The Maroon & Grey The Official CFS Community Connection

Summer 2012

Ed Breiner, CEO of Schramm, Inc., and his

staff welcomed 16 Church Farm School aspiring engi-neers from math and science classes and their teachers to the firm’s West Chester cam-pus in May. The visit includ-ed a comprehensive tour of the plant, lunch, and a semi-nar with younger as well as experienced engineers and executives, focused on engi-neering careers.

“The boys loved it,” said Dr. Robert Broadrup, Chair of

the CFS Science Department, adding that, “They were captivated by the weld-ing, drilling and assembly portions of the construction process, and awestruck by the size and capacity of the rigs.” During a panel discussion with some of the firm’s engineers, students learned about the skills necessary for careers at Schramm, Inc., including problem solving, foreign language, communication, and technology. They also realized that courses they take now—physics, math,

computer-aided design, languages, and chemistry are the building blocks of these careers. “The visit truly forged a link between the classroom and the real world for our students,” concluded Dr. Broadrup.

According to Mr. Breiner, “The Church Farm School students were interested and disciplined, and I saw great potential in some of them to become engineers one day.” Kenneth Rodgers, Sr., CFS Director of Academics, expressed his appreciation to Schramm, noting that the “firm went above and beyond all of our expectations in the ex-perience they created for our students. This one day alone will change the lives of some of our boys.”

Schramm, Inc. is a leading manufacturer and global sup-plier of land-based, mobile hydraulic drills. The firm has received worldwide acclaim for its contribution to the his-toric and unprecedented res-cue of 33 trapped miners in Copiapó, Chile.

A panel of executives spoke to The Church Farm School students about engineering and production careers dur-ing the CFS visit to Schramm, Inc. From left are Tim Thomas, Automation Engineer; David Werner, Control Systems Engineer; Dave Kerstetter, Manufacturing En-gineer; and Spencer Ball, Production Planner.

Church Farm School students and their teachers were captivated as Frank Dolan, Vice President of Opera-tions, led a tour of the Schramm facilities.

Students Tour Company Famed for Chilean Miners’ RescueAspiring CFS engineers Able to connect their classroom learning with the real World

Funding the Boys: The Griffin Scholars Program

First Annual Luncheon Gives Donors and Scholars The Opportunity to Meet and get Acquainted

They played Uno and Jenga, made s’mores for dessert and mostly talked, talked, talked. The first annual Griffin Scholars luncheon for donors and

students on May 11 was pure fun. But it was fun with a serious purpose: For the first time, donors and the Griffin Scholars they sponsor had an opportu-nity to meet and enjoy each other’s company.

The new CFS Griffin Scholars Program, which matches contributors and students, allows donors to provide opportunities to boys “of ability and promise” who but for financial need would not receive a quality education. According to Head of School Ned Sherrill, “Our financial model is to under-write most if not all of a deserving boy’s educational needs, and no qualified student is ever turned away because of an inability to pay.” Consequently, this Program allows donors to personally help students most representative of our mission, and, if they wish, to know something about the student.”

Members of the Board of Directors, generous individuals and companies stepped up to fund CFS students this year resulting in 16 students sponsored. While each student has his own story, one Griffin Scholar told of driving to CFS for an interview with barely enough gas money to get home, hundreds of miles away. A fine student, he asked a staff member to tell his sponsor that, “If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be here.”

The cost of a Griffin sponsorship is $6,000. Those interested in sponsoring a Griffin Scholar for the coming school year may call Suzette Baird at (610) 363-5383 for more information.

Griffin Scholars2011-2012 Sponsors

Mrs. George Bissell (2 Scholars)

Bryn Mawr Trust Co. (2 Scholars)

Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Burns P’10

Mr. and Mrs. Mark Carroll P’00 & ’01

Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Clark ’84

Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Darby

DNB First

Meridian Bank

Mr. and Mrs. Eric Nordstrom ’62

Mr. and Mrs. Talmadge O’Neill ’86

The Rev. and Mrs. Edmund K. Sherrill II

Mr. and Mrs. Walt Smith ’86

Mr. and Mrs. Keith Voelker ’64CFS Director Steve Darby and students build a Jenga tower. From left are Adam Centeno ’13, Ced Moise ’15, Steve Darby, Chris Arbogast ’13, John Swider ’15.

Griffin sponsor and CFS Director Mat-thew Burns and his son John Burns ’10 play cards with (from left) Kevin Oreshko ’15 and Donald Albritton ’16 before lunch.

Leaving the Griffin Scholar luncheon together were Rock Ward ’13, Bill Heib, President, DNB First, Rick Weber, Managing Director, Wealth Management DNB First, and Marcus Pereira ’14.

Gentlemen, THANK YOU for being counted!(See page 3 for details)

Talmadge O’Neill ChallengeExceeds 30% Alumni Participation

The Maroon & Grey 2

Griffin News

Dear Friends of The Church Farm School,

The Year of the Griffin has drawn to a close, yet we will long benefit from its impact on the School community. Much was accomplished and we have many reasons to celebrate, most especially the graduation of the Class of 2012, and their joining several generations of CFS brothers hard at work in a world that needs their best efforts. We are very excited for them and I invite you to peruse those parts of this newsletter to read more about their successes as students here and where they are headed next. Indeed, it is all about the boys!

All of their stories are worth telling, yet one exemplifies much, if not all, about what they are able to accomplish if only given that chance. A young man from Chester County arrived here three years ago. His mother had died and he was being cared for by a devoted Aunt. Quiet, unassum-ing, but determined, this student grew in stature and kept at his studies, never excelling but always pursuing above average grades. Undaunted, he learned how to be a more disciplined student and graduates with a solid B average. He threw himself headlong into athletics and made a steady habit of giving hours upon hours to community service. Always willing to try new things, he almost threw the shot put for a school record this year. He was awarded several prizes for citizenship. He graduates as a member of the National Honor Society and is as kind as any human be-ing you would ever want to meet. Off to college with a generous scholar-ship from a family that has long supported CFS graduates, this wonderful example of a CFS boy, now man, keeps us all going. We see so plainly the good that happens here. We believe!

Particular thanks are due to both the Alumni body and the Parents’ As-sociation who responded so generously to the annual fund appeal and rallied to the great cause of perpetuating the CFS mission. Buoyed by the Talmadge O’Neill Challenge, the alumni rate of participation doubled and exceeded the challenge’s goal of 30% participation. This is a gold stan-dard in independent schools and our work is now cut out for us to build upon it. We are very grateful for the impetus supplied by Mr. O’Neill ’86 and many thanks to all who responded so magnificently. Letters sent in support of the School and a rousing Alumni Weekend still speak well of the affection so many hold for the opportunity offered at different times in School history. Not to be outdone, parents also doubled their annual support for the mission and all it means to their sons. I don’t need to tell you how much every dollar counts to a household in today’s economy, so to have this extra measure of support is a privileged blessing we will honor with renewed dedication to the education of these terrific boys. We thank Walt Smith ’86, Alumni Fund Chair, and both Bob Brown and Gertrude Go, Parent Fund Co-Chairs, for their good work with all of you.

Our work on campus remains focused on mission and how this is to be laid out on campus in the future. The revised mission statement and our return to doing business as The Church Farm School have already been announced. Plans for the campus and enhancements to facilities that house our program continue to take shape in support of what we are de-veloping within our academic, athletic and residential curriculum. Life on campus is busy with the honest industry of pursuing what really mat-ters to our boys and their future.

