (3rd season) CAPTAINS: Tiffani Bartee ’21, Ella Browder Jones ’21, Sydney Grogan ’21 COACH’S REMARKS: Even though the volleyball season this fall was far from normal, the players and coaches were pleased to have an opportunity to play the sport we love. With 38 players trying out, we ended up with three teams: two JV teams and one varsity team. We started the season in August playing barefooted, outdoors on the softball fields. That was quite a change since we normally play in the gym, but we made the best of it! We had the opportunity to play a very limited scrimmage type season, but again, we were thrilled to be on the court. Towards the end of the season, we were able to move indoors safely and ended the season with a memorable Senior Night intrasquad scrimmage in the main Estes gym. Parents were allowed to attend for the first time this season. Thanks to all of the players and coaches for their positive attitudes throughout this season and especially our seniors: Ella Browder Jones, Tiffani Bartee, Caitlin Wilson and Sydney Grogan.
GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY HEAD COACH: Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00 (15th season) CAPTAINS: Ashley Dobzyniak ’21, Kiera Fisher ’21, Ellie Madigan ’21 COACH’S REMARKS: The 2020-2021 season was one of agility and gratitude. There was virtually no certainty or sense of normalcy during the season, yet the girls adjusted and rose to the occasion no matter what changes
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BOYS CROSS COUNTRY HEAD COACH: Marcus Jones ’00 (17th season) CAPTAINS: Nathan Sauls ’21, Brendan Kelley ’21, Nolan Svoboda ’21 W/L RECORD: We did have a final meet where we compared times to Benedictine and “won”. BENCHMARKS/RECORDS: Despite a lot of uncertainty with COVID and a very unique season we had several runners who had breakout seasons. Freshman Brady Scioscia recorded the fastest 5K time on the team running 17:20 at Pole Green Park. Nathan Sauls had an outstanding year, finishing 1st for the team in three out of five races, running 17:34 for 5K. Jackson Hart also showed significant improvement throughout the fall and was an important varsity contributor. COACH’S REMARKS: It was unlike any other season I’ve ever coached. We never raced directly against another team, sometimes we staged individual time trials, and on a couple of occasions we were able to race against ourselves. With so many things being lost or canceled due to COVID I was happy to have any aspect of competition. We just tried to focus on the things we could control: our attitude and effort. I was really proud of the guys for not lamenting about what was lost because of COVID but for the gratitude they expressed for what we had. They seemed to enjoy and make the most of the time we had together. In the two meets we hosted at Pole Green Park, we were able to set them up so they looked like major invitationals we would have competed in during a normal year and we contracted with a timing company to make it look official. It felt like a big competition, even though it was only the 30 Trinity boys and girls, and the team competed with the intensity of a big race even though it was largely a time trial. Our goal was to maintain a positive attitude, train as hard as possible, and try to have each runner improve on their 5K time. I thought it was a very successful season.
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FIELD HOCKEY HEAD COACH: Margie Vaughan Snead ’85 (21st season) CAPTAINS: Cate Monaco ’21, Annie Nash ’21, Emily Field ’21, Genevieve Johnson ’21 W/L RECORD: 4-0 (not traditional games, 7v7) COACH’S REMARKS: Although the team was hoping to be able to play full games with full lineups, we were still excited to be able to play as a team in the modified games. It was certainly nice for the seniors to be able to wear their uniforms in competition. We hosted a Green vs Blue game and were able to have parents on campus. It was a much needed community event that brought the field hockey families together. We had to overcome the challenge of the uncertainty that hung over half of the season. Staying focused and working hard for whatever the future held was critical and the girls did a great job of that. They worked hard and motivated each other. It was nice to be able to play some modified games at the end as a reward for their commitment and hard work. We are looking forward to celebrating all of our seniors later this spring in a senior ceremony. We will be losing 11 seniors, all of whom have been impactful on the program. We will bring back a young, but highly motivated group for the fall 2021 season.
