School Ties: 2013, Summer Issue - St. Michaels University School

Transcription

SUMMER 2013 • ST. MICHAELS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL
School
On the Edge
In an ever-changing
industry, four alumni share
how SMUS prepared them
for an unpredictable career.
Fashion Online
Both challenges and
opportunities can be
found in marketing and
selling apparel online.
Teaching Technology
The benefits of new
tools in the classroom
and the advent of a new
artistic medium.
Thanks to Our Sponsors and Golfers
With your help, we raised $14,000 for the Alumni Endowment Fund
A
t the 2012 Annual SMUS Alumni & Friends Golf Invitational,
112 golfers took to the Victoria Golf Club course in support
of the Alumni Endowment Fund. The diverse group, comprised
of men, women, parents, staff and alumni, enjoyed a seasonable
and sunny afternoon oceanside. As incentives for great play –
or great luck – there were opportunities to win big prizes with a
hole-in-one, but none were taken home this year.
Thanks to Steve Tate ’98 and all our organizers, volunteers and
guests who continue to make this event a wonderful success.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1. Luke Mills, Colin Brown ’90, Francois Muller, Dave Fracy 2. Cathy Dixon, Kathy Jawl, Rani Singh, Joan Snowden 3. Steve Keeler, Vanessa (Young)
Keeler ’84, Tracey Hagkull, Blair Hagkull 4. Dan Matthews, Blane Fowler, Michael Burrows, Jack Foster 5. Lisa Matthews, Allison Fowler 6. Mat Geddes ’93
7. Steve Selina ’81, Jim Brust, Ted Balderson ’82, Jim Taylor 8. Andy Maxwell ’79, Susanna Crofton ’80, Frank Corbett, Danielle Topliss ’91 9. Chuck
Hemingway ’88, John Fraser, Travis Lee ’88 10. Rob Connolly ’96, Andrew Williamson ’98, Chris Noel ’98, Steve Tate ’98
Contents
School Ties is distributed to more than
5,000 members of the St. Michaels
University School community, including
current families, friends, and current and
past staff and students. The goal
of the publication is to communicate
current activities and initiatives and
provide articles and reports on the alumni
community. If you have any comments or
suggestions regarding this publication,
please email [email protected].
2 Technology
Bob Snowden on how technology
affects education.
3 Highlights from
the SMUS Review
Published by the Advancement Office
St. Michaels University School
3400 Richmond Road
Victoria, British Columbia
Canada V8P 4P5
Telephone: 250-592-2411
Admissions: 1-800-661-5199
Email: [email protected]
News stories from all three campuses
published on our web forum, the
SMUS Review.
6 Athletics Highlights
School Ties magazine and archive
copies can be found in the publications
section of the school website:
www.smus.ca/pubs
Editors: Erin Anderson, Laura Authier,
Gillian Donald ’85, Peter Gardiner,
Darin Steinkey
Arts highlights from September 2012
to March 2013.
28 The Class of 2012:
The Road Ahead
13 Using Technology to Teach
Find out where our newest group of alumni
are spending their first year after SMUS.
New tools help educators change the way
students learn.
Contributors: Erin Anderson,
Laura Authier, Gillian Donald ’85,
Peter Gardiner, Mat Geddes ’93,
Bob Snowden, Darin Steinkey,
Brenda Waksel, Jim Wenman ’67,
Rob Wilson and SMUS community
members. We apologize for any
omissions.
30 Alumni Weekend
From an international marketplace to
boisterous reunion dinners, our alumni
received a warm welcome.
16 A New Approach to Art
The digital art program opens up
new media.
35 Alumni Receptions
18 A Different Lens
Photos: Erin Anderson, Chris Bateman,
Shayla Baumeler, Frank Chang,
Gillian Donald, Rob Ducharme,
Anastasia Efremova, Ann Fenje,
Katie Jones, Peter Gardiner,
Lizette Greyling, Chris Hanebury,
Jake Humphries, Kent Leahy-Trill,
Melanie Masson, Jody Nishima,
Darin Steinkey, Mark Yager
Two alumni use technology to capture
stunning images.
Connecting with alumni in Vancouver,
Tokyo, Toronto, London, Hong Kong
and Los Angeles...
20 Online Style: Fashion
on the Web
38 Alumni Updates
Three alumni talk finding fashion online.
News from our alumni around the world.
School Ties is Your Magazine
Design and Layout: Reber Creative
Publications
Mail Agreement
#40063624
Four alumni are working in an
ever-changing field.
8 Arts Highlights
If you are interested in attending alumni
events, visit the online Calendar of Events
at alumni.smus.ca.
Printed in Canada W
by Hillside Printing Ltd., Victoria, BC
23 On the Edge: Alumni
in Tech
Sports highlights from August 2012
to March 2013.
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Mark Your Calendars
February, 2012
School
Tell Us What You Want to Read
Vancouver, BC
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March, 2012
Seattle, WA
Portland, OR
Washington, DC
Hong Kong, CH
Tokyo, JP
Seoul, KR
April, 2012
San Francisco, CA
May 4-6, 2012
Alumni Weekend
Send us your thoughts on our latest
issue and themes you would like to see
appear in the future. (www.smus.ca/ties)
Alumni Abroad
Five alumni who
discovered opportunities
in faraway places
SMUS History Online
Our new interactive
website brings our past
into our present
Tell Us What’s New
Passages
Remembering co-ed
pioneer and former
headmaster John Schaffter
On the Edge
On
In an
an ever-changing
In
industry, four alumni share
industry,
share
how SMUS
SMUS prepared them
how
them
for an
an unpredictable career.
for
career.
Fashion
FashionOnline
Online
Both
Bothchallenges
challengesand
and
opportunities
opportunitiescan
canbebe
found
foundininmarketing
marketingand
and
selling
sellingapparel
apparelonline.
online.
Teaching
TeachingTechnology
Technology
The
Thebenefits
benefitsofofnew
new
tools
toolsininthe
theclassroom
classroom
and
andthe
theadvent
adventofofa new
a new
artistic
artisticmedium.
medium.
Submit an update online to let your former
classmates know what you’re up to through
School Ties. (www.smus.ca/update)
This issue of School Ties was printed on Opus 30 Dull Text 30% post-consumer recycled
paper. By selecting this paper, St. Michaels University School has preserved 7 trees for
the future, saved 698 gal of water and 634 lbs of solid waste, and conserved 910 kilowatt
hours of electricity. It reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 1,152 lbs and landfill waste
by 2 cubic yards.
School Ties - Summer 2013 • 1
3400 Richmond Road
Victoria, BC, CANADA V8P 4P5
Register at
alumni.smus.ca/events
head of school
Technology
While the tools at our disposal have changed, Bob finds certain aspects of education endure.
by Bob Snowden
F
ire, hand tools, the wheel, the printing press, electricity: all
of the epochal technologies forged anew how we share a meal,
secure a dwelling, understand a common history and envision
a common future. Transforming technologies earned that label
because they were a successful experiment in bringing people
face to face, a catalyst for community, family, trade, pleasure and
safety. Technology has always been a social medium, in one form
or another.
When our school was established, the texture of life consisted
of crude automobiles and electricity, more disease and infection
and less convenience. Students used pen and ink rather than
keyboards and screens, travelled home on passenger trains rather
than passenger planes, communicated person to person rather
than over text or video. Our
founders imagined an education
whose flesh and bone was the
classroom, the sports field, the
library, the stage and the dining
table. They believed these essential
experiences would endure and
sustain a learning community.
Today, as I look out my
window, students are streaming
from the Crothall Centre onto the quad, carrying violin cases
to orchestra rehearsals, and hustling to dining hall. Or as I look
out onto fields the boys are playing rugby, and the girls playing
soccer; or as I pick up from my desk the slim volume from
which I read the poems and stories composed by our senior
writing students – as I do any of these things, I conclude that
the vision of our founders worked. A discussion today that
imagines the school in another 100 years would likely put some
new details in the picture I see today, but the similarities would
be more profound than the differences.
Because our current technology comes in digital form,
racing along pathways both wired and wireless, how different is
life, in the end? While technology has accelerated the contact
that earlier technologies also accelerated, does that necessarily
mean our students will become different creatures from earlier
generations? Or will their main purpose still be to seek the
fulfillment that comes with sharing their lives with others: with
their families, the broader community and the wider world, as
always? Will education’s main purpose still be the pursuit of
truth and goodness?
We now livestream many important school events so that
alumni, parents and friends of the school can witness the
Closing Ceremonies, the Concerto Concert or other aspects of
life at SMUS. Even a few years ago, this sharing was impossible.
Our alumni who plan reunion gatherings do so by setting up
Facebook pages. I have about
750 connections on LinkedIn,
most of whom are SMUS family,
and to whom I send school
updates regularly. Then there is
the Internet: for the young mind
it is an exciting and flowing river
of information, as wide as your
curiosity. In this river you can
learn to swim, to sift the relevant
from irrelevant – or alternatively you can simply float, or
possibly drown.
A recent exchange I had with a parent lamented the time
that is wasted on social media like Facebook or Twitter or
Instagram. I don’t know how much time these media waste.
Nor do I know how much time people wasted a hundred, five
hundred or a thousand years ago when they used to sit around a
fire or smoke a pipe discussing politics in a coffee house or copy
texts in a dusty library. I suspect that time-wasting among the
young has had parents and teachers wringing their hands for
centuries, if not millennia. I just imagine all the wasted time
that went into the theory of relativity or Shakespeare’s plays.
Vivat!
2 • School Ties - Summer 2013
Because our current
technology comes in digital
form, racing along pathways
both wired and wireless, how
different is life, in the end?
Visit http://blogs.smus.ca/head/
The SMUS Review publishes weekly on our website and covers school news from all three campuses.
The following highlights were taken from stories published from September 2012 to March 2013.
You can read more about these stories in the SMUS Review at blogs.smus.ca/review.
September
Teacher Zyoji Jackson helps his Grade 7
students crunch some numbers. The class
tested their mathematical skills by using
GPS trackers to find geocaches and solving
the math problems they discovered inside.
Grade 10 student
Colin Knightley
attempts to kayak
through campus
to attract new
members to the
Outdoor Education
Council at the
annual council fair.
SCHOOL News
Highlights from the SMUS Review
October
Ty Fimrite explores his new
classroom, which was created over
the summer to accommodate a
second class of Kindergarten students.
November
Tasha Muwanguzi and her fellow Timmis
boarders enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with
the entire boarding community.
Jamie Bull-Weizel works on gingerbread
in Brown Hall. She and her class raised
$3,410 to buy 249 toys, games and
books as Christmas presents for over
120 children in our community.
Grade 8 students
Jessa McElderry and
Anna Mollenhauer
share a book for
Drop Everything
and Read, an
initiative to
build literacy.
SCHOOL News
November
Grade 6 students Anna
Considine and Georgia Haydock
introduce two speakers from
Shooting for Hope. Middle
School students collected
38 pairs of cleats for the nonprofit organization, which runs
soccer camps for girls in India.
December
Grade 7 students
Ethan Ko and
Ethan Hersant
work on cracking
some equations
during Math
Mania, a fun event
where students
play games that
test their skills and
show the diversity
of mathematics.
Grade 4 student
Michael Moulden
makes a new friend
at a special assembly.
World Vision arranged
for the animal visitor
after students earned
over $600 by doing
chores at home – funds
they used to buy farm
animals for families in
developing countries.
Student vocalists sing at the historic Christ Church
Cathedral as part of our first school-wide carol service.
Around 300 performers from the Junior, Middle and
Senior schools performed for a packed house.
January
Grade 12 student Kai Newman talks about
sustainability at the Global Responsibility
Leadership Conference for Youth. SMUS
students organized and hosted the conference,
which had over 120 participants.
Olivia Lupin gets her hands on a friendly
reptile. The Grade 6 Science students met
several snakes as part of an annual visit from
the Swan Lake Travelling Snake program.
SCHOOL News
January
Grade 12 student Keiler Totz was named one
of two recipients of the Blyth Cambridge
Commonwealth Trust scholarship, which will
allow him to study biomedical engineering
at one of the best universities in the world.
February
Grade 6 student Violetta Britskaya practices
for the French-speaking competition concours
d’art oratoire. Four SMUS students won
medals at the provincial level, including a gold
medal from Grade 8 student Madison Liew.
Grade 4 student Divyesh
Nagarajan shares his iPad
knowledge with Grade 2
buddy Jonah Johnston.
The Junior School
buddy program pairs
up students in different
grades for a wide range
of educational activities.
Grade 11 boarder Kalkidan Amare (second from
left) poses with new friends she made while on
an exchange to the Woodstock School in India.
March
Grade 7 mathematician
Sara Perelmuter shows
off her Pi-shaped cookie,
given out to celebrate
the mathematically
significant Pi Day,
March 14 (aka 3/14).
Students rehearse for a performance in chapel,
part of a celebration of Black History Month.
Grade 1 student Ava Lee presents her
schoolwork to her parents during the
student-led conferences at the Junior School.
SPORTS
Athletic Highlights from the SMUS Review
Our student athletes continue to compete in a variety of sports. Here are some of the stand-out
moments from August 2012 to March 2013. You can read more about these events by visiting the
SMUS Review at blogs.smus.ca/review and choosing the Athletics category.
August
September
Rowing
Future rowers jump into the water for a swim test.
More than 80 athletes completed ergometer tests,
medicine ball throws, anthropometric measurements
and a four-kilometre run as part of rowing tryouts.
Senior Girls Volleyball
At the end of the summer, 10
athletes and two coaches spent a
week in Havana, Cuba, sharpening
their skills and connecting with
Cuban athletes through volleyball.
October
Grade 8 Rugby
All that practice pays off as the boys hit the
halfway mark of their season with a perfect
4-0 record intact. With two wins versus
George Bonner and one each against
Shawnigan Lake and St. George’s, the team
earned their spot at the top of the pack.
Sailing
Grade 6 student Alex Shirley
braves the cold and challenging
conditions in the first annual
Vancouver Island Youth Regatta
at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club.
More than 20 SMUS students
helped the Middle School
finish first and the Senior
School capture fourth.
November
December
Field Hockey
Grade 11 student Emma Donald stickhandles
past her opponent. The girls took fourth place
in provincials, brought home the first Island
AA Championship since 2003, won the
SMUS Invitational, placed first in the city
at the Bridgeman Cup, and earned a bronze
medal at the Senior ISA tournament.
February
Junior Boys Basketball
The SMUS Junior boys became Island Champions after some
hot shooting by their dangerous back court helped the team
earn a 78-36 win in the final against Oak Bay. Jason Scully was
named to the tournament All-star team and Max Pollen, who
scored 25 points in the final, was named Island MVP.
January
Senior Girls Basketball
Abbey Piazza takes it to
the rim at the Victoria
Police Tournament.
Piazza was named to
the All-star team and
her team cruised to a
53-33 win, claiming
third place – their best
finish in recent years.
March
Squash
Gavin Maxwell and Matt Ashton
scooped two provincial titles and
SMUS secured seven spots in the
nationals during a highly successful
provincial tournament in Nanaimo.
Sports
Senior Boys Basketball
In a riveting weekend’s play, SMUS captured the
2012 ISA Senior Boys championship, winning three
games in the space of just over 24 hours in a highly
competitive tournament played at Brentwood College.
ARTS
Arts Highlights
Our singers, musicians, actors and artists continue to do our school proud on stage and canvas. Of
the many recent creative triumphs, here are a few of our favourites. You can read more about these
stories in the SMUS Review at blogs.smus.ca/review.
October
September
Budding artist Rowan
Das concentrates on
his drawing. Junior
School artists created
a range of pieces this
fall, including clay
leaves and Ted Harrisoninspired landscapes.
Grade 9 student Sid Boegman gets
creative writing tips from visiting
author T. A. Barron, who spoke to
students in Grades 5 through 9
about what makes a great story.
November
Grade 6 student Cindy Li
created this happy turtle
for the piggybank project.
Olivia Sorley’s campfire
shot won our Outdoor
Education photo
contest this year,
which was decided
by Facebook likes.
December
The Vocal Jazz Ensemble
performs “Caravan” at the
Small Ensembles Concert,
which also featured our concert
singers and swing band.
January
ARTS
Students explore their Orff instruments, part of a
new approach to music for Kindergarten to Grade 3.
The SMUS orchestra fills the stage at the Large Ensembles concert.
February
Celine Doerhing performs as
Mary Lennox in the SMUS
production of The Secret Garden.
Lance Hu was one of many artists who had work featured in the
Gallery at the Mac during the Senior School musical production.
March
The Middle School staged
a wonderful production of
the classic musical Annie.