The year began with the dedication of a wonderful bronze sculpture of the CFS Griffin. Mr. Sam Ballam’s gift has offered us a daily reminder of some of the values into which we seek to live. With the work of our Ethi-cal Leadership Team and our continuing opportunities to reflect on these in Chapel and other walks within our common life at CFS, we seek to live out those that have the most meaning for us today: integrity, responsibil-ity, respect and brotherhood.

Please come visit with us on campus and see for yourself just what mira-cles we are accomplishing together.

With warm regards and thanks,

The Reverend Edmund K. Sherrill IIHead of School

From The Head Joy and High Expectations Characterize 90th Graduation

34 CFS Students Graduate During Annual Commencement Ceremonies

It was another beautiful day when CFS held its 90th Com-

mencement Exercises on June 2 in the Chapel of the Atonement. The Rev. Edmund K. Sherrill II, Head of School, welcomed parents and other guests, and 34 graduates re-ceived their diplomas and Bibles from Mark Carroll, Chairman, CFS Board of Directors, also a parent of two past graduates.

Following hymns, prayers and anthems by the CFS Choir and the assembled faculty, parents and friends, Anh N. Nguyen ’12 gave the Valedictory Address. As the ceremonies came to a close, The Rev. John Daniels, Chaplain, and Rev. Sherrill gave each boy the traditional blessing on behalf of the School and the Church. Following the ceremony, the Class of 2012 lined Chapel Lane to greet their families, friends, classmates and members of the faculty and staff.

CFS seniors will attend colleges and universities throughout the country this fall, including Loyola University, Brandeis University, Temple University, Uni-versity of Texas, Skidmore College, Penn State, St. John’s University, Lafayette College, The Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trade, New Jersey Insti-tute of Technology and Babson College to name just a few. A complete listing will appear in the Annual Report.

Griffin Award Bestowed on Shirley Shreiner

May 16 dawned clear and bright as befitted such a significant day

in CFS history! Shirley Shreiner, wife of CFS’s second Headmaster Charles Shreiner, who graced the campus for many years, was to be honored with the J. Tyler Griffin Award for Excellence in Ambassadorship.

Trustee Sally Graham presented the award to Mrs. Shreiner who, in return, made an elegant speech, giving the as-sembled students and guests a sense of the rich history preceding them. In her remarks Mrs. Graham quoted former Executive Director of Development Bill Seymour ’78 who wrote, “We are all better because of the great capacity Mrs. Shreiner has to love, and to care and to nurture. While many graduates have uttered the words ‘He was like a father to me’ when speaking of Charlie, I’m quite sure I’m not the only one who would go on to say, ‘She was like a mother to me’ as well.”

The ceremony was followed by a luncheon at the Head of School’s resi-dence attended by members of the former Board of Managers, CFS Trust-ees and Honorary Trustees, friends and family. There, Rev. Sherrill pre-sented Mrs. Shreiner with a Griffin Scholarship for the 2012-2013 school year, generously provided by her many friends, noting that she will attend the Scholars luncheons with the student she now sponsors.

After receiving the Griffin Award from Mr. Sherrill, Shirley Shreiner spoke to the students and guests about her years at Church Farm School as the wife and mother of Headmasters Charles Shrein-er, Jr. and Charles (Terry) Shreiner III.

The Rev. Edmund K. Sherrill IIHead of School

The CFS Class of 2012 celebrates outside the Chapel following graduation ceremonies.

Jim Tate ’52 presents the Wilkins Award to Franky Mills ’12.

Griffin News

Summer 2012 3

Following a national search, C. Randy Noll has been named CFS Director of Student Life.

Mr. Noll reports that from his first contact with CFS, “I felt an inexplicable connection to both the school and its mission, becoming more deeply drawn to it with each passing moment.” He adds that, “After I visited the school and met with stu-dents, faculty and staff in person, I was officially hooked.”

“I consider it good fortune that my career has in-cluded lengthy stops at several successful inde-pendent schools,” reports Mr. Noll. “During that time, I have visited and/or been a part of many wonderful educational communities, but I’ve never experienced a place quite like CFS. The spirit of the place literally captured my heart and soul from the minute I stepped onto the campus.”

Mr. Noll’s career has been both colorful and multi-faceted. He was a student-ath-lete at Southern Methodist University where he thought seriously about careers in geology, professional soccer and journalism. His passion for coaching soccer and an entrepreneurial spirit prompted the founding of the Texas Soccer Academy and the Southwest’s first Soccer Coaching School in 1984; but he claims he discovered his true calling when he was asked to teach 10th grade English and coach the varsity soc-cer team at Klein Forest High School during the following school year. The years that followed included career stops at several highly regarded independent schools: The Kinkaid School in Houston, Texas; St. Michael’s School in Austin, Texas; and The John Cooper School in The Woodlands, Texas.

During his 24-year career in education, Mr. Noll has been a classroom teacher, ath-letic coach and school administrator. He has taught a variety of English courses and served as faculty editor for award-winning school newspapers and yearbooks. He has coached varsity soccer, baseball, lacrosse, football, cross country, softball and cheerleading. His high school soccer teams have been nationally ranked; and over the years, he has also coached for some of the nation’s top youth soccer clubs. Most recently, Mr. Noll was Dean of Students at The John Cooper School, where he served as the Upper School’s lead administrator for student discipline, activities and events. At Cooper, Mr. Noll was instrumental in the restructuring of the school’s Honor Code and cofounded the school’s Discipline Committee. He also founded the school’s Stu-dent Life Committee, created Upper Class Student Leadership programming, helped revitalize the school’s annual Spirit Week tradition, and led both the school’s Honor Council and Governing Council.

According to Head of School Sherrill, “Randy brings a wealth of educational expe-rience and a strong connection to boys with him. As a seasoned and well-respected administrator, leader, organizer, disciplinarian and coach, his talents are multi-dimen-sional and multi-faceted. An attentive listener, he works well with colleagues and puts the welfare of students first. I am very confident Randy’s good humor and person-able style will quickly add to the leadership team and help our exceptional program grow.”

Randy Noll Joins CFS as Director of Student Life

New Director begins his duties July 1

C. Randy Noll begins his duties at CFS on July 1, 2012.

CFS Bids a Fond Farewell to John Kistler

“I love the halls and the playing fields, but it is the people—the boys and the dedicated and talented staff members—I shall miss. CFS is blessed with an outstanding mission and wonderful staff members…They are the ones that touch the kids on a daily basis and their caring approach has made a significant difference to the lives of hundreds of students over the years. It is not the Pavilion, the computers, the dining center or the pretty campus that makes this place special...it is the people! — John Kistler, after being honored by the CFS staff for his service to the School

John Kistler came to CFS as a teenager in

1968 when his father Jack Kistler joined the staff, first as Athletic Di-rector and later as Prin-cipal. Following col-lege, he taught, coached and supervised a dormi-tory at The Perkiomen School for two years before coming “home” to CFS in 1980. And now, as he departs from his current role as Director of Students, Mr. Kistler has served CFS with distinction for 32 years.

Founder of the CFS Wrestling Invitational, he has coached soccer, track and field, tennis, golf and basketball, where he led the Griffins to ten playoff appearances and two championships as Varsity Head Coach from 1980 to 1992. Mr. Kistler also enhanced the CFS Athletic Program in countless ways, including his oversight of the addition of the Founder’s Pavilion and the introduction of the baseball, golf and winter track programs. For 17 years, he also directed the summer day camp.

