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Alumni News & Publications

If you have Horace Mann School alumni news that you'd like to share, please send an email to websitenews@horacemann.org. We will review all submissions and some will be featured on our website. (We regret that we cannot showcase all news items provided.)

Robert Caro ’53 Honored With Bodley Medal

On October 26th at Carnegie Hall, the Bodleian Libraries of the University of Oxford held the first North American edition of its annual lecture. At that lecture, HM alumnus Robert Caro '53 was honored with the Libraries' prestigious Bodley Medal. According to the Bodleian Library press release, the ceremony featured a conversation between Richard Ovenden, Bodley's Librarian, and Mr. Caro. As Ovenden shared, "Robert Caro is simply one of the greatest American historians. He has used libraries and archives extensively to paint the most vividly illuminating portrait of American politics and society in the 20th century through his biographies on Robert Moses and Lyndon B Johnson. Caro's work demonstrates a rigorous respect for facts and the persistent determination of a researcher. There could be no better person to inaugurate the Bodley Lecture in North America and to receive the Bodley Medal."

Mr. Caro, Pulitzer Prize winner and acclaimed author-historian, visits HM annually to present the Robert Caro '53 Prize for Literary Excellence in the Writing of History. Last June, Caro presented the 2022 award to Liliana Greyf '22 for her work "AIDS Does Not Discriminate, But Memory Does:  How History Unified and Whitewashed the AIDS Epidemics of New York City.” Caro's work is also the focus of a current exhibition at the New York Historical Society entitled, Turn Every Page:  Inside the Robert A. Caro Archive.

The Bodley Medal is "the highest award bestowed by the Bodleian Libraries, presented to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the worlds of books and literature, libraries, media and communications, science and philanthropy." To read more about the Bodley Medal, visit the Bodleian Libraries website here.

Homecoming and Reunions 2022 –

A Roaring Success!

Under sunny skies on October 8th, the HM Lions took to the fields, courts, running paths, and waters to defend their school’s Homecoming pride. Thousands of alumni, students, parents and guardians, faculty and staff, and neighbors came to campus to support the fall athletes, enjoy a complimentary BBQ lunch, snag some awesome HM swag, and participate in a range of family-friendly games and activities.

The festivities began on Friday afternoon with a dramatic Upper Division pep rally that saw the fall athletic teams bursting through photographic break-away banners on Alumni Field. The HM Spirit Squad helped to whoop the crowd into a frenzy, as students proudly donned their "Mann Kind" T-shirts in honor of this year's Homecoming theme, “We are Mann Kind!”

In the athletic contests against arch rival Riverdale, HM girls’ tennis, water polo, and girls’ soccer were winners, while girls’ volleyball and field hockey came up short. The boys’ soccer game ended in a 2-2 tie, the football team fell to Montclair-Kimberly Academy 13-21, and boys’ and girls’ cross country ran with pride in the Manhattan College Invitational in Van Cortlandt Park.

Homecoming is first and foremost an alumni celebration, and one of the alumni classes that was best represented this year was the newly inducted Class of 2022. Dozens of 2022 alumni traveled home from college to HM to cheer on their friends and former teammates.

As Head of School Dr. Tom Kelly reflected, “It appears we had a record turnout at this year’s Homecoming. There was ‘lots to celebrate and even more to be proud of on and off the athletic fields, pool and courts. From our student athletes, to our N-12 student body, to our parents and alumni, to our faculty and staff, to our PA volunteers, to the food and contests, to the fun under the tents, Saturday was a remarkable showing for the Lions of HM!”

Later that evening, a terrific time was had by all at the five-year milestone reunions celebration at the Harmonie Club in Midtown Manhattan. Hundreds of alumni representing the Classes of 1957, 1972, 1977, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017 enjoyed reminiscing, networking and making new friends, and reconnecting with the school and the people who shaped their lives. Also on hand to say, “Hello!” were HM administrators and faculty Tom Kelly, Jessica Levenstein, Lisa Moreira, Stephanie Feigin, Michael Dalo, and Andrew Fippinger.  (Note:  The Classes of 1952 and 1962 celebrated at separate gatherings earlier in the week.)

The ebullience and sense of gratitude for the chance to gather was palpable. As we learned from the pandemic, there is no substitute for being together, hugging old friends, and seeing each other’s smiles. HM extends its deep appreciation to everyone who made the effort to be a part of such a special evening!

Please enjoy viewing photo highlights from the many activities and events of our 2022 Homecoming and Reunions Celebration!

