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FAMILIAR FACES (12th edition)
Hello DWS Alumni from the 70's and 80's! Welcome to our twelfth edition of Familiar Faces. With DWS alumni spanning the globe, we thought it would be fun for you to see what everyone is up to and to have the opportunity to re-connect with your DWS community.
*Note: class years listed are for graduation of the 8th grade and the names following the year are the class teacher at the time of graduation.
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It's Autumn and we are parading along the sidewalk in front of the school so I suspect we are dressed up for Halloween. I'm some kind of Greek geometer with my platonic solids (swiped from Gr. 8) and Frank is playing an English don with his stogie, maybe contemplating his next essay or a book he will write. - John Petering | |
Dan Scott, Astrid Buergin Brient and Barbara Remboski | |
Theo and Marianne Buergin dressed as each other, 1978 | |
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Frank Hall
Humanities Teacher | 1976-1983
I taught in the High School for seven years. Theo Buergin found me just after I finished the two-year program (orientation, student teaching) down the street at the Waldorf Institute. I applied for an open high school teaching position in the humanities and Theo accepted me, after a teaching demonstration. I taught Parzival and Faust at DWS for the first time and loved doing that with the students. I might add that John prepared me to teach a 10th grade Chemistry main lesson which seemed to go well, largely due to his help.There were a few high school plays I helped to direct, including The Night Thoreau Spent In Jail, with a live chicken on stage, later sent to a farm. That's a long story! I recall a few variety shows by the high school for which I presented an amateurish magic act, with card tricks. It was much fun.
I am retired now after thirty-three years of teaching high school humanities at the Washington Waldorf School. My wife Anna taught at Acorn Hill Waldorf kindergarten for many years. Our daughter Emily works for a nonprofit organization supporting education of girls in Malawi. We are enjoying walks in parks and concerts in the Strathmore music center.
Best wishes and kindest regards from Silver Spring, Maryland, Frank Hall
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John Petering
Science teacher | 1976-1985
DWS has a venerable history and I’m proud to have been a part of that for 9 years, one of the faculty with Theo Buergin that started the High School, from 1976 -1985. I moved to Colorado in 1985 to be closer to my older children who started at DWS -- Season (now 48) and a Waldorf teacher in Petaluma, California and Aaron (45), and a chef in Berthoud, Colorado. There I was part of the team that started the High School at Shining Mountain Waldorf School in Boulder, Colorado from 1992-2001. I still love teaching working part-time now at the Sacramento Waldorf School, since 2001. I have two younger children, alums of SacWaldorf -- Julia (2011), and Niko (2017). I did get back to Detroit for an Anthroposophic conference in Ann Arbor in 1996, and visiting DWS ran into a former student (now a parent) playing with their children on the playground! I’m so glad to see how the school continues to thrive and contribute to a better future in Detroit.
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Kristine Altwies
Class of '80 | Michael Blair and Alan MacNair
HS Class of '84
The older I get the more I appreciate the idea of Waldorf. As the grateful mother of five gut wrenchingly incredible humans I compare the various schools my children have attended to what I got out of the DWS. My memories are scattered, generally all wholesome, and absolutely replete with the smiling faces of the many teachers and staff from whom I always felt unconditional love.
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I attended DWS from age three (a Miss Baker Blue Bird), through high school (graduating with Kirk Williams, Erin Parish, and Melody Moss). My mom and dad both taught at the school, and my two younger brothers were also there. I went to Kalamazoo College, (degree in art history), then to University of Bonn for two years on a Hanns Seidel Stiftung (German government scholarship). Thanks to Hanna Edleglass' gentle German lessons, Germany was an easy second home.
What I take away from my DWS education is that I've never found anything I didn't think I couldn't at least try. I drove sports cars into the USSR (no reference, not really up and up work); covered the fall of The Wall for a Japanese news outlet (Sankei Shimbun); edited an encyclopedia (Wiley Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2nd Ed.); and finally talked someone into turning over a small nonprofit to me in 1991 (Hawaii International Child). I've comfortably worked in a bunch of non US places and I've made adoption and children my life's work (I run A Family Tree Adoption Agency and Pono Roots Counseling Center). Working as a psychotherapist I focus on trauma, relationships, and parenting.
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Currently I am raising my three youngest children (ages 13, 16 and 17) in Honolulu. I enjoy my parents Frances and Gerald (who live with me and my husband Bruce Chen), and try to Facetime my brothers (Hans and Justin) as often as possible. For the past three years I've been in Detroit every month or so, working on houses I bought from the Detroit Landbank, a mile from DWS. When people ask me what I'm doing there I can honestly say I'm not really sure, but I know it'll be good, and helpful, and will make itself clear when the time comes. I'm pretty sure some of that trust and optimism came from DWS.