According to current Director of Athletics, Greg Thompson, Mr. Kistler crafted and led one of the finest coach-ing staffs in the area, and further institution-alized the values of honor, commitment and sportsmanship that de-fine CFS athletics. He adds that, “It has be-come clear to me that

I’ve been drawn to John because he embodies everything my dad and grandfather taught me a man is supposed to be: strong, honest, compassionate, hard-working, passionate, humble, and steady. He did what all good leaders do; he led by example, every minute of every day.”

Art students asked Mr. Kistler to recreate the pose in 2012 as part of a “then and now” project.

Mr. Kistler was photographed as a young CFS teacher in the early eighties.

One year ago, Talmadge O’Neill issued his landmark Alumni Challenge. The rules were simple: (1) He would match new gifts two-to-one and the increased amount of increased gifts one-to-one, up to $50,000; (2) If alumni giving doubled from 15 to 30%,

he would throw in an extra $10,000.

According to Head of School Ned Sherrill, “We are delighted to declare the O’Neill Challenge an unqualified success! Our alumni have exceeded its goals—without question, the Alumni Annual Fund is forever transformed!” Lori McDermott, Director of Alumni Relations, agrees adding that “Walt Smith ’86, Chair of the Annual Fund, and more than twenty class representatives did the hard work to create this success.”

“We are grateful to Mr. O’Neill, says Mr. Sherrill, adding that, “Not only have contributions more than doubled this year, but also in terms of percentages, CFS has moved into the forefront of independent schools’ alumni giving programs. Our challenge now is to never lose this momentum.”

Mr. Sherrill concludes that, “As the year draws to a close, Mr. O’Neill’s words upon announcing the challenge come to mind: ‘The mission of taking disad-vantaged, adolescent kids and giving them the tools to better their lives is an honorable one. The earlier you act in a child’s life, the greater difference you make.’ Mr. O’Neill’s challenge has certainly made a lasting difference this year.”

Talmadge O’Neill Alumni Challenge Exceeds Goal

Alumni Giving grows to More than 30% during 2011 - 2012 Annual Fund year

Talmadge O’Neill ’86

4 The Maroon & Grey

Griffin News

Student Congress Officers and Reps Chosen for 2012-2013

Next year’s Student Congress members include: (front row from left) Fred Amoyaw, 12th Grade Representative; Mohammed Bappe and Mike Lee, 10th Grade Representatives; Po Sung Kim, 12th Grade Representative; Edward Kim and Joey Kim, 9th Grade Representa-tives and (back row from left) Chris Arbogast, Secretary; Kelechi Umunna, Vice President; Hermes Paez, President; Marcus Pereira and Miles Bernhard, 11th Grade Representatives.

Five CFS Juniors were selected to receive the Union League of Philadelphia’s Good Citizenship Award on May 17. They were (from left) Nathadon Suksiritar-nan, Kelly Swider, Kemarni Munroe, Hermes Paez, and Maxwell Drexler. During the Youth Work Day, the students participated in workshops and presentations that focused on the rights and responsibilities of citi-zenship. This year, students argued freedom of speech in a mock Supreme Court setting.

New Interact Club Will Facilitate Community Service Projects

The CFS new Interact Club (Interact is Rotary International’s service club

for students, and Church Farm School’s Club is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Central Chester County) held a car wash in May which, with Rotary matching funds, raised $500 for next year’s com-munity service projects.

According to CFS Chaplain John Daniels who moderates the Club, “CFS students will complete two projects annually, one of which fosters international under-standing and good will.” Interact will add significantly to the myriad of volunteer opportunities already available to CFS students.

Interact members include: (first row, from left) Nicholas Thom-as, Kasper Bejoian, Ced Moise, Elijah Hernandez, Aidan Go, Jon Swider; (second row, from left) Ray Watson, Dylan Le, Miles Bernhard, Chris Arbogast, Kelly Swider, Christopher Lopez, Darien Norman-Hunt, Luiny Monegro, Elijah Freeman; (third row, from left) Jeannot Fortunat, Darien Alleyne, Kelechi Umunna, Maxwell Drexler, Charlie Sidoriak, Nathan Ventura, Justin Bote, Uche Egonu, Michael Brown-DiFalco; and (fourth row) Matthew Gehringer, Mlynue Reeves, Kemarni Munroe.

Students Serve Dinner at Ronald McDonald House

CFS students do not take a community

service obligation lightly, as proven during a stint as Guest Chefs at the Phila-delphia Ronald McDonald House at St. Christopher’s Children’s Hospital. Ten hours of hard work prepar-ing a dinner for 40 people was a winner for Alumnus Marvin Garcia’s advisees one cold February week-end. Mr. Garcia is an Admissions Officer and, along with his wife Shana Beverly, is also a member of the cottage faculty.

The students, Eric Velazco ’17, Isaias Gunn ’17, Austin Medina ’15, Na-thaniel Vazquez ’15, Michael Jara ’15, and Luiny Monegro ’14 along with Claudia Rose-Muir (Director of Dinning Services) got to work right after Saturday lunch preparing pork loin in cranberry sauce, macaroni and cheese and tossed salad for transport to Philadelphia and the Ronald McDonald House, where families of ill children stay so they can be close to the hospital. They warmed it up and served the simple but tasty dinner to the assembled families. Afterwards, the boys took orders for ice cream sundaes—an excel-lent chance to interact with the people they were serving.

According to Mr. Garcia ’99, “I was very proud of these young men, for many guests were surprised to hear that the students had cooked the food them-selves and remarked on how well they represented Church Farm School.” How did the students feel about the project? Mr. Garcia said, “They can’t wait to do it again next year!”

Preparing the dinner with Miss Claudia in the CFS kitchen are (from left) Michael Jara, Nathaniel Vazquez, Austin Medina, Isaias Gunn, Eric Velazco, and Luiny Monegro.

Seventh Graders Prepare Vegetables For St. Paul Community Garden

The seventh graders in Art Smith’s In-

tegrated Science Class grew vegetables from seeds this spring for a worthy purpose that transcended the science they learned. When the seeds sprouted, plants were potted and re-planted in the commu-nity garden next door at St. Paul’s Episcopal

Church. All summer, parishioners and volunteers will deliver tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and herbs to the Food Bank of Chester County. Accord-ing to Mr. Smith, “We are in the second year of this project and plan to expand our efforts. We also intend to plant vegetables in the spring that the boys can harvest when they return to school in the fall.”

Teacher and students proudly displayed their seedlings. From left are Isaias Gunn, Mohammed Emun, Joey Kim, Gabriel Everly and Mr. Smith.

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Union League Good Citizenship Awards

DECA Students Excel in State Level Competition

CFS Brings Home Individual and Team Awards in an Impressive Showing

Chris Mazzoli, CFS DECA director (DECA prepares

emerging leaders and entrepre-neurs in marketing, finance, hos-pitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe), took fifteen students to the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, Pa. for three days to compete in DECA state-level competition. There, the CFS team competed against 1600 public high school students, in-cluding students from neighboring schools: Hill, Shipley and Haver-ford. At the end of the competition

CFS walked away with both individual and team awards.

Winners included: Feroz Khalidi, Mike Lee, and Uche Egonu, who merited a trip to the national competition. In addition, the team of Dan Yi, Marco Lorenz, and Po Sung Kim took 3rd place overall in Financial Operations Research. Rock Ward and Adam Centeno took finalist trophies for Hospitality and Tourism, and Josh Myers won a medallion for high score in role play.