SCHOOL News
Final
Farewell
Two members of our faculty passed away this year and were mourned by our entire community.
Here, a former student remembers former Head of Drama David Gauthier and a Learning Resource
colleague shares memories of FelicityTallboy-Gall.
Felicity
by Claire de Rosenroll
F
elicity’s unique personality touched the lives of so many
people, but to know how much Felicity will be missed, I
think it is important to
understand a bit about what
Felicity deemed, “the weird
and wonderful world of
Learning Resource.” With
Felicity around, it was a
vibrant place to say the least.
Students and colleagues
gravitated towards her office,
and her voice or laugh could
always be heard throughout
the resource centre.
Felicity believed that if she could make people feel
comfortable with themselves and each other, real learning would
happen. She, in part, made this happen through her incredible
sense of humour and her brilliant – yet unconventional –
approach. As an example, Felicity referred to her office and
tutoring room as her “dictatorship.” She had her own flag, and
although she enjoyed our frequent debates, she would tease that
in her dictatorship, she was to have the last word.
Dear Felicity,
somebody as with
I’ve never laughed or fought as much with
elder, a mentor,
you. You were many things to me: a wise
best friend. I can’t
an intellectual, a mother, a sister, and a
red me up and
chee
have
count the number of times you
times.
hard
in
helped me to see the silver lining, even
for our
kful
than
so
I might not have told you but I am
t. You
abou
talk
friendship. We always had something to
ys
alwa
me,
ious to
had so much to offer; you were so grac
ht
insig
like I had
making me, 30 years your junior, feel
with me.
did
you
as
you
and wisdom to share with
as we all have.
you,
from
h
I have learned so muc
ting skills while
You have allowed us to practice our deba
that, at the end
and
acknowledging that truth is relative,
es and enjoy
renc
of the day, it’s time to put aside any diffe
).
lager
of
each other’s company (ideally over a pint
ing a
find
of
You have shown us the importance
ure
nurt
we can to
student’s strengths and doing whatever
age,
this day and
those traits. You too often said that in
a person and
with
g
wron
is
t
we are too fixated with wha
f you had in
belie
this
felt
not with what is right. Students
But what was even more amazing about Felicity’s approach
was to see the number of students she worked with who
changed their outlook on learning. You see, Felicity had a way
of infecting others with her lifelong love of learning.
Students who came to Felicity struggling and believing
they hated a particular subject often learned they were not only
capable of tackling or excelling in that subject area, but that
they actually enjoyed it.
For others, Felicity was their very own Google. She was
filled with information and encouraged deeper thinking in us
all. She challenged us to ask questions and explore what was at
the very core of an issue. Indeed, there was nothing superficial
about Felicity.
When Felicity died, one of the first things I thought about
was whether she knew how much I loved her, and how much
she was loved by so many others. In this spirit, I would like to
share with you a personal letter I wrote to Felicity.
them and it is why you hav
e become a big part of so ma
ny
of their lives.
Finally, we have watched
how daring to be different
can put others at ease and
allow them to be themselv
es.
Thank you.
Last Friday, the students put
together a quote box of
all the things they remember
you saying. I felt this was
so
meaningful given that you
r voice has always had suc
ha
presence, and so much of wh
at you say has truly resonat
ed
with me.
Though I remember you say
ing many catch-lines, my
favourite will always be you
r reassuring voice after a lon
g
day telling me, “You did
good kiddo, now go home
and
enjoy your little one. They
grow up too fast and they’re
so
neat at that age.”
Felicity, you always treasur
ed children of all ages.
I miss you so much. I feel
incredibly lucky to have
known you so well that I
will always hear your dis
tinct
voice in my mind for years
to come.
I love you, Felicity.
Goodbye.
by Dan Christensen ’06
T
he first time I saw David Gauthier, I was in dress rehearsal
for Tommy, the summer musical at SMUS. It was the summer
before he took over as the Senior School drama teacher. We
were using a gymnasium to rehearse and I spotted him sitting
alone to the side of the bleachers. He wore a mustard-yellow
shirt that was more French’s original than Dijon, with the
cuffs just slightly rolled up (a look with which I would become
familiar). It made him particularly difficult to miss, despite the
relative darkness and his aloof demeanour.
I wouldn’t be introduced to him until over a year later,
but upon reflecting on my memories of David, this one stuck
out. He always seemed to me something of an outlier in the
SMUS community. Although after taking up the mantle, he
truly poured his whole self into each musical, to the students
he was closest to, he made little secret of his lack of fondness for
musicals compared to straight plays, giving me the sense that
the annual show was a long-held tradition that was somewhat
thrust upon him.
Upon reading the comments posted online after his passing,
I found a recurring theme among student remembrances was
a sentiment that David’s impact singularly brightened their
high school experience. I even remember a friend shortly after
graduation remarking that, without David, they may not have
graduated at all. Doubtlessly, he was no phony, which made him
a rare and valuable presence in high school. For some of us, those
double doors into his drama classroom represented a sanctuary
to which we could steal away from SMUS life, bustling as it was,
and find an adult who would speak to us straight.
What meant the most for me was that this sincerity David
had was best reflected in the way he taught. When rehearsing,
discussing or reviewing a scene, it really meant something to
him for you to take the advice he had to offer. There was no
sense of monotony or routine about it and this engagement
truly showed how much he respected his students. Due to my
involvement in drama, he and I spent a lot of time together
and developed a unique, complex relationship. I’m sure I
infuriated him countless times, but it was never when I would
push back against his suggestions and ideas. This is because
David didn’t expect to talk at you like some teachers do. He
was disappointed if you didn’t allow him to talk to you. Some
of my fondest memories with him took place after his directing
and scriptwriting classes (quite clearly his favourite), dissecting
(in excruciating detail) and reflecting on a scene I had just
presented – it was always a debate, never a lecture.
Though his theatrical leanings may have suggested otherwise,
and despite first glance, I believe David was quite a personable
man, and I think his true legacy will lie with those who embraced
him for the genuine personality he so readily had to offer. Like
many others, I selfishly wish he hadn’t been stolen from us so
soon, but also like most everyone else, I know his time with us
was anything but time wasted. Thank you for everything, David.
Your belief in me still motivates me to this day.
SCHOOL News
David
SCHOOL News
Saying
Goodbye
A few members of the SMUS community recently decided to depart from the school. From retiring
to changing professions, find out what their plans are for the future and what they’ll miss the most.
Ana Strauss
Middle School Teacher (June 2012)
Ana joined the school in 1994, first as a part-time German teacher
at the Senior School and then as a full-time Middle School
teacher covering French, Art and Spanish. During her time at
SMUS, Ana strove to cultivate a love of learning and promote
intellectual curiosity and creativity no matter what the subject.
Some of her favourite experiences at the school include helping
with the musicals – designing props, painting sets and working
with students outside the classroom – and spending time with her
colleagues at staff retreats. Ana hopes to return to her origins as a
professional artist and perhaps spend time in a Spanish-speaking
country, enjoying a warmer climate and a different lifestyle.
Joan Kyle-Jones
Head of ESL (June 2012)
Since joining the school in 2000, Joan has spearheaded our tremendous
English as a Second Language program. She has taught students from
across the globe not only to read, write, understand and speak English,
but also how to succeed academically in all avenues. She’s worked with
Learning Resources, sat on the International Council and been a highly
valued colleague and teacher. Joan will miss her students most of all – their
energy, openness, freshness and spontaneity. She has found it hard to say
farewell to the school, but she is excited to dive into an active retirement.
Her plans for life after SMUS include devoting more time to the Victoria
Philharmonic Choir, travelling through Europe by bike with her husband,
rededicating herself to her beautiful garden and catching up with her
friends and family. Though she loves SMUS with a passion, she wants to
get out and do more while she’s still young!
John Reid
Band Director (June 2013)
After 25 years at SMUS, the man behind our band program
announced his retirement this spring. His colleagues, students and
many alumni were sad to see him step down, but grateful for his
dedication to his students and his boundless passion for music. John
has many amazing memories from his years at both the Middle and
Senior Schools, including taking a Middle School choir to perform
with David Foster and guests on CBC. Other highlights include
seeing many SMUS musicians and ensembles featured in national
events, his time as musical director for productions from Oliver to
My Fair Lady and many band concert finales at the University of
Victoria. His own plans for life after SMUS are to “have no plan”
and settle into a slower pace alongside his wife.
In June 2012, we also said a temporary farewell to Director of Senior School, Kath Roth. For health reasons, she has
taken a leave of absence, though she hopes to return to the school in some capacity in the future.
Using Technology to
As technology becomes more prevalent in our lives, it also becomes part of our approach to
education. Teachers today have to navigate new territory to find out how to make new tools
work for them.
by Erin Anderson
T
“
echnology is going to play a
very large role in the lives of today’s
students,” says Maureen Hann, SMUS’s
educational
technology
specialist.
“Because technology is changing so
rapidly, an important part of my job is
staying current.”
Maureen’s role is to help faculty to
develop their own technology skills as
well as integrate technology into their
teaching practices.
“Our main goal is to ensure that
teachers feel supported in their efforts to
implement technology in the classroom.”
Of all the technology available at the
Junior School, Grade 1 teacher Alison
Galloway has made the most use out of
the five iPads allocated to her class. Last
year, her students made a movie about bats
and raised money for bat awareness with a
parent screening. This year, her class used
the iPads to illustrate and narrate a fairy
tale using their own voices.
“I’ve had students record themselves
when doing reader theatre,” says Alison.
“I show it back to them and we talk about
reading, how to project your voice, etc.”
Recording work has also been a
boost for the Junior School’s student-
led conferences, where children tell
their parents about what they’ve been
learning.
“The parents love to see video of their
child in action,” says Alison. “Children
don’t always tell parents what they learn
and do.”
Student Response
Part of why students embrace technology
is the opportunity to showcase their
own learning, says Alison. By gaining
knowledge and adding their own passion
and opinion, students of all ages can feel
like their work has made an impact.
“What they are excited about is
when they can see themselves as an
expert in something, and then share that
knowledge with adults,” she says. “It’s
empowering to young children that they
are being listened to and they have a way
of getting an audience.”
Over at the Middle School, Tanya
Lee finds that her students enjoy the
independence and freedom technology
can bring.
“I’m really interested in asking big
questions and letting kids answer them
in their own way,” says Tanya.
In her Exploratory class this year, she
asked students to create something that
represented their experience at SMUS
using text, images and video.
“As soon as I introduced the iPad
minis, the kids were so excited and
keen,” she says. “It took no instruction –
they all went with it and all the projects
were great.”
When to Use it...
While students can be eager to use
technology, the biggest challenge for
teachers is figuring out when to use it –
and when to skip it.
“I choose to use technology when
I see that it will allow me to do things
better than I was able to before – improve
learning, make things more efficient
or more interesting, or give me more
information,” says Richard Curry, who
teaches physics at the Senior School. “I
don’t want the technology to get in the
way of teaching.”
One task with which Richard has
found technology can help is measuring
students’ understanding of crucial
concepts. This year, he implemented
Learning Catalytics, a program designed
to foster peer instruction.
Learning Catalytics assigns students
into groups after they answer questions
individually. The program can group
students based on their answers or even
where they are sitting.
“You have a much better idea what
they are having difficulty with or what
they know if they are doing work in
the classroom, rather than listening to a
lecture,” says Richard.
Last year, Richard tried a new
approach called flip teaching – where
instead of spending class time lecturing
and sending kids home with homework,
teachers record lectures for students to
watch on their own and devote time in
class to the work itself.
Alison Galloway works with one of her students on an iPad
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Teach
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Richard Curry’s class collaborates through Learning Catalytics
“If students are going to watch
you perform, then why not record it?”
says Richard. “If they don’t understand
something, they can go back and listen
to it again, and if they already know
something, they can skip past it.”
Flip teaching allows students to bring
their questions from the recorded lectures
to class and get specific help from their
teacher.
“I’m just looking for different ways
that will get them to learn that doesn’t
involve me standing there talking to
them,” says Richard. “It’s about getting
them to do more – you don’t learn very
much by being passive.”
...And When to Skip It
Alison has a simple formula for
determining when technology should be
used, one that Richard would agree with.
“The difference between good and bad
use of technology is active versus passive
learning,” she says. Technology works
best when it gives students the chance to
take ownership of their learning. Teachers
need to ask themselves: Is this the best
way to approach this lesson?
“You always have to weigh technology
in terms of what it’s adding,” she says. “If
it isn’t adding anything, there’s no point
in using it.”
One way technology can aid learning
is by allowing students in a single class
to work on different things. For example,
a teacher could download a program
that tests students on vocabulary or
mathematics and adjust difficulty to
meet each student at their own level.
“Children can work at different
speeds,” says Alison. “If they need review
on a certain skill, they can work on it while
other students work on something else.”
Knowing when not to use technology
is just as important as knowing when to
use it. Alison sometimes uses her own
iPad to document things kids are doing
offline, recording their thoughts for
them as they verbally explain what they
are working on.
“In my class, they will often make
something with their hands and then go
and get the iPad and take a photo and
write a bit about what they’ve made,” she
says. “It’s about balance.”
Technology can often be combined
with traditional methods. Alison uses an
app that automatically corrects students
printing on the iPad, but when she
decided to start a penpal project for the
kids, she had them write with pen and
paper to help solidify their writing skills.
“Technology is a tool, but it’s not
the only one,” says Alison. “You have to
make sure students know what they are
doing and why.”
Richard is a passionate adopter of
technology, but even he still sees value
in doing things the old-fashioned way.
He says that in physics, technology
can mask students’ understanding –
or misunderstanding – of important
concepts.
“We have all these computer
interfaces,” he says, “but in physics before
we use the fancy motion sensors, we do
things by hand.”
Before using a computer to track
an object’s velocity, Richard will get
students to use a stopwatch. Before they
use a digital volt meter, they need to
understand an analog model.
“Those are the times when I still feel
pretty old school,” he says. “The things
we did back in my day, they can still
demonstrate interesting concepts and
make students think in different ways.”
In Physics 11, students do an
experiment in which they run a model
car on a track into an obstacle. Motion
sensors can capture data on velocity
before, during and after collision. The
computer can produce graphs using that
data. But, Richard notes, it’s not helpful
if you don’t understand what those
graphs mean.
“These technologies are very cool,
because you can do things you couldn’t
do the old-fashioned way,” he says.
Collaboration
One of the new tools SMUS has adopted
that allows students and teachers to work
in new ways is Google Docs.
“Google Docs has changed how I do
things,” says Tanya Lee.
It’s also changed how students
work. For Around the World – a longstanding Middle School event where
students present information on different
countries – the teams of three of four
students pooled their individual research
using the collaborative tool.
“They set a time – like a Google
Doc date,” says Tanya. Using a single
document, each student working on their
own computers at home can jump in to
add their own sections and see what their
cohorts are contributing. “It saves paper
and allows students to work together
without needing to meet.”
Technology offers many new ways to
communicate and collaborate – and not
just for students.
“Everyone in our community has
an idea worth sharing,” says Tanya. To
harness the expertise and knowledge
found at SMUS, Tanya recently launched
Vivat Voice on YouTube. Modelled on
the popular TED Talks, she hopes to see
her colleagues contribute short videos
that cover interesting ideas.
“It’s sharing how we use technology,”
she says. “On my own, I can’t keep on
top of every development, but I don’t
want to miss out on great apps or new
technology.”
Another tool that helps teachers stay
on top of what’s happening in education
is social media.
“Twitter is a great professional
development tool,” says Alison. Hashtags
like #21stedu and Twitter accounts like
@edutopia make it easy to keep up on
Results
Learning Catalytics can also make
learning feel less like work, says Richard,
who found his students responded well
to it, particularly in study and review
sessions.
“Learning Catalytics has gamified
education to a certain extent, because
they work in teams and compete to see
who knows more, who can figure things
out fastest,” says Richard. He surveyed
his AP Physics B class, and 92% of
respondents were “overwhelmingly keen”
on it.
Learning Catalytics requires students
to do more than just answer a question, as
they also have to explain their reasoning
to their classmates. Even those who get a
question right can learn more about the
underlying concepts involved.
“Interaction with material is
especially important in physics,” says
Richard. “You need to develop a deeper
understanding.”
Learning Catalytics is one example
of how technology, when used the right
way, can enhance – rather than detract
from – education.
SMUS recently implemented a
BYOD (bring your own device) policy
in several classes at the Senior School
as a pilot program to see if the policy
should become school-wide. A survey of
participants revealed that students didn’t
feel that the technology caused them to
focus less in class then they would without
it. Students reported that in certain
classes they were focused, in others less
so, regardless of the technology access.
“Technology provides opportunities,”
says Maureen, who works with the
educational coordinators at each school.
