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GeorgianA P u b l i c a t i o n o f G e o r g e S c h o o l , N e w t o w n , P e n n s y l v a n i a

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NEWSWEEK Thrives onAlumni TalentBy Carol J. Suplee

Two of the top positions at NEWSWEEK, one

of the nation’s most respected weekly news

magazines, are held by George School alumni.

Mark Whitaker ’75 is the editor and Mark Updegrove ’80 is the US Publisher.

That’s good news for George School and the rest of the news-reading public.

Whitaker, who was named editor in 1998, called the recent appointment of

Updegrove a “happy coincidence.”

“We didn’t know each other,” Whitaker said. “We were first introduced when

he came to NEWSWEEK as publisher this year. I knew and could trust that his heart

was in the right place, that he held values that I respected.”

For his part, Updegrove said he enjoyed an immediate rise in his “comfort

level” knowing that Whitaker was at the editorial helm. This sense of shared

culture and beliefs has enhanced their association. The two have become good

friends and they cooperate when it is appropriate, but in their professional spheres

of responsibility—editorial and business—they maintain a strict separation. “We

are like ‘Church and State,’ at NEWSWEEK,” Updegrove said. “Mark is ‘Church’

and I am ‘State.’”

September 11

Head of School Nancy Starmershares how the school respondedto the tragedy, page 8.

Alumni eQuizzes

Georgian shares survey results,page 6.

Several years after graduating from high school, Mark Whitaker ’75 (left)and Mark Updegrove ’80 crossed paths when Mark Updegrove beganworking at NEWSWEEK.

V o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 1G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a n

“As any good editor will tell you,the magic lies in the reporters,

and in giving them the support,the length and the space to do

their best work.”

(NEWSWEEK, continued from page 1)

2

Mark Whitaker’s ’75 (right) role at NEWSWEEK gives him the opportunity tomeet many influential figures from around the world. Here he is in the homeof UN Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke with the 56th Secretary of StateHenry A. Kissinger (left), and the Former President of South Africa NelsonMandela (center).

As editor of NEWSWEEK, MarkWhitaker’s influence is felt atevery level of the publication.

He guides the editorial team in makingall story decisions and then reads and ap-proves—or sends back for rewrite—ev-ery significant piece destined for printin any given week. He says he does notread every word every week, but hecomes close.

The New York Times described Mark’sleadership as “a strong, even-keeled in-tellectual presence,” which has been cru-cial in the magazine’s coverage of numer-ous major national stories.

The Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinskyscandal was first unearthed by Washing-ton, DC, NEWSWEEK reporter MichaelIsikoff. While covering the Paula Jonesstory, Mark explained, Isikoff had devel-oped a stable of dependable sources whohad been providing information aboutClinton’s more recent conduct while inthe White House.

“We were pretty sure that we had asolid story,” Mark said. “It was a trickything. If we rushed into print with thisinformation about a sitting president,without being sure, it would be disas-trous. If we were a daily, we knew wewould be only one or two days awayfrom print. But as a news weekly, ouroptions were limited. No one else hadit, so we felt it wiser not to break thestory that week.”

By Wednesday of the next week,other media came out with stories thatcontained far less information thanIsikoff had. NEWSWEEK immediatelyposted its own long and detailed storyon the web that same day.

“Then I reserved 15,000 words inthat week’s magazine for a full exposi-tion of the Lewinsky story. That is veryrare—usually a major cover piece isabout 3,000 words,” Mark said.NEWSWEEK subsequently won a Na-tional News Magazine award for report-ing. Mark said that while it was excitingand challenging to direct their coverage,the sordid story was “not fun.” Never-theless, he felt the public had to knowand he was proud of the work the staff

had done.“As any good editor will tell you,” he

said, “the magic lies in the reporters, andin giving them the support, the lengthand the space to do their best work.”

Mark also has distinguished himselfwith occasional essays on race issues. Onecover story, “The Hidden Rage of Suc-cessful Blacks,” written in collaborationwith a colleague, won awards from theSociety of Professional Journalists NewYork Chapter and the National Associa-tion of Black Journalists. Mark is proudof the magazine’s efforts to shed light onother compelling issues that concernAmericans. For example, NEWSWEEK ledthe national political debate on stem cellresearch months ahead of other majormedia.

