keeping parents informedVolume 15 Issue 17 June 8, 2012

Crescent School | 2365 Bayview Ave. Toronto, ON M2L 1A2 | 416.449.2556 | www.crescentschool.org

OH, I GET BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDSfrom the first day of grade 3 to days before graduation... the ties that bind.

2 Men of Character from Boys of Promise

SUPPORTING CRESCENT and OUR BOYS Crescent Parent Association

With the completion of all events including fundraising initiatives, I am pleased to say that the Crescent Par-

ent Association (CPA) will be making a donation for the 2011 – 2012 calendar year to the School in the amount of $135,000.

The final event in the CPA calendar, the Garage Sale, took place on April 28. The Garage Sale is one of many fundraising initiatives undertaken during the year. Others include the Holiday Sale, Plant Sales, Gift Wrap and Magazine Sales and Coyote’s Den proceeds.

For the past five years, proceeds from CPA fundraising ini-tiatives have been donated to endow the CPA Centennial Scholarship Fund (formerly, the Guild Centennial Scholar-ship Fund). Established in 2007, the CPA (Guild) pledged $700,000 to establish this Fund. This pledge will be fulfilled this year with a final installment of $36,000.

The CPA Committee agreed this year to a new pledge to Crescent in the amount of $600,000 to be directed to the

final phase of the Great Boys campaign in support of the new Library and Commons. The CPA will donate Den and CPA event proceeds over the next five years to fulfill this pledge, starting with an $84,000 donation in 2012. All proceeds for 2013 – 2016 will be donated solely to fulfill this pledge.

In addition to donations to the CPA Centennial Scholar-ship and Great Boys, the CPA will be donating $15,000 to the Centennial Committee to put towards a planned community event, “The Centennial Bash—The Party of the Century.” It will take place at Crescent, in June 2013, to mark the end of year centennial celebrations.

The CPA is proud to support the School in all these endeav-ors and would like to thank all the parent volunteers who have contributed this year to all fundraising initiatives. We would not be able to provide these gifts to the School without your dedication and hard work.

Thank you for your support.

—Anne Marie Mayne, CPA President 2011 – 2012

The names below speak volumes about the amazing commitment and generosity of the Crescent family. The names num-ber in the hundreds, and this is just the parents and past parents who volunteered. There were also friends, neighbours,

siblings, alumni, grandparents, staff and students who enthusiastically assisted in the events which took place during second and third term. But what is absolutely incredible is the number of volunteer hours represented by the people on this list; it is well into the thousands! That is time taken from work, family life, hobbies and relaxation to help out at your son's school.

As an organization, Crescent is blessed with an unparalleled generosity of time and talent by its constituents. We are ex-tremely grateful for everything our volunteers do to help us provide the best possible educational environment. Thank you!

Thanking Crescent's Parent Volunteers

CPA COYOTE’S DEN (new this term)Lauren ZhanAndrea Murnaghan

ANNUAL PARENT LUNCHEONNancy BakerKatya BelilovskyBeth FoleyJulie Law

Nita MajorCee Cee Robertson

GARAGE SALEColleen AlbistonDiana AllionErin D. AshbyNancy BakerShari BalcomDeborah BellBarbara Black

Catherine BongardLisa BoydFrancoise BrownMargo BrownChristina CandyRita CaporiccioDeirdre CardyCatherine CarlCatherine CarlinLisa CaswellJoey Chan

3Men of Character from Boys of Promise

Sonia ChanChia-Hui ChengRita ChengAlexandra ChesneyBessi ChowAlison ChristodoulisCarolyn ChristodoulouCatherine J. CodeJoelle CoronaMaria DavidsonCatherine DemeroutisErin DevlinDetlef DoergeClaire D. DubocStephanie EytonIlze EzergailisIngrid Faber-SteinAnn Marie FerraroLori FisherBeth FoleyJulie ForkanJane FreundNancy FullertonDomenica GanguliJill GarrettMaryann GaskinJonathan GeislerPatricia GeislerFiona George

Willa GerlingsNadine GilchristAlasdair GrantChris L. GrantLeslie GrantWilla GriffinDenise GrimesPaul R. GrimesCindy HalperinKaren HardieJanet HeiseyDanna HeitnerElizabeth-Anne J. HersenSandra HigginsMegan HillJohn HogarthSusan HogarthKaren HollandCatherine HuLynne HudsonKaren HunterAlex D. HutcheonRichard HutcheonMargaret IsbergNina JainRachel E. JamesTatyana JivovDanielle JolicoeurElizabeth KarayannopoulosChristine KasperaviciusTom KasperaviciusElizabeth KennedyCarolyn KerdmanValerie KirkconnellHelen KlassenKaren KornovskiIrene KouKar Hing KungAmanda LampardJacqueline LangCarmen LaoMay Wah LauMable LawSimon LawBelinda LeeCherry LeeMay LeeNorman Lee

