What’s wrong with this picture?  To the uninitiated, quite a bit.  A teacher, David Neilan, is handing a rubber duck to a student, Dyer Rhoads.  That seems weird.  On top of that, there is another student in the background who seems not to be noticing the odd exchange taking place in front of her.  Strange. Why wouldn’t she notice?  And where is this taking place anyway?  The principal’s office?  Why is there a rubber duck in the principal’s office?  Really strange.  Right?

Well, no, not really, not at Waynflete at least.  Anybody who has been a part of the Upper School in the past 17 years will recognize this scene as one of Mr. Neilan’s triumphs in his obsession with handing people random objects just to see who will take them.  This obsession has gone on since well before he arrived at Waynflete in 1997. In fact there is a rumor (well there will be, once I get it started) that Mr. Neilan was driven out of his former school by colleagues who were sick of him handing them useless things.

If that were indeed the case, then his old school simply lacked a sense of humor.

Fortunately for Mr. Neilan, that is not the case at Waynflete. My wife Melissa knows something about Waynflete. Besides being married to me, she has lived Waynflete through the experiences of our two Waynflete “lifer” children, their friends, their friends’ parents, and the many faculty whom she has come to know over the years.  Melissa understands the School as well as anybody could who isn’t present on a daily basis.  Whenever she is asked about Waynflete, one of the first things she always says is, “ Waynflete is a school with a sense of humor.”

Now what could she mean by that?  Perhaps she has noticed that humor abounds.  For example, instead of being annoyed by David Neilan’s obsession, we indulge him and celebrate his occasional triumphs with him.  And take this picture of the new water bottle filling station that our environmental group and Ross Burdick lobbied for in the hope of keeping us well hydrated while reducing the number of plastic bottles we consume.  Even before the station was fully functional, Mr. Mini saw an opportunity to amuse himself by labeling it as a chocolate milk dispenser.  He quickly discovered that there are two kinds of people in the world: those who found the sign funny, and those who were sorely disappointed to find that it was inaccurate.

And then there is Julianna Harwood ‘15, who fills her bottle at the station regularly and claims to anyone who will listen that she is drinking clear chocolate milk, which she insists “tastes just as good as regular” and, according to what James Carlisle has told her, “is better for you.” Since then, the station labeling has been updated regularly to being a dispenser of “Mouthwash,” “Performing Arts Credit,” “Liquid Study Skills,” “Free #shakesyear puns,” “College Recommendations,” and, just in time for Thanksgiving, “Gravy.”  Who knows what it will dispense next.  After overhearing two of the younger students earnestly debate whether or not the School had wasted its money on a mouthwash dispenser, I’d have to say that humor is the common ingredient.

Fortunately for Waynflete, humor, like clear chocolate milk, is good for you.  According to Lydia Maier, Waynflete’s Dean of Student Affairs,

“Humor is an essential ingredient in having an open mind, one that is ready to learn. It is an instantaneous stress-reliever, because it shifts your attention off stressful thoughts and into a fresh new moment of awareness.  You gain perspective and come back to your senses, so to speak. A good laugh is a positive stimulus to direct us away from more negative feelings.  In fact, researchers are beginning to document serious health benefits of frequent laughter. Just think of the last time you laughed heartily and how it connected you to those involved – even to relative strangers.  I especially love those Improv Everywhere pranks on youtube where a group of actors can get a whole subway or store full of employees laughing at the unpredictable momentary shift away from monotony.  

My Waynflete classmate Henry Wishcamper ‘90, a great improv actor, wore one of two t-shirts throughout his high school career – one was a plain white shirt with tiny ants crawling all over it and the other was a black shirt with the milky way galaxy with a “You are here” arrow.  Speaking of learning, we remember what is funny, so I’ve never forgotten those shirts, and somehow, they also put all of the stress of high school in perspective for me.”

If humor is a key to good health, Waynflete is doing pretty well.  And it is a sign of intelligence as well.  Not necessarily the step-on-the-rake kind of humor, or when cruelty passes for humor, like when the golf team lured me out onto the links, videotaped my drive, and then played the video at assembly.  Not funny.  And two of my own advisees were in on it and still seem to think the whole thing was amusing.  That hurts.  Apparently Carol Titterton thought it was hilarious.  Click on the picture of Carol laughing hysterically at me and check out the video of my now infamous drive.  I am sure you’ll agree with me that the video is neither funny nor intelligent.  Really.