Mark believes the weekly news maga-zine has a more solid niche in the infor-mation age than ever before, despite thedoomsayers’ lament that print will dis-appear. “I consider a weekly news maga-zine the ‘stop and think’ print medium,”he said. “It is well-suited for allowingcoverage of dramatic news events to de-velop more slowly. We can tell the storyat greater length with more time forthoughtful analysis. We are not just cov-ering stories, we want to shed light on—if not always to solve—the problems ofthe nation.”

A lifelong Quaker and the son ofcollege professors, Mark grew up attunedto what was happening in the world. Hestayed informed by reading NEWSWEEK.

“As I was coming of age in the latesixties and early seventies,” Mark said,“I was riveted by the magazine’s cover-age of such stories as the Vietnam Warand war protests, the civil rights move-ment and the Watergate scandal. I havealways loved good writing andNEWSWEEK always had a premium ongood writing.”

Mark has long been one of the rea-sons NEWSWEEK is so respected. He hascontributed since he was hired as a re-porting intern in 1977, through his yearsas a stringer, then as a full-time staffwriter on the International section forwhich he covered trouble spots all

around the globe. Later, as business edi-tor, he directed the coverage of the BlackMonday market crash, insider traderscandals and the savings and loan melt-down. Mark led the magazine as man-aging editor through a crucial periodwhen then-editor Maynard Parker hadfallen ill with terminal leukemia.

Mark graduated summa cum laudefrom Harvard in 1979 and attended

NEWSWEEK’s ‘Church’ — Mark Whitaker ’75, EditorBy Carol J. Suplee

Balliol College of Oxford University ona George C. Marshall Scholarship.

News, as NEWSWEEK delivers it, is afamily passion. Mark is married to AlexisGelber, director of Special Projects forNEWSWEEK. They have two children,Rachel, 15, and Matthew, 11. ■

G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a nV o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 1

In November 1999, then Texas governor George W. Bush and his staff invited Mark Updegrove ’80 to hear Bush’s firstcampaign speech on foreign policy. The event took place at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, CA.

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NEWSWEEK’s ‘State’ — Mark Updegrove ’80, PublisherBy Carol J. Suplee

four years he rose to the position of di-vision manager for Los Angeles. Early in2000, he was named President of TimeCanada, where he directed the entirebusiness operation.

“Impressive”was the wordNEWSWEEK offi-cials used ina n n o u n c i n gMark’s appoint-ment as USPublisher thispast spring. Fromthis position ofleadership, Markhelps determinehow the magazineis “branded” tothe advertisingcommunity, mak-

ing sure that the sales force accuratelycommunicates the magazine’s quality,character, mission and consumer appealto corporate clients. NEWSWEEK’s rela-tionship with NBC, MSNBC andMSNBC.com creates additional oppor-tunities to “pitch” the NEWSWEEK brand.

You would not notice the differencein your edition of NEWSWEEK, but acrossthe country, advertisers are able to pickand choose from a number of options.Ads may be crafted and strategicallyplaced to attract certain consumers—women, businesses, city dwellers, Cali-fornians, for example—but the editorialcontent remains constant. The magazinehas a circulation of 3.1 million with areadership of 20 million. With the ex-ponential proliferation of news entitiesbattling for advertising, Mark’s job iscomplex and challenging.

“We have to work harder to keep up,”Mark said. “With the economy founder-ing, advertising dollars are not asplentiful as just one year ago. My job isto persuade our clients that NEWSWEEK

is vital and relevant, that it serves a needthat other media are not serving.” Partof Mark’s job description reads “specialopportunities,” an open-ended categorythat allows him to be creative in promot-ing the NEWSWEEK brand. Currently, heis working on a special project withPulitzer Prize-winning photographerDavid Hume Kennerly. Their goal is to

create a portfolio of compelling photo-graphs documenting the inner workingsof the three branches of national gov-ernment—executive, legislative and ju-dicial. The photographs will also be pub-lished in a special advertising section ofNEWSWEEK. While the air may be rarefiedat his management level, Mark stillpauses often to breathe deeply of his yearsat George School.