Athletics
GIRLS TENNIS HEAD COACH: Alicia Raymond (2nd season) CAPTAINS: Lucy Crichton ’21, Kate Hurlbert ’21, Clare Murphy ’21, Emma Smith ’21, Emelia Woolman ’21 W/L RECORD: 4 Wins / 6 Losses BENCHMARKS/RECORDS: Notable matches were #2 Lucy Rowe ’23 earning our only win (107) over St. Catherine’s; Senior Emelia Woolman continued to improve as the season went on, earning our only win against STAB (8-6) and an exhibition win against St. Catherine’s (9-8), and Senior Lucy Crichton held the record for longest match of the season, in a threehour tie-breaker against Veritas, ultimately winning 11-10 (7-5). COACH’S REMARKS: This season perhaps will be a season that all other seasons are compared to. Once screenings were handled and COVID protocol was dictated, the team stepped onto the court, and we lived in a familiar world. Where we were one team, we were Titans, we were there to succeed athletically, personally and emotionally. The team’s goal this season was to get outside, be active, enjoy the sport of tennis, and focus on individual improvements when we could. We focused on drills, footwork, athleticism, match play when we could, with DJ Woolman blasting music, and the occasional visit from Nike (coach’s dog) as she ran around as the best ball dog for the girls. Every player on the team was dedicated to practices and giving their all on the court. As a team we played 10 Matches, at five different locations, playing 638 games, earning 11 singles wins, with every senior having a winning match this season; they should all be proud of what they accomplished. Graduating five seniors is a tough loss, but we have lots of young talent already on the team with more interest coming into Trinity.
BOYS SOCCER HEAD COACH: Brian Phillips (25th season) CAPTAINS: Rob Parlow ’21, Colin Madigan ’21 BENCHMARKS/RECORDS: The major milestone was being scrimmage with three schools: St. Christopher’s, Collegiate and Woodberry Forest. COACH’S REMARKS: The goal this season was to make the best of a challenging situation. To learn to be positive and flexible in challenging and unpredictable circumstances and to develop individual soccer skills as well. The theme of the season was adaptability. We were glad to be able to have some scrimmages with other schools and especially for all the players to participate in an intrasquad scrimmage in November that parents could attend. We have a lot to be proud of: the coaches and players brought great attitudes and work ethic to each training session, and there was a wonderful camaraderie and a “make the most of the opportunity” ethos. I am incredibly thankful for all those players, coaches, athletic staff and parents who worked to support the team throughout the fall.
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WINTER TRACK & FIELD HEAD COACH: Kendrick Richardson (2nd season) CAPTAINS: Kate Hurlbert ’21, Tyler Jenkins ’22, Millie Speck ’22, Nathan Sauls ’21, Kayla Quigley ’22 W/L RECORD: 15 top-10 finishes, seven top-5 finishes and one 1st-place finish INDIVIDUAL ACCOLADES: Kate Hurlbert ’21 state champion in the shot put.
GIRLS BASKETBALL HEAD COACH: Adam Lonon (4th season) CAPTAINS: Sydney Brearly ’21, Hayley Blair ’21, Tiffani Bartee ’21 W/L RECORD: 1-0 (Only game vs. Collegiate at home for Senior Night 68-42) BENCHMARKS/RECORDS: Senior Night for our only game was a great accomplishment. Seven out of nine players scored and our seniors ended with 16 points from Tiffani Bartee, 15 points from Hayley Blair, and 4 points from Sydney Brearly. COACH’S REMARKS: With the restrictions due to COVID-19, we lost a few returning players, but it was memorable that most of our players faced the adversity and uncertainty of the season and performed well in our only game. The team’s ultimate goal was to stay prepared in case we had the opportunity to compete. The focus in practice was to get better with skills and drills while social distancing, but also to have FUN! Next season, we look to rebuild after saying goodbye to five seniors. Returning players Mia Woolfolk, Addison Winn, and Delaney Snyder, Olivia Wright and Sophie Dolan bring hope for a returning team that can make noise.
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COACH’S REMARKS: Due to COVID, staying healthy was our main goal. With that in mind the athletes still went out and had an amazing year. Our mantra was “Mind over matter. If you don’t mind, then it doesn’t matter. Having so many athletes finish at the top of their events was unbelievable. With the amazing support of the athletic department and the parents, what may have seemed impossible turned out to be the biggest moments to shine. With such great support, the future of this program is glowing.
