Hi All,

In this Thanksgiving week, I am grateful to be sharing exciting news! In addition to celebrating our community's generosity in the Annual Fund campaign, I am thrilled to share that we have been awarded a prestigious Edward E. Ford Foundation grant. 

Here's what I am thankful for this Thanksgiving:

First, I am always grateful to be part of such a wonderful community that is united in giving its children the best education possible. This community-wide commitment shows itself in many ways, including the Annual Fund Campaign. When our students need support, we can count on our diverse community.

And diverse we are. We cross socioeconomic and national lines, and more than ever before, graduation lines. Our alumni contributed at our highest rate ever. It was wonderful to read the email banter between our first graduates, the Class of 2005. Their emails made me miss them even more. This is a very exciting trend as all great schools eventually are in the hands of their alumni, who know the value of the explorations they were inspired to pursue.

Our community of parents (current and past), staff, grandparents, and Trustees was also exceptional in their support. Suzanne and Matt Long led a wonderful campaign. Our Annual Fund Ambassadors did their part with gusto. 

With company matches still coming in, we have already received $171,000 in contributions and 94% participation from families, staff, and Trustees. Thank you!

Second, we have been awarded a prestigious Edward E. Ford Foundation grant for $50,000. The mission of the Edward E. Ford Foundation is to strengthen and support independent secondary schools and to challenge and inspire them to leverage their talents, expertise, and resources. Our grant application was geared around creating a unique STEM-based program. After a rigorous grant-vetting process, the Executive Director of the Foundation visited Riverstone; he was particularly impressed with our school, students, and staff.

The Foundation requires that we raise another matching $50,000 in order to obtain their grant. We will be looking to sources outside of the school first, such as community partners and local foundations, for their support. 

It is imperative that communities like ours take responsibility for themselves; that is the great strength of independent schools. Ultimately when you think of how quickly a child's education goes by, it matters so much what the values of the community are and how they show themselves. 

Year after year, our community speaks volumes through their generosity.

Thanks to you, and have a great Thanksgiving!

Bob Carignan

Head of School

bcarignan@riverstoneschool.org

Bring your family to Riverstone on Friday, Dec 5 for an evening of family fun!

• $5ish Pizza, Caesar Salad, and Treat
• Beverages by donation

We enjoy sharing news from our alumni! 

Here's an update from Valerie King, Class of 2005. Val, along with Israel Catz ('05 and current Humanities teacher), rallied the Class of 2005 to their greatest participation ever in our Annual Fund! We will be celebrating their 10 year reunion this coming May.

Hi everyone!  Kathleen asked for a quick paragraph about what I've been doing since Riverstone, and, of course, anything for Riverstone... Wellesley College (much to my surprise) turned out to be great for me, and I was happy that Eleri Roberts Hofstetter joined me a year later. 

I joined the Shakespeare Society right away and found my niche there. I directed three shows at Wellesley, all of which I'd seen originally at the Shakespeare Festival in Idaho (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum by Stephen Sondheim, Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw, and The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare). I loved Wellesley like I loved Riverstone; it was my home.  

After I graduated, I moved to Philadelphia on a whim and found a job doing outside sales on 100% commission. It was tough but I learned a lot and I found I was actually really good at sales. I moved to St. Louis to open a branch of the company and we failed miserably, but we failed forward. I got married to a German on a rainy day at the St. Louis City Hall, and I dragged him back to Philadelphia with me.  I took a couple random jobs, fulfilling my 20-something obligation to figure out what I did NOT want to do.  Today: for the past 7 months, I've been working at an IT marketing company and I love it.  I tell everyone: I love my job. I'm good at it, I make great money, I'm getting promoted rapidly and frequently and I really love my coworkers. My husband and I have an amazing apartment and I just keep thinking "Man, look where I came from." One year ago, I was unemployed and completely miserable and I thought I was lost.  Now, I'm more excited about the future than I miss the past, and I think that's the goal.