evergreen 05 VOL. OCT. 2019 05 VOL. Contents: OCT. 2019 1 Principal’s Message 2 Alumni News 3 Class Fund Update 4 Around Greenwood 6 Pursuing a Graduate Degree 8 Taking On New Challenges 10 School’s Out(side) 11 A Toast to Entrepreneurship 12 Pursuing Their Passions 14 Community Snapshots 16 Alumni Snapshots 18 Guess Who’s Back! 19 Staff Notes 20 Class Notes 22 Then & Now Evergreen is published annually by Greenwood College School. Editor: Kate Raven Writers: Kate Raven, Melissa St. Amant, Rex Taylor Photography: Margaret Mulligan Comments regarding Evergreen are always welcome. Feel free to contact us at: Advancement Department, Greenwood College School 443 Mt Pleasant Rd, Toronto, ON, M4S 2L8 or at [email protected] PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE This past June, Greenwood’s Class of 2019 set off for new adventures. This leaving class ceremony was an important milestone not only for these 80 young people, but for our school: our alumni now number over 1,000 (1,004, to be exact). Our alumni are at several different stages in their lives, from our oldest grads in their late 20s and early 30s to our youngest alumni in their late teens. Some are just beginning their postsecondary journeys. Some are looking for that first full-time job in their chosen field. Some are in their early years in the workforce. Some are completing postgraduate degrees in fields including medicine, molecular genetics, psychology and music. Many have long-term partners and are starting families. There is no such thing as a “typical” Greenwood graduate – and for us, that means we’re achieving our goal of giving students the tools they need to pursue their passions. Our alumni are pursuing many different paths in a broad range of fields and a broad range of places. Greenwood grads are photographers, lawyers, engineers, physical therapists, investment bankers and much, much more. They live in Canada, the United States, the UK, Switzerland and Australia. They’re not afraid to try new things if it means exploring what excites them. As unique as our alumni are, they will forever be part of the Greenwood community – and we want to make sure they can stay connected to their school and to their peers. In the coming years, one of our main goals is to not only give our grads more opportunities to reinforce their connection to Greenwood, but to offer programs and services that work for our alumni at every stage of their post-Greenwood lives. This work is already underway – see page 2 of the magazine to learn more about what’s to come. I could not be more proud that over 1,000 Greenwood alumni are forging their own paths and chasing their own definitions of success. As I enter my second year as Greenwood’s Principal, I’m looking forward to continuing to get to know our grads and to learning more about their accomplishments, both big and small. To all of our alumni: please feel free to introduce yourself to me – I’d love to hear all about what you’ve been up to! Sarah Bruce September 2019 Greenwood 1 Alumni News Greenwood Establishes POSITION NAME President Paul Forster ’08 Inaugural Alumni Executive Vice President Jessie Lewis ’09 On our alumni survey conducted earlier this year, many respondents Internships/Networking Ryan Boynton ’08 indicated that they would like to see more events and programming Brendan Crampton ’09 targeted to Greenwood graduates. We heard that feedback, and we are Mentorship Stephan Dalkie ’09 committed to establishing a robust alumni program at the school. A structured alumni association is critical to moving that vision forward. Events Saul Lewis ’11 Russell Reeves ’11 With that in mind, we are very pleased to announce our first-ever Nicole Wallenberg ’11 Alumni Executive. Led by Paul Forster ’08, our inaugural President, and Jessie Lewis ’09, our inaugural Vice-President, the Executive Class Presidents Chair Victoria Gooderham ’08 is ready to work hard on developing exciting initiatives, events and Young Alumni Chair Liam Wilson ’18 programming tailored to the needs and interests of our grads. Member at Large Allie Hawkey ’09 Stay tuned for more information in the coming months! Please feel UK Chapter Chairs Adam Brady ’12 free to contact Jamie Lougheed, Executive Director, Advancement at Lauren Karrys ’12 416 545 5103 or [email protected] should you have any questions about the Alumni Executive and its mandate New York Chapter Chairs Mitch Reeves ’09 moving forward. Elly Rosenbaum ’14 Paul Forster ’08 and Jessie Lewis ’09 are the inaugural President and Vice-President of Greenwood’s Alumni Executive. 