Athletics
BOYS BASKETBALL HEAD COACH: Rick Hamlin ’96 (10th season) CAPTAINS: Erik Prosise ’21, Andrew Duhart ’21 COACH’S REMARKS: This season was like nothing we’d ever experienced. We’ve been fortunate to have won a lot of championships in recent years, but I am as proud of the 2020-21 team as I have ever been of any team. These young men came to the gym every day ready to work hard despite having no chance to compete for a title due to COVID. The team’s goal was to have fun, make friends, improve skills, and improve our physical and mental health in this most unusual of seasons. Our mantra this year was to be flexible. We didn’t know when or if we’d play games. Most of the season was spent on socially distant drills, and yet the players were incredibly flexible and resilient. We ultimately played three games (a home-and-home series with St. Christopher’s and at Collegiate for their Senior Day). Our senior night intrasquad scrimmage when we got to play in front of the players’ families was a really special evening that a lot of people in the athletic department worked hard to make happen so that our seniors could get the recognition they deserved. We will really miss our six seniors from this year’s team: Erik Prosise, Andrew Duhart, Jack Jenkins, J.D. Danny, Brady Tylka, and Turner Showalter. The future is bright with five juniors and five sophomores set to return and hopefully get to have a more “normal” season in 2021-22.
SWIM & DIVE HEAD COACH: Tim Johnson (3rd season) CAPTAINS: Charlie Boykin ’21; William Lyons ’21; Ethan Rosen ’21; Kaila Hewitt ’21; Hallie Perry ’21 W/L RECORD: Girls and Boys, 7-0 COACH’S REMARKS: This was a unique season, so really our goal was to take it one day at a time and have fun. We didn’t know if COVID would shut us down, so we told kids to enjoy every moment and every swim because we weren’t guaranteed the next practice or the next meet. If we had one mantra, it was probably “Adapt and Survive.” The COVID protocols were a bit onerous at times, but we knew if we followed them, it kept the season alive. There was some definite disappointment that we couldn’t have a normal season and didn’t really get to have a postseason. However, I think we all appreciated the time we did get to have together because for a lot of us, swimming provided the first real escape from what’s been going on in the world. I think we’re all pretty sad we couldn’t provide a normal season for our seniors, but we’re proud of what we were able to do. We hope that next year brings about a return to normalcy.
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Athletics
BRIDGING THE GAP
Sideline support goes virtual, as livestreaming allows families and friends of Titan Nation to cheer from a distance — By Alicia Raymond, Assistant Athletic Director
After a long week of classes and practices, nothing beats the crowd on a fall afternoon when a Titan touchdown is scored; kids run around while students, teachers, and alumni alike, join together for the spirit and camaraderie in Aycock Stadium. Nothing rivals the cheers from Dale Travis Court when a basket is scored, as the Titan mascot slides down the floor into the student section with minutes left on the clock. Nothing is louder than the beaded spirit stick being pumped in the air as the AquaTitans scream during a 50-freestyle split-second race to the finish. Titan crowds, cheers and applause haven’t stopped; but are now muted behind screens as fans must watch from home. For the 2020-21 school year and in response to COVID-19, both the VPL and LIS leagues agreed to a “no spectator” rule for all contests to ensure the health and safety of the community. In response, staff members in the athletics and technology departments have worked to bridge the gap between an “in person” and “virtual” experience by streaming all home contests on Youtube. A virtual experience for at home spectators, however, wasn’t a new idea. Athletic Director Anna Prillaman has envisioned for several years that all home contests might one day be livestreamed. Whether for at-home viewing, for coach analytics, or for highlight reels for potential college applications, streaming of high school athletics is a nationwide trend. “While we would always prefer to have our stands full of cheering Titans from every corner of our community,” says Prillaman, “we also understand providing another avenue for viewership broadens our community support near and far.” 30
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What began as a simple laptop camera angled at the court has evolved with the aid of streaming technologies like Wirecast and LiveU Solo to enable more sophisticated production. Thanks to the help of Kyle van de Kamp ’12 and the entire tech department, a once rudimentary “Titan ESPN” has become more of a reality. Adam Lonon, Trinity girls head basketball coach and athletic site manager, also stepped in to assist van de Kamp. “After seeing the success from our live-streamed Wirecast contests, I’ve been excited to help bring those capabilities to our other programs,” says Lonon. “Community plays such a key role in Trinity’s culture, and it is comforting that our parents, although socially distant, can still witness first goals or first aces.” As the fall 2020 season quickly approached, only “low-risk” sports were initially allowed to have modified contests, opening the door for cross-country and singles tennis. Cameras were mounted on stationary tripods at Southampton Recreation Association’s (SRA) tennis courts and the Titans’ first home contest of fall 2020 was streamed live to the crowds at home on October 2. That match had 223 views. Since that first match, Trinity has been able to stream every home varsity fall contest and as well as several JV contests, with over 2,700 views for our Titan Nation at home. Ultimately, in order to create opportunities for the entire student body, Prillaman would like to provide avenues for Trinity students who have an interest in sports broadcasting and video production. “It’s always been a goal of our program to give any student the opportunity to be involved with athletics, even if they are not on a team” she says. “This could be it.” Trinity looks forward to building a student-run operation, one that runs the production of livestreaming athletic contests from start to finish. A channel for those times when voluntarily cheering at home is a necessity, and eventually for those nights when the sideline cheers are louder than ever once more.