But humor is intelligent when it leaves you seeing the world a little differently.  Think Stephen Cobert or John Stewart.  Or consider some more local examples.  Last fall I invited Lucas O’Neil ‘08 to speak at an Upper School assembly.  I introduced Lucas, without informing him in advance, by playing a video of him singing in high school.  As if we had rehearsed it, he incorporated his high school performance into his hilarious and meaningful talk. In his talk, he equated living life with doing stand up improvisational comedy, both of which he was doing – living life and improvisational comedy – before our eyes.  Students packed my office to have lunch with Lucas afterwards.  Click this link to watch the video of when The Lucas O’Neil Show came to Waynflete.  Speaking of smart Waynflete comedy shows, in case you somehow missed it, click on this link to watch the latest one,  The Spare Time Show with Dyer Rhoads.

After watching Lucas and Dyer at work and thinking about Mr Neilan, the filling station, and the funny things that happen at school on a daily basis, you may be wondering if Waynflete is actually a reality comedy show at its core.  Despite the mounting evidence to the contrary, I steadfastly maintain that we are more than that, but I do have to admit that we seem very capable of producing countless opportunities to laugh, especially at ourselves. And that is what it means to be “a school with a sense of humor.”

In my mind, that is a very good thing, but do keep an eye out for Mr. Neilan and his silly obsession.  We just don’t want him having too much fun.

I graduated from Waynflete in 1989. At the time, my favourite subject was English. Classes like Creative Writing with Elizabeth Maiman and Essay with Ellie Dwight were where I discovered a talent for telling stories, and a way to explain the world as I saw it. I’m in no doubt that what I learned there was vital. But, funnily enough, it turns out that the classes I dreaded most were the ones that opened doors to my current career.

I went into the compulsory studio art classes kicking and screaming. Nothing seemed less pleasing than a mandatory lesson in humility. What the hell was I going to do with with refined skills in cutting and pasting? Why should I even bother to attempt a drawing when the person to one side of me can sketch like Matisse and the one on the other side can make a charcoal pencil dance in their hands? And for god’s sake, do I really need to put my work up on a board next to everyone else’s, just to hear how terrible it is?

Well, it’s been 25 years since I left Waynflete. Despite my determination to become a writer, I am now, through some sort of twisted plot, a professional artist. Of course I still use the writing skills I picked up. But I draw on the things I learned in that art studio every hour of everyday. Those teachers taught me to see, to interpret, and to convey. I now make animation using a computer.  I lead small teams of artists as we try to make moving images that will tell stories for documentaries or encourage people to sign up for Amnesty International or (unfortunately) to buy something. In other words, I have to see, to interpret, to convey.

I remember the frustration I felt when I first started Major Art in Junior year. I look at schools where I live now (and where my children go) and see students and parents happily see art classes cut from the curriculum as though they’re a luxury. And I realize, as with so many things that you can only understand with hindsight, how wise my teachers were, how vital it was, and is, to keep things like Major Art going and to expose students to a full range of subjects. I’d only suggest they ditch the charcoal pencils.  Nobody can really draw with those things. Not even Matisse.

Steve is in his first year at Waynflete, coming from Wilson High School in West Lawn, Pennsylvania.  He earned an M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction  and a B.S. in Secondary Education and a B.A. in Mathematics from Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania.  At Wilson HS, where he worked for four years, Steve taught 150 students in six classes daily.  

Austin: What’s your position at Waynflete?

Steve: I’m a math teacher for the middle school and upper school and the Varsity swim coach.

Austin: Why did you start teaching?

Steve: I started teaching swim lessons when I was in 8th or 9th grade. I had always really liked math in school and I always felt as though it could be taught a lot better than if was for me, so math and education became a goal.

Austin: Do you have any particular part of math that you are especially drawn to?

Steve: I like that it is very logical and orderly and, for me, it goes along well with my way of thinking and my thought process.

Austin: Did you teach math before you came to Waynflete?

Steve: Yes, I did. I taught in Pennsylvania for 4 years at a public high school, mostly 10th and 11th grade math, that being Algebra 2 and Honors Pre-Calc. I also coached water polo there.

Austin: What’s your favorite class that you’ve ever been in or taught?