“I don’t call myself a Quaker,” Marksaid, “but I subscribe to most Quakerprinciples. I believe there is the light ofGod in everyone and it is up to each oneof us to find that light. I value the Quakerconcept of community that respects dif-ferences and celebrates diversity.”

Mark said his appreciation of whathis parents and George School gave himgrows with each passing year. “My fa-ther worked three jobs and my motheralso worked to give me those four won-derful years at George School. This isvery precious to me,” Mark said. He andhis wife, Evelyn, and their 18-month-old son Charlie, are settling into theirnew home in Rye, NY, after moving fromToronto, Canada. ■

Although Mark Updegrove willtry to tell you his career had an“inauspicious” beginning, his

rapid rise, first to the top at TIME (hewas President of Time Canada) and nowat NEWSWEEK, belies his modest claim.

As US Publisher for NEWSWEEK,Mark oversees the business end of themagazine. That means he is in charge ofadvertising sales, sales development, spe-cial opportunities and a host of otherhard-to-define efforts vital inkeeping NEWSWEEK competitive in anever-expanding and challenging mediamarketplace.

Mark recalls speaking to GeorgeSchool students at a career assembly notlong ago, “I asked how many knew ex-actly what they wanted to do,” Marksaid. “About six students raised theirhands. Then I asked how many had noclue and all the rest of the hands wentup.”

Mark advised the students not toworry, to trust what they had learned atGeorge School and to have faith in theirinstincts. He assured them they would“figure it out along the way.”

“George School gave me a moralfoundation that I will have for the restof my life,” Mark said. “The school pro-vides students with all the tools they needto make their way successfully throughlife. That allowsyou to form your-self as an indi-vidual, to haveconfidence in theperson you areand the choicesyou make.”

Mark con-cedes that, “Ittook a long timefor me to find myway,” he said. Af-ter trying out afew colleges, heearned his bach-elor of economics degree from the Uni-versity of Maryland in 1984.

After college, Mark began selling adsfor magazines and worked his way upthrough a variety of sales and marketingpositions until he was hired at TIME inCalifornia as a sales representative. In

“George Schoolgave me a

moralfoundationthat I will

have for therest of my life.”

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G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a nV o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 15

Colette Weber, faculty representative for TheCurious George, came to George School fromGreat Britain in 1997 along with her husbandDavid. They reside in Drayton Dormitory wherehe is a dorm advisor.

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Curious George Staff Shares NewsBy Marie Duess, parent ’01

of information that will get the kids con-nected with the outside world as well.”

“We have students who want to docontroversial stories,” Colette said, “andI tell them to go ahead but to make surethat it’s a well-researched piece and notan opinion. They must put forth bothsides of the argument.”

“I have a few pioneering studentswho are really interested in currentevents and who want to go beyond whathappens here at George School. Theywant to delve into what happens out-side the school community.” For in-stance, in some of the most recent is-sues, students have covered the presiden-tial election, the US government’s con-trol of on-line music sharing, sleep dep-rivation, and teachers’ salaries. The Sep-tember 11 terrorist attack will surely becovered in an upcoming issue.

For the most part, Colette gives thestudents freedom to come up with theirown stories, leading them gently, andworking with them as if they were herEnglish students. ■

Footnote:The Curious George predecessors re-ported only the local campus news for

the most part, according toKingdon Swayne, GeorgeSchool archivist. The firststudent-run publicationcalled The Ides, which ranfrom 1902 to 1922, wasboth a student newspaperand an alumni bulletin.That newspaper was re-placed with The GeorgeSchool News, which dealtstrictly with campus news.Kingdon believes that thepresent newspaper wasstarted around 1992.

Colette Weber, English teacherand faculty representative forThe Curious George, won’t take

credit for the success and popularity ofthis student-run newspaper at GeorgeSchool. Anne Curtiss ’02, editor of thenewspaper along with Nicole Blum ’02,feels differently, however. ’“Colette isgreat. She helps to get us excited aboutthe paper and about the articles we wantto write. She guides us through the en-tire process.”

“I like the freedom we have at theThe Curious George,” Anne said. “Coletteallows all of us to be creative andto come up with stories we really wantto write.”