Helén LerbergMona LiChi-Fai LitChristine LomaxTran LyYing MaSheila MacNicolFrances MakWendy MandelbaumSoriana MantiniHeather MargachAnita MasonAnne Marie MayneLisa McRaeMary H. MehtaKaren MeisnerArjen A. MelisCarolina MelisLjiljana MiladinovicSharon MillerSarah MillsAda MokDamien MokChristine MontgomeryMary-Martin MorrisHedieh MousapoorLaura Nadalini BayerAudrey NewmanWusun PaekStephanie PaikinKathy PandellDonna Pandell StanoulisRebecca PardyK. Ann PearceSusan Pratt FrostadWeiling QianLisa QuanTracey RaftusJudy RanieriShaki RavindranKimbrough L. ReucasselTina RileyCee Cee RobertsonValerie SalvatiShannon SchneiderRobin SeligmanMeme SetoHong (Veronica) Shi

Birgitta Sigfridsson-HarquailSusan SilmaAndrea StephenJoy SterlingAnn StewartAnna Suladze-FridmanSujatha (Sue) SundaramJoanne SweeneyWinnie TamKaren TangChristine ten BrummelerJulia ThomsonLinda TinmocithTimea TomborAnne-Marie TompkinsMarci Trachter-ShaneGrace H. TsangBertha TseLinda TseElisa VenierPatricia WardBarbara A. WarrenLea Anne WattMary WellnerSarah WhiteShannon WigganAnn C. WilliamsJon R. Williams

4 Men of Character from Boys of Promise

Andrea WolffEva WongMimi WoodTrisha WoodheadKaren WrightZhe YangCathy YanosikIvy YaoBruce YoungsonCharlotte YoungsonMary Jane YuleHelen ZhengJing ZhuSally ZhuJessica Zufferli

STAFF APPRECIATION DAYDiana AllionCatherine CarlinIvy H. ChanFlorence ChapmanAlexandra ChesneyMarianne EavesFiona GeorgeKelly HaskinsSusan HogarthKaren Holland

Margaret IsbergRachel E. JamesNina KachuraChristine KasperaviciusElizabeth KennedyHelen KlassenIrene KouMay Wah LauMay LeeCarol Lloyd-PinningtonYing MaHeather MargachSophia MavroidisAnne Marie MayneCarolina MelisAlison MetrickValerie SalvatiMeme SetoSusan SilmaJulia ThomsonLinda TinmocithBarbara A. WarrenMary WellnerLauren Zhan

Race for Dignity

Diana AllionNancy BakerBarbara BlackTheresa BurkeFlorence ChapmanMarianne EavesIngrid Faber-SteinLori FisherAmanda LampardJo-Ann Lefko-JohnstonSheila MacNicolCarolina MelisKiersten MooreLaura Nadalini BayerSue PitfieldCarol PortTina RileyValerie SalvatiSujatha (Sue) SundaramBarbara A. WarrenMary WellnerNatalie Williams

Business Team (for DECA)Brian DavisJohn M. DavisonRichard Hutcheon

James MahoneyArjen A. MelisJohn W. MercerGerald Weiss

Margaret Donnelly Library (new this term)Fiona GeorgeCherry LeeIvy LitSylvia Constancio-Kwan

LS DramaHillary J. CummingMary H. MehtaMatilda Sos-MavroudisShannon Wiggan

Outreach CelebrationMartha FisherMichelle HaywardElizabeth Kennedy

5Men of Character from Boys of Promise

SCHOOL MESSAGESFrom the Upper School

This time of year there are lots of prompts for reflection:

The arrival of the Yearbook, writing farewells to retiring staff, announcements of final meetings and end-of-year func-tions, both official and not so, my final Crescent Times col-umn of the year. There are also two important end-of-year rituals that I’m in the middle of as I write this.

During exams, I interview all of the Upper School teachers, to reflect on their goals for the year, their triumphs and fail-ures, their views of where we are as a school, how we need to grow, and their sense of their role in the process. We have all come to see these meetings as important: teachers are well-prepared and bring notes; I take notes (which I use for plan-ning meetings in the summer). I’m always left with insightful commentary. Of course, I’m reminded of our teachers’ com-mitment to their students and to their craft, but most impor-tantly, I’m made aware of the value of a school culture within which it’s OK to risk failure, to experiment, to abandon the comfortable and try something new, even if, in the end it doesn’t always work. As much as their many successes, I value in my colleagues their courage to risk failure.

