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page 1 Organic Roots Winter 2013 www.nct.org 518.523.9329 page 2

‘The Rocks All Look Way Smaller’By Karen Culpepper, Camp Treetops Director

Grit’s Predecessor? The 3RsBy David Hochschartner, Head of School and Camp

We just passed through a typical Adirondack cold snap, with sub-zero highs for the better part of a week. (On a couple of nights, temperatures plummeted to the minus 30s.) As I watched students bundled up and heading off to barn chores in the blowing snow, I couldn’t help but think how physically tough our students have to be. When it’s so cold that the inside of your nose freezes, collecting eggs or shoveling manure loses much of its usual luster. And still our students go to the barn twice a day (as do Treetops campers in wind and rain) to care for animals and to make their contribution to our community.

A mental toughness is just as important as physical endurance. In their day, NCS founders Walter and Leonora Clark spoke of the “NCS 3Rs.” (In addition to the traditional Reading, ’Riting, and ’Rithmetic, they hoped to foster in children Ruggedness, Resourcefulness, and Resiliency.) Over the years, however, some parents found those latter 3Rs a little outdated—too physical, too sweaty, not quite cerebral enough. This corresponded with a shift in the prevailing educational winds toward standardization, high stakes testing, and the ascendancy of AP courses.

But in recent years research from disparate fields is backing up with hard data much of what our visionary founders believed from gut instinct. It turns out that a character trait called grit—the mixture of a person’s resilience and persistence—has a whole lot to do with later success in life. Research from the University of Pennsylvania psychologist Angela Duckworth shows grit to be the best predictor of who’s actually going to graduate from college, who’s going to win the national spelling bee, or who will survive four grueling years at West Point to become an army officer. (Duckworth’s TED talk—called True Grit and easily found on Google—gives a fascinating overview of her work.)

What’s more, grit is a trait that can be measured; it’s a trait that can be learned; and it’s a trait that schools can and should deliberately teach.

Duckworth has created a simple, eight-question test to measure one’s grit. The Kipp charter schools in New York City are using report cards that chart students’ progress in developing grit and six other important traits (optimism, zest, curiosity, social intelligence, gratitude, and self-control). Admissions officers are revamping their assessment procedures, retooling application questions to measure prospective students’ grit.

Paul Tough’s important new book, How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character, also suggests that lifelong success seems to rise from overcoming adversity and managing failure — the very things many parents and educators try to protect children from. To paraphrase Tough, what if the key to children’s success is letting them fail?

We do a pretty good job of helping students and campers become more gritty. When a child spends hours hiking a mountain but must return another day to make the summit; when he throws a clay pot on the wheel umpteen times before getting it right; when she persists on an elusive algebraic factoring problem—surely our children are learning the grit they need now and for later life.

Now, in NCS’s 75th school year—as well as for the duration of the Strong Roots, High Peaks Campaign—there can be no more important work than reaffirming the ideals of our founders. And given their vision, doing so means not only a fond looking back, but also embracing some of the most exciting and innovative ideas of our time.

History is never far from us at Treetops. The spirit of Helen Haskell infuses the place—and the philosophy she gave life to is with us still, alive and thriving in any manner of activities from garden harvest and barn chores to the creations that bloom in the crafts shops every day.

And if that weren’t enough, other reminders of our past seem to crop up with amazing frequency: the scrapbook given to the Haskells on their 25th anniversary as Camp directors, or the Barbara Morgan interview, or the retired college professor who spent just one summer here 70 years ago and called out of the blue one day because he wondered if we still play mumblety peg.

The latest piece of Treetops memorabilia to come my way is, thankfully, a living piece of history. It’s a video of an interview with Lanie Lacey Fleischer (CTT 49-50, staff 54-59, 61-63), niece of Helen Haskell, recorded last year during Friends’ Weekend. To listen to Lanie is pure pleasure, as she shares delightful memories of Treetops in the ’50s and early ’60s. (To watch the interview and see photos from Lanie’s time, visit www.camptreetops.org/lanie.)

Lanie also talks about change—what has, but how much hasn’t. “The rocks all look way smaller,” she says, laughing. About the Uphill Grill, generator of no small measure of controversy in its early days but now a fixture of Camp life, Lanie exclaims, “What a great idea! It’s beautiful.”

Lanie tells a wonderful story about visiting her Aunt Helen in New York City. Lanie noticed that a new building had gone up, blocking the view of a clock tower she had liked. “Now, my dear,” Helen reportedly told her niece, “you really have to get used to change. Because if you can’t accept change, you’re going to have a very unhappy old age.”

How right Helen was. (As usual.)

Several years ago the blowdown in the red pine forest—a magical place for so many for so long—at first felt like a terrible loss. And it was. But after awhile, some benefits began to emerge. Campers had the opportunity to re-plant the forest, re-creating the same experience as the original planters but learning that a mix of species will make for a healthier forest. Similarly, after the trees across from Glass House went down, beautiful views opened up, and in the clearing we now have the Children’s Garden, a new place, yes, but one that has quickly come to be loved—because it’s so Treetops.

Lanie had another telling anecdote. She recalls how Helen and Leo always enjoyed planting the flower bed along the road. After Helen retired, others took it over, but they planted it differently. Lanie says that Helen was so pleased that the garden had continued, she didn’t care if it wasn’t exactly the same. The fact that there were flowers was the important thing, not that they were different.

Change isn’t always our strong suit at Treetops. But it doesn’t have to be that way. After all, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Top Photo: Lanie Fleischer with donkeys Buttons and Bows, purchased by Walter Clark (or so he claimed, Lanie recalls) from a Montgomery Ward catalog

Julia Taft JonathanMay 13, 1958 - January 26, 2013

CTT counselor, program director, nurse & parentNCS teacher and admissions directorNCS/Treetops trustee

As Roots was in production, we received the sad news of Julia’s passing. We will pay her fitting tribute in our next edition.

page 3 Organic Roots Winter 2013 www.nct.org 518.523.9329 page 4

Board of Trustees

Dennis Aftergut, Chair

Barkley Stuart, Vice Chair

Hope Knight, Treasurer

Sandra Gray Nowicki, Secretary

Jennifer Ewing Allen

Lisa Beck

Barry Breeman

Peter R. Brest

J. Matthew Davidson

Guillaume de Ramel

Laura Thrower Harris

Julia Jonathan

Caroline Kenney

Sam Kim

Roger S. Loud

Jennifer Maslow

Bob Parker

Marty Rosenberg

Pamela Rosenthal

Matt Salinger

Peter Skinner

Hume Steyer

Manny Weintraub

Bethany Dickerson Wynder

Honorary Trustees

Joan K. Davidson

Colin C. Tait, Esq.

Richard E. Wilde

Trustees Emeriti

David T. Kenney

Rose Kean Lansbury

Sumner Parker

New & Returning Faculty and Staff, 2012-13

Katie CulpepperFarm Educator, Edible Schoolyard LiaisonWith years of experience at School and Camp, Katie re-joined the NCS community at the start of winter term. In the past decade or so she has worked at Treetops as a counselor, waterfront director, leader of a Treetops Expedition to Hawaii, and last summer as farm educator. She has served at School in the admissions office and as a Level I teacher and support houseparent. Last year she spent time working for a camp in Hawaii, where she was responsible for sustainable initiatives, including the development of a small farm program for both educational and production purposes. Katie has a BS in elementary education from the University of Vermont and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in educating for sustainability from Antioch University. In her free time, Katie can be found cross-country skiing, doing pottery, reading, or cooking.

Monica ForbesHead of HousekeepingMonica came to us in December 2012 from the Uihlein Living Center in Lake Placid. There she spent 12 years as supervisor of housekeeping and laundry. A graduate of Lake Placid High School, Monica was born, raised, and still lives in Wilmington—these days with her husband Darin, daughter Megan, two dogs, and a cat. In her spare time, Monica enjoys canoeing and camping locally and traveling farther afield. She enjoyed a recent trip to Montana, visits Lancaster County in Pennsylvania every year to indulge her fascination with the Amish, and has her sights set on an Alaskan cruise in the not too distant future.

Jillian TaylorKitchen StaffA native of Long Island who finished high school in the Poughkeepsie area, Jillian joined us after Thanksgiving. She is a 2011 graduate of Paul Smith’s College, with a BA in culinary arts and service management. Previously she worked at the High Peaks Resort and Simply Gourmet in Lake Placid. During high school, Jillian spent two months in Europe traveling and working with other students in London, France, Italy, and Malta. She enjoys sailing and snowboarding and lives in Saranac Lake with her dog Trigger and boyfriend Pete.

From the EditorI grew up in an age and a family where seeking attention was frowned on. And yet public recognition is important. A job well done, an unexpected kindness, a hard-won accomplishment are all worthy of praise in their own right—and valuable as exemplars to which others might strive.

So I’m pleased that student artwork has returned to our front cover, an honor for artist (seventh grader Ava Goble) and teacher (Laura Bill) alike. This issue also contains the Annual Report for 2011-12, a well deserved, public thank you to the many supporters whose generosity keeps Camp and School programs thriving. Profiles of Sheila Tavares and Bill and Susie Localio shine a spotlight where it’s long overdue. And efforts to renovate the Treetops Main House and to name the New House are exciting opportunities to honor the legacy of our forbears—and something we all can take part in as well.

Thanks to all for the inspiration.

Lisa Rowley

From Our Readers The articles about Shirley Lovett and Barbara Morgan (Fall 2012) brought back vivid memories of my early summers at Treetops in the 1940s. In 1947 I was one of six lucky campers, (three girls, including Betty Clark Eldridge, and three boys) living in the Little House [now Woods House] in Junior Camp with Shirley Green (as she then was). The bedtime story and goodnight tuck-in always concluded our day. This ritual was immortalized by Barbara Morgan, along with many other moments of our life. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Barbara was her ability to blend into the background; she was somewhere in the corner of a very tiny space focusing her lens on six children and one adult, and I for one, have no recollection of her being there. (I am the littlest munchkin looking over Shirley’s shoulder at the page as she reads.) [Betty Eldridge is at far left]. Shirley, as was true of all the adults, may have assisted in setting up the scene.

Some adult complicity was certainly necessary the following year, when my parents came up for Parents’ Weekend. I was then in a tent group in Junior Camp,

with Helen and Leo’s sister Vida as our counselor. Vida got me up from rest hour, and made sure I got my shoes on before telling me that my parents were outside. I raced out the door and into Daddy’s bear hug (definitely not rehearsed), while Mom struck a pose, while Barbara kept shooting. Not until the bear hug shot appeared in LIFE a few years later, while I was in Senior Camp, did I have any clue that Barbara had been recording it all. I’m sure many others must have had similar reactions when Summer’s Children appeared that year. I found some copies of Summer’s Children on AbeBook a few years ago. Gay (Booth) Greenleaf CTT 46-52, staff 59-60, 65-67Denver, CO

CorrectionIn the previous News & Notes (Fall 2012), we incorrectly listed the first name and affiliation of Mrs. Oren Root (CTT parent 59-62, grandparent 90-92, 97-06) and her relationships to the family members she wrote to us about. She is the grandmother of Mica Root (CTT 90-92), Nathaniel Root (CTT 97-01), Gregory Root (CTT 97-03), and Amelia Root (CTT 02-06). We regret the errors.

Each one of these memories is a jewel in its own right, but put them all together and you have the ingredients of a truly magical summer.

I am a City Kid, born and raised on the east side of Manhattan. Yet I am writing from a converted barn in the middle of the Cotswolds in deep rural England. And the reason I’m here has a lot to do with Treetops, whose lifelong impact has instilled in me a deep love of and need for nature—not just picture-postcard appreciation, but a deeper and more contemplative way to understand its importance for both body and soul.

Over four years in the 1970s, I was taken by my parents to this most beautiful corner of the Adirondacks. There I spent seven weeks as part of a close-knit community, learning their values and taking part in every aspect of Camp life. How my Polish immigrant parents ever heard of this place I still do not know—nor can they remember—but I will always be deeply thankful that they got me there, as it changed me for life.

Many of the memories that have lasted through these past 30+ years are similar to those of other Treetops campers over the years. I know this because since 2004, I’ve begun to come

back every year or two for Friends’ Weekend, a rare chance to retreat from the world for four days, much of which is filled with reminiscences. They are memories of crisp Adirondack mornings, the feel of putting on cold overnight jeans at 6:00 a.m. followed by a quick splash of cold water in the wash house and then the crunch of work shoes on gravel walking down the road to barn chores; or of the sunlight piercing the still air in the dining room as we all stood ’round the table hand in hand, waiting to be seated; or of guitars played at all times and in all corners; or of endless games of mumblety-peg before meals; or of the mist on the lake in the morning and the sun setting on it in the evening. Each one of these memories is a jewel in its own right, but put them all together and you have the ingredients of a truly magical summer.

