Friends of Woodstock 2014: A perspective from one

Chapel building

WOSA 2014 was an interesting experience all round. Friday we drove to Baltimore and the Notre Dame University campus which was to be our location for the next 5 days. Our impression was that we would be residing in Meletia Hall, but we were strung out over another building that also was our dining hall. Our room was on the second floor, small with two little beds and a ceiling fan. No air conditioning and it was quite warm at night to say the least! Also, bathroom facilities were down the hall for Lib and down the next hall for me. Suffice it to say we did a lot of walking when the need required it.

Friday afternoon after getting our keys and room assignments we went down to the first floor gathering room and relearned not only our classmates but a few from other classes too. Our evening meal was a well prepared crab cake or vegetable sit down dinner and gave us time for further visiting.

A number of activities occur at a WOSA. We learned that the school was on a better financial footing. That a new principal had a powerful vision for the future that he seemed capable of implementing. And that faulty, staff, and board members  shared his enthusiasm and vision. Because he stopped at our table one afternoon and talked about Woodstock and answered specific concerns made me even more confident of his leadership ability.

Woodstock is an old school  in the foothills of the Himalayas.. It has reinvented itself numerous times and appears to be doing so again. Alumni gifts have provided for several new buildings and remodeled some of the older ones. It is an international school and has prepared well to serve the educational needs of the 21st century. The new name for WOSA is Friends of Woodstock School.

Young at heart trying Bollywood moves

On the evening of the khanna we were treated to a program of Indian dance, classical and Bollywood style. The picture on the left was Woodstock alumni of the younger generations trying out Bollywood style moves. At the bottom is a picture of a young 9th grade Indian girl performing a more classical dance.

After our whole school meeting was over our class of 54-55 reunion continued on for two more days.Our big activity on Monday was an Indian supper at the Indigma restaurant, downtown. Tasty food mixed with good conversation amid perfect ambiance.

On Tuesday we were treated to an Inner Harbor boat cruise with lunch. This allowed for more intimate conversation with just 4-6 at a table. After lunch we went on the open air upstairs deck to enjoy the passing scenery of landmarks and boats about their business or tied up.

We completed the reunion by assembling together to view pics from Woodstock and past reunions. It was one of the best reunions I had planned not to attend.  I  try to attend  these unique gatherings when they are in mountain venues. Because our Delaware family is nearby, we were able to visit them also.

class of 54-55 at Indian restaurant

walking down the avenue

waterfront of Inner Harbor, Baltimore

9th grade Indian student  performing Indian dance

Catching Up

Opening present....

I recently celebrated my 77th year and noticed that I had not added an entry since January. This is an attempt to bring you up to speed should you be inclined. We've had a quiet good life since January. During the winter months I continued my playing in the Richmond Philharmonic and with our quartet. Our cellist suffered a massive stroke and has been sidelined indefinitely. An acquaintence looking for a quartet was able to connect with us and complete the group. 

This Easter I was invited to play in the orchestra assembled at Bon Air Baptist for their celebration. We did three services and it was a gratifying experience. 

We also had a good time at Sounds of the Mountain at Camp Bethel. This is a folk festival sponsored by Camp Bethel, near Fincastle, Virginia. You can find more about this in a previous blog. Another trip to the Roanoke area around this time was to celebrate our former pastor's retirement. We were graciously housed by long time friends, Dan Brogan, and his wife Ellie. We saw our last snow flurry  for the winter Sunday morning at their home.

Window box full of  Petunias.

Our Spring was wet and cool so there was a lot of lawn work to do. I decided to buy a small spreader and do my own fertilizing. If I am physically able to do a task, then I should. Saves money and also is a form of exercise. Our lawn looks as good as when it was maintained by a commercial business. 

On Father's Day our symphony played their annual free concert on the lake about 10 minutes from our house. The weather was perfect and the crowd enjoyed our presentation of patriotic and  pop pieces. 

We look forward to visiting our eldest daughter's family this summer. We get to see them about 3-4 times a year. They  have two in college  and  one about the same age as our  grandson here. Our Woodstock Reunion occurs around the same time in Baltimore Hope to write a bit about both after we return. 

Evening lake scene where we visited with neighbors

Easter Service at Bon Air Baptist. in Richmond.