“From the student perspective, it is still
the teacher and class structure that has
the largest impact.”
The Future of Education
“We are all
learning together.”
– Tanya
Tanya also plans to involve students
in tracking their own learning. She is
working on e-portfolios that they can
take with them throughout their SMUS
journey.
“Universities are changing their
admissions procedures,” says Tanya. “I
remember writing essays for university,
but now you might be submitting an
e-portfolio.”
Because students are going to need
technological skills in the future, Tanya
believes strongly that teachers need to
be prepared to embrace technology,
regardless of how adept they are.
“At this point in the game, no one can
call themselves an expert, because things
are changing so fast,” she says. “We are all
learning together.”
Tanya Lee on Instragram
Alison Galloway agrees that new
technology complements what’s already
happening in the classroom.
“When we talk about 21st
century education, we’re talking about
collaboration, inquiry, questioning, and
openness,” she says. “The technology
is a piece – an important piece – in
something bigger. “
Alison predicts that technology
will make students that much more
independent and change the role of the
educator.
“In a few years, I see students really
driving their educational journey – which
might be different than someone else’s –
and teachers acting as their guides,”
she says.
Technology creates outlets for
students to express what they know in
a way that works for them, to research
a wealth of information and to work at
their own pace.
“It’s the new way of the world and we
owe it to the children to keep up,” says
Alison. “Our job is to provide kids with
the skills they are going to need for their
future.”
Richard’s plans for the future are to
continue to find tools that track students’
progress.
“I’m on the hunt for some kind of
analytics,” he says. “I’m looking for ways
that I can analyze – to get computers to
analyze – what students know and what
they don’t know.”
Richard also wants to use technology
to improve students’ ability to track
their own progress, finding a way that
they can quickly see marks on previous
assignments and track upcoming work.
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trends in 21st century education. “It’s
pretty amazing to connect with other
educators around the world.”
Teachers spend their career sharing
what they know, and Alison says that
sharing with colleagues is a natural fit
for them. Rather than trying out a new
approach or technique and keeping it to
themselves, she believes educators should
pass along what they learn.
“Teachers collaborate and share
ideas,” she says. “I think technology has
played a big part in that.”
Education has changed direction
in a fundamental way, says Alison. It’s
no longer about getting students to
learn facts and absorb information; it’s
teaching them to use information to
create new knowledge.
“It’s about creating new ideas and
sharing them with people,” she says. “It’s
building a global knowledge.”
Technology also offers opportunities
to break away from traditional teaching
models. Alison admits that her 12-yearold son, a SMUS student, keeps her in
the loop when it comes to technology.
“He learns it at a whole different pace
than I do,” she says. “It’s a generational
thing – it’s just a part of their life.”
With technology already in children’s
lives, bringing it into the classroom is a
natural step. Alison says her students are
very savvy – and very engaged – when
it comes to using their iPads. They will
even play math apps during their free
time, because they don’t see it as work.
FEATURE
A New Approach to
Art
The Digital Art program allows students to add graphic design to their creative repertoire. Now in its
second year, teacher Chris Bateman ’94 talks about how far the program has come and where it is headed.
by Erin Anderson
B
“
eing able to communicate visually is very
important,” says art teacher Chris Bateman ’94.
“That ability – no matter what career they go into –
will allow them to captivate an audience.”
An artist himself, Chris has mastered both
traditional and digital media. He launched the digital
art program as a way to open art up to students who
weren’t interested in traditional mediums, but it’s
proven to be useful for artists of all kinds.
“It’s a nice place for them to start,” he says.
“It’s a great tool for talking about the elements
and principles of design.”
Because every action can be undone,
there’s less pressure to get everything
right. Artists can adjust colour,
rearrange pieces, play with
opacity – the possibilities
are infinite.
“I think it’s really engrossing,” he says. “It’s almost
impossible to say, ‘I’m done’.”
Where Digital Art 11 focused on 2D images,
primarily using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop,
Chris hopes to expand Digital Art 12 to incorporate
film and animation.
“We are really fortunate to have the latest software,”
he says. Last year, students used Google SketchUp,
a 3D modelling program, and the school recently
acquired Adobe After Effects, which opens up a range
of possibilities in terms of animation. A green screen
and lighting equipment, donated by the Parents’
Auxiliary, will also support the program’s growth.
“Some students bring their own computers,” he
says. “The students get so sucked into it, the room
goes silent – except for mouse clicks.”
Class time is more often spent with students
working away on their own rather than listening to
a lecture.
“I set students up with basic foundations, but
there’s no way to teach them everything – and it
would be a waste of time,” says Chris. Once a student
knows what they want to create, he is there to step in
where needed, if they can’t figure out how to get the
effect they want.
“Students all go off in their own paths, which is
exciting for me,” he says.
The school community has also embraced the
digital art program, and created opportunities for
students to showcase their skills. Our digital artists
have created posters advertising concerts and the
musical and made logos for the Business 10 group
projects.
“I try to approach the projects as though we’re a
professional design firm,” says Chris. “I do my best
to bring in a ‘client’ and have the students work with
that person to address their needs.”
This approach gives students a sense of what it
would be like to work as a graphic artist.
“I do try to make it sort-of career-based, as they
potentially are very employable after studying,” says
Chris. “They aren’t going to be starving artists.”
“I am more than grateful to be one of the first students to experience
the digital art program. Now that I’m in the Design and Media Arts
program at UCLA, I often find the knowledge I gained from digital art
at SMUS extremely valuable. The class thoroughly prepared me to
use design software such as Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator and I
was encouraged to stretch my creativity.”
– Melody Zheng ’12
Liam Knightley ’12
Aidan Stewart ’12
Bell Udomkitthanakul ’12
FEATURE
A Different
Lens
Both Patrick Gill ’97 and Michael Wale ’85 use technology to capture stunning visuals. While
Michael uses the latest cameras as a cinematographer, Patrick has pioneered a microscopic lens.
by Darin Steinkey
B
oth Patrick Gill ’97 and Michael
Wale ’85 are leaders in their field and
have seen drastic changes in camera
technology in the past two decades.
While Wale handles large camera rigs for
television and film, Patrick’s invention
clocks in at one hundredth of a millimetre
thick, making it the smallest camera in
the world.
Patrick believes we are on the brink
of a revolution in optical technology.
“It’s an exciting time to be in this
field, since we get to re-imagine what a
camera can be,” says Patrick.
In 2011, Patrick led a group at
Cornell University that developed the
Planar Fourier Capture Array (PFCA)
camera, which produces images about
20 pixels (5.3 millimetres) across. What
makes these images truly incredible is
that computers are now powerful enough
that they can take that microscopic image
and extrapolate what the rest of the scene
around it should look like.
“This camera’s operation is similar
to how sensory areas of the brain work,”
he says. “Millions of sensory neurons
each relate a small observation about
the whole world and our brains are able
to compute the gist of what must have
caused our sensations.”
The PFCA earned Patrick coverage
in Wired and The Scientist. Now working
at Rambus Inc., Patrick is the principal
inventor in a team that is building a
new type of tiny optical sensor, similar to
the PFCA.
“It’s along the same lines… but it
looks like the new approach will have
improved resolution and full-spectrum
performance, meaning it could be used
in a lot more applications,” says Patrick.
Right now, possible uses include
counting blood cells, recognizing gestures
and improving the quality of cellphone
pictures. The implications of Patrick’s
work are almost as diverse as the man
himself, who has a BSc in physics, a PhD
Patrick Gill ’97
in neuroscience, and whose postdoctoral
work focused on electrical engineering.
“As more techniques and ideas
are invented, novel overlaps between
distinct fields multiply exponentially,”
says Patrick. “We seem to be entering
an era where the number of worthwhile
technological ideas exceeds our global
population; human imagination and
initiative are the scarcest resources.”
While Patrick re-imagines what a
camera can be and do, Michael finds ways
to make a traditional medium his own.
The Vancouver-based cinematographer
has been director of photography on
series such as Smallville, Fringe, and
Continuum and is currently working on
JJ Abrams’ new series, Almost Human.
He has earned nominations from the
American and Canadian Society of
Cinematographers, received a Leo
nomination this year and is recognized
as a leader on set and in his industry.
Having begun his career in 1992,
Michael has experienced the transition
from film to digital over the last decade.
When he started out, Michael says, film
was slow and expensive.
“We would shoot with a 1000-foot
roll of film loaded into a magazine that
was then threaded through a camera,”
he explains. With the cost of processing
and printing film, that roll of film
would last about 10 minutes and cost
almost $1000.”
Besides the expense, there was the
time lag: everyone had to wait until the
following day to see the “dailies,” the
footage that was processed and printed
overnight. The shot could have been out
of focus, the boom could have crept in
to the scene or the exposure could have
been off. No one knew until they saw the
dailies.
“Digital has given me more creative
control in terms of looks, but we have
lost some of the magic,” says Michael.
“Traditionally, the cinematographer was
the wizard on set. He or she was the only
person who knew what the film would
look like. Today, everyone can see what is
happening and how it looks. The mystery
is gone.”
While Patrick and Michael pursued
vastly different careers, they shared a
common experience at SMUS.
Patrick joined the school in Grade 7
to nurture his interest in science and
math. SMUS turned out to be a great
Michael Wale ’84 shooting while a
student at Ryerson
his life – music. Patrick says that the
music composition lab was particularly
well-appointed, with synthesizers and
MIDI interfaces.
“Traditionally, the
cinematographer
was the wizard
on set.”
– Michael
Michael also recalls some relatively
cutting-edge technology at school,
particularly Mr. Kayal gathering his class
in one of the basement labs to show off
the new and exciting Commodore 64.
“This was a big deal,” Michael says.
“Up until that time we were being
instructed how to program in Basic
using a paper card on which you filled
out boxes with an HB pencil then sent it
through a card reader to the computer.”
A shot from Continuum. Credit: Shaw Media/Showcase
For his part, Michael also appreciates
that, because he wasn’t exactly a
studious teenager, his teachers balanced
focus on personal development as well
as academics. Some of his teachers had
a lifelong effect on him because they
encouraged him to try new things and
figure out what he loved to do.
“I believe passion and persistence
have a lot to do with any success
I may have had,” he says. “Filmmaking
is a technical, creative and very social
profession. I am attracted to all of these
aspects but, upon reflection, I think
the ability to get along with others may
have served me the best.”
Working as a cinematographer has
offered Michael many experiences, to
go to places and see things many people
may never see. While much has changed
over the tenure of his career, he still looks
confidently into the future, excited about
new collaborations and creations.
“As technology changes one constant
remains,” says Michael. “Cameras may
evolve, but the desire to tell stories never
goes away.”
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fit, giving him a headstart in what would
become his major area of study.
“Without exception, all my math
and science teachers were encouraging
and engaged agents of my success,” says
Patrick.
He particularly remembers Mr.
Gardiner as an entertaining and effective
teacher, whose enriched high-school
biology curriculum allowed him to
make it through his biology qualifying
examinations for the UC Berkeley
Biophysics program without requiring
any additional biology courses.
“The first few years of my time
at SMUS were probably the most
formative ones of my entire intellectual
and philosophical life,” says Patrick.
“Having the time, opportunity and
encouragement to figure out the way you
want to spend your time on this planet
lets you make big decisions that you
won’t regret.”
The wide range of opportunities
at SMUS also gave Patrick the chance
to step outside the labs. The school’s
modern computer facilities (by 1990s
standards) introduced him to what
would become an important hobby in
FEATURE
Online Style: Fashion on the Web
Is online shopping the future of fashion? We talk to three alumni about the pros and cons of selling
clothes online versus in a store and how they build their businesses in the digital age.
by Erin Anderson
T
he KoKo Boutique, owned by
Shannen Ko ’06, has a prime space by
the Douglas St. entrance to the The Bay
Centre in downtown Victoria. Bright sale
signs catch the eye of people streaming
by and mannequins show off the latest
hot looks.
It’s a set-up Shun Kinoshita ’08 envies.
Designing and selling unisex clothing
under his MMVIII Gold label, Shun runs
his business almost entirely online.
“I think having no physical store
makes it harder to get the exposure
you need,” he says. “Getting complete
strangers to buy your clothes is extremely
hard in such a saturated market.”
Just as customers have increasingly
embraced shopping online, the online
marketplace has become crowded. For
Shun, growing his brand in such a busy
space required both perseverance and
creativity.
“Selling online was very hard for
me,” he confesses. “Once you tap out
your network of friends and family, you
kind of hit a wall.”
Online, your customer base is
limitless – in theory. But, in reality,
the number of people you can reach is
incredibly small says Shun. Still, Shannen
sees the appeal of selling online.
Shannen Ko ’06
“With an online store, you can target
the whole world,” she says. “Right now,
in my store, it’s only the people that come
into the mall.”
Shannen has set up a basic online
store for KoKo, but she says that time and
money are a big part of why she hasn’t
built it into a major sales platform.
“If I were to run my online store
properly, I would need proper lighting to
take nice pictures of clothes on models,”
she explains. “I’d need to hire someone
to make me a better website and then
hire someone for marketing… it isn’t
something I’m able to do right now.”
An online store also requires
behind-the-scenes maintenance, such
as updating to reflect price changes and
available stock – tasks difficult to do
while also keeping doors open seven
days a week. Also, marketing online,
even through social media, can be a
time-consuming and costly endeavour.
“If I had more time on my hands, I
would go on Instagram in an instant,”
says Shannen. “I like it more than
Facebook, where you definitely have to
advertise your store and run different
promotions encouraging people to share
and like things.”
Another advantage of having a
traditional store is that by virtue of being
in the mall, KoKo’s sales and promotions
are spread through the mall’s social media
channels. Shun is on his own.
“There is a
misconception
about how much
business is actually
done online.”
– Hayley
“Since I didn’t have any budget for
marketing, I had to learn how to use free
platforms – aka social media – to push
my brand,” he says.
He recommends consistent positive
and interactive posts, but admits that
even great social media skills don’t work
without an established fan base.
“Creating that first batch of fans to
get the wave rolling is the hardest part I
think,” says Shun. “It takes a lot of time
and effort to create that wave, but once
you get it, it becomes a bit easier.”
Designer Hayley Gibson ’97 runs
Birds of North America, a line of vintageclassic fashion for women that is made
entirely in Montreal. Her clothes are for
sale in a range of stores across Canada
and the US, and her minimal online
presence includes a website, blog and
Facebook page.
“We do very little online marketing,”
says Hayley. “I think social media works
as well for fashion as for anything else,
but I really try not to rely too much on
social media for the foundation of my
business.”
Hayley also notes that with Facebook’s
changes – such as promoted posts, which
cost small businesses money to reach
their own fans – it has become a less
reliable tool.
Shun Kinoshita ’08
“I think having a few stores is
important,” says Shun. “If I had that
resource, I would have my gear in stores –
not everywhere, but I would pinpoint
very specific locations.”
Looking back on the past few years
of changing locations and clocking time
behind the counter, Shannen seems
optimistic – if daunted – by the idea of a
fully online shop.
“Brands like mine
don’t really need to be
in stores anymore.”
– Shun
“If I didn’t open up a storefront, I
would probably do everything online,”
confesses Shannen. “But if you want to
do an online store, you have to work
really hard – you don’t go into work but
you still have to do the work.”
After seven years designing ethicallymade clothing in the heart of Montreal
and seeing her clothes for sale in
boutiques around the continent, Hayley
says that fashion remains, in many ways,
an old-fashioned industry. Asked whether
fashion will ever live solely online – if
brick-and-mortar stores will vanish as
stylish websites multiply – she doesn’t
mince words:
“I don’t think online shopping can
ever replace stores. It’s a different
experience, and it appeals to the customer
in different ways than shopping in person
does. I feel like we’ve lost perspective
on the internet these days and what its
limitations are. There’s a lot of stuff you
can do online, but real life still takes place
in person – thankfully.”
Hayley Gibson ’97
Shun says that fit and sizing are easy
to handle unless clothes have a very
specific fit. For his clothing line, mostly
featuring t-shirts and streetwear, there are
pretty set standards.
“Most graphic t-shirts, sweaters,
etcetera are all essentially printed on the
same garment all over the world,” he says.
“Brands like mine don’t really need to be
in stores anymore.”
But that isn’t to say consumers have
decided they no longer need to visit stores
in person. As Shun points out, people
can – and do – go to retailers to look at
the physical products, then go home and
buy them online.
“Retailers are disappearing,” says
Shun. “People have the tools to buy
things online – and it’s usually cheaper.”
Most major clothing lines can
be found on the racks at the big
department stores as well as online,
offering consumers a chance to try them
on and buy online, but start-ups like
Shun’s line still have their own appeal
and advantages.