There were clothesliners and triangles, Bob Bliss teaching us all canoe safety, mail call and “J & C” in the afternoon. Best of all was the 4th of July: barbecue, homemade ice cream, and an enormous bonfire—what could be better? There was the Salty Dog Rag, square dancing and wonderful music, and

Alumni Voice: As Good As It GetsBy Daniel Szor, CTT 73-76, CTT parent 08-10

theatre productions in the Pavilion and Quonset Hut. There was a retreat from technology—which back then was far less pervasive and invasive to start with—and from junk food and all the other trappings of everyday life that made the time at Camp so very different and special. I used to love reading the various instruments—thermometer, barometer, anemometer, hydrometer—in the Science House each morning and then standing up to give the “weather report” at council.

There was privilege, and responsibility, of choice—in planning for oneself what to do, which activities to try, how to spend

one’s day. During my years at Treetops I was never a great hiker, though the memories of the joy, beautiful vistas, and sense of accomplishment that come with summiting a peak—whether as small as Trouble or as big as Marcy—have stayed with me to this day. Rather, I was attracted to and thrived on everything connected to water. I swam and canoed, but it was in sailing that I found a love that would grow and grow and last my entire life. First on Round Lake and later on overnight trips in the Saranacs, I spent hours learning the points of sail, how to understand the wind, becoming familiar with the lingo and just generally enjoying the sensation of flying across water on gusts of a mountain breeze.

I devoted much of my Super year to completing a very demanding Red Cross sailing course and was allowed to make changes to an already pretty-liberal schedule to accommodate the need to spend most of my time at the waterfront. The sailing counselor, Ed (now Sebastian) Perkins, whose red hair and beard reminded me of a pirate, had a great old hippy-dippy van with a bed and bead curtain in the back, and I remember the twisting rides as we drove to Saranac Lake for sailing trips. And the ice cream stops on the way back! Completing that course was one of the first real senses of accomplishment for me—something I remember fondly to this day—and I have taken the love of sailing with me for all the years since.

To be honest, I don’t think I fully appreciated the values of Treetops until I began coming back to Friends’ Weekend as a middle-aged father with sons of my own (both of whom have since been campers). After years of flux and change in my life,

I was bowled over with emotion during my first time back: by the permanence of the place; by how beautiful the area was and how little it had changed; and by how truly amazing was the vibe, the sense of community, and the quality of the people—Treetops staff and alumni alike. I was in fact moved to tears on several occasions, as I thought about how lucky I was to be part of this very special place on earth, this small community and its ethos, its values, which even though I didn’t fully understand or appreciate at the time, would end up becoming such a big part of my life. I vowed never again to lose touch with Treetops and that I would help support the Camp in any way I could—

financially, through enthusiastic endorsement, and by staying part of the community through my kids and keeping in touch with my alumni brethren.

This past Friends’ was perhaps the best one of all, as I was able to bring my wife, daughter, and two sons along with me for the experience. As I woke early one morning in Lake House and looked at all four of them, lined up like sleeping campers in their bunk beds, hunkered down in their sleeping bags while the sun slowly rose over a misty Round Lake, I thought to myself that this was in fact as good as my life would—or ever needed to—get. You can be sure I’ll be back for more.

Daniel Szor is managing director at FX Concepts, where he focuses on European business development. He lives with his family in London and New York.

Photo: On top of Trouble Photo: Dan and his family among the 2012 Friends’ Weekend crowd

Alumni Voice: As Good As It GetsBy Daniel Szor, CTT 73-76, CTT parent 08-10

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page 7 Organic Roots Winter 2013

Photos: Not bad for late January and -3 degrees outside

Farm & Garden UpdateBy Katie Culpepper, Farm Educator

Extending the HarvestTraditionally, Thanksgiving effectively marks the end of the fresh produce coming from our greenhouses. But not this year. In the fall, with the help of the 7th grade Edible Schoolyard class, we planted in the greenhouse rows and rows of spinach, kale, Swiss chard, lettuce, a variety of Asian greens, and even a plot of carrots—just to see how they might fare. And despite some nights well below zero, and frantic harvests to get just one more bowl of fresh greens before they die, they seem to be, well, thriving. Okay, maybe not everything. The lettuce bolted a few months ago; the tatsoi is looking a little nipped; and Hailey, one of the farm interns, spent a good part of a day not long ago picking off less than lively leaves. But it is mid-winter after all, and the spinach growing in there is the sweetest I’ve ever tasted, the carrot tops are stunted but perky, and the watercress is a vibrant green unfamiliar in this winter world of whites and grays. And while these greens were planted for education and experimentation, not necessarily to provide for the kitchen, today for lunch we had a pasta dish made with spinach and kale from the greenhouse.

Production and EducationOur farm is unique in its dual purpose. Most educational farms don’t have to worry about having a year’s worth of potatoes at the end of the summer, and most production farms are happy to keep children out of their rows. It can be hard to balance feeding a community and teaching a community. Take chicken, for instance. Our twice-yearly chicken harvests are enormously educational for campers and students, but we still rely on store-bought chicken for

many of our meals. Recently the farm staff had the opportunity to try out a new method of harvesting chickens—one that could save a lot of time, provide more chickens for our kitchen, and still offer a powerful educational experience. Now before anyone starts drafting a strongly worded letter to the editor, I want to be clear that we are not suggesting replacing our traditional chicken harvest. But if we are serious about producing our own food, it never hurts to consider additional options (especially when a friend donated the chickens and let us test his equipment at no cost).

The borrowed equipment included a mechanized plucker, automated dunker, and special bags to vacuum seal the processed

bird. At first it all seemed too high tech for our operation. But in roughly two hours, four or five adults cleaned and bagged about 60 birds. That level of efficiency got our attention, and the process still felt intimate, no matter how counter-intuitive that seems. Though the mechanization means not as many hands can be involved, those that are helping are truly connecting to each step. Also, the equipment serves to compact the process, so the entire operation from chicken coop to bagged bird occurs over a span of about 30 feet—and is easily observable in one glance. As with our traditional chicken harvest, each of us participating had that immense feeling of being fully present for something profound. We don’t know yet what our next step will be, but the potential for additional powerful and hands-on education for small groups of children is strong—as is the appealing prospect of producing more of our own chicken.

AquaponicsThe practice of growing fish and plants together is gaining momentum all over the world—and has piqued our interest. With the gardens and greenhouses mostly shut down for a good portion of the school year, a project in aquaponics—a hybrid of aquaculture (the farming of fish) and hydroponics (growing plants in water)—would provide students an opportunity for some new experimentation in food production. In an aquaponic system, the fish waste provides needed nutrients for the plants, eliminating the need for artificial fertilizer (a disadvantage of hydroponics). As the plants soak up these nutrients, the water is cycled back through, now clean enough to enter the fish tank, eliminating the

need for waste removal and large amounts of water replacement (disadvantages of aquaculture). In addition, the nitrification cycle that occurs is similar to what happens in the compost pile, but in a way that may be easier to observe and understand.

With modest effort, a recently cleaned out bay in Flushing Meadows could be the perfect location for an aquaponics project. At least a portion of the needed materials is already part of our lumber inventory, and the photovoltaic panels on Flushing Meadows may be able to supply 100 percent of the electricity. We’re planning to offer an aquaponics mini-course during Intersession, to drum up student interest and get the project off the ground.

“The watercress is a vibrant green unfamiliar in this winter world of whites and grays.”

Weeding the Sugar BushIn recent years, we have been harvesting trees to help heat our buildings, a win-win process that also improves the health of the remaining trees. This year, the sugar bush has been the site of our most notable timber stand improvement. It’s easy to see the incentive: by increasing the health of the sugar bush, we are improving our maple syrup production potential. What’s happening out there is essentially like weeding a garden. By taking out less desirable species (the small birch and poplars), we give the existing sugar maples more room and sunlight to thrive. This year, students, faculty, and farmers alike have been involved in this work (see page 9 for more), offering teachable moments about tree identification, forest competition, and photosynthesis. And come March, one hopes, more sap in our buckets.

Farm Productivity 2012(Not all crops included)

Vegetable Harvest (lbs) ValueAsparagus 15 $43.95 Basil 133.75 $1,605.00Beans 378 $1,134.00Beets 15.5 $54.25Broccoli 270 $912.60Brussel Sprouts 57.5 $230.00Cabbage 1,171 $2,402.60Carrots 2,084 $4,600.97Cauliflower 277 $900.25Chard 307 $1,228.00Cucumber 1,126 $2,252.00Garlic 162 $1,435.32Honeydew Melon 328 $1,075.84Herbs 112.5 $1,483.50Kale 318 $954.00Kohlrabi 125.5 $376.50Leeks 157.5 $472.50Lettuce 853 $6,824.00Mixed Greens 53 $848.00Onions 2,284 $5,391.15Peas 350 $2,625.00Peppers 190.5 $599.25Potatoes 2,354 $7,062.00Pumpkins 775 $583.75Rhubarb 238 $749.70Spinach 58 $449.50Summer Squash 597 $1,194.00Tomatillo 68 $119.00Tomatoes 512.5 $1,837.83Watermelon 443 $354.40Winter Squash 2,960 $5,388.00 Total 18,774.25 $55,186.86

A Conversationwith Bill Localioand Susie LocalioBy Lisa Rowley

When Susie and Bill first applied to be counselors at Treetops, both were rejected out of hand. At 18, the twins were too young. But the second day after Camp started in 1964, Helen Haskell called the Localio household. She had six or seven kids in Crow’s Nest, and they needed a male counselor. “Can you come?” she asked Bill. “Oh, yeah,” he replied.

Since then, and counting their camper years, Bill and Susie have spent collectively 65 summers at Treetops (26 for Susie, 39 for Bill). There is little that one or both hasn’t done. Waterfront counselor (Both). Program director (Both. Susie in Junior Camp, Bill in Senior Camp). Camp parent and trustee (Bill). In recent years Bill has been in charge of the hike house during the summer and serving as Karen Culpepper’s assistant for the rest of the year. Readers of Organic Roots will know that Susie has been a regular contributor of inspiring alumni profiles. Lately she also has been coming for the opening of Camp to deliver their nephew Donald—who after two years in Junior Camp is the latest Localio to fall in love with the place—and to help with homesickness and lend a hand where needed.

Clearly the Localios have Treetops in their blood—and Treetops is hard to imagine without them. But even so, 65 years begs an obvious question.

LR: What makes you return?

Bill: Someone asked me that very question just the other day. And without thinking for a second, I blurted out: “The intense feeling of community.” The spontaneity surprised me, so I’ve thought more about it since. What makes Treetops so unique are a couple of things. One, you’re here for the whole summer, and two, we have this intense set of values that makes it feel like the community is reborn every summer. Children and staff might be different, but the values stay the same.

Susie: I guess because Treetops is my village, my hometown. Along with my mother, it’s the place that shaped my values and provides a sense of belonging. It’s the place where I can come back, and nothing has changed. Sitting here now, this could be 1968—except that we can’t skinny dip anymore. But the feeling of the place is the same. We have children of our campers here. As a child in Woods House, Greg Marchildon was in my group, and now he’s a counselor and his sons are campers. You don’t often get that kind of continuity in today’s world.

LR: Can you identify specific values that Treetops fosters?

Bill: Everybody pitching in. There’s a strong sense of looking out for the other person. To an unusual degree you defer your own immediate needs and ego to those of the larger group. And of course by doing so, you benefit enormously—it’s not all sacrifice by any means.

Susie: And for me it’s also the love of the mountains, the attachment to the natural world. The geography of this place is exceptional. I’ve asked to have a bit of my ashes buried in the flower garden, so

I can always look out at Cascade.

Bill: So there’s the connection to the natural world, the sense of community,

Bramwell House Biomass BoilerThe Bramwell House biomass boiler became operational last November. All of the building’s space heat and 95 percent of the domestic hot water are now supplied by the wood gasification boiler. It burns firewood cut from our campus and surrounding contiguous lands. Trees selected for harvest are low quality, diseased, or growing in crowded locations; their removal improves the health of remaining tree stands. This effort further reduces our fuel oil equivalent by approximately 2,500 gallons per year, offsetting our annual carbon dioxide emissions by roughly 50,000 pounds.

Student Tree HarvestersWood shop teacher Carter Rowley has been involving students in harvesting trees that produce the wood chips used to heat the Main Building. During out-times and an all-day Saturday trip during winter term, students have equipped themselves with hand saws and axes, then set to work in the sugar bush and other forest locations in need of thinning. They cut down saplings (mostly evergreen), strip off the branches, cut the resulting poles to lengths of 12 feet, then pile them on the side of the trail. The poles are stacked to dry, then later chipped and used as fuel in the biomass plant. Carter aims to have every student participate in the process at least once,

so the entire community contributes to (and understands) the work involved in heating our buildings.