And then there’s Prize Day and Graduation. In our work to prepare I can’t help but reflect as we recognize work done and growth achieved and as I read through the profiles composed by the Grads to be read at Graduation, full of references to their best memories and thank yous to teachers, coaches,

mentors and parents. I come away with a profound impres-sion of a very accomplished group of young men, of their ap-preciation for their teachers, their deep pride in their school, their humility in their achievements, and their recognition of the privilege they have enjoyed through their parents’ gift to them of a Crescent education. I should also mention their ir-repressible shared sense of humour.

I also come away reflecting on each boy’s individual journey through the school. They have taken many different paths, really as many as there are grads; however, common themes emerge: whether their experience involved sports, robotics, music, math, writing, performing… each boy has had to con-front some common, fundamental questions about himself, has had to face the challenge of what it means to be respon-sible and honest, to grasp the importance of respect, and to understand the need to care. A few random examples: One grad references what he learned through captaining a team through a losing season. Another speaks of how his whole outlook on life was changed by the students with whom he worked through local Outreach. A third offers a quotation that says it all for me: “You haven't won the race if in winning the race you have lost the respect of your competitors.” (Paul Elvstrom, four-time Olympic Gold Medalist in Sailing). Men of character from boys of promise.

—Mr. Lowndes, Head of Upper School

Alex Mahoney—99th (percentile)Vijay Gupta—98thPatrick White—97th

Further, we have:Adam Noble-Marks, 94Jethro Kwong, 93Joshua Lee, 92

Marko Popovic, 89Ross Phillips, 82Andrew Leung, 82Bjorn Kwok, 82

Tudor Datcu, 80Brendan Chun, 80

The following graduating students placed in the top five per cent of the University of Waterloo CHEM 13 News Exam. These are the best-of-the-best, officially recognized by the university.

The results for the Avogadro Exam, written by our grade 11 Chemistry students.

Taylor Keating, 98th percentileJonathan Bell, 97Kevin Chien, 93Jorgen Wong, 90

Neilan Freyne, 89Warfa Jabril, 89Alex Tso, 88Carter Smith, 87Quinton Yau, 87

Nicholas Mehta, 86Enoch Kim, 86Caleb Williams, 85Nick Holland, 84Philip Winterton, 84

Nigel Eyton, 83Austin Stein, 81Jack Heyward, 81Alex McRae, 81Carter Frostad, 80

SCIENCE SUCCESS in a COMPETITIVE ARENA

This puTs over 39 per cenT of our Ap chemisTry sTudenTs in The Top 20 per

cenT of This chAllenging exAm.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE INCIPIENT ROCKET SCIENTISTS!

This puTs 44 per cenT of our grAde 11 chemisTs in The Top 20 per cenT of This

TAke-no-prisoners exAminATion.

6 Men of Character from Boys of Promise

SCHOOL MESSAGES From the Middle School

My father is one of five siblings and every Sunday, without excuse,

they all took their families to my Nana’s house. My Nana lived in what was called “a two up, two down.” It’s pret-ty straightforward really—it meant the house had two room downstairs and two rooms upstairs—that was it. It made for a busy and crowded Sunday afternoon.

We were a quirky, unique but ultimately profound wee community. My Nana was the matriarch of the family, and sat qui-etly in the corner contented to see the energy of her family around her and de-lighting in her grandkids, who she would call to sit with her throughout the day—her only stress was to ensure that the TV was kept on channel 3 as she had no idea how to change channels.

My Auntie Isa, the eldest sister and a for-midable lady, ruled the house and bus-tled her way through the day ensuring that our tea (that means dinner in Scot-land) was ready and you did not want to get in her way—many a time a hapless cousin, often me, would see her too late and felt the verbal hammering that was her speciality.

I had the obligatory “funny” uncle who spent the afternoon regaling the troops with his vastly underappreciated hu-mour, telling the same jokes every week. To give a sample of the comedy genius

that the world was deprived of: “Why did the bald man paint a rabbit on his head, because from a distance it looks like a hair.”

There were no real toys at my Nana’s—an old red, plastic cricket bat, a strangely massive yellow scooter and a football. The cousins were shooed outside, re-gardless of weather, and despite our dif-ferences in ages, and obviously different personalities, we played together. When the ball went over into the neighbours’ garden, a fearful lady we were all terrified of, we persuaded my younger brother that he was the bravest of all of us and sent him, naively emboldened over into No Man’s Land to get the stray ball. We fought, we laughed, we fell out with each other and we were fiercely loyal to each other at the same time.

When finally the cousins got called in for the third sitting of dinner and we sat round the table for our lentil soup fol-lowed by Auntie Isa’ mince and potatoes with lashings of HP sauce (can there possibly be anything better in life) we were fussed over, teased and scolded in equal measure, by all the adults.

And as the dishes were finished, we all found a place to sit in that wee room and the poems and singing began. I always sat on the floor beside my Auntie Marga-ret because she would rub your hair and I

recall feeling so deeply part of something and in full knowledge that I was cared for.