Uche Egonu ’15 proudly receives his first place trophy.

Summer 2012 5

Griffin News

CFS and Agnes Irwin Combined Choir Concert

Two schools join to create Beautiful Music on the Irwin Campus

CFS and The Agnes Irwin School contin-

ued the tradition of pre-senting a combined choir concert at one of the two schools each year in April. This year’s concert was held on the Irwin campus, and featured selections from Brahms’ Liebeslie-der Waltzes. A magical moment occurred when both Directors, Gary Gress of Church Farm School and Murray Savar of Agnes Irwin, learned that both choirs had studied the same arrange-ment of Ave Maria by Franz Biebl. Their combined voices singing this piece highlighted the evening.

Choir Members Place High in 2012 All-State Chorus Festival

Hard Work and Commitment Pay Off For Singers at State Competition

John Choi ’12 and Po Sung Kim ’13 gave

strong performances at the All State Chorus Festi-val, held in Lancaster, Pa. this spring. The festival convened 240 of the best singers from across the state. With 30 singers in each group, John placed 3rd in the Bass 2 section, and Po Sung placed 4th in the Tenor 2 section.

According to Music Director Gary Gress, “In addition to these spec-tacular achievements, Po Sung, since he is an underclassman, has a solid chance of going to the All-East Festival next year.” He added his congratulations to these two young men for their “hard work, commit-ment and achievements.”

The CFS and Agnes Irwin choirs combined for a night of beautiful choral music.

Eighth Grader Qualifies for Good Citizen Award Program

PA House of Representatives’ Awards program honors “Good Citizens of Tomorrow”

In May, Edward Kim ’16 qual-ified for the 167th Legislative

District’s Good Citizen Award Program. The program honors eighth graders who have exhib-ited qualities identifying them as “Good Citizens of Tomorrow.” A leader in his class and in the school, Edward was selected because of his involvement in many activities as well as his willingness to cooperate with fellow students and teachers. Additionally, Edward produced an excellent video about CFS entirely on his own. Head of School Mr. Sherrill presented the award to Edward on May 31st.

The CFS Singers, an a cappella group, also per-formed at Agnes Irwin. They are (from left) Po Sung Kim ’13, Sam Choi ’12, Nathadon Suksiritarnan ’13, John Choi ’12, Julian Lopez ’12, Changwoo Chong ’14, and Jun Chul Moon ’12.

Mr. Sherrill presented the Good Citizen Award to Edward Kim ’16, acknowledging his many accom-plishments.

Boys’ and Men’s Choirs Combined for the First Time

CFS Choir Has the Unique Opportunity to Perform with Professionals

A great, mighty sound filled the Chapel of the Atonement in February, during a combined choral concert, featuring the

Church Farm School Choir and the Glen Loch Men’s Chorale, both under the direction of CFS Music Director Gary Gress.

According to Mr. Gress, “This concert, which combined these two fine choirs for the very first time, was a wonderful experience, al-lowing for our boys to observe and sing with professionals, while also giving the professionals an opportunity to interact with our students.”

Marcus Wiggins ’02 joyfully joined the group at the last minute, saying “I would do anything to help my former choir director, Mr. Gress.”

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One School, One Book ProgramCFS Community Reads “The Other Wes Moore”

What determines the future? This question was a prime discussion topic at CFS this

spring, when, for the first time, the entire adult and student school community read the same book, a story of two men with the same name, from the same inner-city neighborhood. One is imprisoned for life for murder, and the other is a Johns Hop-kins’ graduate, a Rhodes Scholar, a veteran and a successful businessman.

The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore asks why, and the CFS community had divergent responses as student and teachers held numerous discussions about the riveting book. Students saw in a whole new way that a good education is crucial to later success, and all gained a fresh appreciation of CFS’s mission.

English teacher Sarah O’Neill reports that many students, especially middle school students, met every Thursday at lunch to discuss the con-nections they felt with the author and the plot. According to Matt Hohn, who teaches Honors English, “This exercise in community reading helped foster a greater awareness for some of the principles we aim to uphold at CFS, including respect, responsibility, integrity, and brother-hood.”

The Benefits & Hazards of Solar Farming

Mr. Ottey’s Honors Geometry Class Presents Research on Solar Farming

In March, the Honors Geom-etry Class, taught by Dwight

Ottey, presented its research project on “The Benefits and Potential Environmental Haz-ards of a Solar Farm.” Present for the demonstration were Ned Sherrill, Head of School, Neil Fanelli, Finance Director, and Pat Doran, an Alteris engineer who is working on a solar array for CFS. Students discovered that the pros of solar farming far outweigh the cons.

A proposed four acre solar farm, to be installed on the CFS cam-pus this fall, should be able to supply about 70% of the School’s total energy. The students also concluded that, for maximum en-ergy production, the panels should be positioned at a fixed angle of 33.5 degrees and should face south. Mr. Doran thanked the students and noted that their information would be useful to the project.

Honors geometry students conclude the presentation of their research with a group picture.

Griffin News

6 The Maroon & Grey

Church Farm School takes its mission se-riously, and the majority of its students

receive deep scholarships. The Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC), which provides companies with sig-nificant tax credits, helps to fund many de-serving boys from Chester and surrounding counties. Companies which pay Pennsylvania state taxes may receive up to a 90% tax credit for contributions made to qualified scholarship organizations such as Church Farm School. After federal and other taxes, the real cost of the gift to the donor is very small.

According to The Rev. Edmund K. Sherrill, Head of School, “Our mission to underserved yet qualified young men challenges us every day. CFS must raise at least $6,000 for each student. Under our new EITC Griffin Schol-ars Program, contributions in increments of $6,000 allow firms to sponsor CFS students representative of our mission. Businesses may cover multiple students through this program and have the satisfaction of meeting them at our corporate recognition breakfasts and Grif-fin Scholars events.”

2011-2012 EITC donors this year included Bryn Mawr Trust, Burns Engineering, DNB First, IMC Construction, Meridian Bank, Philip Rosenau Company and the West Ches-ter Chamber of Commerce. Through the EITC program, it is easy to direct a firm’s state tax dollars to a school it cares about—please contact Suzette Baird (SBaird@gocfs.net) for more information.

Pennsylvania EITC ProgramCompanies Support CFS through Tax Credit Program

Representatives from many of CFS’s corporate friends attended the School’s First Corporate Rec-ognition Breakfast. They include Burns Engineer-ing, Bryn Mawr Trust, DNB First, EDiS Company, IMC Engineering, Meridian Bank, Spiezle Architects, Archer & Buchanan Architecture, Weston Solutions, Inc., Penn Liberty Bank, Chester County Economic Development Council and the CCEDC Development Company of Pennsylvania.

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CFS Warmly Welcomes Two New Directors

Walter K. Smith ’86

With fond memories his six years at CFS, Walt Smith was recently elected to the Board of Directors. He recalls that his first houseparent was a young Art

Smith in Strawbridge Cottage. Art —still a strong presence at CFS—was a great mentor to Mr. Smith and all his young charges. As he matured at CFS, Mr. Smith played basketball, excelled at soccer and ran track and cross country while garner-ing highest academic honors and participating in student government.