Ongoing OutreachOur sustainability efforts continue to attract attention. In November, we hosted four visitors from the Chewonki Foundation, a leader in experiential education and sustainability. In February, Business Manager/CFO Betsy Smith and I gave a workshop about our biomass boilers at the national conference of the National Business Officer’s Association in Philadelphia. In addition, the editor of Northern Woodlands magazine has asked us to write two articles about our sustainable forestry efforts. Lastly, a PhD student with Capella University is using NCS/Treetops as a case study for her doctoral research on the type of leadership needed for organizations focused on environmental sustainability.

Glass House Makeover

Recent former residents of Glass House will no doubt be amazed at what a fresh coat of paint, new furniture, and a refinished wood floor can do. The transformation of the first floor into the new admissions reception area was completed shortly after the New Year and now provides a pleasant and welcoming home base for visiting families. The renovation includes a remodeled bathroom and a carpeted conference area in what was the dining room;

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Campus Greening & RenewalBy John Culpepper, Director of Facilities & Sustainability

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Treetops Alumni Spotlight:Sixty-Five Years and Counting

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and also being useful, productive, valued. And that’s important for kids but also for those of our advanced age. There’s a tremendous sense of acceptance at Treetops. We have children with Asperger’s syndrome who come here and feel that they belong.

Susie: At Treetops you’re able to be yourself. And there’s a strong sense of possibility. Tessa Huxley used to say, “Treetops made me realize that I could do anything.” And for me, that meant that I could hike Colden. I was small and not a good hiker, and I remember some discussion about whether I could do such a trip. But Harry Eldridge said, “I’ll take her.” And that was the beginning of my love of hiking.

We both became teachers because we wanted to be able to go to Treetops during summers. Bill taught high school

history for eight years, then became a guidance counselor. I taught middle school English in the Berkshires, then worked at the Shelburne Museum, and later taught special ed, and then fifth and sixth grade. Being teachers got us back to Treetops.

Bill: You asked why we come back? Because children still feel that they can learn something from us—not just from the younger staff. And that’s the way it’s always been. I remember Van and Dotty Van Aller and Mildred [Brooks], and they were all valued as mentors by the staff as well as by kids.

LR: Who were your mentors when you were campers?

Bill: Marsh McCall—I was very close to him. Roger [Loud] and Harry [Eldridge], in the very specific sense of leading trips. Don Rand and Louise Ganter, who were so talented musically and whom I was so awed by.

Susie: Harry, who taught me to swim and then took me on that first Colden trip. Franz Geierhaas. Cola and Bernhard Heiden. I took something away from all of them. Lanie Lacey [Fleischer] and her patience in teaching me riding. The two Gladii: Gladys Aikens a bird-like housekeeper, and Gladys Straight, the laundress who spent more than 40 years here. To this day, I think of them when I clean the house or do laundry. They taught us the dignity of work, that all labor deserves our respect.

Bill: Our father used to refer to Treetops people as a bunch of communists, and he wasn’t entirely wrong. There’s a strong sense of “from each according to his abilities to each according to his needs.” I remember one parent, a very successful Wall Street guy, and he sent six kids here so they’d have this kind of communal experience.

LR: Can you each describe your best memory as a camper and as an adult?

Bill: I was a Second Year (in Senior camp), and I was going on a triple overnight into the Santanonis with Roger and Harry. It was a very difficult hike—blowdown thick as can be, with a planned bivouac between Panther and Couchsachraga. I was so up for it; back then I could go all day. Well, it was really tough. For the bivouac, we didn’t carry sleeping bags or extra water for cooking. We just rolled up some extra clothing in

Treetops Alumni Spotlight:Sixty-Five Years and CountingStill Creative

After All These Years

When Susie visits for the opening of Camp, she comforts homesick campers, jumps in to do unexpected laundry, and helps out with all manner of useful tasks. Among her favorites: reading the results of her morning tent inspections—in verse.

For a new twist on recycling, Bill used canvas from old tents to help senior campers design and sew original tote bags. Styles varied from back packs to a clutch to shoulder bags of different shapes and sizes. At summer’s end, Bill em-ceed a fashion show on the boardwalk so all the designers could show off their creations.

our ponchos, which we wore around our waists. To find water we had to drop off the ridge, and the only water we found was what was dripping off moss-covered rocks. We stopped for the night and slept on top of two large boulders, four kids and a counselor piled up on each one. I remember Roger and Harry saying they would “sacrifice” by sleeping on the bottom of the pile, but we realized the next morning that they had stayed warm. In the middle of the night Norman Ganter rolls off the pile with a shriek, then crawls back up. The next day we continued to Couchy, bushwhacked down the other side, and then hiked about 10 miles back to Bradley Pond leanto, where we’d left our sleeping bags and the rest of our supplies. You do something like that, and it’s a pretty intense memory.

Susie: I came here at nine and was immediately homesick. I wept and wept. Walter Clark would play footsie with me under the table to stop my crying. I even cried while grooming my favorite horse, Lady Bee, leaning my wet face against her warm flank. But when I left Treetops at 13, I cried all night. For an entire year after I left, I dreamt about Camp. I asked my mother, “How can I live without Treetops?”

So with that kind of intensity, there are lots of memories. I remember a double overnight at Cliffords. Three days of riding, which I loved. Learning to control a large animal, even though I was small (I was thrown more than once, but I always got right back on) has held me in good stead. I am a little woman, but I’ve never been afraid.

Bill: And as an adult, there’s not a specific memory. Rather what stands out

is any number of times when you made a difference in the life of a child.

Susie: When I was program director in Junior Camp, I’d tell my staff, “Come talk to me about anything, anytime.” One night a young counselor woke me in tears. He was still mourning the death of his mother. I comforted him as best I could and put him to sleep in the next

bed. The next morning Selden West sees this young man leaving my room and her eyebrows rose. I explained what had happened, and we laughed. I did as much counseling of young staff as campers. I remember one young woman asking, “Can you die of a broken heart?”

LR: Do you have a favorite Helen story?

Bill: I always viewed Helen as this sweet older lady, with a high voice. But as a young counselor, still in college, I remember a time when another counselor on an overnight trip to Cliffords showed

up at the Elm Tree Inn for a party. Well, a couple of days later I could see Helen chewing him out. She didn’t yell or raise her voice, but you could see the intensity of her values and the ferocity with which she insisted they be followed.

Susie: I remember her only a little bit as a camper, but when I was in my 20s and teaching in the Berkshires, I would come up on Memorial Day weekend to help plant the flower garden. By then Helen must have been in her early 70s. We’d work from right after breakfast until lunch, then all afternoon straight through until barn chores. She was amazing—there was a reason she was called the Colonel. She would be over-the-moon thrilled to see the garden today and know how integral the farm and garden have become to the program.

Bill: Helen’s spirit still really inhabits the place. We have a Camp director now who’s been in the job eight years and here for 22 years, and she never met Helen. And yet Karen [Culpepper] is still somehow able to embody Helen’s vision, which is what gives the place its tremendous appeal. Part of it is that there are so many staff who also were campers. They share a belief system that doesn’t have to be spoken; it’s just lived and passed on.

This is not a religious place, but the intensity of the values is like a religion: treat children with respect; honor the land; eat and work together as a community. And yet we also are accepting of new ways. We haven’t always held hands before meals, for instance. Someone new brought that custom to Camp. It’s especially valuable when a person adds something of himself.

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Campaign Arithmetic: One + TwO = Three

TwO Iconic Structures

TreeTOps Main hOuseSince its construction in 1923, the Treetops Main House has been beloved by generations of campers—it is the historic heart and soul of Senior Camp. The Main House is shortly to undergo a renovation, intended to reduce heat and noise levels, to allow us to process much more of the bounty of our gardens, and to bring the kitchen up to modern standards.

The new hOuseCompleted in 2010, the New House has been making history of its own. Loved by students and staff alike and designed to produce as much energy as it consumes, it is a fitting emblem of the renaissance of NCS’ residential program, a pillar of our unique approach. The New House has become a fixture of NCS life, but a naming drive and dedication are still to be completed.

To date, the sTrOng rOOTs, high peaks CaMpaign has been a remarkable success. With an ultimate goal of raising $25 million by 2017, we’ve already raised $14.5 million during the Campaign’s “quiet” phase. Many capital improvements have been made, and our endowment continues to grow. Giving to the Annual Fund is at an all-time high, and is poised to hit a new record this year. For an institution of our small size, these are tremendous achievements. And we have you to thank.

We now have the opportunity to realize three milestones by the time we gather for Friends’ Weekend this year: (1) to exceed the Annual Fund goal of $1,000,000 for the first time in the institution’s history; (2) to break ground for the renovation of the Treetops Main House; and (3) to complete a naming drive and dedication of the New House. With the continued, extraordinary generosity of our community, we are confident that these ambitious goals can be achieved. In the weeks and months ahead, we will ask for your support so we can soon add new chapters to the already rich histories of NCS and Treetops.

One Thriving Campaign

Three Milestones by Friends’ Weekend

These two structures, one old, one new, differing greatly in style and scope, have at their core the same mission:to serve the needs of children.

Sustain. Transform. Flourish.

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School News School News

Looking EastIn late October, Director of Admissions David Damico embarked on a month-long tour of the Far East with TABS (The Association of Boarding Schools). The purpose of his trip was to assess new markets for prospective students and visit families of current students. Though the four weeks away from School and family was challenging, David feels confident of the demand for NCS in these markets. In an email to faculty after his return, he offered the following summary and star rating potential for future NCS students by country. He also stressed that while enhancing our interests internationally is important, the primary focus of NCS admissions work remains the domestic market.

CHINA *****Based on current NCS families and population, China is the international student base for most American boarding schools and should be for a number of years to come.

KOREA ****Based on current families and continued desire for American education, Korean interest is still strong. It has dropped significantly in recent years, however, due to currency devaluation and increasing numbers of independent schools opening in Korea.

JApAN *** Based on a current family and two strong Tokyo educational consultants, we expect to see continued interest from Japan.

HONG KONG ** A sophisticated and prosperous international hub of the East, Hong Kong also benefits from its proximity to Shenzhen, China, and should yield future students.

VIETNAM * Growing interest for American education, combined with a growing economy, puts Vietnam on the map for junior boarding schools. In both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City one agent has captured a majority of the clientele, and our hope is that he will visit us this year or refer a student.

TuRKEY * Turkey could easily become a two-star country if more families look to the U.S. for boarding. As with other countries, increased attendance of Turks at American universities suggests similar enrollments may be on the way for secondary and junior boarding schools.

THAILANd * Though a government supported program has sponsored small numbers of top Thai students at U.S. boarding schools over the years, it is likely to remain a quiet market for junior boarding schools.

Asia by the Numbers

15 flights, 40+ hours in the air, 1 delay (the last flight of the trip, from Newark to Albany)

6 countries (plus Hong Kong) and 7 currencies

11 cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Kyoto, Hong Kong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok, Ankara, Istanbul)

10 TABS boarding school fairs attended, three to six hours in length

20-60 American and Canadian schools at individual TABS fairs (the low in Turkey and high in China)

5 meals or gatherings with NCS families in China, S. Korea, and Japan

9,948 miles away, the farthest visit from NCS (Kyoto)

Adirondack Youth Climate SummitCloser to home, five ninth graders attended the annual Adirondack Youth Climate Summit at the Wild Center in Tupper Lake in mid-November. They joined groups of students from nearly 30 high schools and colleges in the region for the two-day conference of workshops, keynotes, and networking. At the end of the gathering they presented an action plan—from using the double-sided printing feature to creating video PSAs and establishing a meatless day every week—to further campus sustainability efforts. In addition, the farm staff made a well-received presentation about our sustainable farming operations. Student and adult participants alike returned a bit awed by the volume of information they encountered—but inspired and more determined than ever to take action to preserve our planet.

Thanksgiving 2012(Adapted from an entry on Hock’s webpage)As always, the homemade dressing was made not just from cranberries but from blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries as well. The turkeys (nine of them, with the smallest weighing in at 27 pounds) were raised and harvested on our farm, as were the potatoes, squash, and green beans. Kitchen head Paulette Peduzzi and her staff baked 75 pumpkin and apple pies. The student with the longest tenure at NCS (Lucy Hock, six years) carried the turkey to the head table. The eighth graders did a terrific job waiting on the 305 we hosted for dinner. (Overflow seating spilled out from the dining room into the foyer.)

Thanksgiving at NCS this year was much as it has always been: a traditional and fabulous feast prepared by our unrivaled kitchen crew; a showcase of students’ academic and artistic progress; a reunion of children, parents, and siblings; and above all else, a celebration of community.

The festivities began shortly after lunch on Wednesday. For the rest of the afternoon, parents and students attended classes together, with the former learning more about the latter’s academic work. That evening, everyone ate dinner in the student houses, where the strength of our residential program was on full display. At the International Fair on Thursday morning, students shared traditional cuisine, music, and other cultural offerings of their homelands. A musical performance in the Quonset featured drummers, guitarists, the jug band, and a pair of sixth and seventh grade vocalists whose two original songs ought to be on the pop music charts.

