FAMILIAR FACES (14th edition)



^{Hello DWS Alumni from the 70's and 80's! Welcome to our fourteenth 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.}

Another DWS reunion!

Lunch at Francina Graef's when Frances and Jerry Altwies were in town last month. Left to right: Candyce Sweda, Marjorie Joy Masoud, Bart Eddy, Betsy Reid, Alan MacNair, Frances and Jerry Altwies, Francina Graef

Tammi Claycamp

Class of '75 | Dorothy Garrison and Joel Kobran

I graduated in the second 8th grade at DWS in 1975, one of 13 students. My teachers were Francis Faust (grades 1-3), Dorothy Garrison grades (4-6), and Joel Kobran (grades 7 and 8). I attended Lutheran High School North and graduated with a degree in psychology from Albion College in 1983. Shortly after graduation, I moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where I lived for 14 years and worked many different jobs. I met and married my husband in 1989. Our son was born on my birthday in 1990, followed by his twin sisters in November 1991. Yes, it was an incredibly busy time with 3 children under 18 months old.

With 3 small children, we made the move to Arizona to be near family. We spent 8 years there. Our children had the beautiful opportunity to form deep connections with my parents (many here will remember my mom, Carol Fulmer). 

I deeply wanted Waldorf education for my children, so we landed in a small group working to start a school in south Phoenix. Desert Marigold is now a successful Waldorf inspired K-12 charter school. Our children attended there for 5 years. We then moved north and spent 3 years in Cottonwood, Arizona (just outside of Sedona) and our children attended Terra Rosa, another Waldorf inspired charter school. At this time I joined a small group of friends and colleagues to embark on my training to become a Waldorf trained teacher. Upon completion of my training, we moved to Austin, Texas to allow me to teach at the Austin Waldorf School. Shortly after graduating with my Masters in Education and Texas Teaching Certificate, I moved to a charter school that serves low income and underprivileged children. While my work here is far from Waldorf inspired, I feel a deep sense of gratitude to be able to offer opportunities to children who would otherwise have a slim chance of digging out of poverty.

Today, my husband and I are enjoying empty-nesting, traveling, pickleball and of course, our 4, soon to be 6, grandbabies. It is beyond incredible to watch their little souls grow and learn.

My Waldorf education has impacted my life in so many ways. On a deep personal level, I credit my education for my love of music and handcrafts. I lived in heaven when I had classes of 28-30 students at the Waldorf school; a built-in choir, recorder ensembles and abundant opportunities for artistic expression. DWS will always hold a very special place in my heart. 

Photos:

1) With my Mom, Carol Fulmer, at my daughter's wedding

2) 4 generations - me, my daughter Andrea, her daughter Ella and my Mom, March 2018

Alia Newman

Class of '80 | Alan MacNair and Michael Blair

I attended DWS from Kindergarten through grade 8. I started as a Red Bird in Mrs. Baker’s kindergarten class. From there, Mrs. Richie was my class teacher from grades 1-3. Mr. Michael Blair was my class teacher from grades 4-7. Mr. Alan MacNair took over the grade 8 class.

When I think about my favorite DWS memories, the word “music” comes to the foreground. I played clarinet, in the school orchestra where Mr. Weinberger was the leader of the school orchestra who captured me with his “Adolph Sax” stories and through whom I had to audition. When Mr. Weinberger moved on, Mr. Alan MacNair took over and seemingly conspired with my clarinet teacher which ultimately resulted in my performing a solo, during a school concert. I believe I was in 8th grade at the time.

I attended high school at Detroit Country Day School. I started running track in 7th grade which carried over into high school where I held several school records in the: 800m, 1600m, 3200m, and cross-country (5k). They have since been broken, but they endured for at least 19 years. At the same time, the music continued via the school band and orchestra. After graduating high school, I went on to attend and graduate from the University of Pennsylvania, B.A. Economics. My clarinet came along for the ride as I was also a member of the PENN marching band.

My work life as taken me into the Property & Casualty Insurance arena, but my love of music has remained constant where I was a longtime member of the Schoolcraft College Wind Ensemble where I had occasion to sit as the principal clarinetist. My husband, Richard, and I live in the Detroit area.