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Photo captions:
1. With my parents Jerry and Frances Altwies and brothers Hans and Justin
2. With Justin and Hans (in the hat)
3. On the bus with my 5 children in 2016
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John O'Hair
Class of '81 | Paul Gierlach
I walked out of the front door of DWS 41 years ago. For a young boy who’s life revolved around being outdoors, school was merely an inconvenience that took away valuable time that could be better spent elsewhere. I did not realize that later in life I would grow to appreciate the small class size and personal relationships I had with the teachers there. I attended DWS from K-8 and Paul Gierlach was my teacher for the last few years until I left in 1981. Looking back across all my years in school and college, Paul was one of my favorite teachers.
I graduated from Cass Tech high school four years later. From 1985-1992 I worked for a construction company, a farm and industrial equipment dealer, attended St. Clair Co. community college and then finally Michigan State University. After graduating from MSU in 1992 I settled in on our family farm 80 miles north of Detroit. Today my family and I own and operate over 1200 acres growing corn, soybeans, wheat, sugar beets and a variety of other crops. We have a small group of dedicated part-time employees that help us plant, harvest and truck the commodities we grow. Without them I’m not sure we could get the job done! My wife Kathy and I have four children ranging from a freshman in high school down to a daughter in preschool. Between work and family there is never a dull moment around here! Over the years I have also served on my local township board, various agricultural organization boards and advisory committees and currently serve on the Croswell-Lexington school board.
I have truly been blessed in life with a terrific family and the career that I always wanted. I could not ask for more. I’m to the point that I should probably think about slowing down a little but I enjoy the challenge of what we do too much and am encouraging the next generation to take over.
I regret not keeping in contact with friends I made at DWS. After reading several issues of Familiar Faces I’m glad to see my past school mates are doing well. - John O'Hair
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Photo captions:
1) A day in life on the farm
2) This family photo was taken by a reporter from a local newspaper that came out to do a little story on the farm. From left to right Colleen (7), me, Maggie (3), John (14), my wife Kathy and Danny (12). Our dog's name is Annabelle and I can’t remember how old she is!
Kathy has a farm market business that she runs in the fall selling pumpkins, fall decorations, homemade donuts and we have a corn maze:
https://sanilaccountynews.mihomepaper.com/articles/growers-harvest-a-fall-favorite-pumpkins/
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David Olmstead
Class of '83 | Paul Gierlach
I attended DWS for 10 wonderful years from Kindergarten to 8th grade. I think my fondest memories involve performing or watching others perform in the auditorium whether it was an orchestra concert, a play or simply reciting a poem. I enjoyed playing the violin in the orchestra and continued to participate in orchestras in summer camp at Interlochen, high school and college. French was another interest that started at Waldorf. I continued with French in high school and college. I studied abroad in Paris in 1989. After moving to Chicago in the 1990s, I was involved in a francophone group where I met my future wife. Through my marriage I became a dual French citizen. I was married for 13 years and have a 14-year-old son who lives with me.
I attended the University of Michigan and am a big Michigan Football fan. After college I moved to Washington D.C. where I interned at the State Department's Foreign Service Institute and then attended law school at the Catholic University of America. I returned to the Midwest after that first working for the City of Chicago Law Department then moving into the private sector. I am now working in-house for Liberty Mutual Insurance.
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My education at Waldorf has shaped my outlook of the world and its cultural diversity and has given me a great appreciation for all the arts (even though my artistic talent is somewhat limited). Every All Saints Day, I am reminded of Waldorf listening to the hymn "For all the Saints" by Ralph Vaughan Williams as this is the music for our school assembly song "Of All Creation."
Photo captions:
1) In Paris with Alex
2) With Alex at last year's victory game over Ohio State
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P.S. from Kristine: Also, as has been said here already, but cannot be underscored enough: Membership in the welcoming world of Waldorf alum is priceless. I count among my dearest friends many of my DWS classmates. What we share transcends the standard love of alma mater. I think we quietly know that the world might be a better place if more youth were able to experience the sacredness of childhood, the awe of the seasonal festivals, the slower, deeper pace of learning, and all that unconditional love. I think we know how lucky we were. | |
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Sock Hop - DWS 1980
Left to right back: Deborah Snead, Melody (Moss) Johnson, Alia Newman, Kristine
Left to right front: Denise (Stevens) Swerden, Erin Parish, Liza Grossman
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Four girls in the DWS school yard: Deborah Snead, Melody Moss, Monica and Kristine | |
Twin look with Liza Grossman at a Detroit Tigers game, 2019 | |
At the Detroit Public Library with Maureen McNulty Saxton, November 2019 | |
In NYC with Timur Kocak and Miles Michael | |
Lunch at Sinbad's in Detroit three weeks ago. Barbara Remboski, Cristina (Dinicu) Stamatin, Dan Scott and Andrew Jarvis (High School classes of '79 and '80) | | |
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Date Correction:
Class teacher Marjorie Joy Masoud taught at DWS for 16 years, from 1983-1999
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Save-the-Date:
Our first Alumni Weekend is being planned for September, 21st-23rd, 2023! Please make sure I have your current postal address as I will be sending a Save the Date invitation in the coming weeks. Thank you, Rachel Ornstein
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Do you know other alums who might like to join this group?
Can we feature you in an upcoming edition?
Contact: Claudia Valsi, DWS Alumni Outreach Volunteer Coordinator
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