By the time we found our seats for Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, it was clear we all had much to be thankful for.

Author VisitCanadian journalist Tal Pinchevsky spent a day on campus in December, visiting with students in every grade. Tal is a staff writer at NHL.com and author of Breakaway: From Behind the Iron Curtain to the NHL—The Untold Story of Hockey’s Great Escapes, published last September just as the NHL player lock out began. He spoke to students about the writing process in general, his experiences writing the book, and the defections of athletes from former Soviet bloc countries. A graduate of McGill University, Tal got started as a writer on his high school newspaper. Since then he has worked as an editor and reporter, covering sports, real estate, and consumer electronics, among other areas, for a variety of publications including the New York Times, ESPN, and the New York Post.

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Inside our classrooms Inside our classrooms

Community ProjectsLarry Robjent’s community projects class had a productive fall term. With Mike Tholen’s guidance, Larry’s crew of students re-built the wooden racks in the root cellar beneath the horse barn to provide additional storage space for the farm’s root crops. Students also put a new deck with bench seating on the crag cabin. In addition, they framed in and sided a new firewood structure for Camp that had been started during Friends’ Weekend. For the first time ever, Treetops campers and staff will now have a reliable source of dry wood for camp and cooking fires, separate from fuel wood used for sugaring and boilers. And this winter, the class has begun work to turn the old boiler room in the basement of Woods House into a climbing cave.

Intersession PreparationsStudents and faculty alike are looking forward to this year’s Intersession, the week of mini-electives prior to spring break. This year’s course listings offer great variety of hands-on skills and projects. Among the great classes tentatively scheduled: wooden boat building, aquaponics, vegetarian cooking, choreography & dance, 3-D printmaking, horse hair ceramics, preserving food, wood carving, glass work, and fashion re-design.

Year-Long English & Arts Project Later this spring, Level III (seventh grade) students will put the finishing touches on a hard covered book whose contents, cover, and binding they will have made themselves. The book will include different kinds of writing done in English class: a short story situated on campus, personal and literary essays, and lots of poetry—free verse, pantoums, odes, and more. An equally wide range of artwork—drawings, block prints, photographs, a collage—illustrates the written work.

A joint effort among English, art, and photography teachers Peter Rowley, Laura Bill, and Sierra Grennan, the finished product

aims to record the work, thinking, and activities of what many consider a watershed year.

“I think that 20 years from now, when students look back and read what they were thinking as seventh graders, they will be amazed,” says Peter, who initiated the project several years ago as a collection of students’ poetry. “It’s a crazy and volatile time of life, but also a creative one that’s essential to who they become as individuals.”

The project has evolved over time, as Laura, Sierra, and students all contributed ideas that

expanded the scope of the original poetry book. This year the project began right at the start of the academic year. Students spent time in the gardens, photographing and writing an ode to a flower or vegetable of their choosing. Then they created burlap panels for a decorative flag that features the likenesses of their plants, felted from wool from our sheep. Once complete, the flag will hang in the Edible Schoolyard classroom. For a similar assignment, students took a field trip to the barn, where they recorded observations of a favorite animal that became the subject of a poem, a printmaking project, and an Eric Carle-like collage.

Throughout the year, special assignments and reflections also find their place in the book—like the ESY class trip to the local food pantry just before the holidays or the pantoum that students wrote collectively with their parents during Thanksgiving showcases. Pictures of friends, teachers, and housemates ensure that the hand-bound volume becomes a treasured keepsake of each student’s memories.

And each spring as the books near completion, older students vie for the chance to visit the current seventh grade classes, to read aloud selections from their own seventh-grade book.

Young NCS Alum VisitsEarlier in the fall, I spent three days on the road in the northeast. The trip to schools like Proctor, Gould, and White Mountain is a great way to check in with recent graduates. In general, the kids are happy and doing well, and while they’re always eager to show me around their new school, they also really want to hear all the news from NCS.

For my part, I’m eager to hear how well prepared our young alums felt for their new schools. At each stop, I always ask the same two questions.

1) What did NCS best prepare you for in secondary school? Replies: “Taught me a work ethic.” “I learned not to be scared to get my hands dirty.” “Taught me to have a good understanding of who I am as a person.” “How to live with others.”

2) What were you not prepared for when you started at your new school?Reply (typically there are only variations to one common answer): “How to deal with unstructured time.” This year’s Gould students had a hard time coming up with an answer at all, so that’s pretty high praise.

I’m looking forward to another road trip later this spring, to visit with alums at Putney, Dublin, High Mowing, and Exeter.

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Photos (clockwise from top left): Marcos Fernandez and Henry Davies at the White Mountain School; John Canning, Sam Leone, Babacar Ly,Darin Peng, and Hannah Runyon at Gould Academy; Will Rouse and Sophie Rosenberg at Proctor Academy

Photos (clockwise from top left): Charles Barnett and Frank Kenney; Justine and Ann Slaybaugh; Tierra and Drucilla Jones; Matt Marchildon, Tut Cook, Nick Perry, Adi Partodjoyo

Fall & Winter Alumni EventsBy Kimberly Corwin Gray, Director of Alumni Relations and Events

Fall & Winter Alumni EventsBy Kimberly Corwin Gray, Director of Alumni Relations and Events

Washington, DC GatheringsIn December, more than 30 Treetops friends gathered at the beautiful, Washington-area home of Reggie Govan (CTT 66-67, staff 74-81, trustee 01-08). Co-hosted by Caroline Kenney (CTT 79-80, trustee 08-present) and Margaret Sloane (CTT 81-85, staff 87-94), the Sunday afternoon event began with updates from Hock and Karen about the Campaign and the planned renovation of the Treetops Main House. A slide show followed, then laughter, reminiscing, and catching up were the main orders of business. A surprise birthday cake, decorated with a discreet

number of candles, celebrated our host’s birthday and made for a festive end to a wonderful gathering.

In early January, a dozen or so School alums of all ages met in a popular Washington restaurant for drinks and appetizers. Assistant Head of School Nick Perry filled everyone in on program developments, and Director of Advancement Jeff Woods gave an update on the Strong Roots, High Peaks Campaign. We toasted NCS’ 75th anniversary year and shared stories and fond memories.

Coming EventsMark your calendar and keep an eye on your mailbox for more details coming soon.

Late March: Boston: NCS & CTT friends

april 10-14: Utah: Friends’ Weekend at Alta Lodge

Mid april: Los Angeles: NCS & CTT friends

april 18: San Francisco: CTT friends at the home of Helen Cohen

april 20: San Francisco: NCS friends at the home of Jan and Esther Stearns

april 26: NYC: Honoring Matt Davidson’s years of service as NCS/CTT Board Chair

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Her voice, when you call, is calm and reassuring. “North Country School, Camp Treetops.” Your daughter has written you a letter smeared with tears expounding her utterly homesick state, and you call School sobbing into the phone. “It will be all right,” Sheila says. “A teacher will be back to you soon.” And one is. Snowstorms, airport delays, changed travel plans, lost health forms: nothing fazes her. Sheila Tavares, in the words of Mollie Ward, 2011 NCS alum and 2012 garden intern, “is the head of keeping us all sane.”

Sheila arrived at NCS two weeks before Thanksgiving in 1994. Chris Whitney was leaving. Susie Runyon (now assistant to the head and a 22-year staff veteran) had just given birth to baby Meg and was helping out in the front office. School was about to host all the parents who would share in the Thanksgiving feast, meet teachers, admire their children’s work showcased for the event. Sheila’s first impression was, “This place is different.” Susie Runyon recalls, “Sheila stepped in seamlessly and with her calm demeanor seemed to be saying, ‘I’ve got this under control.’”

Challenges however were many. Chris Whitney had assured her travel plans were a snap. They weren’t, never were, and never will be. Seven months later Camp started. Brad Konkler’s first summer. More than twice as many staff, kids, health forms, parent phone calls, travel plans as for School. “My first week

at Camp I went home and cried because it was so hard,” Sheila reminisces. Gail Schumacher was as usual working in the Camp office that summer. “Gail is my hero. I cannot say enough about Gail and how she helped me. She and Ellie Metzloff kept me going.”

And go she did. Sheila quickly learned the eccentricities of the place, kept track of which mailings should go out when, and launched both Camp and School into the computer age. No more

laborious typing of handwritten letters and reports. It was Sheila who that first year gave teachers floppy discs so they could type their own reports. She also mastered the increasingly complex art of getting students and campers from all over the world to Camp and School and back home again. She now manages 189 sets of travel plans—101 of them twice a year and 88 six times a year.

For some families this is as easy as meeting the bus at Manhattan Country School. (Except for when one child’s elderly grandfather was confused about times and didn’t arrive for hours or the time in the dead of winter the bus broke down 75 miles south of school and Sheila had to convince the bus company to send a replacement bus.) Usually it is much more complex. A camper from abroad is flying to Montreal. The counselor doing the pick up must have a valid passport and a notarized letter saying he or she is authorized to meet the child and is an employee of NCS/Treetops. Each airline has a different set of baggage fees and unaccompanied minor rules of travel. A child who is too old to travel as an unaccompanied minor has a plane rerouted because of storms. The van gets to the airport in Albany only to find out the flight has been cancelled. Sheila says her greatest relief is when she knows for sure each child has made it home safely from Camp or School.

continued on page 34

Staff Profile: Sheila Tavares

“Sheila stepped in seamlessly and with her calm demeanor

seemed to be saying,‘I’ve got this under control.’”[ ]

Keeping Us All SaneBY SUSIE LOCALIOCTT 55-56, 58-59, STAFF 65-80, 89-94

Annual Report 2011-2012

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Annual Report 2011-2012 Annual Report 2011-2012

518.523.9329 - page ii

From Our Campaign Chair

Dear Friends,

I am delighted to provide the first update on The sTrOng rOOTs, high peaks CaMpaign—our unprecedented, $25 million fundraising effort to strengthen programs, facilities, and fiscal health for generations to come.

At the close of fiscal year 2012 (August 31, 2012), sTrOng rOOTs, high peaks had raised $12.9 million. Many, many thanks to all who contributed. This sum supports three major funding areas: the Annual Fund (which in turn underwrites the annual operation of Camp and School); capital improvements to campus buildings and infrastructure; and increased endowment for scholarships and faculty and staff support.

The generosity of Campaign supporters during the “quiet phase” has made possible an array of impressive accomplishments. These include:

• a new waste water treatment plant• major barn area improvements and garden expansions• green construction of New House (student/staff residence)• reproduction of the Treetops Hanging House• installation of state-of-the-art biomass heating plants that have reduced both our carbon footprint and heating expenses.

Campaign goals for 2013 are just as exciting. We aim to complete the remodeling of an NCS admissions suite in Glass House; achieve a $1 million Annual Fund; complete a naming drive for New House; and start the renovation of the Treetops Main House.

Given the loyalty and generosity of our community, the future of the Campaign, like that of School and Camp, couldn’t be any brighter.

Warm regards,

Barkley Stuart, Campaign ChairCTT 69-72, CTT parent 03-07, NCS parent 09-11, Trustee 09-present

From Our Board Chair

Dear Friends,

The Board of North Country School and Camp Treetops is pleased to present the Annual Report for 2011-2012. As the newly elected Board Chair, I am honored—humbled, in fact—to serve you and the children of Camp and School.

Under the leadership of Hock and my extraordinary predecessor, Matt Davidson, the place has grown stronger every year. We have balanced our 10th consecutive budget. Total giving this year topped $3.8 million in gifts and pledges. The Annual Fund raised $982,902, another new record. One hundred thirteen first-time donors joined our ranks, bringing to 850 the total number of contributors.

Thank you for your generosity.

We understand that our job is to earn your loyalty and support every day. Hock and Karen have assembled talented teams of dedicated adults who create transformative experiences for children. Winter or summer, learning is at the core. The farm and gardens have never been more robust, creating for children deep connections to nature and their food sources. The campus grows increasingly green; last year alone, we reduced our carbon emissions by 20 percent and our fuel costs by $35,000.

In short, the place is on a roll. Our newly announced, $25 million sTrOng rOOTs, high peaks CaMpaign has quietly raised more than $13 million in cash and pledges as of December 2012. (See next page for more from our Campaign Chair.)

Our forward motion would not be possible without your generosity. Simple thanks seem inadequate. Still, we offer them to you with humility and dedication to the children who are our cause.

With gratitude,

Dennis AftergutNCS parent 06-08, CTT parent 07, Trustee 07-present

For more information, contactJeff Woods, Director of Advancement, (jwoods@ncstreetops.org or518-837-5446) or visit theCampaign webpages(www.nct.org/strongrootshighpeaks).