Athletics
SURE SIGNS
Small but enthusiastic groups of parents, family and coaches and students gathered in the Estes Athletic Center on two occasions to celebrate fourteen Trinity seniors officially committing to competing in intercollegiate athletics next year. These dates have become a customary time for seniors to sign their national letters of intent, and Trinity seniors joined student-athletes nationwide for these “National Signing Day” ceremonies. In November, the group, which included an unprecedented eight field hockey players, were seated apart from one another at a dais, and all participants and guests wore masks while indoors.”We are overwhelmingly thrilled to have this day in person in the gym,” said Athletic Director Anna Prillaman, recalling the school’s previous signing day in April, conducted entirely online. Coaches shared words of praise, appreciation and anticipation of more great things to come for the group of Trinity student leaders and their extended families who have committed so much time toward the pursuit of excellence both on and off the playing field. FALL 2020 NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT SIGNEES • Alyssa Chapman ’21 (basketball) — Radford University • Emily Field ’21 (field hockey) — University of Virginia • Genevieve Johnson ’21 (field hockey) University of Delaware • Emerie Loftis ’21 (field hockey) — University of Delaware • John Lucas ’21 (baseball) — Virginia Commonwealth University • Alison McCarey ’21 (field hockey) — Franklin & Marshall College • Cate Monaco ’21 (field hockey) — Lehigh University • Annie Nash ’21 (field hockey) — University of Richmond • Shawn Riley ’21 (football) — Columbia University • Riley Winefordner ’21 (field hockey) — University of Lynchburg • Mackenzie Wunderlich ’21 (field hockey) — Randolph-Macon College
In February, Sam Mickens, head football coach, shared his appreciation and excitement for a strong group of young men. Finishing a high school career without having a full football season due to a pandemic definitely wasn’t a part of the plan but their will, determination and understanding allowed them to be in this spot today. “Given everything that has happened, they are three of the toughest players that I’ve ever coached,” said Mickens. “They truly model excellence.” WINTER 2021 NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT SIGNEES • Andrew Duhart ’21 (football) — United States Naval Academy • Max Cullen ’21 (football) — Virginia Military Institute • Walker Ferguson ’21 (football) — Wake Forest University T I TA N T R A I L 3 1
CLASS
NOTES
HOMECOMING 2021 Last fall, we were unable to have the reunion classes of ’0s and ’5s back to campus for Homecoming. That doesn’t mean that the celebration won’t still happen! We will have double the fun this fall and celebrate the Classes of ’0s and ’5s AND ’1s and ’6s. A date for the Oyster Roast and Alumni Reunions has not yet been determined, but we are ready and excited to celebrate this fall. If you’d like to serve as a Class Chair for your reunion to help gather your classmates together, contact alumni relations associate Julia Bowling at juliabowling@trintiyes.org.
Class of 1981
Kent Pankey ’81 is the senior planner for the Virginia court system. Since 2012, he has also been a volunteer assistant track coach at Trinity. In 2020, he was elected to the board of directors of the National Association for Court Management (NACM), the largest organization of court management professionals in the world with members from all levels and types of courts. In 2019, Kent was the recipient of the association’s Perkins Award, presented annually to an individual who consistently goes above and beyond to make behind-the-scenes contributions to the field of court administration or his court. Kent’s older son, Joe Pankey ’13, is working among Trinity’s IT staff during the 2020-21 school year.
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Shing Yue Tang ’96 is the regional supply chain planner for Gate Gourmet, Inc. in Maryland.
Class of 1998
Drew Garrison ’98 and his wife, Ashley, came to town from Dallas, TX over the summer and joined Christian Nolde ’98 and his wife, Lindsay, at Kindred Spirit Brewery. They were able to catch up on the last 20 years!