“I think people are hesitant to wear
things other people are wearing,” says
Shun. “It gives brands like mine an edge
because it’s so limited, but also the same
quality as most brands in the same niche
market.”
For Shun, having an online store
has made it possible for him to run his
business while in school and now over the
summer at his new job, digital marketing
coordinator for Native Shoes. He admits
the flexibility and minimal overhead of
an online shop have worked well for
him, but even he still sees the value of
the offline world of fashion.
FEATURE
Birds of North America does have
an online shop, but Hayley says sales
through her website are a sliver of her
business.
“I don’t know of any independent
designers who are doing any kind of
significant online sales,” she says. “I think
there is a misconception about how much
business is actually done online versus in
brick and mortar stores, especially when
it comes to small business.”
For Hayley, the biggest advantage
of the growth of the online world has
been the ability to show lookbooks and
catalogues online rather than paying
to print and mail them. Instead of
traditional lookbooks, Shun Kinoshita
produces short videos – under a minute –
to showcase his clothes, often featuring
music from artists he sponsors.
Though Shannen doesn’t invest
much time and energy into online
sales of her own, she scouts and orders
merchandise primarily from wholesale
sites based in the US.
“I do all my buying online,” she says,
“but when I have time, I want to make
trips down to LA to find clothes.”
A perk of being able to see clothes in
person is a more accurate idea of what
you’re buying, but Shannen says buying
online works just fine the majority of
the time.
“About 5% of the time when I order
something, it doesn’t look the same,”
she explains. Sometimes when clothes
arrive, the quality or feel is different than
expected. “What you see in a picture is
usually what you get, but the fit and the
feel, you are never sure of.”
FEATURE
Can Technology
Save the Environment?
Clarence Lo ’02 works as an environmental engineer, advising companies
on how to reduce their contributions to climate change. Below, she talks
about how technology can help the environment.
by Erin Anderson
Q
What made you want to be an
environmental engineer?
A I’ve had this idea of wanting to clean
up the environment since I was very
young. I grew up in Hong Kong and it’s
a great city, but it’s very industrialized.
My passion to clean up the environment
came from that experience. I chose
engineering in part because of my father,
who was also an engineer. Engineering
forces you to examine a problem and
come up with a solution. When I went
through the engineering program at
Cornell, I felt that myself. I really enjoy
working at my company because every
day I solve problems for people. It’s
very fun and interesting. In consulting,
everything is project-based and every
project is different.
Q
What do you do as an
environmental engineer?
A
My main focus is air quality. I do
a lot of climate change and greenhouse
gas (GHG) projects. I quantify GHG
emissions and review state and federal
level compliance regulations to see
how they apply. I work for AECON,
an environmental consulting company
based in Seattle, and have local and
international clients.
Q
What’s an example of how
technology is used in your field?
A
When GHGs are produced at major
facilities, like a petroleum refinery,
we have equipment called continuous
emissions monitoring systems to measure
how much carbon dioxide is produced.
There have been a lot of calculators
developed, both in terms of spreadsheets
and more sophisticated tools.
Q
What kind of technology have
you used in your career?
A
I use modelling software called EVS.
I recently had a chance to work on some
groundwater projects and could model
groundwater remediation, which was
really cool.
Imagine there’s a piece of a land being
used as a landfill. Land is permeable, so
the waste degrades and the toxins and
pollutants trickle into the groundwater.
The EPA requires people who pollute the
groundwater to clean it up. Because it’s
underground, we don’t know how deep it
goes, how far north or south, how fast the
pollutant is travelling, etc. Software allows
us to simulate a remedy for remediation
(returning the water to its previous state).
A crew does some drilling, examines the
soil, takes samples and measurements and
we input it all into the model. The software
will interpret and extrapolate based on the
data, and then it’s easier for us to design a
solution for that particular site.
Q
What are some of the ways
companies can reduce their GHG
emissions?
A
Carbon dioxide sequestration is one
way: find a spot underground and inject
carbon dioxide in the ground. Also, try to
reuse carbon dioxide by sending it to food
companies (for carbonated beverages,
etc.). There are uses for carbon dioxide.
We can also optimize/reduce by looking
at fuel types. Different types of fuel
produce different amounts of carbon
dioxide and that’s a more proactive way
to reduce GHG. On the front end, we
want to reduce production, and on the
back end, we want to reduce the amount
that is released to the environment.
Q
What are some of the emerging
technologies and how do you stay
current with new developments?
A
Climate change and GHG are a
relatively new area, so the technologies
for them are still developing. New
technology is always coming out. The key
is to learn quickly and keep yourself up
to date with what’s happening. We have
a technology practice group that gathers
experts nationally and internationally
and this is how I learn the most. Plus,
I subscribe to newsletters, which keeps
me up to date not just on technology but
also regulations and standards.
Q
What technology do you use
personally as well as for work?
A
I try to stay very on top of technology.
I use Google Voice and other telecom
software like Facetime and Viber. At
work we do a lot of video-conferencing
because most of our clients are not able
to visit. This is also important because we
want to reduce our carbon footprint, so
it’s better to meet virtually than travel to
meet someone face to face.
Q
What is the solution to climate
change in a big picture sense?
A It has to come from everybody. What
the EPA has done is very strategic, because
they propagated the GHG reporting
rule, which focused on emissions from
major sources. The EPA has done a
great job with companies, but there
are so many other sources that produce
GHG. Take farming and manure, which
produces methane, which is way worse,
but not monitored. There are also land
management issues. Anything that burns
produces carbon dioxide, so on a bigger
scale we need to identify the other sources
and approach them as well.
Q
What does the future of
environmental engineering look
like?
A
I think it’s going to grow, because
we’re becoming more and more aware
of the environment and now, more and
more, environmental regulations are
written and companies are required to
keep the environment clean. As there is
more incentive to keep the environment
clean, more technology will be developed
to meet those needs.
On the
From design to digital marketing, four of our alumni are working in competitive fields that require
technical skill, creativity and – above all – adaptability.
by Erin Anderson
O
utstanding preparation for higher
learning and for life: that’s what SMUS
promises to each of our students. But
the rapidly changing technology sector
is upending the normal course of career
building. The constant evolution of
everything from software development to
digital marketing has created a vacuum
that can’t be filled by post-secondary
credentials alone.
As major universities struggle to meet
the ever-changing needs of a growing
industry, technology start-ups have
started to favour another kind of higher
education. Think Mark Zuckerburg
dropping out of Harvard to pursue
Facebook full-time.
In a world where a traditional postsecondary degree carries less weight, is
our school still preparing our students
for the world beyond SMUS? We talked
to four alumni from different eras who
are working in the fast-paced world of
start-ups to learn more.
A Different Kind of Education
Luke Seeley ’04 got his first taste of
programming as a student at SMUS.
“Our computer science class had about
seven students or so and I loved it,” he
says. “It was my favourite course, by far.”
The class covered Java, a programming
language that underpins many of today’s
web-based applications, and some very
basic web design.
Luke’s experience and interest in
programming steered him into computer
science at UVic. “As I continued my
studies, I became more and more
interested in web development and
design,” he says. But website design
courses weren’t offered through the
university’s computer science program,
so he started teaching himself by building
websites on his own.
“I have no idea
where our industry
is going and I like it
that way.”
– Luke
Around the same time, Luke met
Andrew Wilkinson, another self-taught
web developer who had just quit his job
to start his own business. The two started
working together on web projects, with
Oliver Brooks ’10 and Luke Seeley ’04 at Metalab
FEATURE
Edge : Alumni in Tech
The Alumni
Octavio Marquez ’84,
President and Co-Founder
Snaptech Marketing
Chris Noel ’98,
Managing Partner
Hipwood Digital
Luke Seeley ’04,
Product Director
MetaLab
Oliver Brooks ’10,
Graphic Designer
MetaLab
The Companies
Hipwood Digital
Hipwood Digital is a mobile and web
development studio based in Victoria,
BC. Veterans of the app marketing
space, with a long background in online
advertising, traffic monetization and
ad operations, Hipwood’s work has
been featured in Wired and The New
York Times.
MetaLab
An interface design agency, MetaLab
was founded in 2006. Services
include interface design, web and iOS
development and strategy consulting.
Clients range from start-ups to
Fortune 500 companies, including
Google and tumblr. Though based in
Victoria, it has employees as far away
as Portugal.
Andrew doing design and Luke doing
development as a sideline of his studies.
He loved the work but it emphasized
for Luke the profound disconnect
between his passion and the degree he
was pursuing. “I became increasingly
disillusioned with the general education
system surrounding web development
and design,” he says.
“Interface design is
a medium that is
still changing and
evolving...”
– Oliver
He left UVic before finishing his
degree in favour of freelance web
development and programming before
landing at the company his former
collaborator Andrew Wilkinson started,
MetaLab. One of the first employees at
the now multi-million dollar company,
Luke is currently the product director
and a member of the company’s
leadership team.
Oliver Brooks ’10 was finishing his
first year as a Middle School student when
Luke Seeley graduated from SMUS. In
spite of the years and the areas of study
separating the two, Oliver’s career path
has been strikingly similar to Luke’s.
When Oliver graduated in 2010, he
was bound for the Rhode Island School
of Design to develop his talents as a
graphic artist. Although he excelled in
the academics and the arts at SMUS, he
chafed under the workload at RISD that
demanded exclusive focus on visual art
and left him no room to pursue his other
passions, particularly playing music.
In fact, it was through performing
with his band Leisure Suit around Victoria
that Oliver first became acquainted with
MetaLab’s Andrew Wilkinson, who was a
fan. Impressed by the design work Oliver
did on band posters, Wilkinson ended
up hiring Oliver, who is now practicing
the design trade full time at the agency.
At MetaLab, Oliver is thriving
in what he calls “a fluid, constantly
changing industry.” He’s also surrounded
by smart people who either didn’t finish
or aren’t using their traditional postsecondary educations. “Almost everyone
I work with is self-taught, even back-end
developers whose coding skills are highly
technical,” he says.
His MetaLab colleague Luke Seeley
agrees. “Most of the designers and
developers at our company and that I
meet in the industry don’t have a fouryear degree in their profession,” he
says. “The lead developer on [MetaLab
apps] Flow and Ballpark has a writing
degree, for instance. All you need is selfmotivation and a good portfolio.”
Octavio Marquez ’84 also found
that his education didn’t quite prepare
him for his current life as president and
co-founder of the digital marketing firm
Snaptech. He spent three years at UBC,
and while he didn’t feel that the time
was wasted, it wasn’t quite what he was
looking for.
“It was more traditional sales and
marketing,” he says. “It was fun, but I
Snaptech
A full service digital marketing agency
based in Vancouver, Snaptech offers
strategy, design, marketing and
technology services to a range of
clients. Recently named an official
Google Partner, Snaptech Marketing
Group has grown from a small startup to a prominent company over the
past 10 years.
Hipwood Digital produced the Word Wit app for Ballpoint and created a free iOS app
for the 2013 Victoria Fringe Festival
One of the challenges
facing post-secondary
institutions is that
technology, software,
digital marketing
and similar niches
are constantly
changing.
“Things change every single year,
especially in marketing,” says Octavio.
“Even just trying to stay up-to-date with
Google – they change their algorithms
frequently and make major changes that
affect websites.”
Octavio’s brother Flavio, who
co-founded Snaptech, is entirely self-
taught. Yet as the Chief Strategy Officer
for Snaptech, he develops his own
software and has been called a technical
visionary. “He’s one of those passionate
learners,” says Octavio of his brother.
“He never stops.”
Chris Noel ’98 couldn’t agree more
that passion is more of a prerequisite
to success in a start-up than a fouryear degree.
He left the University of Victoria
partway through a humanities degree to
try out life in the big city: Vancouver.
Within six months, he worked his way
up from a part-time sales associate to
a manager overseeing a team of 450
telemarketers selling high-speed internet.
Though he returned to the University
of Victoria a few years later, he left one
course short of his degree.
Instead, Chris landed a job as
a sales and marketing manager for
usedeverywhere.com, building traffic and
selling advertising for the popular online
sales site. He traded on his success in that
position to join Brighthouse Labs, a newly
founded app development company.
“There was no staff, a tiny bit of
revenue and a laptop for me,” he recalls
of his early days there. ”I was in charge of
everything.”
Brighthouse gave Chris a taste of
the start-up life, and when his job there
ended, he decided to strike out on his
own. With his managerial experience,
knowledge of the app world and
Chris Noel ’98 founded Hipwood Digital
“I actually though I’d be a teacher,”
he confesses. “I was coaching at SMUS
and the idea of coming back to the school
seemed like a good one.”
Energetic, upbeat and affable, it’s
easy to picture Chris standing in front
Flow and Ballpark are two MetaLab apps that
Luke Seeley manages
time-tested salesmanship, he founded
Hipwood Digital in 2010.
“Before, I had the security of a
paycheque,” he says, “so it wasn’t as scary
as it was when I went out on my own.”
As managing partner, his job is largely
about landing clients and making sure his
employees are motivated and productive.
His life today is a far cry from his plans
when he first returned to Victoria.
FEATURE
wanted something that covered more of
the online world.”
One of the challenges facing postsecondary institutions is that technology,
software, digital marketing and similar
niches are constantly changing, and
keeping the curriculum current is much
more difficult than for many other fields
of study.
FEATURE
of a classroom, but those same attributes
are what have made him so successful
in starting his own company. While his
time at university didn’t lead him into his
career today, he credits his time at SMUS
with a lot of his success.
Outstanding Preparation?
Chris threw himself into many aspects of
school life, particularly athletics. It was
the time he spent on the rugby field and
the basketball court that he says taught
him the most. “You learn what it means
to have other people count on you,” says
Chris. “You learn to lead and motivate
the people around you.”
SMUS also led him into other
leadership experiences as well. He became
President of the Castaway Wanderers
Rugby Football Club because of his
passion for rugby and his love of the
school has led him to serve as a trustee on
the SMUS Alumni Association Board.
“One of the things I learned at
SMUS was to help out without asking
for something in return,” he says.
“Professionally, that has paid off many
times over.”
His background in athletics has
helped him land clients from the Victoria
Highlanders to Rugby Canada. Like all
SMUS students, Chris also spent time
in the arts, participating in choir, band
and drama, classes that he feels made him
into a well-rounded individual.
“The all-round student is better
suited to adult life,” he says. “I feel that,
proportionally, SMUS does a better job
of turning out kids that get it.”
“I feel that,
proportionally,
SMUS does a better
job of turning out
kids that get it.”
– Chris
Oliver also had a well-rounded
experience at SMUS, though his
attention was more focused on the arts,
from theatre to music to AP Studio Art.
“SMUS allowed me to expand my
knowledge in liberal arts, visual arts,
drama, music and science,” he says. “My
work doesn’t fit neatly into any one of
those fields but together, they helped
broaden my horizons.”
Balancing a range of creative pursuits,
while also thriving academically, seems
to have been excellent training for life as
a graphic designer. “Design is all about
effective communication – so you’ve got
to be articulate and have strong writing
skills,” says Oliver. “You need to be very
self-motivated.”
Oliver says that, looking back, the
best thing he learned at school was not
one specific subject, but the importance
of being curious, hardworking and
organized.
As a product director for MetaLab,
Luke runs a team of developers,
overseeing their work and helping to
chart his agency’s future. Reflecting on
his five years at SMUS, he says that small
class sizes probably gave him a leg up in
terms of collaboration.
Luke’s initial plan after SMUS was to
take his knowledge of programming and
develop video games, but his computer
science skills from SMUS are helpful in
his current job too.
“While I do very little programming
these days, I do have to work with a lot
of developers,” he says. “Understanding
basic programming concepts is certainly
helpful in communicating with them.”
Working in an industry where he is
surrounded by passionate and talented
people has further shown Luke that the
true value of education – whether it’s
At the Google Partners Inspire Event in Vancouver: A sign welcomes company representatives; Flavio Marquez and Octavio Marquez ’84 chat with a
Photos courtesy of Google
Octavio Marquez ’84
Education doesn’t end with getting
hired, either. Luke says that his job will
certainly change in the years to come,
but with his strong work ethic and drive,
he is ready for whatever comes. “I have
no idea where our industry is going,” he
says. “I like it that way.”
Octavio Marquez also embraces his
industry despite – or because of – its
uncertainty.
“I know so many people whose jobs
don’t change – it’s the same thing every
day,” he says. “Not my industry – that’s
what I love.”
To understand how Octavio can
thrive as a business owner in an
unpredictable marketplace that changes
every day, you only have to ask him
about his time at SMUS.
Arriving from Mexico as a boarder
in 1979, he found the school to be a
welcoming place.