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Gift Clubs Gift Clubs

Major Gifts $25,000 and up

46-ers $10,000 - $24,999

Marcy $5,000 - $9,999

Algonquin $2,500 - $4,999

Haystack $1,000 - $2,499

Whiteface $500 - $999

Cascade $250 - $499

Pitchoff $100 - $249

Balanced Rocks to $99

This report covers gifts made from September 1, 2011 to

August 31, 2012. Gifts received after August 31 will be listed

in next fiscal year’s Annual Report. We thank our community

of School and Camp alumni, families, employees past and

present, trustees, and friends for their generosity and support.

Major Gifts$25,000 and UpAnonymousKeith and Peggy AndersonLisa Beck and Mitch SeiderMr. and Mrs. Barry BreemanPeter BrestMatthew and Amy DavidsonGuillaume (‘89) and Molly de Ramel Elizabeth Prince de Ramel ’60The de Ramel FoundationReginald and Arleen GilliamLaura and David HarrisThe J. M. Kaplan Fund, Inc.Mr. and Mrs. David T. KenneyRose K. LansburyThe Estate of Anne MartindellSandy Gray Nowicki ’57Catherine OppenheimerMr. and Mrs. Sumner Parker ’41Dr. Richard Rockefeller ’63Rockefeller Philanthropy AdvisorsMarty and Mara RosenbergThe Seraph Foundation, Inc.The San Francisco FoundationTom Steyer and Kat TaylorBarkley Stuart and Ann Glazer

46-ERS$10,000 to $24,999Dennis AftergutAliza Family FoundationJenny AllenJohn AllenIsabel Huffman BeldenChris CooperRohit and Katharine DesaiRohit and Katharine Desai Family FoundationFidelity Charitable Gift FundFreddie Mac FoundationReggie GovanPaul and Eileen Growald ’66Elizabeth HarlanCaroline Kenney

Kent-Lucas FoundationLake Placid Education FoundationThe New York Community TrustMatt SalingerChristine Semenenko ’62 SharonSteel FoundationJan and Esther StearnsThe Stearns FoundationHume R. Steyer

MARCY$5,000 to $9,999AnonymousGeorge B. Bolton ’77Burton Foundation, Inc.Christopher and Emma de MattosDoppelt Family FoundationMrs. Gretchen GrayJeffrey and Shelley HoltzmanJewish Communal FundJewish Federation of Palm Beach CountySamuel and Jin Kyung KimHope KnightEric and Simone Lang Monika and Steven Lang ’53Anna and Andrew LevineSara LevineMichael E. and Carol S. Levine FoundationJennifer H. MaslowKen OkinBob and Margaret ParkerDr. Pamela Rosenthal and Dr. Samuel WertheimerSchwab Charitable FundAlan Singer and Beth BronnerPeter and Elisa SkinnerDavid and Linda SteinDavid A. Stein Family Foundation, Inc.Manny WeintraubJane and Anthony WeldonJeff and Natalie Woods

ALGONQUIN$2,500 to $4,999Anonymous (2)

Tom and Karen ChallinorRobert and Carmen DavilaSusan Gardner and Martha CassidyElizabeth and Lloyd GoldmarkNick and Ruth HewittDavid Hochschartner and Selden WestThe Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Foundation, Inc.Tessa Huxley and Andy ReicherJan JohnsonEdward KenneyFranklin Kenney ’84William KenneyHappy and Mark McInnesMimi Muray Levitt ’57The Little Family FoundationFelicity M. Pool ’63Bill Savage Serge Semenenko Family FoundationAllyson Shames and Curtis ArgoMr. and Mrs. Ervin R. ShamesShames Family FoundationSodexo, Inc. & AffiliatesDavid SpencerVanguard Charitable Endowment Program

HAYSTACK$1,000 to $2,499Anonymous (4)Adirondack Community TrustRica and Cyrille AllannicPatrick K. Archambault ’87Judith BalcerzakWing Biddle ’75Mr. and Mrs. Perry J. BoltonDonna BregenzerMatt BrestAlice BrownShiu-Kai ChinMr. Won Ho Choi and Ms. Hee Kyung NamJames and Jane CohanThe Community Foundation for The National Capital RegionNancy and Tony Corwin ’68

Samantha CrankoSarah (Powell) Culverwell The deCourcy FamilyKevin M. Dennis and Rebecca KelloggJoel and Christine DeYoungClaire DouglasMimi Coletti Dow ’47Althea DuerstenDavid and Melanie DumontThe Eng FamilyThe William Ewing FoundationDeirdre FarleyMr. and Mrs. Delio FernandezEric FetzRonald and Jane Fondiller ’65The Foster FamilyFranklin Templeton Charitable Giving FundTania GeeYongho Go and Hyunsook LeeGoldman, Sachs & Co. Matching Gift ProgramTeri and Jeff GreeneDavid Hansen and Rebecca Lee Mr. and Mrs. Stephen HillesMs. Janet Spiegelberg Hyman ’49Karen and Peter JakesMichael and Danelle KellyAhyun KimDaniel KohnThe Louisa Kreidberg Family FoundationMr. and Mrs. Samuel Lambert IIIRandi LandMr. Thomas H. Land, Jr.Jane LangEric Larson and Barbara WuAndrew Lerner and Maryam Banikarim Peter LewisLolya Lipchitz and Harold KasimowSusan LocalioMatt and Helene LorentzenThe Losam FundAdlin LoudMeimei Ma ’70Elizabeth MackenJean and Jerry MarchildonPeter and Kathy MartinRichard MaslowMicrosoft Matching Gifts ProgramSamantha Naftal and Adam SnyderLaura OkinRobert Opatrny and Susan SutherlandBrian OrterMarian OsterweisPark Avenue Charitable FundCola ParkerJan and Joan PopkinHenry Posner III and Anne M. MolloyThe Posner Foundation of PittsburghMeredith PrimeVictoria ReadPhyllis W. ReicherStewart Rubenstein and Christina ParkerJames SeymourDavid Siegel and Melissa Brown John and Susan SkovronMr. and Mrs. Nicholas N. Solley, Sr.South Meadow Farm Lodge & Maple Sugarworks

Daniel and Katia SzorThe Szor Family FoundationMatthew and Courtney TuckMichael Urfirer Edward B. Whitney and Martha C. HowellWilliam WhitneyDick and Sara WildeSusan Welch Williams ’54Mr. Rupeng Xu and Ms. Rudan Mo

WHITEFACE$500 to $999Anonymous (2)Peter Adomeit and Marilyn SandersAmerican Center for PhilanthropyAXA FoundationSarah Blunt BarnettJonathan BellBerkshire Taconic Community FoundationRidgely BiddleAmy BodmanPaul and Iris BrestRichard and Paula BrewerJeremy and Lori BrombergBrian BronfmanGeoffrey H. and Suzanne W. BrownThatcher G. BrownThe Brownstein FamilyThe Canning FamilyDavid CarterAlexandra and Marcelo CastroCharles Catlin ’54Tyler Cook-AitkenAnn CooperJohn and Karen CulpepperDavid and Melanie DamicoKathy (Hordubay) Della FeraJenifer Hale DemingJoan Dinowitz and Scott TashmanDr. and Mrs. Allan E. DumontLaurie and Joe EngleAngie and Ted EwingKatharine Knight Flebotte Don GalloPeter M. GilbertRichard HahnMrs. Daphne E. HallowellLeonard M. HarlanJoseph E. and Rosemarie P. HarrisHeadlands FarmRobert HeaysDonald and Diane HewatV. Janet HillElizabeth HiltonIan Hughes and Holly HoodInstitute for Private InvestorsJewish Community Federation of ClevelandJewish Federation of ClevelandJulia and Jeff JonathanElise KeelyBill KinzerBeth and Peter S. KolevzonSally and Wynn KramarskyDavid KrausMr. and Mrs. James LansburyChristine LeFevreBill and Jan Localio

Mr. and Mrs. Stuart LollisRoger and Pat LoudCindy MarvellDwight and Sue MasonArden H. Mason ’71Marcia Mason McClellanCathy McDermottAbigail Mellen ’56Katherine MooreJon and Kristin Adomeit MooreFrancie Parker ’82Pew Charitable TrustsMary Louise PiersonPat Kramon PincusHelen M. PosnerRandom House, Inc.Susan Read ’70Rusty Schick Rolland Judy and Jim SaksEvan and Susan SanyourThe Sharkey FamilyEvan and Susan ShelbyKate Shepherd Betsy and Favor SmithPhilip and Marcia StecklerColin and Debby TaitLisa TapertMarilyn Jordan TaylorPeter A. ThacherCornelia and Joseph TierneyMr. and Mrs. A.C. TolandJane Isaacs ToussaintHelen Stuart TwissKaren WaddellMr. and Mrs. William H. WaddingtonLouise D. Walsh and Charlie L. RuppMaureen WeinerFrancis and Patricia WhitcombMelvyn and Cyvia WolffCyvia and Melvyn Wolff Family FoundationMarjorie Wright, in memory of Justice Craig WrightBethany and Charles Wynder

CASCADE$250 to $499Anonymous (6)American Recycling Technologies, Inc.Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Armstrong ’44Todd and Pam AugustD.J. and Ken BakerLionel and Deborah BartholdPhillip BrestJoshua BriggemanJim and Marcia BrooksMr. and Mrs. Thatcher M. Brown Mr. and Mrs. William L. BrownDavid BrownBurnham Financial Services, LLCLewis C. CanfieldGlen and Elizabeth ChidseySeth Clare and Eli ClareMr. Steve Coia and Ms. Jayne CouillardMr. and Mrs. David C. CondliffeMary and Walter CookMargaret Cooley

GIFT CLuBS

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Gift Clubs Gift Clubs

Charles Cowan and Sofie Van OlmenJacqueline DaviesDavid deCourcyDeLaCour Family FoundationSophie DeLaCourRobert and Marilyn DeRightCarolyn Feinstein EdwardsApril Eiler Pinney, in memory of Paul N. EilerRollie EubanksJames and Edith GarrettMicah GoodmanJames GouldHarris H. Hall, CFAHarlan Capital PartnersJosh HarlanSandra Hurd HennemeyerJohn P. HerreraEliza Hewat ’65Bruce HodesSarah W. HoffmanTierney Horne ’79Alfred HowellJan HummelJohn and Amy IsaacsKenneth P. JohnsonSophie KasimowThe Kelly FamilyJonathan KerlinLiza KetchumJohn and Meg KotlerThomas KrouwerChris KwokTerry and Vincent LangoneSusie Lim-HubbardTed and Nan LindsayLauren McGovern and John SweeneyAlan and Alice ModelDeborah Model and Joe FalkowskiRichard and Barbara MooreAlice Morey and Harvey WeinigNils and Kara MorganMullins FamilyAndrew Namm ’42The Namm Foundation, Inc.

John Oakes & Carin KuoniClary Olmstead and Kathleen HeenanOracle Corporation Matching Gifts ProgramJon and Jenny PearlmanJudy and Robert PerlAnne PrevenW. Lael Prock, in memory of Joyce Pearson ProckJane Crowell RieffelJennie RiesmanJim and Cathy RobjentAnne RorimerJohn B. RosenmillerSanta Barbara FoundationJay ScottStuart and Roni SeligOrdway C. ShermanNicole Been SiskindRuth and David SkovronJim and Liz SteyerKyra Tirana BarryLucia VailJohn and Alida VesseyTeri and Barry VolpertBarry & Teri Volpert FoundationEric G. WagnerBetsy Shaw WeinerDavid H. WellsJanet Dunn Wentworth ’68Christopher Werler and Caroline DegelBarbara and Peter WestergaardKevin Williams Arturo Yanez and Lorena MorenoClaire Weisz & Mark Yoes

Pitchoff$100 TO $249Anonymous (20)Jamie AbbottRobert Abramowitz and Susan StewartMananela AcostaAmerica’s CharitiesAmy Arvidson and Matt Geyman Carolyn Arvidson

Betsy August, MDAllegra Harris AzulayTerren BakerM. BakerBaltimore Community FoundationJudy BardackeTina and Peter BarnetPatricia Barnston ’64Bill and Pat BartonTeresa BatesMatthew Beckwith-LaubeHarold and Natalie BeenAnne Leland BenhamHenry BernsteinCharles J. BiddleWolcott R. BlairBetty BoldenJohn and Anne BoothElisabeth BouchéEllen Thorndike Brawley ’52Eric BrestThomas and Nicole BroderickJeanne BrossardDr. and Mrs. D. Earl Brown, Jr., in memory of Reginald GilliamR. Dede BrownsteinAlice Gresham BullockKate ChassonMichael ChurchillKay (Faron) and Denny CiganovicReg and Barbara ClarkClarks Fork FoundationHelen S. CohenRobert and Susan Console ’62Karen CooperDan CordozoAnn (Lynch) CornellKatie CulpepperJulie Curtis and Keith GerstenmaierThe Curwen FamilyLaurie M. and Samuel W. CushmanWilliam CusickGeoffrey Darby and Margo GarrisonFrances Davis

Josh and Jennifer DavisLaura Goff DavisDr. Owen K. DavisPeter Delman and Maureen CrowleyJim and Ellen (Mayer) DiamondRobert DoatJames and Cynthia DodgeClaire DoyleMark Dumont and Lynn MehlmanMary Lynne and Bob EakinElena EderCharles and Elmina EdmonstonLois Elting, in honor of my children David and Eric FeldbaumLee and Ann FarnhamGreg FarrellRichard and Diana FeldmanMaury and Beulah FinchamPayton Fireman Lanie Lacey FleischerEsty Foster Linda Bird FranckeJim FriedlanderJohn and Linda FriedlanderTrish FriedlanderThe Fuller FamilyDr. Jane Benjamin GattaStephen L. Gessner, in honor of HockMichael and Rosalind GillisSuzanne GlickmanAlice Woolsey GodfreyCaroline GoldenNina GoodmanDrs. William and Valerie GrahamAlan GrantMichael Gray and Kimberly Corwin Gray ’95Florence Cromwell GriebJosh N. Grosse ’83Meg and Laurie GrovesSara Blum Hadden ’69Noa Hall and John WilliamsMercy HammondNoah and Micol HarlanMr. and Mrs. Frank R. Harnden, Jr.