Credited as an art class, the newspa-per has a staff that meets three times aweek. “[Students on the staff ] have todo interviews, research, write the articles,and then lay it out … and they comeup with such interesting topics,”Colette explained.

“At the Curious George,” she explained,“I think we have a responsibility to re-port on whatever’s happening at GeorgeSchool.” But in addition, Colette said she“would like the paper to become a source

C. Peyton Rufe ’49

Colleges attended:Cornell U., BA;Indiana University,M.A.; CatholicUniversity,M. S.If you were to givean assembly atGeorge School, what would its titleor subject be? Personal integrity.Define professional success: Goodperformance in a well-liked job.Define personal success: Goodfamily relationships and personalcomfort.

Elizabeth Gimelson ’90

Field of work:RetailFive-year plan:To work fromhome on myInternet storeHow best to usethe Internet:Own a gift store on-lineMac or PC: MacFavorite Web site: yahoo andIwon.com

Alison Harris ’64

Collegeattended:AntiochCollege, BA inTheatreProfession:ExecutiveDirector of theWestport Country PlayhouseIf you were to give an assembly atGeorge School, what would its titleor subject be? Career Path: MoreLike a Meander through the Woods.Define professional success: Holdinga job where I make a difference andwhere my contributions are appreci-ated. Being a good mentor. Havingenough money to live comfortably,not lavishly.Define personal success: Contentwith who I am, have been, will be.Good friends. A husband who lovesme and cares for me. Good health.

John W. Zinssner ’81

Qualities ofsuccess? Compas-sion, integrity,commitment tocommunicationProfession?Ombudsman forthe Agency for Healthcare Qualityand ResearchAdmirable female: Hewlett PackardCEO Carly Fiorina. She has suc-ceeded in a very male realm. She hasled her organization on a path to be atrue standard bearer for a betterworkplace for woman, people ofcolor and other under-appreciatedgroups.Act of kindness: Tell the truth toeach other and hear the truth in anunbiased manner from each other.

Turn to page 6 to read more results from the four alumni surveys. ➥

Technology Survey Education Survey

Workplace Survey

Education Survey

Georgian Shares Survey Results

V o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 1G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a n6

Workplace Survey

The second Georgian survey, conducted in December 2000 dealt with issuesrelated to the workplace. The feature article of the winter 2001 Georgian was en-titled “Changing Leadership at George School.” Through the stories about CynthiaZealy Coleman, George School’s first female business manager and treasurer, andthe story about Laura Kinnel, school registrar and math teacher, we showed someprofessional roles of women in the community.

We polled 459 alums, whose e-mail addresses we had, and who were celebratingtheir reunions. Thirty-one men and 32 women yielded a 14 percent response rate.We learned how alumni handle childcare. Of the 41 alums who have children, 53%have a parent at home; 25% use an after-school program or childcare; and 8% de-pend on extended family for childcare; 11% did not respond.

Education Survey

In the summer 2001 Georgian, we featured Sarah Dunphy-Lelii ’96 and theeducational path she followed. After graduating from Pennsylvania State Uni-

versity, Sarah studied chimpanzees at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.Since that internship, she has been enrolled in a five-year Ph.D. fellow-

ship program at the University of Michigan. She is studying the theoryof mind.

Conducted in May 2001, the third e-quiz helped us learn aboutother alums’ educational experiences. Yielding a 22 percent re-sponse rate, 597 of the 2,695 alums, who were contacted by e-mail,participated in the survey. We took a sample of 100 survey re-sponses and here is what we learned:

Technology Survey

George School launched its first electronic survey in August 2000 by promptingalumni, through e-mails, to participate in an on-line questionnaire about technology.Some of the questions were directly related to technology, such as: “What type ofcomputer do you use, PC or Mac?,” “What is your favorite Internet site,” and “Howdo you use the Internet?” Other questions, such as: “What items would you bring ifyou were stranded on an island?,” were less serious.

Approximately 2,500 George School alums were asked to participate in this sur-vey; these were alumni for whom we had e-mail addresses. Of those 2,500 individuals,450 (18 percent) participated.

The responses to the technology survey complemented the Fall 2000 Georgianarticle about Steve Weimar ’75, a George School graduate who co-directs The MathForum (www.mathforum.com), an on-line learning community.