Today, Mr. Smith is Vice President—U.S. Options and Futures of NASDAZ OMX. He and his wife, Stephanie, live in Devon with their two young children. He earned a BS in Economics and an MBA from Pennsylvania State University and remains a tremendous fan and a season football ticket holder. He also rarely misses a Phila-delphia Union game.

“CFS’s unique mission continues to transform the lives of its students, and it is truly an honor to take a leadership role as a Director,” says Mr. Smith, who with Stephanie sponsored a Griffin Scholar this year. He also chaired the 2012 Alumni Annual Fund with skill and enthusiasm, spearheading a successful close to the momentous Talmadge O’Neill Alumni Challenge.

Stacey Shreiner Kley

Stacey Kley grew up in the heart of the CFS community, the daughter of Head-master Charles W. Shreiner, Jr. and his wife Shirley. “I had a wonderful child-

hood,” she explains, “for with my brother and sister and the eight or nine faculty children who lived around us, we had constant playmates.”

She adds that this was a great community in which to grow up, a part of the daily life of the School. With so many faculty families all living in close proximity, ev-eryone looked after all the faculty children. Mrs. Kley remembers ice skating on the pond, swimming in the pool, and attending many School activities, including assemblies and sporting events. The Shreiner family also attended Sunday Chapel services and joined the boys for Sunday dinner in the dining room. Mrs. Kley also remembers her family warmly welcoming the many students and alumni who fre-quently knocked on their door.

She brings strong credentials as well as unique experiences and history to the CFS Board. With a BA in Politics and Economics from Princeton University and an MBA from The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, she has enjoyed successful careers in business and education. A former Board Chair of Montgomery School and current Vice-Chair of The Shipley School Board of Trustees, Mrs. Kley is currently Director of External Relations at Montgomery School in Chester Springs.

“I am honored to serve on the Board,” she says, adding that, “having been part of the CFS community almost my entire life, it will be wonderful to be involved in the School again in a direct way, and to play a role in help-ing to guide its future.” Mrs. Kley and her husband Bill live in Chester Springs and have four children and four grandchildren.

Stacey Shreiner Kley

Walter K. Smith ’86

CFS Board of Directors

Mark T. Carroll P’00 & ’01, Chairman and President

Stephen A. Loney, Esq. ’97, Secretary

Richard H. Gherst II, Treasurer

Rev. Edmund K. Sherrill II, Head of School

Samuel H. Ballam III Rt. Rev. Charles Bennison, Jr.

Matthew J. Burns P ’10Gregory W. Coleman

Samuel B. Cupp, Jr. P’02Stephen DarbyKermit S. Eck

Sally N. GrahamStacey Shreiner Kley

John PickeringCannie C. Shafer

Walter K. Smith ’86Norman Strate

Jacques Vauclain

Honorary Members

Charles A. ErnstMorris Kellett, Esq.

Gibbs LamotteWilliam H. Molloie ’82

Erwin P. Roeser ’41Robert G. Rogers, Jr.

Jesse D. SaundersE. Newbold Smith

James Tate ’52Christopher H. Washburn

Students Benefit From Bequests

“Please consider including CFS in your will. It’s easy. The next time you meet with your attorney or financial planner, simply tell him or her the legal name of the School is “Church Farm School.” Your bequest can be large or small. Be-quests have been the lifeblood of the School since its founding in 1918.

If you have any questions about be-quests, we have two brochures you will find helpful: Questions and Answers about Wills and Bequests and How to Make a Will that Works. Your will is the centerpiece of your estate plan. And it makes it possible for you to fulfill per-sonal wishes that may save your heirs from problems that can arise when you fail to plan.

If you would like one or both of these brochures, please contact John Wilwol by phone at 610.363.5363 or by email at JWilwol@gocfs.net.

Griffin News

7Summer 2012

John Kistler and Lamont Williams ’92 Inducted into the CFS Hall of Athletic Honor

Beloved CFS Coach Along with State Wrestling Champion Are Honored During Annual Alumni Dinner

The induction of Lamont Williams ’92 and John Kistler into the CFS Hall of Athletic Honor highlighted the Alumni Dinner this year. Coach and teacher Art Smith spoke warmly about

each of the inductees.

Lamont Williams is an all-around athlete who competed successfully in wrestling and track at CFS. He was a KSAC (Keystone Scholastic Athletic Conference, which no longer exists) All-League wrestler in his sophomore through senior years, earning all-star status under the tutelage of Coach Art Smith. Lamont was also State wrestling champion and Outstanding Wrestler during the 1991-92 school year in the Pennsylvania Preparatory School tournament. He is currently in military service, stationed in Germany.

John Kistler has served CFS with distinction for 32 years as a beloved coach and administrator. He is the founder of the CFS Wrestling Invitational and has coached soccer, track and field, tennis, golf and basketball. He led the Griffin basketball team to ten playoff appearances and two championships as Varsity Head Coach from 1980 to 1992. Mr. Kistler oversaw the addi-tion of Founder’s Pavilion and the introduction of the baseball, golf and winter track programs. (See page 3.)

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Coach and teacher Art Smith spoke about the many accom-plishments of the inductees.

BasketballGriffin Hoops Reaches Third Round of State

Championship Tournament

The Varsity team played an outstand-ing 20-5 season, won a second Dis-

trict Championship in a row against Faith Christian at Villanova University, and defeated area teams such as Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, Archbishop Carroll, Girard College, and Chichester. The team won two games in the State tournament before falling to defending State champion Math, Civics, and Sci-ences Charter School in the Quarterfinals. Howard Sellars ’13 scored his 1,000th point in the first District game, a remark-able achievement for a high school ju-nior. The team returns many key players and looks to compete for another district championship next winter.

A great CFS crowd, including alumni, parents, directors, students and faculty traveled to Wissahickon High School for the game. All agreed that congratulations are due to Coach Marc Turner, his staff and the team for a terrific season.

Nolan Swiderski-Soto ‘12 drives to the basket in the District Semi-final win over Calvary Christian.

Varsity Wrestling Enjoys Superb Season

The 2012 Varsity Wrestling Team completed a great

season, placing third of seven-teen schools in District compe-tition. Individual wrestlers did even better with Ethan Lyons taking a District Championship at 220 pounds. Luis Flores and Dontae Johnson took second places in their weight classes; Alex Kluka, Josh Myers and Chris Arbogast took thirds. Jon

Swider, Evan Attipoe, Anthony Mignona, and Matt Gehringer finished in 4th place, just missing a trip to Regionals. CFS won second place out of 16 schools in the Church Farm Invitation-al, finishing just behind rival Westtown Friends School. At that meet, Dontae Johnson and Jon Swider won their weight classes, with Dontae excelling in a thrilling overtime match. Alex Kluka, Chris Arbogast, and Luis Flores finished in 2nd place in their weight classes with Bobby Sharp and Josh Myers finishing in 3rd place. According to Coach Art Smith, “CFS fielded a strong, all-around team this year. It was one of the best from top to bottom in the School’s history.”

CFS Sophomore Breaks High Jump Record

The Track team’s second place

District finish, a tre-mendous accomplish-ment, showcased the commitment of many CFS athletes, their coach, Tony Wrice and his staff. Senior Franky Mills set a school record and won the District championship in the 3200 meter with a 10:03 finish. Aondofa Anyam ’14 took the District high jump champi-onship, setting another school record along the way at 6’4”. He broke a record set by alumnus Dozie Mbonu in 1988. Dozie was an inaugural member of the CFS Hall of Athletic Honor, and only three track records have stood longer than his high jump record.