Class of 2001
Caroline Cobb Amey ’01 writes: “I celebrated a promotion from assistant to associate professor with tenure in the department of psychology at VCU this summer and welcomed a baby girl to our family in the fall. Louise Elizabeth Amey joined big sister Samantha on October 11, 2020. We’ve got full hearts over here in Church Hill RVA!”
PANKEY
GARRISON
Chris Markunas ’01 and his band Cheap Comfort live streamed a virtual concert as a fundraiser for a cancer research organization called C-TREC on September 23, 2020. Amy Henderson, mother of Graham Henderson-Best ’22, is a band member and Kyle van de Kamp ’12 helped with the live streaming process. In Vogue’s September version of 73 Questions, Joe Sabia interviewed singer and entertainer Lizzo. During the video recorded interview on September 24, the artist began making tea and pouring it into ceramic mugs made by Molly Sanyour ’01! The video has reached over 1 million views on YouTube. In October, a Lizzo decal mug created by Sanyour was featured on David Letterman’s segment “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.”
Class of 2005
Rebecca Olander Christian ’05 and husband Will welcomed their second son, Thomas, on October 5, 2020. Big brother James was
CHRISTIAN
WILLIAMS
very excited to show off his baby brother for Jada Zajur Parrish ’08 of J & D Photo for family portraits!
Class of 2006
Jake Williams ’06 and wife Brittney welcomed their first child Asher Wesley on October 6, 2020. He weighed 7 lbs, 9 oz.
Class of 2007
Chris Snowden ’07 writes: “My residential design firm Chris Snowden Design focuses on modern residential design. On February 10, 2021, I was part of a group of young modern architects. It discussed the future of modern design and general information regarding our own design firms.” Check out some of his projects around the city of Richmond at www.christiansnowdendesign.com or @christiansnowdendesign on Instagram.
BUILDING A BETTER LANDSCAPE Nick Wittkofski ’12 received the Virginia American Society of Landscape Architects Chapter ‘Scholarship for Excellence in the Study of Landscape Architecture’ Award in summer of 2020. This award recognizes the student’s academic achievement and service to the school community. Nick graduated from the UVA School of Architecture Landscape Architecture master’s program in May 2020. [photo: Quenching the Settlement; Yamuna River Project, Rajasthan Cities: Jaipur © Nicholas Wittkofski]
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class Notes
MESSINGER
MASSEY
Class of 2008
Will Massey ’08 has been working at Johnston-Willis Hospital as an Emergency Medicine Doctor during the pandemic. He writes, “It has been a wild ride, but I am enjoying working here in Richmond and doing what I can to help!”
WITT
MOUNTCASTLE
PERSEVERANCE THROUGH PAIN
Class of 2009
Katie Markunas Messinger ’09 writes, “On August 8, 2020, I married my love Thomas Messinger. Due to COVID it was a small private ceremony, with our parents, and my older brother Chris Markunas ’01. My younger brother Nick Markunas ’11 was able to attend via Zoom thanks to Wells Bridgforth ’12!” Alise Witt ’09 engaged Doug Fraser on June 19, 2020! The couple is planning a September 2021 wedding.
Class of 2011
Nick Markunas ’11 writes, “My wife Emily and I welcomed our first child, Maisie, in June!”
Class of 2012
Rachel Cisek Filippelli ’12 married Daniel Filippelli on September 19, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia at Hope Church. Trinity photography teachers Allison Minehart and Jenny McQueen were the photographers of the special day. Taylor McClain ’12 and Sage Parker ’12 were bridesmaids and MckenZie Walker ’12, Laura Hamlin Weiler ’00, Sam Parker ’16 and Gabe Parker ’19 were in attendance for the special day.
In an article written by Harry Minium, Jason Wade ’18 was highlighted for his work ethic and determination despite his second season ending injury while being a part of the men’s basketball team at Old Dominion University. Wade shared that he fell into a deep depression after his second injury. “I think when you get as low as where I got, once you hit that point, there’s no other option than to pray and try to find peace within yourself and with God,” said Wade. Despite being unable to play, Wade was named as a team captain because of his strong leadership and positive attitude. ODU headcoach Jeff Jones said, “Jason is a poster child for what every athlete should be. He gives everything to the team, he competes so hard, is a very good student and a great teammate.” Find the full story on the “Alumni In The News” page at:
trinityes.org/AlumniNews FILIPPELLI
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[photo by Bruce Butler]
class Notes
HATFIELD
DODSON
Sydney Baril Mountcastle ’12 married Bailey Mountcastle on October 24, 2020 at the Country Club of Virginia, Westhampton in Richmond, Virginia. Claire Watkins ’12 served as a bridesmaid and Peyton Wood ’12 was able to join in on the celebration, also!