Here are some responses gathered from thealumni survey. Our sample consists of100 respondents.

The Evolution of the Alumni E-quiz

Average response:6 hours

How much time doalumni spend working

with computers?

Mac23%

PC68%

No Preference7%

Mac or PC?

68% PC23% Mac7% No preference2% Neither

What do alumni prefer?

2% Neither

would choosesame college

98%

reachedprofessional success

94%

reachedpersonal success

91%

Would alumni choose thesame college again?

Have alumni reached their ideaof professional success?

Have alumni reached theiridea of personal success?

G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a nV o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 17

Journalism Survey

In this issue of the Georgian, we are featuring three alums, Mark Whitaker ’75,Mark Updegrove ’80 and Diane Brenner ’81, all professionals in the field of jour-nalism. Read their stories on pages 1 through 4 to learn about their roles inthe media.

In August 2001, we conducted a journalism survey which gave alumni theopportunity to share their thoughts on topics related to the news and the coverageof it. Of the 2,780 who received notice of the on-line questionnaire, 497 responded,an 18 percent response rate. For profiles of individuals, see the classnotes section.

Here is what we learned from the 278 men and 219 women who participatedin this survey.

44% Well34% Adequate14% Very well7% Not well1% No response

43% Adequate30% Well15% Not well11% Very well1% No response

23% Columbine shooting20% Kennedy assassination15% Princess Diana’s death13% Vietnam War9% Challenger shuttle disaster8% Watergate scandal6% Rodney King beating2% Armstrong moon landing2% No response1% John Lennon assassination1% Princess Diana’s wedding

How well informed are you on US news?Due to high news cover-age, which one of thefollowing eventsdo you remember best?

How well informed are you on international news?

41% Publications (newspapers, magazines, newsletters)20% Public radio14% Commercial television13% Internet5% Public television3% Commercial radio3% Word of Mouth1% No response

How do you get your news?

41%

20%

14%

13%

5%3%

3%

Note: Survey conducted before theSeptember 11 event.

1%

How many minutesa day do you spendgathering news?

42% 31-6023% 16-3018% 61+12% 6-154% 0-51% No response

If you would like to participate in

upcoming surveys, visit us at

www.georgeschool.org/alumni/

updateinfo.html, where you can

submit your e-mail address.

42% say they spend31 to 60 minutes aday gathering news.

V o l u m e 7 3 • N u m b e r 3 • F a l l 2 0 0 1G e o r g e S c h o o l • G e o r g i a n

Into the Second YearBy Nancy Starmer

It seems remarkable that an entireyear has passed since my family and Imoved onto the George School cam-pus. Meeting new people, learningabout George School’s unique historyand culture, working with the GeorgeSchool Committee and the faculty ona number of important projects—allof this has made the time pass veryquickly.

This year we will be wel-coming 540 students, 162 ofwhom are new students. Theycome from 12 foreign coun-tries and 16 different states,bringing the geographic diver-sity of our student populationto 32 countries and 25 states.Twenty-three of our new stu-dents are Quaker.

The diversity of George School issomething of which we are extremelyproud. We are proud as well of ourstudents’ accomplishments in theiracademic, athletic, arts, and service ac-tivities. One of the highlights of lastyear for me was the service project as-semblies, in which students who hadparticipated in one of our national orinternational work camps presented re-flections on their experiences. Weheard from groups who had been toCuba and Vietnam, to a Navajo reser-vation in Arizona, to Nicaragua and to

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South Africa. Their thoughtful reflec-tions and questions told much aboutboth the academic and spiritual educa-tion they are receiving at George School.

You might be pleased to hear that stu-dents in our International BaccalaureateProgram are also distinguishing them-selves. This is a program in which stu-dents prepare for a set of rigorous examson which they are scored in comparisonwith thousands of students worldwide.Individuals must receive high marks onall six exams in order to receive a di-ploma. All of our IB students in theClass of 2001 earned a diploma, withthe average score earned by our studentsbesting the international mean by a fullpoint!

While on the topic of academics, Iwant you all to know that after twentyyears as director of studies, Fran Bradleyhas stepped down to take a year’s sab-batical and then return to the classroom.