My son, David Lawrence (deceased), was also a DWS graduate, class of 2001. His class teacher was Mrs. Cynthia Trevillion, for all of his eight years. During his tenure, I had the honor of serving as the keynote speaker for his class’s graduation ceremony.

Looking back, I remember, fondly, my experiences at DWS, in vivid detail, and am appreciative of all that was poured into me. - Alia Newman, CPCU, AIC, LPCS

Photos:

1) One of many track accomplishments at Detroit Country Day School.

2) David, he walked me down the aisle at my wedding, 11/2014

Julie Endicott Taomia

Class of 1981 | Paul Gierlach

I am an archaeologist and have recently transitioned to the greater Los Angeles area after 1.5 years in Northern California working for the Forest Service and 25 years on islands in the Pacific Ocean. I’m currently working for the Army Corps of Engineers in Los Angeles.

All of my degrees are in Anthropology, a Bachelor’s from University of Michigan and a Master’s and PhD from UC Berkeley. I did my dissertation research in the Cook Islands in the South Pacific, where I met my husband Sonny Taomia. I originally intended to pursue a career in academia but became disillusioned with aspects of it and changed course to a career in historic preservation working mostly for states and the federal government. I worked for the Historic Preservation Office in American Samoa while finishing my dissertation and raising two small children. After 8 years at the Historic Preservation Office and shortly after our youngest was born I started a private archaeological consulting firm in American Samoa, and briefly taught science at our children’s elementary school.

During the 3rd grade gardening block at Waldorf I found a pin of a castle, which I kept. Years later when I worked for the American Samoa Historic Preservation Office and corresponded with the Army Corps of Engineers, I realized that that pin was the logo used by the Army Corps of Engineers, probably lost by an Army Corps employee who worked on concreting the drainage behind DWS. I clearly started collecting artifacts at a young age!

After 10 years in American Samoa we moved to Hawai‘i where I worked briefly for the Hawai‘i Historic Preservation Division and then went to work at the US Army’s Pōhakuloa Training Area in the center of Hawai‘i Island. I was originally the supervisor for in-house contract archaeology staff at the base and then transitioned to a federal archaeology position with the Army at the Training Area for 10 years.

There are a lot of through lines in my life that DWS reinforced. My father’s mother knitted and crocheted, but since my grandparents lived in Oregon I didn’t learn it from her, but at Waldorf. And now my daughter has picked it up, and we’ve shared patterns and creating together. My parents also influenced my pursuit of archaeology through their own interest in it, and trips to the Detroit Institute of Arts where the Egyptian section was always my favorite. I use the basic geometry I learned at DWS when I map archaeological sites, and the lessons with Paul Gierlach about Krakatoa and different types of islands often came to mind when I worked in the Pacific. My teachers at Waldorf helped to start me on my path through life, including but not limited to Mr. Gierlach, Madame Graef, Mrs. O’Brien. Many of the lessons have resonated throughout my journey.

Photos:

1) Family photo, left to right: James (26), Victoria (29), Titongi (20), Julie and Sonny Taomia, 2021

2) This was an outreach event at the US Army's Pohakuloa Training Area in the center of Hawai'i Island for elementary students from Kamehameha Schools in 2014. I was talking to them about historic preservation. The Kamehameha School is a private school for students of Hawaiian descent with campuses on Oahu and Hawai'i Island.

Andrew (Drew) Moeller

Class of 1983 | Paul Gierlach

Attending DWS 3rd through 8th grade was a blessing for which I continue to be eternally grateful. The exposure to art, music, crafts, language and storytelling are skills that I continue to use on a daily basis. Those skills continue to serve me well.

After eighth grade, I attended Detroit Finney High School and then took a year off to work as an intern at the Unitarian Universalist Association in Boston. Upon returning to Michigan, I learned and worked in trade of sailmaking. I attended night school at Macomb Community College, earning a (AA), and then a Bachelor's of Davenport University Dearborn, MI (BBA – Management). During this time, I also followed my passion for sailing and did a lot of racing, including several Port Huron to Mackinac races and four single-handed Mackinac races. 