“I think one of the things that I
value the most about going to SMUS
was having teachers who supported me
and believed in me,” he says. “I’m so
happy I went to boarding – it was the
best thing I’ve done in my life.”
Playing on the third XV rugby
team (which he jokingly calls “the
loser team”), Octavio says he was still
congratulated by teachers when they
won a game. He says that support was
one of the most valuable parts of his
experience, along with the friends he
made at school, many of whom are still
in his life.
“When I was at school, I never
heard ‘you can’t do that,’” he recalls.
“The teachers were supportive when it
came to trying things out and becoming
confident.”
The confidence he built in high
school gave him the courage to start his
own business. Moreover, he believes that
confidence is a key factor not only in
succeeding in his industry, but in life as
a whole.
FEATURE
high school, university or of your own
design – is in how it prepares you for
what’s ahead.
“Ultimately, it has nothing to do
with having a degree, though you can
certainly learn a lot from getting one,” he
says. “The onus is absolutely on you.”
“I think one of the
things that I value
the most about
going to SMUS was
having teachers who
supported me and
believed in me.”
– Octavio
“Confidence is number one,” he says.
Tenacity – the willingness to bounce
back from a defeat – and optimism are
two qualities he believes are required to
thrive in start-up life, but confidence is
universal. “Whatever you do in life, you
have to have confidence.”
fellow attendee; Snaptech Marketing’s Flavio Marquez and Patrick Sauriol present their talk, Agile Creativity: How to Successfully Work with an Agency
Class of 2012:
Canada
British Columbia
We welcomed 151 new alumni in June of 2012.
To pursue their individual passions, the
class of 2012 spread out across the globe.
Camosun College
Amanda Connor
Colin Hawes
David Lafleur
Michelle Wood
Langara College
Adrian Liu
Simon Fraser University
Yuichi Kashiwagi
Lyn Zhang
Trinity Western University
Sarah Bodine
University of British Columbia
Nicole Chan
Eamon Flanagan
Logan Gilmore
Christine Hughes
Jean Kim
Angel Liao
David Lunn
Ariel Sorley
Alexis Thind
Cole Turner
Jen Yong
Serena Zhang
University of Victoria
Brendan Angerman
Isaac Barss
Tiffany Britton
Jason Chiu
Simon Cuell
Alex Davies
Kayla Dornan
Jacob Duvenage
Joseph Erlic
Clayton Fair
Truan Forsyth
Madison Hadfield
Jack Hayes
Samuel Jackson
Isailah Johnson-Ferguson
Rowan MacKenzie
Bairavi Murugakumar
Will Nance
Jeffrey Nishima-Miller
Ali Pollen
Muriel Protzer
Cassandra Quan
Deryn Ramsey
Aaron Samson
Johnathon Sipos
Troy Swindell
Andrew Taylor
Sara Taylor
Boris Trinajstic
Christopher Welsford
University of British Columbia Okanagan
Meg Halliwell
Robbie Thomas
Prairie Provinces
University of Alberta
Jonathan L.T. Lo
University of Calgary
Michael Crabbe
Baldeep Dulku
Derek Hyde-Lay
Ontario
Brock University
Liam Knightley
Carleton University
Alex Chen
Robert Wyatt
Queen’s University
Jonathan Chan
Katherine Fretz
Michael Wetton
Ryerson University
Cayley Delisle
Aidan Stewart
University of Guelph
Christina Burke
Laura Shaw
University of Toronto
United States
American Academy of Dramatic Arts
Lindsay Solmer
American University
Sena Lee
Babson College
Lisa Chen
Barnard College
Chrystine Beaumont
George Washington University
Leo Lin
Harvey Mudd College
Victor Shang
Haverford College
Irene Evans
New York University
Bill Cao
Frank Chang
Jonty Considine
Mike Gao
Rio Hong
James Keech
Harrison Kim
Stephen Lam
Cheryl Li
Olivia Li
Lewis Liu
Elizabeth Qin
Martin Ren
Eugene Tang
Papi Thompson
Bell Udomkitthanakul
Peter Zhao
Sunwoo Oh
David Shi
University of Waterloo
University of California, San Diego
Brenton Law
University of Western Ontario
Johnny Huang
Holly Lam
Roger Luo
Quebec and the Maritimes
Acadia University
Princeton University
William Lee
St. Mary’s College of California
Julian Allen
Stanford University
Christina Chwyl
University of California, Berkeley
Alice Wang
University of California, Irvine
Cortney Ewonus
University of California, Los Angeles
Rory Brodhurst
Charles Yang
Melody Zheng
Len Luo
University of Illinois
Joseph Choi
University of Miami
Hannah Nielsen
University of Pennsylvania
Quinn Kliman
Ben Holmes
Austin Huang
University of Washington
McGill University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute
Justin Chen
Yun-Seoun Choi
Jacky Chuang
Caroline Grady
Isabella Holt
Shawdy Joobbani
Kira Li
Liam Maclure
Marcel Sanati
Shade Souc
Peter Harrison
Jonathan H.H. Lo
Whitman College
Hannah Clayshulte
The Road Ahead
Congratulations to all our graduates
and we hope your journeys will lead
you back to SMUS in the near future.
Top Four
Fields of Study
Where are they Going?
Canada
60%
99
24
BUSINESS – 32
ARTS – 21
US
SCIENCE – 22
ENGINEERING – 16
16%
28
10 Niche Interests
International
19%
International
Chinese University of Hong Kong
Thompson Wong
Erasmus University, Rotterdam
Sanne Wijnands
IDC Herzliya- Raphael Recanati
International School
Diane Katumba
ITESM, Mexico
Jacobs University
Michael Muirhead
King’s College London
Ephraim Lam
Korea Advanced Institute of
Science & Technology
Christina Kim
University College, Dublin
Rebecca Berardelli
University College, London
Ronnie Tsai
ANTHROPOLOGY
ART HISTORY
BIOCHEMISTRY
COGNITIVE
SCIENCE
CREATIVE
WRITING
CRIMINOLOGY
FILM
KINESTHEOLOGY
SPORTS
MANAGEMENT
University of Bath
Judy Beestermoeller
University of King’s College
Sophia Niewerth
University of St. Andrews
Karan Vats
GAP Year
Daniel Cameron
Mitch Cram
Daniel Gold
Michael Groot
Gabrielle Jeliazkov
Lauren Laprise
Rebecca Louw
Gwendolyn O’Connor
Claudia O’Neill
Olivia Pierce
Sergio Pike
Anna Queen
Zachary Santella
Sebastian Schickhoff
Lucas Comamala
Arturo Esper
Juan Ortiz
AGRICULTURE
Alumni Weekend
Giles Thorpe ’63 and Jim Crumpacker ’63 receive special ties at a
celebratory 50-year reunion lunch
Gargee Ghosh ’93, Dana Hahn ’93, Fiona Ely ’93 and Marina Uzelac ’93
catch-up at a reception in the library
Dianne Tolman, Ted Hardy ’67 and Gordon Tolman ’69
Peggy Crumpacker, David Angus ’62, Jim Crumpacker ’63 and Bryan Huston ’61
enjoy the Reynolds House reception
The class of 1993 stands in front of the tree they planted to honour Bill Hann ’93
Students and alumni come together for a chapel
session featuring Sharon Janzen ’93
Our newest alumni take part in a beloved tradition of tossing - and catching - their
grad bears
A pinata provides fun for kids
Alumni Association President Nick Grant ’84 hands out grad
bears
Devon Mills (Grade 4) paints some jewelry on Grade 1 student
Ema Mlinar’s hand
Alpha Willeboordse and Taylor Ellison
compete in an inflatable race
Susanne Maier and Ayumi Saito Tomishige man the international marketplace
Charlie Willis ’67 takes on Grade 10 student Michael Rossi
Alumni Weekend
Renton Leversedge ’93 and Shannon Leversedge
Kathryn Wizinsky ’08 makes a play for the
alumni field hockey squad
Kalkidan Amare and
Larissa Santiago sing
Clarence Choy ’13 breaks away from the pack in the
rugby game against Oak Bay
Bryce Soderberg ’98 and his
girlfriend Ashley Edner
Erik Kidd ’83, Rob Nicholls ’83, Stephen O’Connor ’83, and
Kelly (O’Sullivan) Whitely
The alumni soccer squad take a break before defeating the Senior girls team 3-1
The alumni and student cricket teams enjoyed a great
game on Sunday
S
imon Ibell ’96 inspires everyone he
meets to face life in a positive way and
work through difficult times to achieve
their goals. Simon founded his first
charity, Bike 4 MPS, in 2002. His new
foundation, iBellieve, is devoted to the
same cause: improving the lives of people
affected by MPS II as well as over 50
related lysosomal storage disorders. The
iBellieve Foundation directs 85% of all
funds raised straight into research, with
an ultimate goal of finding a cure for MPS
II. The foundation also works to increase
the medical community’s awareness of
MPS II and to increase access to current
treatments.
“Simon was an obvious choice for this
award, both for his determination and
success,” says Gillian Donald ’85, SMUS
Alumni Associate. “His foundation has
made huge strides in research and raising
awareness, and rather than focusing on
his own condition, Simon is expanding
his efforts to bring attention to all rare
diseases.”
Over the past two years, Simon
brought Canada’s inconsistent approach
to rare disease treatment into the
spotlight, appearing on Global News
and Canada AM. Through the Be Fair to
Rare campaign, for which he teamed up
with the Canadian Organization of Rare
Disorders, Simon pressured our federal
government to
address the needs
of the one in 12
Canadians who
suffer from one of
over 7,000 known
rare diseases.
He’s shared
his story with
publications from
The Globe and Mail
to Reader’s Digest
(in a feature article
written by Bert
Archer ’86) and in
2011, he returned
Simon Ibell ’96 speaks to Grades 4-12 during his October 2011
visit as Scholar in Residence.
“Simon is an optimist and refuses to
allow negativity to be a part of his
life. He is a person I look up to.”
– Steve Nash ’92
ALUMNI News
The SMUS 2012
Distinguished Alumnus Award in Philanthropy:
Simon Ibell ’96
“SMUS played a significant role
in shaping my life and who I
am today, and I will be forever
thankful for the privilege of being
a part of this great school. My time
here taught me much, and it shaped
my character, confidence and work
ethic as I set out into the world,
determined to make a difference.”
– Simon Ibell ’96
to SMUS to speak as part of the Scholar
in Residence series. Simon also spent
several years working at Right to Play, an
international non-profit organization that
helps youth living in poverty and conflict
to experience the power of sport.
Simon was officially recognized
at the Victoria alumni reception last
October, and he honoured the school by
launching a page on his iBellieve website
dedicated to teaming up with the SMUS
community. Join Simon’s cause by
visiting www.ibellieve.com/smus.
www.ibellieve.com/smus
Help Us Recognize Distinguished Alumni
Previous categories have been philanthropy, business, arts and science.
Nominees should demonstrate vision, and innovation, dedication, achievement and
accomplishment, and community involvement.
Do you have an idea for the next alumni award? Do you know of an alumnus who
has done amazing things? Submit your ideas through the Advancement office or the
SMUS alumni website.
For more information,
please contact
Gillian Donald ’85
([email protected])
or Nicky Parkinson ’83
([email protected])
T
he SMUS Alumni Association is seeking suggestions for future categories and
nominees for our ongoing Distinguished Alumni Award series.
Alumni in the News
Mike Pyke ’03. Photo credit: Pat Scala (The Age)
Two former SMUS
Rugby playeRs
Richard Margison and Andy Erasmus ’09.
Photo credit: David Bukach
were in the news last year for two
very different reasons. Mike Pyke ’02
made headlines around the world
as the first Canadian to play in the
Australian Football League Grand
Final. Mike led the Sydney Swans
to victory and his triumphant rise in
rugby was chronicled in Canada and
Australia. Andy Erasmus ’09 also
received press for his performance
as George Stoner, the young man
convicted of murder in Tobin Stokes’
new chamber opera Rattenbury.
Featuring acclaimed Canadian tenor
Richard Margison in the titular role,
the production premiered to critical
acclaim last September at the
Fairmont Empress in Victoria.
Los Angeles
Alumni Receptions
Hong Kong
a
m left standing): Mariss
November 19, 2011 (fro
i
Lor
,
’82
th
For
d
Bra
,
’85
Hahn, Lindsey Pollard
,
‘92
ell
’94, Andrew Mitch
Adam, Paula Fullerton
an
Se
and
er
ather, Jennif
Tim Williams ’83, He
th,
Deng ’04, Deanna For
nie
An
nt:
fro
;
Williams
ms
llia
Wi
itlin
Ca
Fiona Donald ’82 and
Tokyo
Wong ’89,
December 1, 2011: John Davies, Olivia Lee ’00, Peter Kuo, Ron
Shen
Penny
’72,
Souza
Tony
’00,
Law
Antonio
Kathi Forbes, Rory Forbes ’90,
John
’94,
To
Kelvin
’79,
Chan
Greg
’95,
Chen
Wayne
’92,
’94, Sean Chen
Chan ’85 and Peter Gardiner
Vancouver
Dec emb er 8, 2011 : Miz uho Inai
’09, Hiro mi
Ogawa ’09, Kevin Saimon ’99 and
Paul Ford ’90
Vancouver
e Tate ’98 and
: Deb Tate, Stev
February 1, 2012
’99
Graham Snowden
Vancouver
Feb ruar y 1, 2012: And rew Fiel
d ’94, Byro n
Nutting ’67 and Barbara Samson
’80
ris Noel ’98,
: Eric Kerr ’95, Ch
February 1, 2012
man ’96 and
rre
Ha
isivier Gerva
Robert Sin ’98, Ol
Gareth Rees ’85
New York
New York
O ct ob er 11 ,
2012 : Ay el et
Pi at ig or sk y
Campbell Br ys
’9 1,
on ’06 and Dan
Ishihara ’99
Victoria
October 26, 20
12: Grenfell Fe
atherstone ’6
Ole Schmidt ’9
7 and
5
London (UK)
October 11, 2012: Lori Lee Ems
hey ’08, Sophia
Bryant-Scott ’10 and Lindsay Solm
er ’12
Victoria
Victoria
Kim
lap-Bono ’96,
12: Paula Sang
mla
La
en
el
H
d
October 26, 20
arania ’96 an
Ch
en
re
Za
Lobb ’98,
Gosniak ’96
Alumni
October 31, 2012: Adrian Beeston
’87 and David
Horne ’79
’02 and Rya n
Oct obe r 26, 2012 : Mike Pyke
O’Byrne ’02
London (UK)
Octobe r 31, 2012: Arturo Franco, Katheri ne
Tweedie ’94 and Alex (Richie) Bartoszewski ’81
We hold an array of alumni events around the world throughout the year. All alumni are
welcome to attend and we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible each year.
Receptions
Vancouver
Toronto
October 10, 2012 (in atte
ndance): Michael Code
’67, Linda McCulloch ’79
Warren Yu ’79, Bert Arc
,
her ’86, Victor Leung
’93, Joanna Forbes ’95
Simon Ibell ’86, Sara
,
Perry ’96, Keir Wilmut
’97, Raymond Shih ’98
Gustavo Neri Delgado
,
’98, Adrian Cochrane
’03, David Kim ’05, Da
Ch ris ten se n ’06 , Bry
niel
an Gis las on ’06 , Za cha
ry Blu me r ’07, Po We
Chuang ’07, Shane Ke
i
epence ’07, Luke Lee
’07, Emily Feng ’09, Bia
Ip ’10, Jasmine Lin ’10
nca
, Michelle Liao ’11, Rio
Hong ’12, Eugene Tan
Peter Gardiner, John Da
g ’12,
vies
San Francisco
is ’99, Jon
Jan uar y 30, 2013: Tayl or Dav
’98
d
Ree
Preston ’99 and Jenny
Seattle
February 15, 2013: Hu
bert Wang ’11 and Da
niel
(Fred) Barre ’84
Seattle
Mar ch 8, 2013: Tom Rigo s ’61
and Ren ton
Leversedge ’93
See the back cover for upcoming receptions and other gatherings, or contact
Gillian Donald ‘85 ([email protected]) about organizing an event of your own.
ter
on Pe na lun a ’91 , Pe
Ma rch 8, 2013 : Jas
il
Ph
d
an
’79
k
pe
ers
Ga rdi ne r, W im Va nd
McCune ’83
alumni
WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
The Alumni Updates section is a
very important part of our School
Ties magazine. It is a fabulous way
to keep in touch with your former
classmates and teachers, and also a
great forum to share the interesting
and enriching experiences of your
lives after SMUS.
Please take a moment to tell us about
your studies, travels, careers, weddings
and additions to your family.