Trish HarrisClyde Hart, in memory of Reginald GilliamMargaret HartRuth HarzulaGuy H. HaskellDiana M. HawesKent HewittJody Hochschartner, in memory of Joan and Norbert HochschartnerMatthew P. Hoffman ’85Christina HondeEllen Hornstein and Denis CioffiRich HornsteinPatty and Mike HorridgeHeidi and Bill HumesDavid HusingJeremy HutchinsMr. and Mrs. Judson H. Irish, Jr.Evan A. JenkinsBerkeley D. Johnson, Jr.Frank Johnson ’62Ralph JonesFrank and Jan JordanC. Ryan JoyceJonathan Katz and Amy DavidsenMariah KellyHeather KendallBradley F. Kerr, Jr.George Kilby and Katy KeenRachel KindAndrew and Yuko KirkJessica KosterJohn and Kathy LanzaGreg and Bunny LeClairThe Honorable Pierre N. LevalDaniel Levin and Leonila PaunilNora LillisScott and Frederique LollisBrigit Loud ’96Serge and Caroline LussiMargaret, Tom and Tommy MahonAlbert D. Malmfelt and Brenda D. FrankThe Honorable Ellen H. Maloney and John EzellPeter and Linda Marchesi

Gregory and Alicia MarchildonLisa May ’79Michael B. McCraryJill Wilder McCulloughMary (Hordubay) McKenzieBill McKibben and Sue HalpernAaron and Cheryl MeglioreEd and Libby Faron MellHilary and Harold MeltzerRichard MerminDon Mesec and Becky Rice Theodore J. Metzger and Robin A. FleischnerMirror Lake InnScott and Stephanie MiscioneDr. Charles E. MoisanMichael and Debra MontelongoBonnie and John Morgan Lynne Spiegelberg MorganEvelyn MorrisChris Muray ’59Network for GoodJohn and Casey NicholsonSarah Nicholson ’72Isabelle N. NicksRichard and Mary NolanMr. Paul F. Obrecht IIIRichard Ochs and Susan ArnoldKaitlyn OrrDorothy OsbornGeorge R. Packard II ’82Dixianne PenneyRoswell B. PerkinsWilliam and Carrie PerleyNick Perry Davis PhilipDale Ferris PhillipsJeffrey and Doralynn PinesRoger PlattSteven PologeLauren Olitski Poster ’71James R. PughAlexandra QuattlebaumBetsy RandolphKathleen Kane Raynor

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Gift Clubs Gift Clubs

Nancy and Campbell ReaNancy Reder and Peter PocockGeorge and Joanne ReedAlice ReichLaura Reid and Nancy BrossardAimée RevenoJonathan and Julia RhoadsPhilip and Mary RickeyBetsey Huffman RileyTimothy RiordanMr. and Mrs. Charles L. Ritchie, Jr.Ella and Peter RobjentJames Romm and Tanya Romm MarcuseJoe Ronson and Susan Elman The Ross FamilyEvangelos Rossopoulos and Oariona LoweVictor Rostow Carter RowleyPeter and Lisa RowleyNaemi and Nat RudykoffJames RussGilan SalehiKaren SanfordPatrick and Caroline SaxtonSusanna Meade SchindlerDavid Schorr and Judith KronesSchulman Family FoundationChuck Schwerin and Laura BronsteinShelah K. ScottRhoda and Norman SeiderDan SilinMargaret SloaneShari and Jim SmartJean SmithFavor and Dianne SmithDr. Phillip R. Smith and Dr. Marjorie SchulmanJenny Smith-Yuen ’84David StahlStaritch Foundation, Inc.Kathleen L. SteedSarah Adams Steinberg, in honor of Jeff Jonathan and Karen CulpepperDavid Stonebraker, in memory of Charlotte Rea Chris StonemanMr. Geoffrey T. StrawbridgeBrad Streeter and Liz HlavacekThe Strogin FamilyHoward Sutherland ’71Charles and Eve SuttonJonathan and Karen SuttonThe Honorable Robert W. and Mrs. Adele Hall SweetRobert B. TamHugh Thacher ’62Edith G. Thayer ’50Randall (Ronin) Thompson, Jr.Time Warner Employee Grant ProgramAmina TiranaStuart and Susan TopperThe Tostevin FamilyStephen TracyAugustus and Martha TrowbridgeJessica TuckConstance Kane TuckerMiles TurnerMs. Quincy Ryland UmphletteWilla Vail

David WalisFrank WallaceJan and Sid Ward, Jr.Jay and Julie WardRebecca WarnerSally WarnerBC Watson and R IzraeliTim and Katie Eldridge Weaver ’78Ed and Lisa WeibrechtWells Fargo Foundation Matching Gifts ProgramAddie Porrino WestKris and Margie WhiteleatherSarah and Martin WilliamsDavid Sloan Wilson ’63David Wing Edith B. Wislocki ’59Ray Wolfson and Irene ShermanJohn Wood ’73Mary WoolseyCharles XellerKai XingDeborah Hanan Yannantuono

Balanced RocksGifts up to $99Anonymous (22)Matthew and Shira AckermanDavid AdamsKaty AllenMaddie AmesChristian AndersonLaura AnkerDavid and Liana AronsonBrook Seawell Ashley, in memory of Celeste CrenshawLurline AslanianKate Tuttle AsselinElliott AugustKatie BaconBarbara R. BarnesDr. Claire BasescuLeonora and Arthur BeecherColin and Jenny Bell The Benner FamilyErica and Herb BergaminiLynda Bernays and Stan SmithDr. James T. BerrierEdwin and Fern BeschlerLaura BillAudrey BishopCharles A. BookmanJean BookmanZachary BookmanChristie Maria Borden ’92Elizabeth BradleyBrian and Alicia BrandesCharlotte BraunsteinShane BravermanDavid BronfmanCali Brooks and Galen CranePaul Brouha ’59Margot Parsons Brown ’51Elizabeth BuchananJim Buchanan and Sarah McCoy Leonard BurgerBenjamin and Nadia ButtrickEd and Andrea Canapery

Harrison and Judy CanerJoey CareyJoanne CarknerWilliam Cepeda and Penny Fujiko WillgerodtMary Ann ChampagneJai ChandrasekharG. Andy Chase ’69Stuart and Monie ChaseHope S. ChildsIsabel Kellers ChiquoineCisco Matching Gifts ProgramTom and Alison ClarkAce Clarke-FisherConnor ClintonAnsley CoaleMimi and David CohenGino CrocettiDudley H. CunninghamRosamond Lincoln DayGeorge B. de BrigardJeremiah and Amy de RhamAnne DealyStacy Kelly DensmoreBrian and Amanda DiGeorgeJohn and Libby DoanTodd DowlingFrancine DuenasNolan DumontChelsea EakinKaren EhrlichAlan EldridgeNoni P. Eldridge ’78Ellen FairJill and Jay FaronGwen FeherClaire FellmanElsa FirstWilliam ForbesJames FordDuncan FordyceMr. and Mrs. Michael S. FormanEdward W. Fox, Jr. ’57Loulie Fair FoxMeg M. FoxDavid and Denise FritcheyDoug GallantLucy GambleThe GE FoundationJulie GetzelsJackson GilkeyDeborah (Churchill) Goodell, in memory of Helen HaskellJerome and Amy GordonLily GordonSierra GrennanSusan GrosseSiegfried and Clair HaenischPiri HalaszSteven and Sunita HalaszKatrina HallRichard HanauMeredith HansonVirginia and Henry W. HartKitty Hay ’63Jim HayesChristopher HeaneyAlberta Hemsley

Jeffrey HerrmannAdam and Carol HewittLarry and Ellen HickeyRachel HilesFrederick W. Hilles, Jr.Liz HirschlandMarie and George HoguetMerle HolleyJeanette Gaston HoobanThe HordubaysKenneth D. HornsteinDorsey Barnett HorowitzLuke HudakJames and Nancy HughesDerek and Deborah Hunt, in memory of former counselor Ned HeizeFran HuntoonZina Huxley-ReicherJane HydeItochu International, Inc.Margo Rice JayChad and Lisa JemisonElsbeth S. JohnsonRebecca Kolevzon JohnsonElizabeth JonathanSusanne JonesDenise KatzAndrea KavanaughKaterina KayMr. Seckin KaygisizDorothy KennyAnna KlepperDiane KletzAndrew and Valery KnoxAnnamariah KnoxGreta KonklerJohn and Sarah KosterEli Zalichin KramerJennifer LaddAlicia LambMarc Leuthold ’76Dana LindsayDavid and Hallie LocalioJoel Lowsky

Louis MacarioThomas MackallSusan MahaffyBarry MallisMolly Malmfelt-FrankKory MaloneDavid and Denise MartinJane Mason and Brian VaughanSusan MastersJoseph MayerLauren McCartyAidan McGrinderSophie McKibbenDonata C. MechemJohanna MesserCarlton and Elma MetzloffKyle and Elizabeth MetzloffEllen (Craib) MitchellMatthew MitchellPaul MitchellWillard Morgan and Jenn BartonMatthew MullerClaudia MurphyLena H. MyersKimberly NarolDr. Judith S. NeamanLisa D. NicholsonCarrie NiebanckOz and Kris OsbornDan OuderkirkJoan Pachner and Richard NewmanLeona PalmerBorka PapNancy PearcePaulette and Mark PeduzziTom PenchoenEliza Pillard and Kenneth Spencer Eli PincusTodd PinsonneaultDavid and Barbara PlimptonLaura PologeDr. Leonard R. ProctorThe Prospect Hill Foundation, Inc.Kate Kubert Puls

Lindsay PutnamAndrew and Amy QuinnJanine Alpert RandolEllen RathboneFred C. Rea and Rosamond S. ReaLynne and Peter RevenoXiamara ReyesDaisy Emma RhoadsMark RichardsMax Romanoff ’11Peter RonsonMeg Runyon ’09Kia SalehiNell SandersLisa Sands and Joan BalashMrs. David SaundersMarion and Mark SchleferBetsy SchraderJean and Arthur SchwartzRobert and Carol ScofieldAnna SeidmanSylvia SeligJim and Jill SheffieldZachary SiegelZack SkovronEliot SloanTimothy and Janet SmithMike SmithClaire and George StahlerFrances StarnMr. Robert M. Stein, Jr.Nat (’62) and Margo SturgisLee D. SwedowskyMary K. TangalosRose TardiffTania (Tanaquil) TaubesBradley and Frances TaylorPaul TheimerMichael TheringThe Tholen FamilyHelen TousterSharon Anglin TreatMicah TurnerRoberta W. Waddell

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Endowments Endowments

Gift Clubs, continued from previous page

Jeremy and Judith WalshAnthony Wan and Victoria HuntFrances J. WatsonKatherine WattlesAmy WeaverJudith WeitzmanBonnie WelchJill WerfelGeorge and Susan WestJohn WhitneyMissy Maloney WilkinsHerb WilkinsonTiffany, Brittany and Brianna WilsonPatricia WinterRachel WoodErin Wright

Gifts-in-KindAnonymousDr. James T. BerrierMs. Libby Cook-Toppan and Mr. Loris ToppanMichael FinertyLanie and Hugh FleischerTrish FriedlanderKaren HansonHigh Peaks CycleryThomas and Soledad KaplanGreg and Bunny LeClairMarcy and Dennis MillerMs. Adele Morgan and Mr. Michael CurranEvan and Susan SanyourBetsy and Favor SmithEric G. WagnerJay and Julie WardCaitlin WargoWoodgate International

The donor lists included in the Annual Report come

from various sources. Despite our best efforts to avoid

errors and omissions, they do occasionally occur. If

you contributed and your name was omitted,

mispelled, or listed in the wrong place, please accept

our sincere apology—and do let us know. Please call

the Development Office at 518-523-9329 x 5446.