Baseball earns a 4th Seed in District Play

The Varsity Baseball Team enjoyed a strong season, finishing with a record of 10-4.

Coach Andrew Louden’s squad earned the #4 seed in the District tournament, but lost a hard-fought game, 5-2 to Delaware County Chris-tian School.

Jeremy Soto ’12 pitched for CFS this year, helping his team to a winning season.

CFS wrestlers made a strong showing in District competition.

Tennis Teams serve up successful seasons

The CFS tennis program produced some fine wins this year. Varsity tennis, coached by Jeff

Holton, qualified for Districts with an 11-7 season. Jan Bohm ’14 also qualified for the District singles tournament, and played with Young Soo Lee ’13 in the District doubles. Bart Bronk’s Junior Var-sity team, 25 strong, finished the season at 13-4, and contributed nine individual victories in Varsity matches.

Jan Bohm ’14 played a strong season, qualifying for Districts.

Wrestling

Baseball

Track & Field

The 2012 CFS track team

John Kistler

Lamont Williams ’92 circa 1990

Tennis

8 The Maroon & Grey

Alumni Happenings

Dear Alumni:

There exists in the business world a presumptive process for Testing the Model. Usually, if planning is done correctly, there are but minor adjustments and then the Business model rolls to launch and subsequently into various growth phases. This idea is very much on my mind as I write to all Alumni for another year. When we look back past these brief few years and measure ourselves against what we had planned for; it is my privilege to report that we have successfully Tested the Model!

One of the great measures that has occurred for us all is the continued deepening shared by the Execu-tive Committee and members of the School’s Ad-ministration and Staff. This bonding has continued to flourish and from such creates great cause and effect for all Alumni. There have been repeated in-stances of how Alumni activities get pushed even higher, by the efforts and encouragement of Staff and Administrators. It is also necessary to claim the budget-share towards our events that the School so quickly and generously makes available to us all. If you come to campus for any event that is slanted towards Alumni, you will quickly note what I am talking about.

Where I think we are now headed is into our Growth Phase. The structure is gainfully in place and the participation rate, donation rate, commu-nication rate; all are happily on the rise. It is now our time as Alumni to kick it up and not lose the Great Momentum we have achieved together with the School.

So all the good work performed by so many is now at a junction point. That’s good stuff, because it permits Alumni to vanquish the old postures and focus on going fur-ther together than we imagined.

Let’s find our class-mates, let’s re-bond our eras and let’s re-build our relationships with each other.

Every year there are multiple classes in celebration of their milestone Reunion Year (5,10,20,25, etc.)

Planning, coordinating and executing on this should be your individual focuses. How you choose to in-volve your Executive Committee is the question. All of what we do is but a measure of Service and was this not one of our cornerstones as Students? Just because we graduated doesn’t mean we aban-don the Principles gained. So join in this, the Model is Proven- let us Grow It the coming Year.

Don Burt ’77President, Alumni AssociationMaroon

CFS AlumniAssociation

Elected Executive Committee MembersDon Burt ’77President

Chimdi Mbonu ’87Vice-President

Peter Goda ’60Secretary

Todd Elliott ’80Member-at-Large

Cecil Hengeveld ’64Member-at-Large

Active MembersTim Bond ’78 Steven Choc ’02 Stephen Loney ’97 J. Gordon Schleicher ’62 Eric Weller ’74 David Zimmerman ’88

As you are aware, the 2011-2012 school year has been referred to as “The Year of the Griffin.” We are all grateful for the bronze griffin which was donated by Trustee and long-time Board Chairman Sam Ballam this past September. However, I would like to think it was “The Year of the Challenge,” better known as the Talmadge O’Neill Alumni Challenge! Last year, Talmadge informed the School of his plans to increase alumni giving by offering a two-part incentive to challenge the alums. For each new gift or gift by a lapsed donor to the Alumni Annual Fund,

Talmadge would match the gifts two-to-one and the increased amount of increased gifts one-to-one, up to $50,000. If alumni participation reached 30%, he would donate an extra $10,000 to CFS.Church Farm School can’t thank Talmadge enough for his generous challenge which raised alumni giving from $43,740 to $91,300 and alumni participation to nearly 32%. It was a monumental task fulfilling this dual challenge; however, through the assistance of Alumni Annual Fund Chair Walt Smith ’86, Class Agents, members of the Alumni Executive Committee and the generous support of 278 alumni, we exceeded the participation challenge with nearly two weeks left in the fiscal year. As you may recall, alumni giving surpassed the $50K threshold in mid-January. It is imperative to keep the momentum going for upcoming years. Let’s continue the quest!In closing, our heartfelt thanks goes out to Talmadge. His generosity will make a difference in the lives of our deserving young men of ability and promise and to a school he loves so dearly. We are also grateful for the numerous maroon and grey brothers who rose to the challenge. It was your time to Look Back…Come Back…Give Back…and you did! THANK YOU!Kind regards,

Lori McDermottDirector of Alumni Relations

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Lori McDermottDirector of Alumni Relations

April Commemorates CFS’ History

April was CFS History Month. The theme for our seventh annual com-

memoration was “From Aggies… to Griffins.” Each day we highlighted a fact or two from yesteryear regarding the history of The Church Farm School and included a quote of the day with each correspondence. Students participated in a History Month Scavenger Hunt devel-oped by History Department Chair Eric Fulmer and History Teacher Andrew Louden as well as a weekly trivia con-test. Art teacher Aaron Schnittman and his digital photography class recreated still photos from the archives to share with the CFS community.

In addition, a few alumni served as guest speakers during our Tuesday morning History Month assemblies. Entrepreneur Talmadge O’Neill ’86 and Banker Seong Tae Moon ’00 addressed the faculty and students via Skype from California and South Korea, respectively. Yaw Ofori-Atta ’00, an ESPN Network Coordinator, was able to deliver his heartfelt speech in person. You can read more about Yaw’s visit on page 12.

Our History Month theme culminated with the celebration of our Spring Alumni and Reunion Weekend held April 27 – 29, 2012.

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Summer 2012 9

Spring Alumni Weekend

Friday Evening

1. Steve Loney ’97, Steve Choc ’02,Tom Phelan ’97 and Catherine Parry share time together at the Sherrill’s.

2. Classmates Don Burt ’77 and ChrisCortright ’77 reconnect at the Friday evening reception.

3. Dan Greenwood ’87 and Darrin Lancashire ’87 take a moment to enjoy Vision & Ability, A History of CFS, The School at Church Farm.

4. Erica Loney, Eileen Addis and Ale-mayehu Addis ’97 enjoy each other’s company.

5. Donald Duckworth ’62 and Fred Pitts ’62 chat about their days on “The Farm.”

Eric Nordstrom would have graduated from

Church Farm School in 1962, but he left school to care for his mother and work to support his broth-ers and sisters. And so, a half century later on April 27, 2012, he accepted his honorary diploma from Head of School, Ned Sherrill at a special recep-tion kicking off alumni weekend.

His remarks during the presentation were inspir-

ing and are expanded upon below:

My family was large, and we had to depend on the breadline for food. Living in New York City in poverty, I could have gone astray, for street gangs were every-where. Then life changed for me. Through an agency, I received a scholarship to Church Farm School. It was a way out of my neighborhood, and, over time, CFS showed me a different, much better way of life.