Steve: I really enjoyed teaching Honors Pre-Calc. when I was in Pennsylvania, and I still enjoy it now. It was one of those classes where I had to go back and reteach myself some of the math again and find out how I was going to get that information across to the students in the best way possible. It made me reflect on my own knowledge of mathematics as well as my skill set teaching that subject.

Austin: Did you want to teach Pre-Calc. when you came to Waynflete?

Steve: Actually I lucked out and I’m teaching Pre-Calc. accelerated and I have regular Pre-Calc. as well and I love them. They’re really fantastic classes and I enjoy teaching them.

Austin: What made you come to Waynflete?

Steve and his wife Lauren

Steve: My wife is from Freeport originally.  We were living in Pennsylvania when we got married.  She knew that she didn’t want to stay in Pennsylvania long and wanted to be closer to her family in Maine.  So, we started looking for jobs.  I started looking at schools to apply for jobs at. Everyone I talked to, including her, had nothing but great things to say about Waynflete, and it was one of the first schools to offer me an interview and eventually a job. Overall, I was very impressed throughout the application process and when I came to campus I could feel how passionate people were about teaching, learning, and how happy they were to be here. You don’t find that often, and I think that’s what made me want to work here.

Austin: Do you have any special memories that you’ve developed so far at Waynflete?

Steve: Outdoor experience was very telling of how the students at Waynflete acted and it was an experience that I never would have gotten at the public school I used to work at. It was a really neat opportunity for me to get to know the students very well and visa versa, but on top of that it was working on the nurturing and the relationships between faculty and students that shows the support Waynflete has to offer.

Austin: What trip did you participate in?

Steve: I was with the 9th graders at Chewonki.

Austin: Did you play sports in college?

Steve: I’ve swam competitively since I was 5, I did varsity swimming in college, and I played club water polo for 4 years in college as well.

Austin: Do you still participate in athletic activities?

Steve: After college I got involved in triathlons and I finished Iron Man Arizona in 2010 and the Ironman Lake Placid in 2012.  I haven’t swam competitively since because of the difficulty to get pool time, especially here in Maine. I also enjoy open water swimming but Maine isn’t exactly the ideal place for that either. I’ll always go in the ocean but swimming for longer periods of time isn’t exactly the most pleasant way to experience the Atlantic Ocean. I would really like to get back into swimming but for the moment I stick to running 3-4 times per week as well as biking throughout the year except in snow.

Austin: Do you have any other thing’s you would like to say about your experience at Waynflete so far?

Steve: I’d just like to say that I’m definitely learning more and more each week, and with every interaction with students and faculty I’m progressively learning about Waynflete’s supportive, enthusiastic, and welcoming environment.

For the past four years, Waynflete’s athletic director, Ross Burdick, has taken on the leadership role in organizing the Student-Athlete Leadership Summit on behalf of the Western Maine Athletic Conference.   Organizing an event for 136 student athletes from 18 different schools is a huge undertaking, but Ross feels that the effort is worthwhile. Athletics provides  students an authentic opportunity to lead, and the Summit provides a forum for students to reflect on what leadership is, to assess themselves as leaders, and to cultivate their skills. The result for the participants is a better understanding of themselves and what constitutes effective leadership, including such qualities as honesty, authenticity, humility, and the ability to forgive.  Leveraging peer influence by cultivating student leaders through the Summit gathering has a tremendous impact on the team experience as well, including better sportsmanship, new friendships that transcend school allegiance, improved team chemistry, and a more fulfilling experience for all.   Waynflete and the Western Maine Conference are fortunate to have Ross on our leadership team.  Lowell Libby, Upper School Director

On November 14, 136 student athletes from the 18 Western Maine Conference  high schools gathered at St. Joseph’s College in Standish for the 2014 WMC Leadership Summit.  Goals of the day included having the students interact in a number of sessions, providing them a chance to talk and learn from each other, and offering leadership training.  Eight students from each school were chosen by school administrators to attend the full day summit.  Waynflete’s 2014 representatives were seniors Gavi King and Jacob Hagler, juniors Arianna Giguere, Will Nelligan and Cooper Chap, and sophomores Sophia Mayone, Isabel Canning, and Jack Meahl.

The guest speaker was Kevin Hancock, the current president of Hancock Lumber.  Kevin was a three sport athlete at  Lake Region High School (a member of the WMC) and a two sport athlete at Bowdoin College.  Kevin had a great message for the students gathered in the  auditorium about a new kind of leadership.  According to Kevin, gone are the days of “my way or the highway” and a “top down” leadership approach.  Kevin advocated for a leadership model that turns every member of the organization into a leader by empowering them.  Kevin talked about how leadership can be quiet.  It is not just the big things but the little examples of leadership that can be the most important.