We also encourage you to register
on our alumni email directory.
It’s simple! Visit the SMUS
alumni website to register
(http://alumni.smus.ca).
If you would prefer to give us a call,
Gillian Donald can be reached at
250-519-7508. Many thanks for
keeping in touch!
Gillian Donald, Alumni Associate
([email protected])
A NOTE ON THIS ISSUE
Due to the long length of time
between issues, this section contains
updates from December 2011 and
onwards.
updates
The ’70s
On March 22, 2012, Canadian Foreign
Affairs Minister John Baird announced
the diplomatic appointment of James
Ian Burchett ’77 to Consul General in
the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region (People’s Republic of China), with
concurrent accreditation as Consul General
in the Macao Special Administrative
Region (People’s Republic of China).
Prior to joining External Affairs and
International Trade Canada in 1990,
Ian worked as a legislative assistant to a
member of parliament, as an Interchange
Canada officer with the Public Service
Commission, and as a commerce officer
in Industry Canada’s Service Industries
Bureau. He has served abroad as trade
commissioner in Kingston, Jamaica; head
of the Investment Promotion Program at
the Canadian consulate general in New
York City; counsellor (public and cultural
affairs) at the Canadian embassy in Beijing;
and most recently minister-counsellor
(congressional and legal affairs) and deputy
head of the Washington Secretariat at the
Canadian embassy in Washington, DC.
He also opened the Canadian consulate
in Monterrey, Mexico. At headquarters,
he has worked in divisions responsible
for further advancing Canadian trade
and economic interests with the Middle
East and Gulf states, China, Taiwan and
the Republic of Korea. He also served as
director of the Media Relations Office and
director general of the Communications
Bureau (Foreign Affairs). In 1994, he
received the Professional Association of
Foreign Service Officers award. He has
also received the Public Service Award
of Excellence for his support of the
Government of Canada’s response to the
September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks
and the Canadian response to consular
emergencies in 2009.
Ian writes: “I look forward to working
with the school in my new capacity.”
The ’80s
Russell Laboda ’82 wrote to us after
receiving our Winter 2011 issue. He
writes:
“For nearly 30 years, I have
contemplated the perfect letter to our
SMUS community at large to express
my gratitude for the place. Now, I won’t
for a moment pretend that I enjoyed
attending because I just didn’t. My first
two years (1975-1977) were more like a
reform school than a top-notch prep.
“Reading the kind passage offered by
John Schaffter’s son reminded me how the
school transitioned over my seven years
in residence. I would often remind him
that I could never have been admitted
to the school from which I graduated.
Secretly, most of us felt that way but it
wouldn’t have been ‘cool’ to admit it.
As such, I will add my gratitude for our
former headmaster and his influence
upon us all.
“I have been married to my wife
Jennifer since 1993 and we have three
children: Spencer is 17, Natalie is 15,
and Rachel is 11. We live in Keller, Texas,
a northern suburb of Fort Worth.
“I concluded my Coast Guard
career in 2005 and I have been happily
employed by FlightSafety International
in Dallas, Texas since then. For the
past three years, I have been serving as
program manager for the Gulfstream
G150. In that position, I was responsible
for the initial and recurrent training
for nearly 300 pilots flying nearly 100
aircraft. My clientele hailed from as
far away as Lahore, Pakistan or Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia, or Santiago, Chile.
“In September, I was selected to
head the design build for the Gulfstream
G280. This fantastic aircraft promises to
lead its class when it reaches the market
this summer. I would like to extend
an invitation to our alums to visit our
learning center at DFW Airport.”
The blue door restaurant, owned by
Chris Black ’82 and his wife Debbie,
was named one of Canada’s top 50
restaurants in Maclean’s magazine’s
round-up of Canada’s best restaurants
in September 2012. Now living in
Fredericton, NB, the duo have been
very successful in bringing their years
of experience in the culinary world to
the blue door. Congratulations, Chris
and Debbie!
Sean Kelcey ’87 wrote to us in December
2011:
“At the end of August 2011, I retired
from the Canadian Forces after 23 years of
Regular Force service and am now working
as a primary care physician assistant in
Liz Ewart ‘89, Julie Ford ‘89, Ann Patrick ‘89, Mikhal Cohen ’89 and Lara Gaede ‘89
the small town of MacGregor, Manitoba.
I’m presently the sole provider for the
community and surrounding area with
assistance from my supervising physician
about 30 km east in Portage la Prairie. After
a workup period of about two months
in Portage working with my supervising
physicians, I started full time office hours
here in early November, looking after the
local population as well as the 26 residents
of the local personal care home. My work
is certainly challenging, since the ages and
variety of issues are considerably different
than the young, healthy and generally male
microcosm of the CF society that is Fleet
Diving Unit (Pacific), my last posting in
Esquimalt. I’m definitely enjoying things
and the town residents are very happy to
have someone here to look after them –
the local doctor here retired after 26 years
and there was nobody to replace him.
This is, unfortunately, a very common
problem here in rural Manitoba, not to
mention many other areas of Canada. On
the downside, my wife is still in the CF
and still in Victoria, so we’re anxiously
waiting for her to get posted out this way
so that we can settle in and be more a part
of the community.”
Michael Phillips ’88 is an electrical
engineer at Applied Engineering Solutions
in Victoria. He and his wife Alana along
with their children – Keiran, 12 and
Liam, 8 – moved back to Victoria in 2012
after a number of years moving around,
most recently in Melbourne, Australia.
Liz Ewart ’89, Julie Ford ’89, Ann
Patrick ’89, Mikhal Cohen ’89 and Lara
Gaede ’89 spent a wonderful weekend
getting re-acquainted at the Sparkling
Hill Resort in Vernon in May 2012.
A group of students in Nicaragua on a
2013 Spring Break service trip ran into
alums Angus Graeme ’80 and Alison
(Moat) Graeme ’80. Angus is the
President and CEO of Selkirk College’s
Castlegar, BC campus. He and Alison
live in Nelson and have three children:
Mike (21) is studying for the year at the
Nagoya University of Foreign Studies
in Japan; Sarah (17) is in Grade 12
and Emily (14) is in Grade 9. Alison is
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In October 2012, Byng Giraud ’85
was appointed Chairman of Ridley
Terminals Inc., a crown corporation
which owns and operates the advanced
coal terminal near Prince Rupert, BC. In
the same month, Byng was one of 60,000
Canadians awarded the Queen Elizabeth
II Diamond Jubilee medal for his varied
volunteer and professional activities. Byng
is currently Vice President, Corporate
Affairs of Imperial Metals Corporation,
a copper and gold mining company with
operations in Canada and the US.
ALUMNI UPDATES
In August 2011, Michael King ’85
and his wife Yvonne and their two sons
Robert (12) and Peter (9) returned to
Canada after spending three years in
Basel, Switzerland. Michael joined the
University of Western Ontario as an
assistant finance professor in the Richard
Ivey School of Business. Having spent
three years working on the financial crisis
and regulatory response with the Bank
for International Settlements, Michael is
happy to be changing gears and returning
to the classroom. He will be teaching
executives as well as HBA and MBA
students while continuing his research
on banking, international finance and
foreign exchange markets. Any SMUS
alumni who are visiting or moving to
London, Ontario can get in touch with
Michael at [email protected].
ALUMNI UPDATES
Amber, Benson and Jason Binab
Angus Graeme ’80 and Alison (Moat)
Graeme ’80 in Nicaragua
currently deciding what she would like to
focus on in the next while, with a strong
interest in art and volunteer work. They
are hoping to be back in Nicaragua next
spring break and more SMUS students
plan to head down as well.
The ’90s
Sasha Angus ’90 was named the new
CEO for the Nanaimo Economic
Development Corporation in August
2012. He has spent the last five years in a
business development role at the Greater
Victoria Development Agency (GVDA),
where he hosted more than 100 trade
delegations as well as wrote and executed
an economic development strategy
for Victoria.
Sasha Angus ’90
Jason Binab ’93 wrote to us last fall:
“2012 has been a busy year for my
wife Amber and me. We just finished
building our new home, I launched a new
real estate company called Binab Property
Group in February, and we had our first
son in May. Benson Ezra Binab was born
on May 9, 2012 and has changed our
lives forever. Life has become more hectic
with less sleep and more stress, yet all the
more sweet. Everything has taken on a
different meaning. I am very excited to
see my grad class and old friends at our
20th reunion.”
Ilja Herb ’93 and writer Arno Kopecky
boarded a 41-foot cutter in the summer
of 2012 to explore the central coast of
British Columbia, the region that will be
most affected if Enbridge Inc.’s Northern
Gateway pipeline proposal is approved.
They documented the journey through
photos, video and writing on their
website (http://oilmanandthesea.com).
From their September 5, 2012 post:
“We’ve had the great fortune to visit
places we’d heard of and places we hadn’t –
Bella Bella, Hakai, Koeye watershed,
Kitimat, Kitamaat, Gardner Channel and
the Kitlope valley and now Hartley Bay,
to name a few. Sometimes it seems that
Enbridge’s proposal is already dead in the
water, the coastal opposition is just so
overwhelming. Everywhere we go, people
declare themselves ready to die to stop it
from happening; every town has signs in the
windows, grandmothers and high school
kids alike are wearing ‘No Tanker’ t-shirts;
the testimony gathered by the Joint Review
Panel has been overwhelmingly negative,
as has the national media coverage, fueled
by Enbridge’s litany of recent screw-ups
and the Harper Administration’s rapid
dismantling of the very environmental
regulations that might, just might, prevent
a spill from happening were the project to
go ahead.”
Mat Geddes ’93 accompanied his
daughter Avery to her first day of
kindergarten last September, which led
to an amazing set of family photos, all
capturing a first day at SMUS: Mat
Geddes entering Grade 1 (1981), Avery
entering kindergarten (2012) and Mat’s
sister Jenny Franklin entering Grade 1
(1986).
Katherine Tweedie ’94 completed her
master’s degree at the Harvard Kennedy
School of Government in June 2012. She
wrote to us in May 2012:
“This year has been such a rich
journey of academic and intellectual
learning – from remarkable professors
to fascinating case studies where my
Mat Geddes in 1981, Avery Geddes in 2012, Jenny Franklin in 1986
ALUMNI UPDATES
Katherine Tweedie ’94
classmates and some friends were
often the protagonists of the story line.
Throughout the year, I also heard from
inspiring speakers, including Dilma
Rousseff, Bill Clinton, Henry Kissinger,
Noam Chomsky, Madeleine Albright
and Christine Lagarde.
“In addition to my curriculum, I
had the opportunity to cross-register
for interesting courses at the Harvard
Business School and lectures with Larry
Summers at the undergraduate college.
As a Mason Fellow, I joined a unique
community of 70 leaders from emerging
economies and through our summer
program and monthly seminars I learned
first-hand about their diverse and
inspiring experiences.
“I found ways to engage with the
Harvard community by helping with the
Center for International Development’s
Global Empowerment Meeting, and
co-organizing the Harvard Business
School Africa Conference and the Africa
Development Conference, which was
a unique collaborative effort between
Harvard’s seven graduate schools. I also
joined a mentorship program to speak
with young (but super impressive)
undergraduate women interested in public
service. Somewhere in between, Arturo
and I organized our beautiful wedding in
South Africa and kept ourselves fit with
yoga and runs along the Charles River.”
and coaching rugby at SMUS; Tye had
completed his MBA at the Sauder School
of Business and accepted a role with
Accenture in Toronto; and Ed was back
to his financial advisor role at RBC after
a third consecutive successful Rugby
World Cup with Canada.
Erin Cristall ’95 wrote to us in December
2011:
“This year, I became the senior vice
president of development for BunimMurray Productions, a reality television
company in Los Angeles. My upcoming
show is a tattoo artist competition called
Best Ink, premiering on the Oxygen
network March 27, which I developed
and for which I serve as co-executive
producer. Best Ink has no Canadian
broadcaster as of yet, but I’ve also been
working on a big adventure show for the
CBC, so stay tuned. I’m living happily
in the Los Angeles suburbs with kids and
husband, Mike, also a TV producer.”
Best Ink is now in its second season
on MuchMore.
Chantal (Nowak) Schauch ’97 and her
husband Mike Schauch, founders of
Climb for Change, recently embarked
on an expedition to The Lost Valley, Nar
Phu, Nepal. On March 27, 2012
Chantal wrote:
“Namaste. It’s finally take-off time! In
a few hours we’ll catch the red-eye flight
to Hong Kong and from there it’s off to
Kathmandu, Nepal.
“Deep in the Himalayas, close to the
Tibetan border, lies the remote village of
Phu, a tiny Nepali community nestled
just below 14,000 feet in elevation
amidst countless gargantuan peaks over
20,000 feet. Although very little grows
at this elevation, for nearly 800 years the
people of Phu have lived here in balance
with their natural surroundings.
“Given the remoteness of Phu (it’s a
seven-day trek just to get there), and the
fact that it was only opened to outsiders
approximately eight years ago, the
community has been relatively untouched
by tourism and our modern world.
“Our objective? Unlike so much
of what we seem to be used to, it’s not
about the necessity of doing something,
getting somewhere, being better, being
more, or having more. The objective is
simply to have a journey. To give ourselves
enough space to remember what is
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SMUS alumni Eric Kerr ’95, Mike
Danskin ’98, Tye Spicer ’98 and Ed
Fairhurst ’97 shared some holiday cheer
in Vancouver in December of 2012 and
got caught up on some life changes. When
they met up, Eric had recently started
a role as general counsel for Pinnacle
International; Mike had moved back
to Victoria from Calgary to complete a
BEd at UVic while working in boarding
Eric Kerr ’95, Mike Danskin ’98, Tye Spicer ’98 and Ed Fairhurst ’97
ALUMNI UPDATES
important. To empty ourselves enough,
so we can fill ourselves with the richness
of the experiences from this journey
and the experiences of sharing stories
with a very, very old remote mountain
community. And to learn from its people
as much as we can, so we can learn more
about ourselves.
“Through this experience, we hope to
capture a moment in time, documenting
our journey along the way and passing
it on through the lens of photography,
painting and sketching, music, writing,
storytelling, and filming.”
To learn more about Climb for
Change, visit climbforchange.com.
Luis Castilla ’97 wrote to us back in
April 2012:
“A great many things happened in
the last year for me. I got married to my
beautiful wife Cristina and she moved
with me to Austin, Texas. The fall was
full of music during the ACL Festival
and we quickly adopted two dogs, Guera
and Hogan. I was working in Austin as a
TV producer for the Univision Network,
traveling all across America interviewing
some of the top scientists at UCLA, the
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the
University. We are back in Mexico City
to explore new avenues and settle down
in our native land. Big hug to all of my
SMUS friends, hope life is good wherever
you are!”
Susan Hayes ’99, currently a Senior
Project Engineer for RDH engineering
in Vancouver, recently competed for
Susan Hayes ’99
Canada in the 30-34 age group category
in the World Triathlon Championships
in Auckland, New Zealand.
The ’00s
Thomas Taylor ’04 wrote to us in July
2012:
“Hey, I thought it’d be fun to send
a first update since my graduation. I
recently got engaged, and plan to be
married in the next year or so (maybe I’ll
save that for a future update). Besides that,
I’m just finishing up a US Department of
State Critical Language Scholarship in
Xi’an, China for an intensive language
study. It’s really quite an amazing
program. It’s paid by the government, and
fits one year’s worth of Chinese into two
months of study. I encourage American
students to apply for it in college. When
I come back home, I will be working on
finishing up my undergraduate degree in
international affairs. Besides that, I might
travel to Victoria this summer, hopefully
to catch up with old friends!”
Thomas Taylor ’04
Julia Gill ’06 graduated from Queen’s
University in 2010 with a BSc (Hons)
and went on to attend law school at the
University of Calgary. Most recently,
she has been accepted into the new
International Energy Lawyers Program,
a dual degree program that will allow
her to earn law degrees from both the
University of Calgary in 2014 and the
University of Houston in 2015.
She has also undertaken to run a halfmarathon, 21.1km, with the Team in
Training program with a goal of raising
$4250 dollars for the Leukemia and
Lymphoma Society of Canada. She is
running a half-marathon for the first time
in honour of a close family member who
Julia Gill ’06
has been battling leukemia for the past year
and a half. If you would like to sponsor
Julia on her run, please visit her website at
http://tinyurl.com/JuliaGillTNT.