Just before graduation from Davenport, I was recruited for a job in Vernon, Connecticut, working for a company that specialized in manufacturing woven sailcloth. I was excited about job work in this industry, where I could use my sailmaking skills and managerial education. Moving cross country was quite an experience – and while it was professionally rewarding, I soon became aware that it was not something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. 

Searching for the next thing to do – I decided to explore my calling in high school to become a Unitarian Universalist Minister. I started taking classes at Hartford Seminary and immediately found a resonance to that calling which quickly led me to transfer to Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, IL, where I graduated with a Master of Divinity in 2014. In 2015 I was ordained "The Reverend" Andrew Moeller.

After some struggles in seminary with keeping up with all the reading and writing requirements, I was assessed and discovered that I am significantly dyslexic. The person performing my assessment couldn't believe I had gotten far in my academic career with that level of learning difference. While I take a lot of credit for my perseverance, I also share some of the credit with DWS which exposed me to many multi-modal teaching/learning techniques, adaptive learning strategies and coping mechanisms. 

Thus far in my ministerial career, I've served two congregations; the Unitarian Universalist Society of Laconia, NH, for four years; and now the Unitarian Universalist Society of Bangor, ME, where I am currently in my seventh year.

While in NH, I also served as a per diem Chaplin at Lakes Region General Hospital, served on Public Health Board, and I helped found a homeless shelter called Belknap House that continues to serve families who do not have permanent housing in Belknap county NH. Now I reside in Bangor, ME, where I volunteer as the Chair of the Advisory Group to the Chaplain training Program at Northern Light hospital and the board of Dignity First - a nonprofit working to find shelter solutions for people experiencing houselessness in the greater Bangor area.

When not doing ministerial work - I enjoy making regular visits back to Michigan to see family and friends. I feed my passion for sailing by annually sailing the Port Huron Mackinac race (32 so far). I also love exploring Maine by foot, on skis, or canoe. ME is so photogenic that I’ve taken up nature photography. Three years ago, I acquired a 27-foot sailboat named "Alchemy," which I’ve been using to explore the Maine coast with my trusty canine companion Nellie, a 15-year-old Lhasa Apso mix.

This spring, I've earned the privilege of taking a six-month sabbatical. I am looking forward to spending a month in a silent meditation retreat, spending time in Scotland exploring and tracing my family's genealogy, and traveling to Romania, Hungary, and the Czech Republic to visit many Unitarian and historic religious sites. I plan to connect with some of my eighth-grade classmates along the way.

The DWS alumni group has been a wonderful opportunity to meet again the wonderful people I grew up with – I continue to be amazed at who they are and continue to become.

Photos:

1) “Reverend Drew” - preparing to officiate a wedding in New Hampshire, August 2018

2) Alchemy - at anchor in Holbrook Is. on Penobscott Bay in Maine, Summer 2022

3) Nellie

4) With fellow classmates Jennifer Morris, David Olmstead and Chris Vaneman in Indian Village, April 2022

Remembering Lora Valsi

Kindergarten Teacher and Mentor

Written by Marjorie Joy Masoud

It was soon after I arrived in Michigan in September 1981 and enrolled in the Waldorf Institute Teacher Training program that I met Lora. She was a trained Waldorf Early Childhood teacher at the time, founder of the Waldorf Kinder House and a supportive and enthusiastic parent at DWS (with Claudia and Marco in attendance).  

I remember her telling me that soon after her children were born she began searching for the “right” future educational setting for them. Upon finding Waldorf education and meeting Werner and Barbara Glas (who became dear family friends), she knew that she wanted her children to spend their educational years steeped in beauty and goodness at the Detroit Waldorf School.

Lora took on the role of the lead early childhood teacher at DWS In the fall of 1983. Having been a long time student of Anthroposophy, Lora brought a marked degree of wisdom and love to that task. She was also instrumental in developing the early childhood teacher training program here in the Detroit area, when the Waldorf Institute relocated to Spring Valley, NY. She made a signigicant contribution as the key instructor in the program. She taught at DWS for many years until her father became ill and she was needed at home.

Our colleague and dear friend Lora left us in May 2020 after a long illness. Parents, colleagues and students remember Lora with much fondness and gratitude for the genuine warmth and expertise she brought to the classroom, for her clear understanding of the young child, and for her ongoing contribution and dedication to Waldorf Education. 

We miss her.

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