The School gave me a great work ethic, and I only took two sick days in 28 years of work. I believe in educa-tion—it is the greatest gift anyone can receive, because no one can take it away. I love seeing what young peo-ple can accomplish.

Acting on his beliefs, Mr. Nordstrom supports a student through the CFS Griffin Scholars Program.

Eric Nordstrom ’62 Receives CFS Diploma

Eric Nordstrom received his di-ploma from Ned Sherrill at a special reception during Reunion Weekend.

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Doolun Anyam ’12 attempts to guard Micheal Eric ’07.

Larry Cermak ’13, Troy Bixler ’04 and Tyler Ofray ’14 vie for the ball.

Alumni returned to the courts during Spring Alumni Week-

end to reunite with CFS Basketball Coach Marc Turner and to compete in a friendly game of hoops with CFS Varsity and JV basketball squads. With less than two sec-onds remaining in the game, junior Larry Cermak netted a 3-pointer to lead the young Griffins to a victory over the alumni.

Max Jenkins ’08 runs to first base after connecting with a pitch.

Alumni took to the baseball field to participate in a softball pick-up game with members of

the Varsity and JV baseball teams. Varsity Base-ball Coach Andrew Louden had his squad prepared for the scrimmage.

Head Tennis Coach Jeff Holton also had his team prepared for the afternoon singles and doubles matches which were held simultaneously on the courts.

Tim Bond ’78 concentrates as he prepares to serve.

Bruce Hotaling ’62 shows great form as he returns a volley.

Stu Brackney ’62, professional sports announcer, provides play-by-play.

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S pring Alumni Weekend festivi-ties began Friday evening April

27 with a cocktail reception at the Sherrill residence. Reunion classes gathered for drinks and appetiz-ers to reminisce about the past and celebrate the success of the School today.

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Spring Alumni Weekend

10 The Maroon & Grey

From Aggies...to Griffins

Class of ’62 Celebrates FiftiethBy: J. Gordon Schleicher ’62

A lot has changed after fifty years. No more crank telephones (not crank

calls, but phones that had to be cranked to ring at the other end), no more milk-ing cows at 5 a.m. or stacking bales of hay in the barn. No more waiting until one was a senior in order to get the privilege of hitchhiking into West Chester on a Sat-urday afternoon or only getting half the summer off because we had to work the fields to bring in the crops.

At the fortieth class reunion it was hard to see how the school had improved by giving up on the farm portion of Church Farm. But after reading the annual and periodic reports from the school and returning for the 50th to sit in on a class, take the tour of the out property and new classrooms, hearing about the boys’ community volunteerism and talking with students around the meal table, I was convinced it was for the better. I ap-preciated hearing the Head of School speak about the future hopes and dreams, including bringing cottage and academic faculty together and of powering a portion of the school with solar. I was glad to experience chapel service and worship at St. Paul’s. Recalling that the school was founded and nurtured on faith in God I could see that worship and the study of religious faith is still an integral part of the life and future of CFS.

During the alumni weekend my fellow classmates and I shared many stories from our years at CFS, but I was fascinat-ed by the many more stories told by ear-lier alumni and reported in the School’s history book by Mary Neighbour and Jim Tate ’52. And what made me feel satis-fied about how far Church Farm School has come was to read and see how The Colonel’s dreams, faith, work and study ethic had been preserved and how the ef-forts of Charlie and Terry Shreiner had helped modernize the academic work and cement the future financial foundation of CFS for generations to come. After meeting faculty and being in conversation with Head of School Rev. Ned Sher-rill I am convinced that the school is in good hands, God’s hands. Receiving a CFS Bible in a modern translation said it all; the message was the same as I received fifty years ago, in the King James version, only the words were now contemporary to make it easier to understand for the new time.

Awards Bestowed During Annual Alumni Dinner

The James Tate Class of 1952 Award for Excellence in Am-

bassadorship is named in honor of fellow alum, former long-time CFS Board Member and School Historian James Tate. It recognizes his tireless efforts throughout the years to help support and promote the School, its staff and students. The award is presented annually to that student whose enthusiasm for the School, commitment to its mis-sion and welcoming manner make him an ideal and effective CFS Ambassador. Dominique Alston ’12 was this year’s recipient of the prestigious award. Dom plans to pursue a degree in Early Child-hood and Special Education at Lebanon Valley College this fall. In addition, Jim and wife, Carol, announced their plans to contribute a monetary gift to cover Dom’s books for the first semester. Former Tate Award recipients Ousman Laast Maiga ’08 and Michael Milligan ’11 also attended the din-ner and were recognized during the ceremony.

In addition to the CFS Hall of Ath-letic Honor induction ceremony which you can read about on page 7, the CFS Alumni Association presented two new awards during the Spring Alumni Dinner. James Tate ’52 and Peter Goda ’60, each nominated by CFS alumni, re-ceived the Alumni Service Award in recognition of outstanding ser-vice, time and energy for the good of the School. Alumni Association Don Burt ’77 also presented J. Gordon Schleicher ’62 and Ste-ven Choc ’02 the Alumni Service Award in recognition of outstand-ing service to the community. This award conveys the importance of

volunteerism and inspires our current students to emulate this type of “giving back.” These awards resonate with our Look Back…Come Back…Give Back motto.

Dominique Alston ’12, the 2012 Tate Award winner, is congratulated by Jim Tate ’52.

Graduation photo of the Class of 1962

Members of the Class of 1962 return for their 50th reunion

1. From Aggies...to Griffins farm décor

2. Kim Kistler participates in the milking contest.

3. Dessert is served in Rose Acre.

4. 50th reunion classmates Bruce Hotaling and Eric Nordstrom.

5. “Then” dinner arrangement

6. (From left to right) Tim Hanson ’07, Ousman Laast- Maiga ’08 and Pat Ceschan smile for the camera.

7. Ken Timby ’62 engages in conversation.

8. Megan Goebel with former Tate Award recipient Michael Milligan ’11

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Peter Goda ’60 receives an Alumni Service Award from Alumni Association Presi-dent, Don Burt ’77.

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The Spring Alumni Dinner did not disappoint for the nearly 160 guests who attended the From Aggies…to

Griffins themed dinner held in Founder’s Pavilion. Food Service Manager Claudia Rose-Muir and her Sodexo crew once again delighted alumni from the Classes of 1947 through 2011 with her “then” and “now” menu and farm-based decorations. Many alumni who returned for their reunions enjoyed reminiscing with their classmates. Robert Gulick ’47 and Jim Tate ’52 were recognized for their attendance at their 65th and 60th reunions. Nearly all classmates from the Class of ’62 were on-hand to celebrate their 50th reunion. Joyce Graf also attended the reunion on behalf of her late husband, Bob. In addi-tion, the Classes of ’77, ’87, ’97, ’02 and ’07 were well represented. From Aggies…to Griffins movie clips were enjoyed by all prior to our evening of awards and tradi-tional alumni raffle.

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Class Notes

John Haswell ’64 (CFS64@aol.com) was unable to attend the Alumni Dinner celebration on April 28 as his daughter, Katherine Has-well, married Richard (Rick) Fabi-ani at Bayou Bend, Slidell, La. that same day. Katherine is a sommelier and wine representative for Stacole Wines Florida and Rick is an attor-ney in Gainesville, Fla. Rick, and Katherine’s brother, John Charles,

are both Eagle Scouts.