GENERAL ENDOWMENT FUNDAND GIFTS IN MEMORYMemorial gifts support the general endowment unlessthe donor specifies otherwise. Others choose to givedirectly to this fund.

Leonard Burger, in memory of Anne L. BurgerDeborah (Churchill) Goodell, in memory of Helen HaskellJody Hochschartner-Boyd, in memory of Norbert A. HochschartnerApril Eiler Pinney, in memory of Paul N. EilerBetsy RandolphBrook Seawell Ashley, in memory of Celeste CrenshawDavid Stonebraker, in memory of Charlotte Rea

MILTON ANDLIESA ALLEN FUNDFor Faculty Salaries

DAVID ANDPEGGY BAILEY FUNDIn honor of the founders of WoodstockCountry School

THE BECK SEIDERFAMILY FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsLisa Beck and Mitch Seider

BEYOND THEMOUNTAINS FUNDFor Faculty Development

BOB BLISS FUNDFor Waterfront Improvements

BRAMWELL FAMILY FUND(formerly Katherine Bramwell Hamilton) Unrestricted EndowmentBill and Heidi Humes

MILDRED BROOKS NATUREPROGRAM FUNDFor CTT SalariesSuzanne Glickman

LEO AND WALTER CLARK FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

BRION CROWELL FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

KITTY AND CARL (C.D.)DENNETT SCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor NCS Scholarships

DUMONT SCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsDr. and Mrs. Allan E. Dumont

David and Melanie DumontMark Dumont and Lynn MehlmanFranklin Templeton Charitable Giving Fund

HARRY K. ELDRIDGE FUNDFor NCS ScholarshipsBetty Clark Eldridge ’53 Oz and Kris OsbornJames R. Pugh

FEATHER FOUNDATION FUNDFor CTT Scholarships

ERIC FELDSBERG MEMORIALSCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor CTT Scholarships

GARDEN FUNDFor Program Enhancement

REGINALD GILLIAMMOUNTAINEERING LEADERSHIPAND SCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor Mountaineering Program Supportand CTT ScholarshipsJudy BardackeBetty BoldenEarl and Lelia BrownKaren EhrlichArleen GilliamReggie GovanClyde HartV. Janet HillMichael and Danelle KellyFreddie Mac FoundationThomas MackallJean and Jerry MarchildonMichael and Debra MontelongoDan SilinSodexo, Inc. & AffiliatesFrances J. WatsonDick and Sara WildeBethany and Charles Wynder

GOVAN FAMILY FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsAnonymous (2)Freddie Mac FoundationReginald and Arleen GilliamReggie GovanNancy Reder and Peter PocockBarkley Stuart and Ann Glazer

TSU HANSEN FUNDUnrestricted EndowmentAnn Lynch CornellChristine LeFevre

HARLAN FAMILY FUNDUnrestricted EndowmentElizabeth Harlan Noah and Micol Harlan

DOUG HASKELL FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsAnonymous

HELEN HASKELL FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

KAYE CLARK HOINS FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

LINDSAY JOHNSON FUNDFor NCS Scholarships

THE MASTER TEACHER FUNDFor Faculty Salaries

SHERMAN LOUD MEMORIALSCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor NCS ScholarshipsKay (Faron) and Denny CiganovicJay and Jill FaronNora Ann LillisAdlin LoudBridget Loud ’96Roger and Pat LoudEd and Libby Faron Mell

ANNE MARTINDELLGARDENING FUNDRestricted EndowmentThe Estate of Anne Martindell

PETER W. MERLE-SMITH FUNDFor CTT Scholarships

KATE C. MOORE FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsCornelia and Joseph Tierney

CHRISTOPHER NICHOLSONMEMORIAL FUNDFor NCS Scholarships

DIANA E. OEHRLI FUNDFor CTT Scholarships

OKIN ENDOWMENT FUNDFor Maintenance on Capital ImprovementsKen OkinLaura Okin

OLMSTEAD FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

ARTHUR W. PARKER FUNDUnrestricted EndowmentFrancie ParkerSumner Parker

STRONG ROOTS, HIGH PEAKSFACULTY SUPPORT FUNDFor Faculty Enrichment

STRONG ROOTS, HIGH PEAKSGREENING AND RENEWALFUNDRestricted Campaign EndowmentCatherine Oppenheimer

STRONG ROOTS, HIGH PEAKSSCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor Scholarships The Seraph Foundation, Inc.

SYLVIA POOL SPERLING FUNDFOR VISITING ARTISTSRestricted EndowmentFidelity Charitable Gift FundFelicity M. Pool ’63

SUSAN POWELL FUNDFor NCS ScholarshipsSarah Powell Culverwell ’51

PRINCE CHARITABLE TRUSTSFUNDFor Faculty Salaries

JOYCE PEARSON PROCK FUNDUnrestricted EndowmentW. Lael Prock, in memory of Joyce Pearson Prock

SMITH FAMILYFOUNDATION FUNDFor NCS Scholarships

SPIEGELBERG FUNDFor ScholarshipsMs. Janet Spiegelberg Hyman ’49

ELIzABETH CLAIRE STEINSCHOLARSHIP FUNDFor CTT ScholarshipsAliza Family FoundationBill and Jan Localio

FRANK H. WALLACE FUNDFor Faculty EnrichmentJoel and Christine DeYoungLaura and David Harris, in honor of Pat Pincus

JEROME P. WEBSTER III FUNDUnrestricted Endowment

HERBERT ANDMARIA WEST FUNDFor Intern SalariesDavid Hochschartner and Selden West

www.nct.org 518.523.9329 page 34page xi - www.nct.org

Annual Summary

Operating Fund Statement of ActivitiesYear Ended August 31, 2012

expendiTuresProgram Services $2,181,278Physical Plant 767,029Benefits 696,579 General Administrative 1,562,424 Subtotal $5,207,310 Financial Aid 764,455 Total Expenditures $5,971,765

revenuesTuition and Fees $4,666,086 Distribution from Endowment 300,000 Annual Fund Gifts (Unrestricted) 786,075 Restricted Gifts used in current year 196,826 Other revenues 26,438 Total Revenues & Gifts $5,975,425 Net Change in Operating Fund $3,660

suMMary Of gifTs reCeivedAnnual Fund Gifts (Unrestricted) $786,075 Endowment Gifts 298,306 Restricted Gifts 1,099,505 Total All Gifts Received $2,183,886

North Country School and Camp Treetops is incorporated as a not-for-profit organization and is listed as a charitable and educational organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Service Code. Our federal tax ID number is 14-1430542.

Staff Profile: Sheila Tavares“Where to begin?” said Karen Culpepper, when I asked her about Sheila. “She keeps everything going. Well before a mailing deadline she’ll quietly say, ‘You might want to start thinking about this.’ It is wonderful to have someone who knows so much and is so totally unflappable. An NCS student comes in to mail a letter. Sheila’s on the phone about a sick kid and on the radio to housekeeping about a clogged toilet and she can still graciously welcome a family that has come to visit School.”

Hock says of Sheila, “It is unimaginable the things she does: from informal counseling to dealing with bus companies and answering questions from decades worth of parents.”

Sheila has been doing this heroic task with quiet grace for 18 years. Juggling life as wife (her husband Bill is coach for the

United States Luge Association) and mother of Noah (11) and Natalie (9), she is in the School/Camp office no matter what the weather to confront whatever comes her way.

Susie Runyon calls her “our mellowing stone.” Hock: “irreplaceable.” Karen: “command central.” As I left the office after talking to Sheila, I saw counselor Molly Mamfelt-Frank, head bowed, sitting woefully at the base of the paper-jammed copier machine. But not for long. Sheila went to her rescue.

Susan Localio lives in Port Townsend, WA, with Daniel Brodkowitz. She gardens and plays with her granddaughter Ana Rose and is the proud aunt of Donald Localio, now finished with his second year at Treetops.

Campus Greening & Renewal

this attractive, new meeting space will be put to good use by administrators, trustees, teachers—just about everyone. Upstairs, former bedrooms serve as offices for admissions, communications, and business office staff.

Winter Riding TrailWe have created a riding trail separate from the Nordic trail system to provide a 30-minute loop for students on horseback that will not interfere with skiers. The riding trail cuts through the garden pasture, along the summer loop road, past the sugar house and senior camp shower house, down the hill next to the tennis court, along the path between the chip plant/wood shop and Glass House, up the road to Meadow House parking lot, through the Dexter pine forest, over to the road, and back to the barn. Students have greatly enjoyed riding bareback in light snow.

Electric TruckWe are looking forward to the delivery of our first fully electric vehicle later this winter. The small flat-bed truck is expected to replace our dump truck and will be an on-campus vehicle only, the first of what we hope one day will be an entire fleet of maintenance vehicles that run on fuels other than gasoline.

Seven-County Sustainability PlanDirector of Advancement Jeff Woods and I have been involved in developing a seven-county sustainability plan for submission to the state of New York as part of its “Cleaner, Greener Communities” initiative, a $100,000,000 effort to promote “green” economic development.

The plan contains a wealth of data on land usage, county carbon footprints, demographic studies, and quite remarkably, three of the proposals we submitted in an attempt to garner some of the stimulus money. The proposals include:

• Low Temperature Electric Generation: an idea to use some of the waste heat from our chip plant to produce electricity• Food-to-Methane Project: an initiative to generate methane gas from food scraps, then use the methane to produce electricity• Woody Biomass Learning Center: an effort to teach others about harvesting fuel wood through low-impact, sustainable means.

While there is no guarantee our proposals will be funded, we are pleased to see them included in the North Country Sustainability Plan.

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News and Notes

NCS ALUMNI/AE

1961 Fred Rea “Not retired yet but getting closer! Both sons in grad school: Stephen for PhD in Anthropology at UC Irvine, James for MS in Geology at U of O[regon].”

1962 daniel Wing

Many thanks to Daniel, who recently built and donated a mobile wood cart. The new cart allows us to transport wood along with the pizza and bread ovens that he also previously built and donated as they move between Camp and School.

1970 John KreizelJohn, now Yochanan, lives in Monsey, NY. He has one son, three daughters, and three grandsons. He is in communications, lives an Orthodox lifestyle, and is happy in his life choice.

1972 Martha Brooks “I am still the owner and operator of a horse boarding stable in Eagle Point, Oregon, specializing in Hunter Jumper and adults who are finally getting to live their childhood dream of owning a horse.”

1972 Ian Hughes“Still living and working in NYC, teaching design at Parsons and showing my paintings at 532 Gallery Thomas Jaeckel in Chelsea. Our son Henry is taking a gap year before starting in at Bennington College in VT next fall. Our daughter Johanna is in her last semester at Cornell. Looking forward to another visit to the North Country ASAP: visions of x-c skiing around South Meadow dancing in my head.”

1981 Aimee Reveno “Love my job, my cats, my boyfriend. To stave off fuddy-duddy, I will go on a 2-week adventure to India this winter. Stopped at NCS campus after reunion for a walk in 2012. Maybe I’ll actually attend the reunion in 2013(?)”

1989 Yves JeanCongratulations to Yves, who was honored in January by the city of Pittsburgh for his efforts to promote peace through music. As part of the festivities, Yves gave a benefit concert to raise awareness of youth violence.

1991 Margaret RhoadsMargaret is pursuing training in pediatrics in Middlesex Hospital, London.

2005 Jake Earl“I’m in the Air Force now as a weapons loader on f-15E strike eagles. I actually just got back from being deployed in the Middle East. I hope all is well... sure do miss NCS!”

2006 Seth Clare (also CTT 04-05) Seth’s paper, General Grant’s Order 11: Causes and Context, was chosen to represent the Jewish studies department as the best paper of the year in College of Charleston’s chrestomathy, its annual review of undergraduate research.

2007 devon Arvio (also CTT 06)“I just registered [in November 2012] at the Santa Fe Community College.”

2009 Sarah perry(also CTT 03)From her early days starring in Adirondack Annie, a hit Intersession horror film made by former NCS teacher and parent Jeff Earl, Noah Harlan (CTT 84-89, staff 91), and their students, Sarah is now enjoying her first year at the Film Conservatory at SUNY Purchase. “I feel like a film geek already,” she says with evident pride.

2009 david Rubenstein “I am currently studying Robotics Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.”

2010 Will Rouse“At present I have been accepted to 4 colleges, Lees-McRae (NC), Virginia Intermont, King College (TN), and Western State Colorado University. I have been racing road with a team from home called Frazier Cycling, and I am looking to race downhill mountain biking at a semi-pro level this summer. All of my colleges have biking, and I would hopefully be able to race with their team. I am trying to ride out the year on a good note, and look forward to getting to college in good standing.”