After hearing from the guest speaker, students traveled with their small group through several sessions.  An icebreaker game of “Human Bingo” got the students up and interacting to get to know the others in their group.  “A Day in the Life of Colby College Student Athletes” gave the students a window into the life of  college athletes.  The “Wild Card” session allowed  students to discuss issues that are hot topics in high school sports and things that they felt needed to be addressed in high school athletic programs.  Movement with personal trainer BJ Grondin gave the attendees an opportunity to move and to learn about different types of movement and nutrition.  “Leading From the Inside Out” with former athletic director and pastor Gary Groves  forced the students to focus on improving themselves in order to become better leaders of teammates.  Groves challenged the student leaders to be authentic, honest, forgiving and humble in their schools and communities.  The “Hey Coach” session asked the students to come up with examples of great coaching and also ideas to help new or developing coaches to become better.  The student ideas and responses will be used to create a guide which can be shared with all WMC coaches.  The students also worked together to create a WMC approved music playlist for pre-game warm-up music.  Athletes were reminded that they are role models for young children in the community and music selections must be appropriate.

Students then enjoyed a wonderful lunch in the St. Joseph’s dining hall.    After lunch attendees thanked the guest presenters and were asked to take some things that they had learned back to their schools to become better leaders.  Finally students completed feedback forms about the day to help the athletic directors of the WMC plan future leadership events.

Some student comments on the 2014 Leadership Summit included:

“Fun and active, very enjoyable.  I really liked interacting with other athletes from the WMC.”

“It was an important day for me to think.  Like Mr. Hancock said, we rarely get time to stop and think because we are so busy everyday.  I really enjoyed it.”

“I learned about letting others lead and that it is important to support other teams in our school in addition to the ones I am on.”

“In Leading from the Inside Out, I learned more about myself as a leader.  I can encourage more people to lead too, and that can make them feel for important.”

“The day was amazing.  We all learned a lot and met new people.  The food was great and the campus was beautiful and welcoming.”

Arianna Giguere ’16 had this to say about her participation in the summit:

During the summit, I learned not only about leadership in general but also about my own personal tendencies and approach to leading. Our guest speaker Kevin Hancock left us with some thoughts that specifically resonated with me. He explained that if you have the capacity to influence, you are a leader. He encouraged each one of us to broaden the circles of people we reach out to to lead. In our society, certain people such as “presidents”, “bosses”, or “captains” are assumed to be leaders, yet this is only a title. Instead, being a leader is not about being controlling or dictating; it can mean being quiet and listening to others. There is strength in a team, and people are stronger if we allow everyone’s voice to be heard. As leaders, Kevin said, we should make ourselves heard, but remember that it isn’t all about us. 

 As a member of an athletic team, I intend to use what I learned about leadership. I know what I need to work on specifically, and I plan on leading by example in order to have my teammates follow. In turn, my teammates themselves will become leaders as well. My goal is to unite my team so that each grade, especially the underclassmen, feel like they can speak up and express their thoughts in order for our team to succeed. The summit experience motivated me to think outside the box and consider new opportunities to employ as a leader. It was a wonderful experience.

Isabel Canning ’17 had this to say about her participation in the summit:

I went to five different activities at the leadership summit. They ranged from creating a fan friendly pregame playlist to an open forum on improving athletics within our schools. Sports are a great common ground for people. They provide a way for communities to get together and for kids from all over to connect through a similar passion.

 It’s easy to become caught up in a season or a game and forget the impact that your team has. The leadership summit helped me to realize that even though my team may feel small it is a part of a bigger program and the effects it can have are significant.  One woman spoke of how the way we idolize professional and even college athletes and how younger kids look up to us as athletes in high school. How we carry ourselves as athletes reflects on our school and affects our community more than we can understand. A strong athletic program comes not only from the success of the athletes but also the sportsmanship exemplified by each student.

 A speech given by a local business owner touched on the importance of each specific individual working to the best of their ability and being their own leader. He said that a good leader empowers others so that eventually everyone is a leader and feels responsible for each other. One idea that stuck with me is that leadership can come from anywhere.  As essential as communicating your ideas is to your team, listening to your teammates is just as important. Inspiring everyone to be leaders in character, work, and compassion strengthens not only your team but your surrounding community as well.  