Liam Yao ’02 (lyao2000@yahoo.com) and his wife Shanette wel-comed a baby boy on April 4 (also Liam’s birthday) at 3:04 a.m. Lo-gan Seyram Yao weighed in at 8 pounds and 21.5 inches. Every-one is doing fine.

Kevin Yusko ’08 (kevinyusko@yahoo.com) received his under-graduate degree in Information Systems Technology from Albright College in Reading, Pa. Kevin is now working as a Computer Net-work Specialist at GK Elite Sports-wear.

In Memoriam

Richard C. Rittenhouse ’44

Church Farm’s 1974 class reunion weekend turned into a smashing success. Attending the

reunion were Dale Elks, Rick Burtner, Ed Bates, Eric Weller, Jeff Middleton and Ralph Steele. We all arrived in Washington, D.C. on Friday afternoon May 18 and traveled in comfort via limousine to Rick Burtner’s house, where we all chipped in for a shrimp and scallops boil. Dale and Jeff did the cook-ing; both did an excellent job.On Saturday we all woke up early to tour several museums and enjoy many of the Washington, D.C.

sites including the new Air and Space Smithsonian Mu-seum in Virginia. After a long day of sightseeing, we all enjoyed an outdoor dinner at a German restaurant in down-town D.C. We are all looking forward to our 40th reunion which we are hoping to organize in Florida.

Class of 1974 (from left to right):Eric Weller, Rick Burtner, Ed Bates, Dale Elks, Ralph Steele and Jeff Middleton

Steve Choc ’02 Finds Inspiration InCommunity Garden

S t. Paul’s Episcopal Church, the School’s early parish before the Chapel was built, has created a magnificent community garden with a great mis-

sion of service—and Steve Choc ’02 volunteers his time generously there as Garden Manager of the Nancy Hollywood Community Garden and Wellness Center (www.we-grow-hope.org). Founded in 2010, the garden now sports 36 raised beds. Some are rented out, and many support the Chester County Food Bank, to which the garden plans to donate 1,000 pounds of food this year. Utilizing his background in environmental science, Steve coordinates daily maintenance and a cadre of teenage and adult volunteers. He explains that high water costs for the garden are offset by fundraising activities. Corporate partners, such as the Brickman Group, make generous contributions, and the CFS Science Department also helps through its Seeding Program, described on page 4. Why does Steve, who juggles his “real” job with a strong dose of volunteer work, do it? “The garden is an inspirational place,” he says, adding that, “We are constantly learning as we grow food and community at the same time.”

Matt Kaplan ’07 Presents Classical Guitar Concert

Matt Kaplan ’07 gave a classical guitar con-cert for the student body during Chapel in

April. CFS Band Director Nichole Campbell knew Matt when they were music students together at West Chester University, and brought him back to CFS for his extraordinary concert. One highlight of the performance occurred when together, he on guitar and she on flute, they played Historie Du Tan-go, Movement 1: Bordell 1900 by Astor Piazzolla. Matt graduated from West Ches-ter University and has been accepted to all five graduate schools to which he applied.

Matt Kaplan ’07 and CFS Band Di-rector Nichole Campbell teamed up for a Chapel performance on April 18th.

Yaw Ofori-Atta ’00Inspires CFS Students

Yaw Ofori-Atta ’00 made the trip from

Bristol, Conn. to speak to the CFS student body at assembly on April 17th. Following graduation from CFS, where he was an honor student and all-around athlete, he at-tended SUNY/College at Oswego from 2000-2005, where he served as an Ex-ecutive Board Member of the Black Student Union and majored in Broad-casting and Mass Media. He currently works at ESPN as a Network Co-ordinator, with responsibility for the Day of Air of any of one or more of ESPN’s 23 international and domestic networks.

Yaw Ofori-Atta ’00 and Adam Tinkler ’00, reunite with Claudia Rose-Muir, who was “like a mother” at CFS. Adam and Yaw have been close friends since their CFS days.

J. Gordon Schleicher ’62 Rewarded by Mission Work

2011 was the fourth most-deadly tornado

year ever recorded in the United States. Most struck Alabama. 177 to be exact. Gordon Schleicher ’62, a retired United Methodist pas-tor, was part of a church team of 14 that went to

impoverished Marion County, Alabama to assist in reconstruction of homes from February 11-19, 2012. In that county alone, the tornado of April 27, 2011, killed 17 persons and destroyed 197 homes and damaged another 296. Split into two groups, the team worked on three homes in the towns of Hack-leburg and Phil Campbell. Volunteer work included painting, installing ceiling tile, mobile home skirt-ing and replacing vinyl siding. Gordon has been on ten in-country and five out-of-country mission trips during his five years of retirement.

Chris Johnson ’85 Addresses CFS Students

Christopher John-son ’85 spoke to

the students, faculty and staff at Chapel in early spring. Mr. John-son, Principal of Ben Franklin High School in Philadelphia, talked about his experiences at CFS and how they helped to prepare him for college and success in his career.

He also described the challenges and rewards of lead-ing a large urban high school and praised some of the very fine and dedicated teachers at Ben Franklin.

Chris Johnson ’85 describes his career as the principal at a large urban high school.

J. Gordon Schleicher ’62 cuts vinyl skirting for a mo-bile home during a recent mission trip.

Class of ’74 Holds ReunionBy Ralph Steele ’74

Helen Heinmiller, director, and Steve Choc ’02, garden man-ager at the Nancy Hollywood Community Garden & Wellness Center(Photo courtesy of Francine Fulton, feature writer, Engle Printing & Publishing Co. Inc.)

Romane Paul ’06 Returns to Motivate Students

In May, the CFS community welcomed Romane Paul ’06

who urged all students to make the most of the opportunities available at CFS. After gradua-tion, Romane, an inspiring ora-tor and an energetic volunteer on many fronts including the politi-cal arena, attended Swarthmore College where he was chosen by his classmates as senior class speaker. Currently, he teaches

8th grade in Harlem while pursuing a graduate degree in education from Hunter College.

Romane Paul ’06 speaks during gradu-ation at Swarthmore.

Brigadier General Eric Weller ’74 Honored

Head of School Ned Sher-rill, Director of Alumni

Relations Lori McDermott and Brigadier General Cecil B. Hengeveld ’64, Retired, attended the Change of Com-mand Ceremony for outgoing Commander Brigadier Gen-eral Eric Weller ’74 in Febru-ary. Brigadier General Weller was recognized for his leader-ship at the 193d Special Opera-tions Wing, Pennsylvania Air National Guard, at Harrisburg International Airport. Timothy Whalon ’99, TSgt USAF ANG 193 FSS/HRO Remote, was also present. Brigadier General Weller now serves as Deputy Commander for Mo-bilization and Reserve Affairs, United States Special Op-erations Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Fla.

Brig. Gen. Eric Weller ’74, shakes the hand of new Vice Commander, Col. John Dick-inson. (Photo by: Air National Guard Photographer, TSgt Culeen Shaffer)

CFS Happenings...First Day of School – September 4, 2012

Convocation – September 7, 2012

Alumni Soccer – September 8, 2012

Alumni Service/Make a Difference Day – September 15

CFS Golf Classic – September 28, 2012

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church/CFS Community 5K Run - October 20, 2012

Pageant Weekend – December 14 – 16, 2012

Alumni Gatherings - TBD

Class of 1962 50th Reunion

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The Maroon & GreyThe Church Farm School1001 E. Lincoln HighwayExton, PA 19341www.gocfs.net