2011 Anna Brewer (also CTT 10-11)Anna currently attends the Doane Stuart School, where she co-chairs the gay-straight alliance. She is also a ski instructor at Whiteface Mountain.

2011 Sophie Rosenberg“I have been enjoying my time at Proctor very much. I have tried to participate in as many activities as I can, while keeping up with my class work. I miss North Country a lot but having new opportunities has been really good for me. Recently Mylisha [drayton, CTT 05-08, 11, NCS 11] came to Proctor to play a basketball game, and it was really good seeing her again. We try to see each other as much as possible.”

2011 Josey Stuart(also CTT 05-07)A junior at Elisabeth Irwin School in New York, Josey is loving school, the city, and her friends. A class on feminism that she took last fall has inspired several important developments: her participation in the International Day of the Girl; compelling, heartfelt blog writing about race, class, and gender; volunteer canvassing for President Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign; and future plans of law school to work to preserve women’s rights.

News and Notes

2012 John Canning “It’s my first year as a sophomore at Gould Academy in Bethel, ME. I joined the Ski Patrol program at

Sunday River and hope to work hard in these next few years to earn my Ski Patrol jacket!” John sent us this scenic photo that he took at Sunday River.

2012 Heidi ChoiHeidi is doing very well academically at Portsmouth Abbey School in Rhode Island. She misses barn chores and outdoor activities at NCS but appreciates the chance to try new things. She greatly enjoyed her community service work last fall with pre-school aged children in a nearby day care center. Now she is playing squash and is a member of the math club.

2012 Louise de Mattos

“School [American Cobham School outside London] is a bit easy, which is immensely frustrating. There is however plenty of homework. At the moment I am taking algebra, geometry, physics, chemistry, world history, and advanced English class. I am fencing on Fridays, attending chess club on Mondays, and taking tennis and swimming lessons on Saturdays. I will be trying out for the Varsity swimming team in all strokes, my strongest being butterfly. Tonight I have to write a sonnet for homework, but the iambic pentameter is blocking my every attempt at a creative beginning.” Lou Lou is pictured in London last summer with former NCS student Alice Weil.

2012 Marcos Fernandez(also CTT 05-08)A sophomore at White Mountain School, Marcos writes: “During my field course I took a trip to the 100 Mile Wilderness [in Maine]. We learned about ourselves and the importance of good leadership. With my experience from NCS and my knowledge of the wilderness, I was able to quickly take lead. Through the first couple days some of the students weren’t ready, but with help from the adults and myself, we were able to help students make

the river crossing and find out that you need to get a little dirty to have fun. By the end of the course the other students were doing the river crossings on their own.”

2012 Maddie LightfootMaddie is doing well and loves Christchurch School in Virginia, where she is in the first class of boarding girls. She played on the volleyball team, hopes to swim, and is the only sophomore selected by the admissions team to be a school ambassador.

2012 Henry Tashman“School [Loomis Chafee in West Hartford, CT] is going well. It is quite challenging, but I am working hard. I am playing three seasons of sports: soccer, basketball, and track. There are chickens at my school as of this year, and I am the only person in the school who knows how to pick them up and put them back in the coop when they escape. I am having fun and working hard, but I still miss NCS.”

NCS STAFF

Former teachers John and Bett Alter are in Virginia at a small Episcopal boarding school on the Rappahanock River. John is the chaplain and Bett the Dean of Community & Residential Life. “We miss the beauty of Trouble and the campus when muffled by the soft, thick blankets of Adirondack snow.”

Art teacher Laura Bill gave a felting workshop at last fall’s NY state art teachers conference. In addition, Laura’s long-time partner Zac Ballard popped the question, with a ring, on Thanksgiving morning. Congratulations to the newly engaged couple.

Former faculty members O. Stuart and Monie Chase are still in education, she teaching Latin and civil war history, and he in Alumni Development. “We loved our two years at NCS/CTT.”

continued on next page

Organic RootsWinter 2013

Editor Lisa Rowley

Front cover block printAva Goble, NCS 15

ContributorsDennis Aftergut, John Culpepper,

Karen Culpepper, Katie Culpepper,

Kimberly Corwin Gray, Gay Greenleaf,

David Hochschartner, Susie Localio, Lisa Rowley,

Barkley Stuart, Daniel Szor

PhotographyLisa Beck, John Canning, Tom Clark,

Katie Culpepper, Julie Curtis, David Damico,

Emma de Mattos, Lanie Fleischer, Kimberly

Corwin Gray, Sierra Grennan, Barbara Morgan,

John Nicholson, Wendy Powers, Larry Robjent,

Carter Rowley, Lisa Rowley, Susie Runyon,

Dan Szor

Layout / DesignAaron Hobson

PrintingBenchemark Printing, Inc.

Former staff member William Forbes is working at Episcopal Academy in Newtown Square, PA, as the technology service coordinator.

Theatre teacher Wendy Higgins attended the New England theatre conference in Natick, MA, in November.

In December, Assistant to the Head Susie Runyon was in Boston for a Breakthrough Collaborative reception and conversation titled “Preparing Adolescents for College Success.”

Former teacher Ken Spencer built his first dry stone wall and gardens when he’s not doing cardiac ultrasound. Wife Eliza pillard practices wellness coaching and psychiatric social work. Eli (CTT 07) is learning to fly and Nick (CTT 04) loves college at Middlebury and is playing soccer and running track.

CAMP TREETOPSFRIENDS

Judith WeitzmanCamper 33, 36“Treetops summers provide any number of memorable moments. Helen going over the day’s plans, as we campers gathered on the hillside, keeping our ears perked up for our favorite activities. The pow-wows were always held by the huge boulder overlooking the lake. Helen’s vigor and love of the camp—amazing!”

Susie LocalioCamper 55-56, 58-59,staff 65-80, 89-94“Twin Bill [Localio] and I had a lovely visit with Helen Cohen (CTT 69-71) in San Francisco in November. It was as though no time had passed. Saw lots of pictures and videos of her daughter Anna taken by her husband Mark. We should all be so lucky as to have his kind of talent record our lives! We walked in the park and drank tea in the kitchen nook and talked about family and children and remembered when we were very young.”

pat pincusCamper 58-62, parent 90-98,trustee 99-12“I’ve returned my attention, full time, to the public school students of NYC. My work with Liberty Leads (a comprehensive program to ensure equal access to resources for underserved, underrepresented youth) brings my elementary and high school students into Bank Street College, where I already work with graduate students preparing for careers in education. Now, under one roof, as part of The Liberty Team, I see my young students as well. It’s truly a dream to combine the specific focus and joy of my work, in this wonderful setting. Going forward, I hope to continue to connect NCS/Treetops to this work, as these two fine institutions share many common goals and educational themes. Their approach to children, as well as the intentional design of the educational environmvent, is steeped in understanding of what is required for children to thrive. I’d be happy to set up a visit to Liberty for anyone in the NCS/Treetops community.”

Bruce Hodes Camper 62-66, CTT staff 77“I recently published my first book, Front Line Heroes Battling the Business Tsunami while Developing Performance Oriented Cultures. It offers tools and techniques for developing and growing powerful organizations in challenging times. To

learn more about my book, please visit: http://www.cmiteamwork.com/Hodes-Front-Line-Heroes.htm.”

Joseph and dorothy Hordubay CTT parent 71-78, NCS parent 78-79“We continue to enjoy retirement, our daughters (Mary McKenzie, CTT 71-74 and Kathleen della Fera, CTT 74-78, NCS 79) and our great grandchildren. Sam is now 18 and off to college next year. Best to all, we miss you.”

Julie CurtisCamper 73-74, staff 81, 98-00, 08, parent 97-09Thanks to Julie and husband Neil Gerstenmaier for hosting (again!) a house full of Treetops friends (pictured below) last October.

George de BrigardCamper 86-91, staff 97-98George and his wife Meg are both working in New York.

Maureen Weiner Camper 93-96“I am getting married 06/08/13 to Charles Cohen!”

daniel Morel Camper 01-07“My time at Treetops was invaluable. It shaped who I am as a person, and taught me many important life lessons, morals, and skills. The exceptional hiking program allowed me to explore, and I soon discovered my passion

page 37 Organic Roots Fall 2012 www.nct.org 518.523.9329 page 38

News and Notes

In MemoriamHelen pratt Ladd (CTT 30-35, staff 40-45, parent 60-65) died October 19, 2012, in her home in Amherst, MA, two days before her 90th birthday. Born in New York City, she attended high school at Cambridge School of Weston, where she first met her husband, John (Jack) Ladd, and earned her BA from Sarah Lawrence College and her master’s in social work at the University of Pennsylvania. Helen worked as a psychiatric social worker in New York City, Philadelphia, and Concord, MA, before working at Mass General Hospital in Boston from 1966-1984. She later spent 12 years mediating divorces and other conflicts. Helen loved the outdoors and traveled widely in the U.S., South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle and Far East, and Australia. She was predeceased by her son Andrew Ladd (CTT 60-64) and is survived by children Jennifer Ladd (CTT 60-64), Jeffrey Ladd (CTT 63-65), and Martha Ladd and several grandchildren.

Adlin H. Loud (CTT parent 38-39, 42-48, grandparent 61-63, 71-74, 88-96, NCS grandparent 70-77, 90-96) died peacefully in New York City December 24, 2012. She

was 95, spirited and independent to the end. Adlin was the step-mother of peggy Loud Faron (CTT 38-39) and former head of school and current trustee Roger Loud (CTT 42-48, staff 54-77, parent 71-74, 88-96, NCS staff 70-96, parent 70-77, 90-96, trustee 94-present). Of her seven step-grandchildren, five have been affiliated with Camp and/or School: Kay Faron Ciganoviv (CTT 61-63), Jennifer Loud Vann (CTT 71-74, NCS 77), david (CTT 71-74, NCS 75), patrick (CTT 88-93, NCS 95), and Brigit Loud (CTT 90-96, staff 11-12, NCS 96). Adlin’s many passions and talents included gardening, cooking, and entertaining. For 40 years, she and her husband H. Sherman Loud were actively engaged in life in New York City and Provincetown. Adlin worked as director of human resources in a real estate consulting firm from 1954 until her retirement. She also shared her time, energy, and expertise with a variety of organizations dedicated to the arts, nature, history, and child and animal welfare. When Sherm passed away, Adlin created the Sherman Loud Scholarship Fund to help support NCS scholarships, any memorial gift to which would be warmly welcome.

Elizabeth S. pool (NCS parent 54, 61-63, NCS grandparent 02-04, CTT grandparent 04) died November 26, 2012, at her home in Dublin, NH. She was 98. Born in New York City, Elizabeth graduated from the Chapin School and was accepted at Vassar College. Instead of matriculating, she traveled around the world by ship, then married Beekman Hoppin Pool. The marriage would last 70 years. In 1950, the couple moved to New Hampshire, where Elizabeth wrote and published six books and produced more than 40 plays and pageants. Almost unimaginably, she and her husband lost two of their three children: son Anthony Beekman Pool died suddenly at age 21 and daughter Sylvia pool Sperling (NCS 54) died unexpectedly 14 years later at age 32. Elizabeth and Beekman carried on as anchors for the family and committed activists in their community. Elizabeth is survived by her daughter dr. Felicity pool (NCS 63, NCS parent 02-04, CTT parent 04) and grandson Jeremy Eugene pool (NCS 04, CTT 04).

for the outdoors. Thanks to all the campers, counselors and staff who made my summers at Treetops an incredible, unforgettable experience.”

Greg KatzCTT staff 06-12Later this spring Greg will begin an apprenticeship in timber frame construction at the Heartwood School for the Homebuilding Crafts in Washington, MA, in the Berkshires.

John SeiderCamper 08-12 John is in 7th grade at Scarsdale Middle School. He enjoys playing hockey, lacrosse, and the violin. He also loves to ski and sail, which he learned at Camp, and to cook, which he sometimes does for family meals. Proud mom Lisa Beck (CTT 70-73, staff 08-present, parent 03-12, and trustee 08-present) let us know that Treetops had a strong presence at

John’s Bar Mitzvah in December. Hannabiell Sanders (CTT staff 04-12) and her band played at the party, and the Seider/Beck family gave their guests NCS/Treetops maple syrup as party favors. And because Treetops means so much to him, John asked that friends and relatives make gifts to the Treetops scholarship program rather

than to him. We send congratulations to John on his successful rite of passage and great thanks for his generosity. Pictured with John (far left) are brothers Charlie (CTT 05-10) and Will (CTT 03-08), father Mitch (CTT parent 03-12), sister pippi (CTT 11-12) and mom.

News and Notes

page 00 Organic Roots Spring/Summer 2011

For details, contact Kimberly Corwin Gray | kcorwingray@ncstreetops.org or 518-837-5407

Alta Friends’ Weekend April 10-14, 2013