In December 2012, Mr. Reid received a
charming letter from Ian Chen ’07, who
arrived in boarding from Taiwan in Grade
8 with his twin brother Eric. He writes:
“I don’t know if you still remember
me, but my twin brother Eric and I
played percussions in band from Grade 8
through 12, and you’ve always been our
teacher/director. You helped us prepare
for provincial band applications every
year, and recommended us for MusicFest
national band one year. I think it was also
because of you that we joined the Greater
Victoria Youth Orchestra and stayed
with them for three full years. You’ve also
awarded me a personal honor at a music
competition where we had to sight read
music as a band (I can’t remember the
name of the competition).
“I just watched the new Les Miserables
film, and remembered the old times when
Eric and I played in the pit orchestra at
the school musical Les Miserables back
in 2005. I played the drum set and, to
this day, I still remember trying to follow
your baton during the encore “The
People’s Song” when the whole audience
joined in.
After graduating from SMUS, I
attended Cornell University and doublemajored in biology and music. In 2011,
I started my Master of Music degree
at New York University in the music
composition program (Scoring for Film
and Multimedia). I will be completing
my degree this month, and will be
Stephen Lyon ’08 wrote to us in March
2012:
“I am currently in the Mechanical
Engineering program offered at the
University of Victoria and, through the
Engineering Student Society, I have been
able to get involved with the engineering
community in Western Canada. I recently
attended the Western Engineering
Competition (WEC), where engineering
schools from BC to Manitoba come
together once a year to compete against
one another in various engineering-related
competitions. I was competing in the
Engineering Communications category
with a fellow mechanical engineering
student, and we gave a 30-minute
presentation on wave energy conversion,
discussing the potential of using ocean
waves as a renewable energy resource. We
placed second in WEC, and as a result
were able to go with one other team to
the Canadian Engineering Competition,
where the top two teams in each category
come together from each of the regional
competitions across Canada. We presented
our topic in Vancouver, and this time we
were able to place first out of all the teams
from the best engineering students across
Canada. It was an incredible experience,
with lots of opportunities for networking
with other schools and companies within
my field.”
Last October, Emily Reid ’09 released
her debut single “The River” as
REID. A recent graduate of Belmont
University, Emily wrote seven of
the 10 tracks on her new full-length
album. Also in October, she performed
at the Association of Independent
Emily Reid’s album
Music Publishers (AIMP) showcase
on the opening night of the annual
Billboard Film/TV Music Conference
in Hollywood, California and, this
January, toured the US and Canada.
Emily also performed her own music as
part of the massed bands finale at the
Spring Band Concert at SMUS.
To stay on top of Emily’s musical
career and hear her new album, you can
find news on Facebook, Twitter and her
website (www.thisisreid.com).
ALUMNI UPDATES
moving to Los Angeles to start my own
music production studio for films early
next year.
I want to say thank you for all the
things you’ve done for me. I can’t imagine
going into a career in music without all the
experiences you helped me gain in high
school. I hope that I will be able to see you
when Eric and I visit Victoria one day.”
Johnny Humphries ’09 is back at the
University of Western Ontario after a
full-year exchange studying kinesiology
at Victoria University in Melbourne
(where he ran into Kabir Daswani ’09 on
a one-semester exchange from Queen’s
University).
Johnny captained the UWO Mustangs
rugby team this year, so his parents Jake
and Joan went down to see the final versus
Queen’s (who won) and also saw a couple
of Johnny’s former classmates: Tim Wu
’09 and Steve Meng ’09.
Tim Wu ’09, Steve Meng ’09, Johnny Humphries ’09 and Jake Humphries
www.smus.ca/linkedin
Stephen Lyon ’08 (right)
Connect with fellow professionals and SMUS
alumni on LinkedIn to participate in discussions about
careers and other business opportunities.
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ALUMNI UPDATES
They live in what is called the ‘red
bricks’ apartments (where Bryan Sun
’09 and Melissa Bosworth ’09 also live),
and have Tom Bridger ’09 and Francis
Quinlan ’09 for next-door neighbours.
The Humphries clan also saw
Kabir Daswani ’09, Michael van der
Westhuizen ’08 and Andrew Crow ’08
that weekend.
Dorothee Stieber ’09 sent this update
to SMUS university counsellor Jake
Humphries last March:
“I am now on Youth City Council
in my hometown and working on an
effective PR strategy to get kids interested
in political involvement and democratic
participation – an exciting challenge. I
have decided to go to Dresden and study
international relations in a UNESCO
chaired program and I hope to work for
parliament here. I think of my SMUS
teachers and advisors very often, honestly
I cannot stress enough how happy and
thankful I am to have spent a year with
all of you.
“To me, the inspiration, care and
sense of responsibility paired with the
passion within the SMUS community are
unparalleled. And it is you and the other
school employees as well as the students
who make that happen every year.
“I have made Vivat! and to learn, to
lead, to serve my own motto and mission,
trying to keep the SMUS spirit in my life
and decisions.”
James Coates ’09 recently won a
national award in chemical/biomedical
engineering. The Robert G. Auld
Student Paper Competition is run by the
Canadian Society for Chemical Engineers
and presented at the annual Canadian
Chemical Engineering Conference.
One undergraduate student each year
is recognized for the best oral paper
presented during the student technical
session. James is currently studying
chemical and biomedical engineering at
McGill University.
Alicia Pawluk ’10 was elected the first
female to represent the student body
as School of Medicine President at the
University of St. Andrews. During the
scholastic year, her main role was to liaise
between the students and faculty attending
to administrative and academic matters.
Sally Blyth, former Director of the
Junior School (1996 to 2005) wrote to
us in October 2012:
“Alan and I have lived in Windsor,
Ontario for four years now. Yes, it is a big
change from Victoria. With one daughter
in Toronto and our other married to an
American and living in Grosse Pointe
outside of Detroit, we made a decision
that has been hugely successful.
“We see our fabulous three
granddaughters, half an hour away, all
the time. We see our Toronto daughter
at least once a month. Both of us are
very engaged in the community here. I
volunteer at a therapeutic riding centre
working with kids, my joy and passion.
I am also involved with the University of
Windsor’s Women’s Studies program.
“Lately, I have assisted in the startup of a program of learning for seniors
called Elder College. Added to this, Alan
and I enjoy all the music at the Windsor
Symphony Orchestra, where he is a
member of the chorus.
“We are faithful attendees at the
Detroit Opera and love the closeness of
big city to small city. Windsor is perhaps
the friendliest city we know. For a
small city, it has a lively cultural life
and the people here have made us feel
very welcome.”
There were bells...
Chris Travis ’80 married Nerissa Candido
at the school chapel on September 17,
2011. In attendance were many SMUS
alumni. It was a great gathering of family
and many friends. The happy couple
reside in Victoria, BC.
Milan Mrdjenovich ’99 wed Elizabeth
Kolar on October 15, 2011. Many
SMUS alumni attended, including
Milan’s siblings Milica ’03, Jelena
’00, and Aleksa ’02. Cam Clark ’99,
Steve Lobb ’96, Kim Lobb ’98, Vania
Gamache ’99, Danny Boticki ’99 and
John McGillivray ’99 also attended.
Samantha Kwok ’03 married Loel
Horvey in a beautiful beachfront
ceremony in Puerto Vallarta on May 19,
2011. Among the 50 guests in attendance,
SMUS was represented by bridesmaid
Elizabeth Effa ’03, bridesmaid Maureen
Palmer ’03 and Benjamin Kwok ’09.
Samantha earned her Doctor of Medicine
degree from the University of British
Columbia in 2011 and is currently
Chris Travis ‘80 and Nerissa Candido
Ivan Wan ’97 and Annie Cheung married
on a very cold evening at a mountain
peak in Hong Kong on January 15,
2011. It was almost exactly 10 months
later – October 10, 2011 – that a baby
boy, Iston Wan (soon to be class of 2029)
was welcomed into the family. Iston has
been working out since (lifting milk
bottles) in preparation for future SMUS
team tryouts.
Ivan Wan ’97 and Annie Cheung
Anna Kohlen ’03 and James Miller were
married on July 23, 2011 at the Inn at
Laurel Point in Victoria. Alumni in
attendance were maid of honour
Clementine (Hudson) Crooks ’03,
bridesmaid Jennifer Couvelier ’04, Abby
Fraser ’17, Mat Geddes ’93 and David
Backhouse ’84. Anna currently teaches
at the Middle School and both Anna and
James worked as house parents at SMUS
for over six years.
Whitney (Dorin) Gore ’03 wrote to us
in October 2012:
“I was married in Beverly Hills,
California on August 2, 2012. My
husband’s name is Craig Gore and I am
now Whitney Gore. I am an evening law
student finishing my final year at Loyola
Law School. I manage client accounting
at Kaplan Stahler Agency in Beverly
Hills, which represents talent primarily
in the TV, literary and alternative spaces.
Craig is a TV feature writer whose credits
include Syfy’s upcoming series Defiance
and the upcoming CW series Cult. We
first met at the Swan Bar, a jazz cabaret
bar in Paris, France, in 2006. We eloped,
so the only person in attendance (other
than the photographer) was our witness
Zac Simmons, Craig’s agent.”
ALUMNI UPDATES
completing her residency in family
medicine at the University of Alberta.
Tisah Tucknott ’05 and Ryan Cohen
were married August 20, 2011 in Victoria.
Terra Barnes ’08, Natasha Chao ’05, Sean
Tucknott ’02, Bianca Bartz ’04, Jeannine
Bartz ’05, Anik Mommsen-Smith ’05
and Melissa Ko ’05 were among the
alumni in attendance.
Milica Mrdjenovich ’03, Cam Clark ’99, Steven Lobb ’96, Milan Mrdjenovich ’99,
Elizabeth (Kolar) Mrdjenovich, Vania Gamache ’99, Kim Lobb ’98, Tony Cordle, Dan
Boticki ’99, Jelena Mrdjenovich ’00, Aleksa Mrdjenovich ’02
Luis Castilla ’97 and Cristina Castilla
Samantha Kwok ’03 and Loel Horvey; Samantha with bridesmaids Elizabeth Effa ’03
and Maureen Palmer ’03
Tisah Tucknott ‘05 and Ryan Cohen
Craig Gore and Whitney (Dorin) Gore ’03
Anna (Kohlen) Miller ’03 and James Miller
ALUMNI UPDATES
sister Grace, who was so thrilled to meet
and hold her little sister.
the birth of their beautiful baby girl
Lauren Elizabeth on January 31, 2011.
Blair King ’85, his wife Diane King and
their children Nicholas (4) and Claire
(2) welcomed Emily Meredith King on
November 7, 2011 in Langley, BC.
Stephanie (Olsen) Sturgis ’95 and Jason
Sturgis ’93 welcomed a sweet little
girl named Olivia Timken Sturgis on
February 21, 2011.
David Longridge ’88, his wife Gretchen
and their son Declan welcomed a daughter
and sister, Evie, on April 17, 2011.
Erin Cristall ’95 is living happily in the
Los Angeles suburbs with her kids and
husband, Mike. On October 3, 2011,
they welcomed a son, Martin. Martin
joins his brother Michael, age two.
Megan (Volk) Taylor ’98, her husband
Michael Taylor and big sister Nola
welcomed baby Anna to the world on
March 1, 2012 at 10:14 pm. Anna’s
precipitous entrance resulted in her being
New on the scene
Erinn Grant ’88 and Gerry Swallow
welcomed the arrival of Phoebe Patrice
Swallow on January 2, 2012. Phoebe
joins big brother Finley in bringing
tremendous joy and laughter to the
Grant-Swallow household.
Chris Bateman ’94 and his wife Jenn
welcomed Cleo Olivia Bateman on
November 8, 2012. She weighed in at
8 lbs 2 oz, exactly the same as her big
Robyn Reid-Ivany ’97 and her husband
Andreas Svenningsson welcomed their
son Joel on June 9, 2011.
Proud parents Kimberly Bourne ’97 and
Jason Buchwalter are happy to announce
Martin and Michael Cristall
Cleo Olivia Bateman
Declan and Evie Longridge
Joel Svenningsson
Phoebe Patrice Swallow
Olivia Timken Sturgis
Lauren Elizabeth Buchwalter
Blair King ‘85 and family
Anna Taylor
Anna Huang ’98 and husband Simon
Flanagan welcomed their first son,
Benjamin Flanagan on May 16, 2012
in Sydney, Australia. Benjamin shares
the same birthday as his favourite uncle,
Patrick Huang ’96.
Stephen Tate ’98 and his wife Deb
welcomed Della Claire on April 30, 2013.
Claire Jones ’00 and Jonathan Royce
would like to announce the birth of their
daughter, Evelyn Ann Royce born on
November 16, 2012.
Caitlin (Smith) Bingham ’01 and her
husband Matthew Bingham welcomed
Samuel Andrew Pierce Bingham born
April 24, 2011. Samuel’s grandfather
is SMUS Senior School math teacher
Ken Smith.
Heather (Sortland) ’01 and Travis
Crabbe welcomed son Robert Walker
Crabbe on October 14, 2012.
On New Year’s Eve 2013, three alumni
babies found themselves together as
their parents rang in the new year.
Gianna Sukraj Kaur Dhillon was born
November 29, 2012 at 6 lbs 15 oz to
Dave Dhillon ’91 and Lina Dhillon;
Amelia Jasmine Miller was born
November 28, 2012 at 7 lbs 6 oz to
Anna (Kohlen) Miller ’03 and James
Miller; and Lucy Penelope-Ann Crooks
was born December 12, 2012 at
8 lbs 2 oz to Clementine (Hudson)
Crooks ’03 and Craig Crooks.
ALUMNI UPDATES
delivered at home by good friend and
skilled midwife Laura Willihnganz ’98.
Senior School teacher Benson Young and
his wife Alana welcomed Ava Elizabeth
(8 lbs) on January 19, 2013.
Samuel Andrew Pierce Bingham
Ava Elizabeth Young
Gianna Sukraj Kaur Dhillon, Amelia Jasmine
Miller and Lucy Penelope-Ann Crooks
David Angus ’62 and his granddaughter
Katherine (future class of 2030)
Della Claire Tate
Evelyn Ann Royce
The Future Class of 2029
Robert Walker Crabbe
Vince Lau ‘98 Joyce & Darren
George Lawton
Do you have a future SMUS student? Email [email protected] to get a SMUS shirt for your baby.
Benjamin Flanagan
PASSAGES
Passages
David Massy ’37 died in July, 2011, at
the age of 92. His father, Captain H.H.
Massy, was a member of staff at both St.
Michael’s School and University School.
David had a very good career at University
School both as a scholar and an athlete.
He was the school boxing champion in
1937 and a stalwart 1st XV rugby player.
After graduation, he served in WWII in
Europe, attended UBC and then went on
to a teaching career in BC and Quebec.
He had a large family and many friends
and clearly much enjoyed his golden years
on idyllic Salt Spring Island.
Larry Devlin ’59, a family friend of
the Hudecs, wrote this tribute to two
fine men:
“Brothers Martin Hudec ’39 and
Theo Hudec ’40, both alumni with
long and deep connections to the school
community, died in April and August
of 2012. Martin and Theo (Ted) Hudec
came to University School from Shanghai
Theo Hudec ’40
Martin Hudec ’39
in 1937, in part, because their uncle,
Gerald Tisdall, had earlier retired to the
Cowichan Valley from China and his
youngest son, A.G.H. (Binkie) Tisdall had
attended University School in 1924-1929,
where he was an outstanding athlete.
“Martin graduated from University
School in 1939 and Theo in 1940. Both
brothers returned to Shanghai where
their father was a prominent architect.
Despite wartime occupation of the
Shanghai International Settlement, they
continued their studies in languages and
science. As adults, their linguistic skills
were remarkable and included Japanese,
Mandarin, German, French, Spanish
and Portuguese.
“In 1948, the Hudec family emigrated
to California. Martin and Theo enrolled
at UBC where they studied business,
economics and engineering.
“Both brothers maintained contact
with the school during their long and
successful international careers. Two
of Theo’s grandchildren (Christian and
Claudia Knoglinger) graduated from
SMUS in 1992 and 1994 respectively.
Martin came to several recent alumni
reunions including his 70th in 2009,
at which the statue of Reg Wenman
was unveiled.
“Martin often spoke of the positive
effect that G.H. Scarrett (Headmaster,
1935-1948) had on his life, and
he regularly wore his black and red
University School tie with great pride.
“Both brothers died within four
months of each other, peacefully
surrounded by family members, friends
and others who had been witness to
the Hudec energy for life, wisdom and
civility.”
Bill Dalziel ’42 passed away April 27,
2012. In 1938, the “new boy” list shows
that four Dalziels enrolled at University
School. Three were brothers, and the
fourth, Bill, was their cousin. The
four Dalziels were a great force in the
athletic arena and their names appeared
frequently in the school magazine’s
reports on various sports.