2 evergreen Oct. 2019 Class Fund Update How’s Your Class Fund Doing? Every year, Greenwood establishes an endowed Class Fund in honour of our graduating class in the Greenwood College School Foundation. We encourage graduating students and their families to direct their Annual Appeal gifts to their Class Funds. Most funds support student financial assistance; some funds support the Greenwood Centre for Teaching and Learning, the school’s area of greatest need or experiential learning programs. Over the years, these funds have enabled many current Greenwood students whose financial situations have changed to continue their Greenwood experience. The funds have also supported enhancements to our experiential learning programs, valuable professional development opportunities for our teachers and more. We are very grateful for this generous support from our community and the many opportunities it has made possible for our students and staff. Our Class Funds are established during students’ graduating years, but our hope is that our alumni and past parents will help their Class Funds grow in the years to come. This continued support will leave a lasting legacy from each graduating class to the school, and make a real difference for present and future students and staff. For alumni, support for class funds is currently focused on reunion giving (e.g., we will encourage grads to make a donation to their Class Fund in honour of their reunion years). See the chart below for a summary of each Class Fund and what it supports. Have a question about Class Funds? Feel free to get in touch with Jamie Lougheed, Executive Director, Advancement at 416 545 5103 or [email protected]. GRAD CLASS WHAT FUND SUPPORTS FUND BALANCE 2006 Student financial assistance $ 282,392 2007 School’s area of greatest need $ 84,987 2008 Experiential learning programs $ 302,412 2009 School’s area of greatest need $ 75,381 2010 Student financial assistance $ 195,432 2011 Student financial assistance $ 72,550 2012 Student financial assistance $ 70,996 2013 Greenwood Centre for Teaching and Learning $ 80,365 2014 Greenwood Centre for Teaching and Learning $ 46,750 2015 Student financial assistance $ 42,896 2016 Student financial assistance $ 20,100 2017 Student financial assistance $ 34,450 2018 Student financial assistance $ 82,467 2019 Student financial assistance $ 92,906 Greenwood 3 Around Greenwood Bidding Farewell to Carla DiFilippo After contributing significantly to our school over the Teacher Janelle past 16 years – as a teacher and coach and through Watson presents multiple director roles – Carla DiFilippo has accepted the Carla DiFilippo with a position of Director, Athletics at Havergal College. From token of the school’s building the school’s athletics program, to enhancing appreciation at all aspects of school life, to sharing her knowledge with Greenwood’s annual literally hundreds of Health and Physical Education Celebration Day on students and with fellow staff, Carla has had an impact June 14, 2019. on many, many members of the Greenwood community. Her dedication and enthusiasm will be deeply missed. We wish Carla the best of luck on her new adventure! The Adventure of a Lifetime Feeling ground down and a bit burnt out as emergency department nurse at a downtown Toronto hospital, Gigi Labrie ’07 recognized she needed a break. But instead of putting her feet up on a beach somewhere, Gigi instinctively looked for something she could do to make a difference. She reached out to former Greenwood teacher Rex Taylor, who arranged for her to spend March in Kenya volunteering with a mobile health clinic. Gigi left Canada expecting to work in an office, pushing paper and hoping to spend one week in the field with the clinic team. But life has a way of throwing curves. Less than 24 hours after arriving in Kenya, the clinic administrator approached Gigi and said “There’s been a change of plans. How would you like to go out with a camel mobile clinic for a month in the far north?” “Sure,” said Gigi. “When does it leave?” “Two hours,” replied the administrator. “Go pack. Quick!” And thus began the adventure of a lifetime. Gigi spent the next month with the mobile clinic team as they travelled from community to community by camel caravan, helping to dispense a range of health care interventions, with an emphasis on reproductive health and contraception. The only “European” in the group, Gigi ate what the Kenyans ate, slept in a tent and sometimes under the stars, and helped to manage the camels. And she learned to gain the confidence of women who in many cases had never laid eyes on a white person before. 4 evergreen Oct. 2019 Classes of ’09 and ’14: Don’t Miss Your 5 & 10 Year Reunion! Friday, October 18 • 7-9 p.m. • Greenwood College School The reunion is an opportunity for members of the Classes of 2009 and 2014 to return to Greenwood. It’s a time to see fellow Greenwood grads, catch up with your old teachers and enjoy refreshments and hors d’oeuvres. Visit Greenwood’s Alumni Facebook page for more details and to RSVP.