Beautiful weather and representation from classes spanning nine decades made for a memorable Alumni Day. A special thank you to Kay Halpern ’37 who traveled all the way from Maryland! Kay brought along photos from her student days. Here’s one of her first grade classroom, which is still in use as...you guessed it…a first grade classroom!

Two members of the Class of 1965 came back for their 50th reunion, Alan Fels and Simone Mogul Davidson. Alan had attended an Alumni Day before, but Simone had not been back to campus for many years: “With all the social media now it has been easy to catch up with all of my classmates from 50 years ago. There were only 6 of us but how often do people get to say I’m in touch with those first "Friends"? I sent my own children to a Quaker school because it was important to me that my children get a Quaker education.”

The Class of 1985 welcomed back Anne Mitchell. Anne was an assistant teacher in the first grade at GSFS and she also taught physical education, so it is not surprising that today she is a fitness instructor. Special thanks to Pilar Bretschneider Yeakel ’85 for organizing her 30th reunion and for managing the Class of 1985 Facebook page. Classmate Carrie Givhan ’85 enjoyed touring the Lower School building, where many memories came flooding back. She notes: “Returning to Greene Street Friends was cathartic because I came of age here many years ago. It meant so much to see Pilar Bretschneider Yeakel, one of my best childhood friends, and Anne Mitchell, the world’s greatest gym teacher who first introduced me to sportsmanship. Meeting Head of School Ed Marshall was a highlight - he is a kind spirit and embodies a true Friend.”

For some, Alumni Day was just a preview of things to come. Julia Sweeney is looking forward to her tenth reunion. She notes: “This year’s Alumni Day brought back so many amazing Greene Street memories! Seeing all of the wonderful changes Greene Street is making was exciting and inspiring. As I prepare to plan the Class of 2006’s reunion next year, I am looking forward to seeing all of my old classmates and hopefully getting some of our old teachers involved to make the day meaningful to all!”

A highlight of the day was the iPad presentation by four members of the sixth grade. Ian, son of Jessica Koster Baff ’78, introduced the topic and the other speakers. Then Gabe explained how students use the online program IXL to practice math and learn the fine points of grammar and mechanics. (To try out a few sample problems, go to ixl.com.) Ariya demonstrated ways to use Notability, a note-taking app. The presentation turned interactive, when Taylor taught visitors how to use Nearpod to answer several questions using school iPads. Alumni saw their answers being projected in real time. Taylor described how this program is used in many subject areas, including math and social studies. You can see what was written here.

The Alumni Board honored Ed Marshall for his 20 years of service as Head of School with a cake. Ed gave highlights of his first two decades but was even more excited to give a preview of things to come, like the new building, which will expand instructional space for middle school students and provide a much-needed gymnasium and theater space.

In keeping with Greene Street Friends School’s theme this year of community, this Alumni Day was highly interactive – from posters soliciting input about the look and wording of GSFS diplomas, to the Alumni Association meeting, during which visitors wrote comments about proposed alumni events for next year.

And, guess what, even if you were unable to attend this year’s event, you still have the chance to let your voice be heard! Click here to share your thoughts. As Sarah Parnum Cadbury ’86 said, the Alumni Board wants to know, “How can the Alumni Association better serve YOU, our GSFS alumni?”