Class of 2013
Margaret Dodson ’13 and Kelsey Cordrey were engaged in December 2020 at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Virginia.
Class of 2014
Elizabeth Bell Hatfield ’14 writes: “On August 29, I married Ford Hatfield in a small ceremony with just immediate family, after our summer wedding was cancelled due to COVID. I also started a new job teaching middle school math at the Collegiate School, but I am still a Titan at heart!” Emily Dodson Sadler ’14 married Miles Sadler on October 10, 2020 at the Virginia Cliffe Inn in Glen Allen, Virginia. Sisters Margaret Dodson ’13 and Catherine Dodson ’24 served as bridesmaids.
Class of 2015
Weston Hannon Bogosh ’15 writes: “I am a graduate of Union College in upstate, NY with a BA in economics. Currently, I work at C&F Mortgage Corp in Richmond as a mortgage loan originator, and happy to be back in Richmond!”
Class of 2016
Blake Bowen ’16 proposed to Aliyah Adams in December 2020 in Las Vegas surrounded by family and friends.
ALUMNI BOOK CLUB WITH FRANCIS DECKER English teacher Francis Decker led the second virtual Alumni Book Club on January 14. Attendees joined the discussion of Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin from across the United States. Alumni also gathered together virtually on March 18 to discuss Amsterdam by Ian McEwan. Be sure to join the next Book Club meeting on May 6 at 6 p.m. Information regarding the chosen book can be found on the Alumni webpage.
SADLER
BOWEN T I TA N T R A I L
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HUPP
TARKINGTON
Thomas Hupp ’16 writes: “On December 20, 2020 I asked Kiley Cropped to marry me in her hometown, Greeley, Colorado. It was a very exciting day that I had been secretly planning for over a month with her parents and sister. We hope to get married towards the end of 2021 and start our lives together in Richmond, Virginia.” Amanda Tarkington ’16 writes: “My boyfriend, Joseph, and I got engaged at my family’s river house at sunrise on November 8, 2020. We are planning a wedding for June 2022.”
Class of 2018
SVOBODA
MENDIETA-WATERS
Jaika Mendieta-Waters ’18 and Jason Wade ’18 got engaged in February 2021.
Class of 2020
Henry Coleman III ’20 was named in the 2020 Virginia Business 100 People to Meet list within the “Angels” category. The criteria for this category states, “Whether saving lives, speaking truth to power or using their wealth for the greater good, these Virginians make the commonwealth a better place through their passion, dedication and sacrifice.”
Sophie Svoboda ’18 received her Virginia Military Institute class ring in the fall of 2020. She is currently a junior at VMI and a member of the women’s swim team.
AT HOME CELEBRATIONS The Trinity community loves coming together each year for the annual Oyster Roast. This year, the celebration continued from home. The Boathouse offered a special discount for what would have been Homecoming weekend. The at-home celebrations continued for Trinity alumni during the annual Holiday Happy Hour. Last year, Trinity alumni gathered at Virago Spirits and we were fortunate to continue the Virago holiday cheer this year with a special discount code. While the at-home celebrations were special, we can’t wait to be able to gather in person again soon. We miss you, Titans!
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If there is one thing that’s for sure, the Titan community loves to stay connected with one another. The Titan Connections online career directory is one way to do so! No matter the industry you’re in, we’d love to feature you. Fill out your career networking information on the Alumni page of the website trinityes.org/alumni
or send it to alumni relations associate Julia Bowling at juliabowling@trinityes.org. Let the connecting begin!
class Notes
HUG IN A CUP
College-age alumni were welcomed back to campus on December 10 drive-through style! Visitors were met in the Estes Center loop by faculty and staff with warm hot chocolate and sweet treats in hand. T I TA N T R A I L
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“WE ALL THRIVE” Clay Broga ’03 is a co-founder of Freethink and the chief marketing officer at Stand Together, a foundation that “empowers people dedicated to helping others improve their lives.” Broga shared, “a deep belief in people motivates all of our work.” Stand Together released a project produced by Broga in December that showcased just how inspiring and transformative an individual can be by helping others find and develop their gifts. Former Trinity teacher and current parent Dr. Katie Best was surprised by Broga and many of her former students sharing just how much she means to them because she believed in them. The video project has reached over 1.6 million views and was featured on the daytime health TV show “Dr. Oz” in January. “While this video spotlighted Katie, it really was in honor of all of the great teachers I had at Trinity who believed in me” said Broga. He shared that there were many foundational experiences for him while being a Trinity student because of the flexibility that students have when it comes to taking classes in different disciplines. “I love how that’s in Trinity’s DNA all the way down to its motto. We each need our own individualized path,” said Broga. “When that happens, we all thrive.” “There’s nothing special about me. Trinity just helped me discover my path,” said Broga. “I can’t tell you how fortunate I feel to have had the opportunity to receive an education like that. In fact, it’s almost unbelievable.”
