RE LOG Fall 2017

40 Ransom Everglades LOG FALL 2017 On Campus The Class of 2017: ‘Nothing is going to stop this class’ Celebrated filmmaker and photographer Timothy Greenfield- Sanders ’70 urged the Ransom Everglades Class of 2017 to “stand for something” before the 150-plus graduates walked across the Lewis Family Auditorium stage to collect their diplomas at the school’s 113th commencement, which concluded in a sea of blue and green balloons, confetti and silly string. Head of School Penny Townsend distributed the school’s highest awards at the May 19 event, presenting the Faculty Cup to valedic- torian John Mistele ’17 ; the Paul C. Ransom Founder’s Cup to Benjamin Freeman ’17 ; the Marie B. Swenson Founder’s Cup to Debbie Ajagbe ’17 ; and the Head of School Cup to Michael Colonna ’17 . She also presented the Founders’ Alumni Award to Greenfield- Sanders, who enthralled the audience by sharing his journey from his days at Ransom Everglades – where he was profoundly influenced by former faculty members Dan Leslie Bowden, Mike Stokes and Geoff Pietsch – to Columbia University, the American Film Institute and finally into the captivating worlds of film and photography. There, he benefited from a mix of unexpected encounters and powerful connections with the likes of Bette Davis, Lou Reed and Toni Morrison to develop his two passions, eventually earning a Grammy Award as a filmmaker and acclaim as a photographer. (See story on page 6.) He noted that Morrison, the Nobel Prize-winning author, stands for something “at a time most people don’t dare stand for something.” “Seniors, I hope you will make Ransom Everglades proud,” Greenfield-Sanders said, “and I expect you to stand for something.” Photographs by Juan Cabrera and Suzanne Kores.