I’ve been using the Stock Market Game in my classes for about 15 years.  I’ve used the game with economics classes, algebra classes, 6^th grade math classes, finance classes, clubs, and with adults.  I’ve seen one of my student teams finish as high as 4^th place in Maine and I’ve seen a former Waynflete student finish first in the individual contest two years in a row.   But I’ve never seen anything quite like what is happening this year with my Business & Finance students, and the Finance Club.

As of Nov 11^th, there were about 300 teams playing the game in Maine, representing dozens of schools.  And, as of Nov 11^th, 15 of the top 35 teams in the state are from WAYNFLETE!  Even better, four of the top 10 and nine of the top 20 are FLYER$.

Sitting in 2^nd place are The $tock-Men, with a portfolio value of $115,000. (Teams started with $100,000 on October 10^th, and the game ends in mid-December.)

The $tock-Men (AJ Yarn, Ellen Langford, Erica Hirschorn, and Pace Hutchinson, and named after the X-Men) started out slowly, losing $2000 by Oct 20^th, but they have surged ever since and are closing in on Maine’s #1 team.  It seems these four traders might have super mutant stock powers – their individual accounts are also doing well, placing them all in the State’s top 20 range.

When I pressed them to reveal their secrets, Professor X suddenly appeared and said, “The past: a new and uncertain world. A world of endless possibilities and infinite outcomes. Countless choices define our fate: each choice, each moment, a moment in the ripple of time. Enough ripple, and you change the tide… for the future is never truly set.”

OK, I’ll go tend to my 6^th graders now.

More than enough people have already registered to take The Language of Social Class to ensure that Waynflete’s first ever adult course is sure to run.  The class, taught by Taffy Field and Phuc Tran, features a blended format, with both online and face-to-face (or Skype in) sessions, starts on January 5.  There are still a few openings, but you should act quickly if you are interested.  Click here for details on the course and for registration materials.  Questions? Contact Dr. Peter Hamblin, Dean of Studies, , (207) 774-7863 ext 1230

On Sunday, October 26, 2014, I walked from my hotel room to the NafME Honors Ensembles Registration with the help of the handy Gaylord Opryland Hotel map. After having walked past the indoor jungle, up two escalators, and past three coffee shops, I arrived at Ballroom C: Orchestra Registration, an enormous room lined on one side with music cases and on the other with tables where chaperones sat waiting for their students to arrive. After having confirmed my attendance, I went back to my room, went online, and applied to college. I’m not kidding. When I returned to registration, I was sent to retrieve my room key and went to my new room. I sat on the bed and I finally felt it sink in that I was in the 2014 All National Honors Orchestra.

The festival lasted from Sunday to our performance on Wednesday at the Grand Ole Opry House. We were conducted by the wonderful Gerard Schwarz as we played Shostakovich’s October Op.131 and Respighi’s Pini di Roma. We rehearsed over the course of the conference for an average of eight hours a day, but even when we were allowed to put our instruments down, no one really wanted to stop playing and people had their instruments out during our breaks either practicing or jamming.
It was like a music summer camp. Even though it was a lot of work, we did get to do certain activities and at night when we were done for the day. We got to see the Boston Brass perform one night as well as the US Army Field Band the next! Additionally, we got to participate in a mass scavenger hunt across the hotel which was so much fun!

That week was truly eye opening and the experience of a lifetime. I was the only student from Maine in the orchestra. I was thrilled to play music with such a diverse group of students with so much talent from all across the country. My roommates were from Pennsylvania and Florida and my stand partner was from North Carolina. We performed at noon on Wednesday, and I can remember standing under the spotlight and realizing that I was playing at the Grand Ole Opry! It was surreal! I will always remember the friends I made, and I am so thankful for the opportunity I was given in being accepted to participate and represent Waynflete and Maine during this wonderful experience.

Here is a link to an article on Elise that appeared recently in the Tri-Town Weekly.

Here is a link to an article on Elise that appeared earlier this year in USNOW.

Waynflete’s Mock Trial squad won its first round of competition last Saturday in impressive fashion. For Coach Curtis, some of the highlights were:

Life can take you on unexpectedly wonderful adventures, to places you had never expected, and on journeys you had never even dreamt about. You can find yourself looking back at the path that has led you to your current job, city, relationship, continent, and ask yourself what the tipping point was that started the journey that led you to this place.