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In Sympathy The Trinity community offers its condolences to the families of the following people who have recently passed away. We apologize for any unintentional omissions. As of February 16, 2021 Maria Sheehan, grandmother of Alexander Soulas ’10, Matt Crider ’12, Chris Crider ’14, Gabe Erickson ’14, and Nate Erickson ’17, died on September 11, 2020. Lee Bassett, father of Todd Bassett ’82, Jeff Bassett ’85, Julie Bassett Thompson ’89 and grandfather of Maddie Bassett ’14, died on October 5, 2020. Marie Selfe, mother of Danny Baker ’79 and Steve Baker ’83, died on October 13, 2020. The Reverend Raymond Nelson, Trinity’s second head of school, died on November 4, 2020. Chase Shugart ’14, brother of Cole Shugart ’16, died on December 11, 2020. John Board, father of Susan Board ’80, died on December 25, 2020. Sally Dawson, mother of Amy Dawson Zoller ’82 and Beth Dawson McAlhany ’85, died on January 8, 2021. Former Trinity faculty member Vikki Curtis, mother of Matt Curtis ’03 and Jeffrey Curtis ’06, died on January 15, 2021. Jean Hanson, mother of Karen Love Pinkerton ’75, died on January 19, 2021. Rhonda Bartholomew, mother of Mitch Bartholomew ’05, died on January 23, 2021. Stephen Boehling ’88, father of Millie Boehling ’17, died on February 2, 2021.
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The Rev. Raymond A. Nelson 1932 — 2020 The Rev. Raymond A. Nelson, Trinity Episcopal School’s second Head of School, died peacefully at home on November 4, 2020 at the age of 88 in the presence of his wife, Mimi Van Swall Nelson. Rev. Nelson served Trinity for four years, from 1986 to 1990, bringing with him substantial experience as a head of school for 10 other independent schools across the country. Born in Brooklyn, NY, Nelson attended Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, NY and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College and Harvard Divinity School. For 38 years, Nelson served as a head of school for 11 different independent schools in the US (including Salisbury School in Connecticut and Hebron Academy in Maine) and four years as principal of the International School of Geneva, Switzerland, followed by one year at the TASIS Cyprus School in Nicosia, Cyprus. An Episcopal priest for 52 years, he served diocese in a number of congregations across the U.S. and Europe, serving most recently as rector of St. Barnabas Church in Richmond from 2014 to 2020. His obituary in the Richmond Times-Dispatch stated: “Ray accomplished all of this with lightheartedness, kindness and a distinctive caring for staff, faculty, parents, students, clergy, parishioners and family. He gave speeches and sermons extemporaneously and had a remarkable singing voice as well as a penchant for languages and imitating foreign speakers or even ones from Brooklyn or New Jersey. These gifts were who he was. The companionship of others meant the most to him.” In a letter to the Trinity community last year, Head of School Rob Short wrote: “In an extensive professional career as an educational leader all over America and overseas, he said Trinity was a favorite school and he always felt at home in Virginia. On a personal level, I am particularly grateful that he gave me my very first teaching job, right here at Trinity, in 1989. I remember Ray as a person who would share amazing quotes, who spoke multiple languages, loved thinking internationally, was thrilled when we became an IB World School, and believed in viewing all people as equals. As a leader, Ray was always willing to roll up his sleeves, whether it was coaching tennis or working on weekend campus projects with colleagues and students.” The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, gifts be made to Trinity’s Emily Huffman McLeod Scholarship Fund in his memory.
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I GIVE
because… “ Trinity grows. 10 years later, it’s still a place for innovation, support, and, of course, family.” Margaret Dodson ’13 Pictured with sisters Emily Dodson Sadler ’14 and Catherine Dodson ’24 and mother Diane Dodson.
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