Apart from his athletic prowess Bill
was a good academic student who went
on to become prominent in the Victoria
business community with a family
company (The Dalziel Box Company),
the San Juan Logging Company and later
in land development.
William Donald Mackay ’42 passed
away April 9, 2013 in Salmon Arm, BC
at the age of 90. Don attended University
School from 1937 to 1942 as a boarder
from Prince Rupert, BC. He enjoyed a
fine school career as a scholar, prefect
and all-around athlete. He went on to
have a full career with CNR and become
the Regional Manager of BC Projects
Mountain Region. Upon his retirement
in 1981, he came to Victoria and was a
longtime member at the Royal Colwood
Golf Club. Don was also related to SMUS
faculty member Judy Tobacco.
Robert J. Harvey ’42, a second-generation
University School student from 1938
to 1942, died peacefully at his home on
Denman Island, BC on March 12, 2013.
After graduating from the law program at
UBC in 1949, he practiced primarily in
Vancouver and Victoria for 53 years. He
enjoyed a very interesting life, for he was a
writer whose works covered BC maritime
history and his great grandfathers’ life as
a sea captain. He also obtained a pilot’s
licence late in life and travelled extensively
in his Cessna 185.
Sir Robert Cave-Browne-Cave ’45 passed
away September 19, 2011 in Langley,
BC. An excellent scholar, he completed
a successful Grade 12 year at the age of
16 and then went home to Vancouver to
complete Grade 13 at St. George’s School
before entering second year at UBC. His
last direct contact with the school was in
2007 when he attended a lunch with Les
Gilbert ’50, Ian Mugridge, Cliff Yorath
and Rob Wilson. He was a dignified and
interesting man with vivid memories of the
Scarrett era: difficult years for University
School. His father, Clement, also attended
University School in the more buoyant
years of 1908-1912.
Ferdinand Schmitz III ’46 passed away on
March 15, 2013. He was a boarder from
Seattle and left University School in 1946
to complete his high school education
in Seattle. He had a successful business
career with Olympic Forest Products,
a company which he founded, and for
recreation enjoyed sports fishing in the
Pacific Northwest.
Malcom Anderson ’47
Hugh Burnett ’50 passed away on May
17, 2013 in Vancouver. His six years at
University School were very successful
in all aspects of school life, with the
Hugh Burnett ’50
Ken Beattie ’59 attended University
School for his Grade 9 and 10 years as a
boarder from California. The school lost
contact with Ken and it only recently
came to light that Ken had moved to
Victoria many years ago and that he
passed away in June, 2000. This much
belated tribute to Ken is courtesy of Jim
Smith ’59, whose investigations led us to
hear of Ken’s passing.
“Ken came to University School in 1957
from Newport Beach, CA. After leaving
the school, Ken returned to California for
a short time but subsequently returned
and spent the rest of his life in Victoria.
Ken was a design engineer for many years
along with owning a taxi firm and other
businesses in Victoria.
“Ken was considered an accomplished
power boat skipper and owned his own
cruiser for many years and at the time
of his passing was building a new boat.
He spent considerable time cruising the
Inland Passage and although he loved all
of it, his favourite locations were Princess
Louisa Inlet and Aaron Rapids.
“Ken’s final resting place was at Aaron
Rapids where his ashes were scattered.
Ken was 57 years old. Ken was a great
friend. He will be missed.”
Ian Dykes ’63 passed away in December,
2011 in Red Deer, AB. He was the oldest
of three brothers from Wetaskiwin, AB,
all of whom enjoyed highly successful
years as boarders at University School.
Ian was the winner of the 1963 Ker Cup,
a fitting recognition of his contributions
to the school as a scholar, rugby player,
Cadet Captain and head prefect. He was
the dominant personality of his year and
when his passing became known, Andrew
Timmis wrote the following tribute to
share his perspective as a younger student
who was a great admirer of Ian.
“I have many fond memories of Ian.
I was in the band with him for several
years, when I was a junior bugler and he
was a front row snare drummer and then
later, Drum Major.
“We shared many good times going
on parades and doing rehearsals, band
practices and Cadet inspections. While
he was older and much more grown up
than me at the time and we therefore
Malcolm Anderson ’47 died peacefully at
the age of 78 in Victoria. He was a loyal
St. Michael’s School alumnus and, soon
after amalgamation, he became a SMUS
parent: his daughter Marianne was one
of the original group of girls enrolled in
1978.
Malcolm attended the Loretto
School in Scotland, Victoria College and
UBC, where he received his Bachelor of
Commerce degree. He worked in sales
for several companies over his career,
including Hudson’s Bay, Eatons and Shell
Oil. Malcolm also served as an alderman
for the City of Victoria and was an active
volunteer.
For recreation, he enjoyed sea
kayaking and sailing – he sailed the
Victoria-Maui race twice – and playing
squash. Remarkably, he took up the
cello in his seventies at the Victoria
Conservatory of Music and enjoyed
concerts with Moira, his wife of
54 years.
Appropriately, given his love of the
outdoors, donations in his memory can
be made to The Land Conservancy of
British Columbia..
highlights including the winning of
the Cross Country Cup for three
consecutive years and being a good
rugby player. Hugh’s working career
started immediately after he left school:
he joined the Royal Bank of Canada and
remained with the bank for 38 years. He
was the manager of branches in various
communities in British Columbia before
settling into the rest of his managerial
career in the Vancouver area. His love
of rugby football led him to be a long
time and well-respected referee and
administrator with the Vancouver Rugby
Union for over 30 years.
Hugh Burnett’s association with the
school did not end, for he maintained
a lifelong association by faithfully
attending alumni events and joining
the Alumni Association. In 1990, Hugh
was president of the Alumni Association
and later a member of the Board of
Governors (1995-1998). In recent years,
he maintained a constant association
through the Advancement Office and
the Archives.
These accomplishments don’t really
capture the true quality of Hugh Burnett.
He was not only a true life member
of the University School and SMUS
community, he was a fine man who
always displayed a commendable sense
of tradition, loyalty and integrity. He was
the epitome of a model alumnus and will
be sorely missed.
PASSAGES
couldn’t possibly play rugby together,
or do much else together, we could do
cadets together, regardless of age and size.
This was where big boys and small boys,
of various ages and grades, could make
friends with each other.
“I called Ian in the spring of 2008 to
invite him to march in the band with us
on Old Boys weekend. When he answered
the phone, I announced, ‘Timmis One
calling!’ and nothing else.
“There was a silence for a moment
and then a roar of amusement, approval
and enthusiasm. Ian wanted to be there,
he wanted to join in, but he couldn’t do
so in 2008. However, he would love to
come the next year. He quickly began to
ask about certain old boys and how to get
in touch with them.
“His school spirit was over the top.
I will always remember Ian singing at a
school dance as he played the guitar. We
all crowded around to listen. The song
was “Four Strong Winds” and it sounded
wonderful. His deep baritone voice
resonated throughout Brown Hall.
“Ian always had a grin ready and was
full of fun, but he could be serious too.
He reminded me so much of the movie
actor John Wayne. A man’s man… big,
tall and strong. For me, he always stood
10 feet tall.”
Barry Crofton ’67 died on September 8,
2012. He was part of the Crofton family
of Salt Spring Island and Victoria, many
of whom attended St. Michael’s School,
University School and SMUS. Barry spent
six years at St. Michael’s School, where he
received his primary education. School
information shows that he lived in Nova
Scotia, where he practiced acupuncture
in Halifax and his last address was in
Wolfville, NS. His obituary in The Times
Colonist describes a man of gentle spirit
and a wry sense of humour who was
loving, brave and cheerful in the face of
a long illness.
William H. Hope ’69 passed away
December 16, 2012 in Seattle. He
attended University School as a boarder
from Seattle and his school credentials
show that he was editor of the school
magazine Taviv and a member of the
shooting team. Bill returned to his home
state of Washington to attend Pacific
Lutheran University and then become a
businessman in Seattle.
“More importantly, Hill was part of
a rich musical team with his wife – York
University professor, organist, choir director,
harpsichordist and composer, Stephanie
Martin – helping with accompanist duties,
music arranging and recording sessions.”
Bruce Hill ’78 died on March 18, 2012
while on holiday in Cuba. In his eight
years at the school, he was a fine scholar
and particularly talented in music and
debating. The following tribute amply
shows what an impact he made on the
music scene in Toronto and is reprinted
with the kind permission of John Terauds,
a friend and fellow musician.
“Toronto organist, choir director
and ever-willing musical collaborator
Bruce Kirkpatrick Hill died on Sunday,
March 18, while on holiday in Cuba
with his wife, Stephanie Martin, from
complications related to kidney disease.
He was 48.
“Every big city is blessed with a few
dozen people whose contributions are
invaluable to the continued vitality of its
musical life. Hill was one of these local
heroes. Hill was one of the first organists
I met after moving to Toronto, joining
him on the executive of the local branch
of the Royal School of Church Music.
The Victoria, BC native had just left
doctoral studies at the University of
Toronto, and was organist and choirmaster
at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in
Scarborough. His was an energetic, lively,
gregarious presence that radiated an equal
love for music and people.
“Hill went on to a number of other
church assignments, including an 11-year
stint as the organist at Christ Church,
Deer Park, where he oversaw an active
and diverse music program until 2008.
“He was also a regular performer at
organ recitals in Toronto and well beyond.
Two of his most recent music positions
were director of the Anglican Chorale of
Ottawa, and rehearsal accompanist for
the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, which
holds its 30th anniversary celebration
concerts later this month. He was also a
regular member of the Exultate Chamber
Singers for most of its history.
Vinnie (Vininder) Gill ’95
Vinnie (Vininder) Gill ’95 died May 12,
2012, after complications during heart
surgery. He was a SMUS lifer. It is always
sad to note the passing of one so young,
and in this case, one who was enjoying
his career in real estate, an appropriate
calling for Vinnie, who was a positive
and caring people person. Vinnie’s K-12
career at SMUS also reflected these
qualities, for he was involved in a variety
of activities and thoroughly enjoyed his
long and successful tenure at the school.
Ian Balliford, who taught music at
University School from 1968-1971
passed away this May in Victoria at the
age of 96. He was a talented man who
had previously had a long and successful
career at Shawnigan Lake School.
Bill Hann ’93: Gentle Giant
by Mat Geddes ’93
T
his past Remembrance Day
marked the passing of Bill Hann ’93
after a battle with cancer.
Bill is remembered as a gentle giant.
His soft-spoken way, supportive sense of
humour and professionalism epitomized
his spirit. He enjoyed a simple life as a
family man, pilot and great friend to all.
In his time at SMUS as a boarder,
from 1989 to his graduation in 1993,
Alex is flourishing in the Junior School
and his sister hopes to follow in his
footsteps next year in Kindergarten.
This May was the 20th reunion for
the class of 1993. Bill loved these events.
He loved the chance to be with friends
and to share memories and stories. Many
of Bill’s closest friends were on hand, tall
tales were told and glasses were raised in
tribute. Together, our class has made a
substantial commitment to the Class of
1993 Annual Fund to give the gift of a
SMUS education to the Hann children,
and with a goal that will carry forward in
perpetuity to offer financial assistance to
deserving alumni children in the future.
The faculty of SMUS, through
the sharing and caring fund (faithfully
managed by Margaret Skinner), also
planted a bloodgood Japanese maple tree
at the northeast corner of School House
in support of the family. May it stand as
tall and with the same unwavering dignity
as the man whose memory it keeps!
Bill Hann ’93
Bill was often a voice of reason. He joined
various sports teams, enjoying particular
success in basketball, golf and rugby. He
could always be counted on as a reliable
and helpful person and was rewarded
with the role of prefect in his final year.
After graduation and following
successful
undergraduate
studies
at Bishop’s University in business
management, Bill devoted his time to
aviation. The miracle of flight fascinated
him from an early age. His interest grew
into a passion, and his career took off,
leading him from handling luggage on
the float plane docks to flying planes
for Harbour Air, and, ultimately, all the
way to high altitude as a pilot and First
Officer for WestJet.
There is elegance in the to and fro
of an aeroplane on the wind. Pilots ride
the flows of change, creating smoothness
as they guide their wings. This was Bill’s
gift in life. No matter what turbulence he
faced, he had a grace and calm that made
him unflappable.
In the words of Laurie Barnes ’93:
“Bill was one of the great ones; honest,
loyal, loving, quiet and hilarious, and
always willing to accept us for who we
are.”
I first met his family a few years ago
at Alumni Weekend. We spoke in the sun
about our lives and the wonderful school
that we shared. Bill was so grateful for
all that he had and this shines through
each time that I remember him. He felt
compelled to move back to Victoria in
order to give his children, Alex (Grade 1)
and Samantha (Pre-K) the opportunity to
attend SMUS. Bill felt that the school had
given him the strongest of foundations in
his life and he wanted that for his family.
His wife, Maureen, is an educator and
was recently hired at the school as the
educational technology leader, helping
integrate technology into practice and
enhancing the learning in the classroom.
PASSAGES
Passages
PASSAGES
Passages
Chris Fortune ’67: Indomitable Spirit
by Jim Wenman ’67
I
n order to fully appreciate Chris
Fortune and his amazing life, it would be
best to read The Times Colonist March 14,
2013 biography written by well-known
local artist and writer Robert Amos, with
whom Chris had a great friendship. Amos
writes, “Chris Fortune spent most of his
life in a wheelchair, and in the end was
scarcely able to lift his stiffened fingers to
his mouth. Yet at a recent memorial, his
friends remembered him as a man of high
intelligence with a big heart and profound
Christian generosity. His life options
were seriously limited, yet he managed
to enjoy the most sublime expressions of
life, art, music and literature.”
We who saw Chris once a year at
SMUS alumni weekend did not know
this side of him.To us, he was “Freddie,”
a bright, happy, fun-loving teenager
whose life took a dramatic turn at the
age of 18 when he was diagnosed with
multiple sclerosis.
Chris was a popular member of the
University School class of 1967 and I am
glad to say that there was a good turnout
at his memorial by his classmates who,
like me, must have been floored as Robert
Amos listed his achievements.
He graduated from the University of
Victoria with a master’s degree in Slavonic
literature and later taught Russian
literature at UVic and became one of the
foremost translators of Russian modernist
poet Nikolai Zabolotsky. Helping him
in this endeavour was his first wife and
caregiver, Marion Ross. Chris volunteered
his time to teach literacy at William
Head Penitentiary and
was eventually hired
there, setting up the first
computer network for
inmates. However, tragedy
struck again. Marion was
felled by a rare disease and
with no one to look after
him, Chris was moved to
the Gorge Road Hospital.
Chris was undeterred
and soon was out of the
Gorge and living in an
assisted-living apartment.
He met and married
another caregiver, Kathy
Hunt, and continued
his work as one of the
founding members of
HandyDart transit service
and became chairman of
the MS Society. There are
more accomplishments
but the picture is clear:
Chris possessed courage
and perseverance to a
rare degree, and I never
Chris Fortune ’67 on a visit to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.
Photo: Robert Amos
Chris Fortune ’67
heard him complain. I am sure he would
be quick to credit his achievements to
the tremendous help he had from his
caregivers, his mother, friends such as
Amos, and his faith.
Chris possessed
courage and
perseverance to
a rare degree,
and I never heard
him complain.
For those of us, like myself, who
knew Chris but maybe not as well as we
should have, his struggles and successes
send a message or two about the impact
one individual can have, whatever their
disadvantages. Chris’s contribution was
massive, and I hope I have conveyed
what an outstanding individual Chris
Fortune was.
ANNUAL
Q
5FGQCWBCGB?PGR
8
FUND
$1.2m
m
5
2
.
1
$
$1.0m
$1.1m
$800k
$900k
$700k
$500k
$400k
$600k
$200k
2012-2013
Each in turn. All in time.
$300k
Publications
Mail Agreement
#40063624
OCTOBER 2013
Toronto, ON
(Oct 9)
New York, NY
(Oct 10)
Montreal, QC
(Oct 11)
Victoria, BC
(Oct 25)
London, UK
(Oct 31)
NOVEMBER 2013
Calgary, AB
(Nov 14)
Alumni Basketball Tournament
(Nov 23)
Hong Kong, CN
(Nov 27)
Tokyo, JP
(Nov 28)
3400 Richmond Road
Victoria, BC, CANADA V8P 4P5
If undeliverable, return to
JANUARY 2014
Vancouver, BC
(Jan 30)
FEBRUARY 2014
Seattle, WA
(Feb 28)
MAY 2014
Alumni Weekend
(May 2-4)
San Francisco, CA
(May 7)
Los Angeles, CA
(May 8)
Stay on top of the latest events by finding us on Facebook
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School Ties: 2013, Summer Issue - St. Michaels University School

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