Maddie on a hike from Quito, Ecuador, where she is living now, to Mindo.

I’m sitting in Quito, Ecuador, asking myself these same questions. I’ve been living here for seven months, teaching English at a university and working with E-Tech International, an NGO committed to assisting communities affected by mining. I have spent the past five years devoted to researching and my desire to work in Latin America. After graduating from Waynflete, I  took a year off and volunteered at Safe Passage in Guatemala City. My year there solidified my love for Latin America and working with other cultures. Then, at McGill University, I majored in Latin American Studies and International Development. During my four years there I researched Canadian mining in Latin America and the environmental and social problems that it causes. That research is what brought me to Ecuador in the first place.

When I reflect back on my past five years and the journey that led me to Ecuador, I realize that the starting point was Waynflete Upper School. More specifically, my journey started my first semester of 9^th grade when I joined the Safe Passage activity, which raised money to sponsor a Safe Passage student. Through this group I was given my first opportunity to travel to Guatemala to teach lacrosse to middle school girls and immediately fell in love with the organization and the country.

It is easy to point to my first trip to Safe Passage as the key to where I am today, but really, it was just a small part. My entire experience at Waynflete was what shaped my future; the school  fostered my sense of adventure and my desire to give back to my community and to communities worldwide. The teachers pushed me take on a larger role in my classes and activities, demanded that I think critically and expansively about things, and always encouraged me to go above and beyond my own goals, whatever they may have been. The classes opened my eyes to new topics and ideas, and made me view information from all different angles. Students are given the freedom to collaborate and reach their own conclusions, which makes us think critically about the information we are being taught and the environment in which we live. Graduates then take this critical thinking attitude and apply it to the rest of their lives, questioning what they hear and see, and looking for ways to better the lives of those around them.

In addition to academics, Waynflete offered me many extracurricular activities to feed my desire to work with children. Along with Safe Passage, I was a member of Make-A-Wish for four years, mentored an elementary school girl with Project Respect for three years, coached lacrosse at the Waynflete Summer Camp, and tutored a 2^nd grader in math for a year. These experiences showed me that helping other people is not only worthwhile, it is an essential part of being a compassionate and caring world citizen.

The teachers at Waynflete are truly what impacted me and changed the course of my life. Those teachers were huge influences on my life when I was in high school and continue to influence me today. They encouraged me to think freely, question everything, and always follow my passions, no matter what they were. Sue Stein, the ELL teacher, traveled with me to Guatemala on my second volunteer trip. We worked together with one year olds, and her presence on that trip made it much more special. Sue is still a big part of my life, and we continue to keep in touch even five years after I graduated.

Other teachers have been equally important in positively shaping my high school experience. Lowell Libby, Upper School director, was not only my 12^th grade English teacher, but also my mentor and therapist when I would go to his office unannounced and rant about issues that I was facing in my personal essays. He helped edit my college essay and put up with multiple trips by both my younger sister and me to his house after school if we wanted extra help.

Cathie Connors (one of the kindest, funniest, most wonderful women I have met) was my lacrosse coach and helped me gain the confidence I needed to later become the captain of my college lacrosse team. I didn’t make the varsity team my freshman year at Waynflete, and Cathie encouraged me to be more confident in my skills. I still remember that she once referenced a drill when a varsity upperclassman and I were chasing a ground ball and I purposefully slowed down and let the other player get it. Cathie said that I should always go full speed after loose balls like that and never be held back by my own fears or insecurities. I still clearly remember that conversation and apply that advice to every situation in my life. Those are the kind of values that Cathie and other teachers instill in their students: to always go after what you want and don’t let you or anyone else – or yourself – hold you back.

Waynflete influenced my life more than I could have imagined. When I reflect on what brought me to teaching English in Ecuador, collecting lacrosse gear for children in Guatemala, and researching destructive mining throughout Latin America, I realize it all began at Waynflete. Some people may think that high school is just a 4-year period before going to college to get a degree that will hopefully lead to a high paying job. From my experience, I know that high school can be and should be a place that shapes your morals and serves as a jumping off point for amazing, life changing adventures.

Maddie is organizing a lacrosse gear drive to benefit girls in Guatemala City.  The drive ends in mid-December.  Click here for more information about the drive.