Community is a powerful thing. It sur-rounds you and supports you. It causes you to grow and teaches you balance. It shows you that we can be more than the sum of our parts and that being part of something has more impact than work-ing in isolation. And ultimately, it is the foundation from which we can step for-ward. It is a thing that is fast disappearing in most facets of our lives.

As this year comes to an end I’m drawn to the realization that we have a pro-found community here in the Middle School. We have the coming together of vastly different personalities, we live the ups and downs of each other’s lives, we are frustrated and feel the tensions of community life at exactly the same time as we marvel and celebrate the joys that come with seeing our boys succeed. And we hope that as the year draws to an end, they feel that they belong, that they are deeply part of something and that they are cared for. We want this community to be a foundation from which they can confidently step forward.

Thank you for the obvious and integral role you play in the Middle School com-munity. Have a great summer.

—Mr. Young, Head of Middle School

7Men of Character from Boys of Promise

SCHOOL MESSAGESFrom the Lower School

Every new school year has its special qualities, the start to the 2011-2012 year for the Lower School was special in

every way.

To begin with, it was my first as the Head of the Lower School. I was as nervous and excited on the first day of school as any of the boys in grade 3. I had set many goals and objectives for my first year, and I wanted to make the Lower School boys, their families and their teachers feel welcome and excited about learning in our new space.

On the surface, the Lower School looked very different in Sep-tember than it had in June. Rooms and lockers were re-decorat-ed and repainted, form teachers were in different classrooms, there was new carpet in the hallway, and most importantly of all, the Lower School had its own library space. Later in the year, that space was named the Margaret Donnelly Library, in memory of our beloved former librarian, and it was a heartfelt and poignant celebration.

I have enjoyed getting to know the Lower School families through the Coffee and Conversations mornings, through our chats in the hallways and at School events. We have several exciting and innovative ideas for our writing and reading pro-grammes for next year and we have a new Social Studies series as well. Many of our teachers will be involved in professional

development courses and workshops during the summer and I will be a workshop presenter at the International Boys’ School Coalition (IBSC) conference in Melbourne at the start of July, and then spend three weeks in Portland, Oregon as a guest Educator In Residence for Atlas Rubicon, an international company that specializes in curriculum mapping programmes and software. We will return refreshed and ready to work with your boys in September.

And speaking of the boys, I could not be prouder of them and the faculty for all that they have accomplished this year. The boys have pushed themselves to achieve their best on the field, on the stage, in the studio and in the classroom. They have been supported, challenged and mentored by an exceptional teaching staff and loving families. In the years to come, when we look back on the 2011 – 2012 school year, I believe we will say that while many things were different, we remained true to the most important core qualities of what it is to be a Crescent boy: respect, responsibility, honesty, compassion and moral courage.

You can look forward to an exciting year next year—our 100th. We’ve got plenty of exciting things planned, especially on our formal kickoff to the centennial year on Friday Sept. 7.

—Dr. Boyes, Head of Lower School

THEATRE REVIEW

This year, the Lower School mounted a production of King Arthur and the Magic Sword, based on the classic story. This

play brings us back to c. AD 500 and tells us the story of Arthur and his journey as a series of events leads him to the sword, Excalibur, which he pulls out of the stone, making him king.

For the past two and a half months, the boys and the artistic team have been working hard to bring this magical story to life. The show stars Drew Mehta as Arthur and Owen Cum-ming as Merlin and was directed by Mr. Haber and Mrs. Lat-imer-Kim.

This show featured many talented actors including Merlin (Owen Cumming), Pellinore (Daniel Goldman), and Tancred (Harry Raftus). All of them had a strong stage presence and filled the theatre with their strong voices.

Owen plays a very convincing Merlin with a mysterious flair to his character. Daniel provides the audience with a jolly Pel-linore with great and entertaining songs. Finally, Tancred gives the audience some great comic relief with his character Tan-cred—with a full Scottish accent. He masters this accent and

keeps it going throughout the show.

This show involves many actors that play two characters in the show. This requires many costume changes—the fastest being a matter of seconds before the actor has to return onto stage. These young actors displayed great professionalism throughout these changes and no one could tell they were in the midst of a quick change.

Finally, the lighting and sound used in this show was wonder-ful. Using a variety of shades and textures, the lighting de-signers were able to change the location and tone of a scene in an instant. The sound track used was great and set the tones of certain scenes throughout the play. If you listened closely, you would have been able to recognize music from Gladiator, Troy, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, and The Princess Bride.

Congratulations to the cast and artistic team for putting on a wonderful production with a fun and enthusiastic cast. King Arthur and the Magic Sword was a fun and magical way to end this year’s theatre season.

—Kevin Chien, grade 11

King Arthur and the Magic Sword