Alumni News
In Memoriam
Daniel Rippe ’01: Dan attended Buxton from 1998-2000, and passed away in Mexico. More information can be found at http://themeetingschool.blogspot.com/2010/02/dan-rippe-class-of-2001-dies.html/ .
David Mitchell ’36: David attended Buxton at Short Hills, and graduated from Yale in 1944. He founded the investment banking concern, Mitchell and Associates, in 1984 and in which he remained until his death.
News
Justin Theroux ’89: During the short, dark days of Berkshire’s February, this year’s Advanced Drama class had the pleasure of a three-day visit from Buxton alumni, Justin Theroux. Justin has numerous professional acting, directing, and screenwriting credits to his name, the most recent being the penning of the screenplay for Ironman II.
Justin directed a workshop on the differences between stage and screen acting. The students chose scenes and memorized them before Justin’s arrival and they were then asked to perform the scenes on stage and for a video camera. It was very exciting and instructive for the kids (and for me) to have access to Justin’s expertise and warm attentiveness. He has a considerable depth of experience in both mediums, so his comments were wise and on point, and frankly, the kids were enraptured. I think Justin, in turn, was impressed with the students’ levels of dedication, discipline, and raw talent, so it was a very rewarding exchange all around. Justin also hosted a screening of Tropic Thunder, followed by a Q&A, and was in and around the Buxton community throughout his time here. It was a pleasure to have him and we are already talking about a return visit. Many thanks to Justin!
Iso Rabins ’99: appeared on the Bay area local news for his involvement with the Underground Farmers market, featuring local foraged foods. Check out the video at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoOFSNGoXrA .
Pru Grand ’61: I went to Nicaragua for 12 days just before Buxton went with the same organization!! AKF and Elana are so skillful at making the trip warm, personal, meaningful, political, educational, all inclusive and well run. we went with a delegation of 12 women; four of us were teen girls who were wonderful and adventureous. It was a life-altering trip to be sure. We will be giving presentations on our trip in April at Charlemont and Ashfield churches. Call me for details. You will see some slides of similar activities.call Pru 413 625 9495. or pru@wilderwindy.com class of ’61.
Peter Shumlin ’74: who has served as state senator in Vermont from 1992-2002 and 2006 to the present, announced his candidacy for Govenor of Vermont this past November. In his announcement speech, Peter said, “I believe my experiences growing up in Vermont, building a successful family business and serving for nearly 10 years as senate president, will serve me well in understanding and addressing the challenges facing our beloved state.” To learn more, visit Peter’s website, www.shumlinforgovenor.org .
Charles Harrington Elster ’76: This August St. Martin’s Press will publish my tenth book, The Accidents of Style: Good Advice on How Not to Write Badly. I invite all Buxtonians to visit my website at http://members.authorsguild.net/chelster.
Toby Daly-Engel ’96: This year was full of changes…I completed my PhD at the University of Hawaii in May and moved to Tucson in June to take a post-doctoral research and teaching position at the University of Arizona. It’s a big switch, but instead of working with sharks like I did for my PhD, I’ll spend three years in the Sonora Desert working on the reproductive genetics of giant water bugs! In other news, I married my boyfriend of five years, Jeff Eble, at his family’s home in Cape Cod in October. Hoping to introduce him to the Buxtonites at a reunion now that we finally live on the mainland!
Jessica Grindstaff ’96: Erik Sanko and I have started a theater company called Phantom Limb http://www.phantomlimbcompany.com and in January 2010 we traveled to Antarctica on a National Science Foundation Artist award as research for a new theatrical endeavor about Ernest Shackleton and the future of Antarctica. As part of this project Erik and I are in residency at MASS MoCA in March with a work in progress showing on Saturday March 13th with a focus on sound/music and video projection. http://www.massmoca.org/event_details.php?id=527
Duncan Smith ’03: I’m thrilled to announce that my first picture book Dear Primo: published by H N Abrams, will be in stores March 1st. I wrote the story and illustrated it. The book is about two cousins who write letters to each other. Carlitos lives in the countryside in Mexico and Charlie lives in a city in the US. Carlitos rides his bicicleta to school, enjoys playing futbol, and loves eating quesadillas. Charlie rides the subway to school, plays basketball at recess time and loves pizza. Carlito’s and Charlie’s environments may be polar opposites but at the end of the day their lives are more alike than different. Although they take different shapes, family, friends, traditions and good fun are a constant in both of their lives. Dear Primo draws largely from my experience. I was born and raised in Mexico by a Mexican mother and an American father. But when I turned sixteen I left Mex
ico to go study at Buxton. From that time on I have been able to experience and be a part of both Mexican and American culture. The book’s artwork is inspired by the Pre-Columbian art of Mexico, particularly by ancient Mixtec Codex. But I use digital collage and other techniques to give the book a contemporary feel. The book can be pre-ordered on Amazon. To see more of my work you can visit www.duncantonatiuh.com. If anyone wants to catch up, I’ll be at Buxton this spring when my brother graduates!
Mia Boyle ‘83: Wow! What a great newsletter. Seeing the pictures and reading the news inspired me to update. I’m currently living in Seattle, WA and I’m enrolled in a graduate program at Antioch University. I’m studying Systems Theory, Complexity Theory, and all that jazz- along with sustainable design and communications (film). I am currently working on a documentary film about permaculture. We are involved in bringing sustainable agricultural methods to the Tibetan settlements in India. Some of you may remember my musical obsession. Last year I wrote and produced an album of songs I’d had sitting around for some time. I made it available as a free download. Rockers check it out here: www.miaboyle.com. The enduring friendships and connections I have from Buxton never cease to amaze me. If you’re ever in Seattle, drop me a line!
Max Malvin ’08: Over the past 5 months Ken Hough ’08 and I have opened an online business called BonusBuggy. We are partnered with over 100 online stores (Barnes & Noble, BestBuy, Apple iTunes, Target, Walmart, Kmart, Newegg, Tigerdirect…. Just to name a few!) from which you can shop in return for points. The points you earn by shopping through www.bonusbuggy.com are redeemable for free merchandise (tvs, ipods, camercas, video game systems, radar detectors, etc.),gift certificates, checks, and more! There is no cost for using BonusBuggy, so it’s a win-win situation!
I hope you all take the time to visit site www.bonusbuggy.com , sign-up, peruse our stores, and maybe do a little last minute holiday shopping! I, as well as Ken, have put in a tremendous amount of work and hope you all take a peek to see what we’ve been up to! Happy holidays!