Links to the photos from Homecoming:

https://tinyurl.com/HMHomecoming1

https://tinyurl.com/HMHomecoming2

HM Reunions 2022

https://www.flickr.com/photos/141038450@N03/albums/72177720303423541

Maroon and White Alumni Families Brunch:

https://tinyurl.com/MaroonandWhite

Alumni Soccer Game:

https://tinyurl.com/HMAlumniSoccer

Ella Feiner '18 to Compete on Jeopardy!

 Ella Feiner '18, a senior at Princeton University majoring in chemical and biomedical enginrering, will be a contestant on a special, Primetime "National College Championship" edition of Jeopardy!  The show airs Tuesday, February 8th at 8:00 pm on ABC. Feiner is competing in the first of 12 quarterfinal games against contestants from different colleges. If she wins on Tuesday, she will advance to the semifinal matches which will begin Thursday, Feb. 17. 

According to a February 6, 2022 article in The Daily Princetonian, Feiner's love for trivia, and Jeopardy! in particular, blossomed during her freshman year of college when a group of friends competed nightly while watching the show.  The passionate trivia buffs went on to form an official campus club, the Princeton Jeopardy! Circuit.  Feiner is the second member of the Circuit to compete on the show.

 

Community Mourns the Loss of Beloved Admissions Director and Coach Gary Miller '56

It is with a heavy heart that we share the news of the passing of Gary D. Miller '56,    beloved classmate, administrator, advisor, coach and friend to generations of members of the HM community.  Below is a copy of his obituary which includes details of the memorial service on June 5th and how to honor Gary by making a donation to Camp Merriwood's Campership Fund. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and classmates during this sad time.

 

The following obituary was published in the Greenwich Time on May 8, 2021.

 Gary Dayton Miller, 82, passed away unexpectedly on Friday, April 30th. Born in Mount Vernon, NY on September 29th, 1938, he was the beloved son of the late Gordon and Janet Miller. Gary graduated from the Horace Mann School in 1956 where he was the quarterback on the football team and point guard on the basketball team. He graduated from the University of Bridgeport in 1960 with a degree in education and continued there to earn a master's degree in education. After raising their family in Greenwich, CT, he and his wife, Judy, recently located to Hanover, NH, where Judy will continue to reside.

Gary dedicated his life to fostering an environment for thousands of young people to grow and thrive, often playing the role of surrogate father and grandfather. His career began as a teacher and head basketball coach at Wilton (CT) High School where his team reached the state championship game in the 1967-68 season. In 1968, he returned to his alma mater to join the faculty at the Horace Mann School where he was a teacher, the Admissions Director, member of the Guidance Department, and coach of football, golf, and girls’ basketball before retiring in 1997. While at Horace Mann, he was also a co-founder of Summer on the Hill, an academic enrichment program for local public school students, where he served as chairman of the board.

 His true joy was time at Camp Merriwood for girls in Orford, NH, which grew from his mother's vision in 1949. It was there in 1957 that Gary met the love of his life, Judy, when she caught his eye after picking her up at the train station her first summer as a counselor. She continued to capture his heart for almost 61 years of marriage. Gary filled many roles at Merriwood over the years: director, mower of soccer fields, bike riding instructor, gardener with his junior campers, and Santa - donning a red suit and white beard in the middle of the summer heat. Invariably, Gary would be working on some project around camp, but never intently enough that he wouldn't stop and chat with whomever came by. When not puttering around camp, Gary loved to hit the links with Judy, travel to Park City to ski, or cruise around the lake as the sun set, laughing and telling stories with his family.

Gary loved his family immensely, but his grandchildren were the apple of his eye. There was no bigger fan on the sidelines than Grandpa. He sported the appropriate team colors, wore the team swag like all the other fans, and in his eyes his grandchildren were always the best players out there. In addition to his beloved wife, Gary is survived by his daughter Susan (David) Hild, and sons Greg (Judy) and Mark (Renai) Miller, adored grandchildren, David (Ali) and Steven Hild and, Claire and Kevin Miller, and great-grandson, Archer Hild. He is also survived by his brother, Gordon Porter Miller and his immediate family.

In lieu of flowers, memorials should be made to the "Moose and Janet Miller Campership Fund," named for his parents and created so girls who may not have been able to attend camp for financial reasons would have the opportunity to experience Merriwood. Checks should be sent to 37 Long View Road, West Hartford, CT 06107.