Scott Spence will succeed Fran. Scotthas been teaching history and coachingat George School for the past nine years.Wendy Gross Nierenberg ’67, too, hasmoved on from her position as dean ofstudents, in this case to take a new jobas principal of the Upper School atWesttown. James Grumbach, who hasbeen associate dean for the past ten years,succeeds Wendy.

Come visit the campus some timesoon and see for yourself the energy anddelight that students bring. ■

September 11: Community Responds with Compassion

A letter from Nancy Starmer, head of school

The George School community has re-

sponded with extraordinary compassion

in the wake of the tragedy that befell our

nation on September 11. I am particu-

larly proud of our students. They’ve come

together in exceptional ways, not only to

support each other but to find ways to

respond constructively to these terrible

events. By organizing groups to give

blood and to support rescue efforts, in

the last week alone students have raised

over $3,000 for the Red Cross.

While we can be thankful that here

on campus no student or adult has lost

an immediate family member, I know that

many in the extended George School fam-

ily are suffering the losses of relatives

and of longtime friends and associates.

My heart goes out to all of you.

Throughout the past couple of weeks

we have worked to respond with care to

the situation as it has affected students

and adults at George School. On Tues-

day, September 11, we called the school

together at 10 a.m., shortly after receiv-

ing news of the attacks on the World

Trade Center and on the Pentagon. Once

we’d given what information we knew, we

were able to spend some time in worship

together. Though this was only our sec-

ond day of classes, both new students

and old were comforted and reassured

by the knowledge of being part of a sup-

portive community that meeting for wor-

ship afforded us at that time. Students

and faculty alike carried that support

through the rest of that harrowing day,

as friends waited to receive word of loved

ones in New York or Washington.

Throughout the ensuing days, meet-

ing for worship has continued to be a

source of stability and comfort for all of

us. Listening to our students’ messages,

I’ve been struck by how lucky we are to

have this forum for expression. Like stu-

dents all over the country, ours are rais-

ing questions in their classes, in special

assemblies and in town meetings ar-

ranged for this purpose. Meeting for wor-

ship, however, provides a place where

students can express feelings of conflict

and fear and others are obligated not to

react or debate, but to reflect. Issues

that are raised in meeting often get taken

up in the classroom later, but even there,

the tone of the conversation is affected

by the spirit of openness and reflection

that is at work at meeting.

These next weeks will not be easy for

us in the United States or here at George

School. Though we are all grateful that

we have traditions of reconciliation and

of truth seeking and the structure of

meeting for worship to help us, we know

that we will not be immune from conflict

over how the United States should re-

spond to this attack. And feelings of grief

and loss will continue to affect us all.

I am reassured by the knowledge that

adults at George School will be here for

students through these next challenging

weeks, as they struggle to interpret

events and to move forward, just as I am

reassured by the knowledge that our stu-

dents will be here to remind us of all that

is good and hopeful in our world.

We are blessed to be members

of such a community as this. ■

September 2001

Note: On September 13, 2001, Alumni

Director Bonnie Bodenheimer e-mailed all

alumni for whom we have e-mail addresses,

asking them to check in with us so we would

know how they were doing after the Septem-

ber 11 tragedy. Since then, we have received

almost 200 messages, many of which can be

read at http://www.georgeschool.org/alumni/

home.html

On September 10, 2001,Nancy Starmer began hersecond school year as headof George School.

Nancy Starmer announced the promotion oftwo deans (James and Nate) and the hiringof two others (Vikki and Pippa). (From leftto right) Dean of Students James Grumbach,Associate Dean Pippa Porter Rex, AssistantDean Vikki Sloviter, and Associate DeanNate McKee ’79.

NOTE: Pages removed from this document to protect the privacy of GS alumni.

Alumni may login to the alumni community at http://alumni.georgeschool.org to view the full version of this issue.

Volume 73 • Number 3 • Fall 2001

I N T H I S I S S U E

NEWSWEEK’s ‘Church’ .... 2

NEWSWEEK’s ‘State’ ........ 3

eQuizzes ....................... 5

Nancy Starmer .............. 8

Class Notes ................... 9

In Memoriam ............. 18

Annual Gifts Report ... 19

Ayeola G. Elias, EditorE-mail: Ayeola_Elias@georgeschool.org215.579.6568

GeorgianAdvancement OfficeGeorge SchoolBox 4000Newtown, PA 18940-0962www.georgeschool.org

NON-PROFIT

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

PERMIT NO. 1NEWTOWN, PA

P R I N T E D O N R E C Y C L E D P A P E RE

It takes some people many years be-fore they begin to live their lives to thefullest and before they begin to do whatthey really enjoy. For Bob Quinn, liv-ing his life to the fullest has never been aproblem. Ever since he graduated fromGeorge School in 1939, he knew whathe loved and went for it. For him, thatwas, and still is, art.

Bob studied his favorite subject atYale for two years and then at the Uni-versity of Arizona for two more. A yearafter graduating, he went back to theUniversity of Arizona to teach art andart history. Now a retired college pro-fessor, Bob has the precious memoriesof 40 years of teaching that he will cher-ish forever.

“For over 40 years,” he said, “I’vetaught more than 10,000 students.”“[Teaching] was exactly what I wantedto do. It allowed me to learn tremen-dous amounts about art,” Bob explained.After witnessing his enthusiasm for artand for teaching, many of his studentsdecided to become teachers and somedecided to become artists. “Some,” heexplained, “just wanted to learn art.”

Bob did more than teach his studentsart, he also taught them how to be them-selves. “I helped them find their way,just as George School helped me find myway,” Bob, now a Quaker and a mem-ber of a meeting in Arizona, explained.

“At George School, I learned that whatwas important was helping other people.I tried to help my students. If theywanted to talk about anything, I talkedto them.”

Art is Bob’s passion, but his true lovehas always been his family. “I would al-ways take my family with me,” Bob ex-plained of his travels, some of which wereextended half-year and full-year staysgranted to him by the university in theform of sabbaticals. Together, Bob, hiswife Jacqueline and daughterGeorgianna traveled to many countriesthroughout Europe where they learnedfirsthand about people, cultures andways of life all throughout the world.

Tragically, during the last seven years,Bob has lost both his wife and daughterto cancer. He still thinks about his fam-ily daily. “I don’t want to forget them,but I don’t want their deaths to ruin mylife either,” he explained in a soft voice.“Yes, I’m thankful for the time we’vespent together. I’m thankful for thememories that I have.”

“The one single thing that changedmy life is George School,” Bob ex-plained. It was about two years after hiswife died that he decided to give back tothe school.

“It all started with $14,” Bob ex-plained of his first deposit into a savingsaccount over 40 years ago. As Bob and

Jacqueline’s savings increased, Bob saidthey “put it into stocks and bonds andvery seldom took anything out,” he said.“The only time I ever violated that rule,was once or twice for traveling expenses,”he explained. He said friends helped himmake the right investments, and over theyears, his stock and bond values increasedsignificantly.

After Bob and Jim McKey, GeorgeSchool’s director of advancement, spoke,they decided that it would be in Bob’sbest interest to enter into a gift annuity.Bob gave George School appreciated se-curities and now receives a fixed monthlypayment for the rest of his life.

Bob said he has told other people ofhis gift to George School and how it hasbenefited him and the school simulta-neously. “People were shocked,” he said.

“I’ll bet you there are lots of people whodon’t know about this option who woulddonate if they knew of the benefits,” hecommented.

Thinking back on his two years atGeorge School, Bob explained, “It was alot of fun.” Now 80 years old, Bob stillvisits museums with friends and takesfive- to six- mile hikes in the beautifulmountains of Arizona. Even today, “Ihave good times when I do things,” heexplained. With his gift, Bob hopes togive students the opportunity to studyat George School where he is confidentthey will find their path towards life-ful-fillment. “I want young people to makesure that they end -up doing what theyreally want to do,” he said. ■

Graduate’s Gift GivesOpportunity of a LifetimeBy Ayeola G. Elias

Through his gift to the school, Bob Quinn ’39 receives a fixed monthly payment forthe rest of his life. For more information about gift annuities and other life incomegifts, go to www.georgeschool.org/alumni/plannedgiving.html or call Director ofAdvancement Jim McKey at 215-579-6563.