RE Log Spring 2019

8 Ransom Everglades LOG SPRING 2019 understanding of the company; I don’t have to have things explained to me. “My father, he’s a very hard worker, a very diligent man, and he’s very good at managing and relating to people… He was very good at showing the way.” The company’s purchase of the soc- cer team in 1996 represented a turn- ing point in Ardila’s passion, if not his pocketbook. He joked that the team represents a small part of the business in terms of profitability, but a huge part in terms of pure joy. He recalled many late nights around a table with Atlético Nacional’s coaches and executives, talk- ing until 2 or 3 a.m. about how to make the club better. “I call soccer the ‘infinite topic,’” he said. “I enjoy the success of the business, but I enjoy the team even more – even though it’s economically a small thing. To get it to work, to get it to be success- ful, I enjoy that challenge enormously.” Stepping into the future Beverley had walked Ardila off the soccer field as his visit to Ransom Everglades came to a close, chatting with him along the path to the Pagoda. There, Ardila ran into Head of School Penny Townsend, who greeted him delightedly in Spanish. As Beverley turned to head back to the field, Ardila left him with a piece of advice: he urged him to read a book called The Captain Class: The Hidden Force that Creates the World’s Greatest Teams. “The book is interesting,” he explained later. “In the end, what it says is that every team has a specific player within the team that makes the team better. This applies not only in sports, but in all walks of life. If you have someone who brings the team together, who motivates the team to work harder and more intel- ligently, the team will be better.” Ardila walked through the Quad and breezeway. His visit coincidentally inter- sected with the ceremonial groundbreak- ing of the STEM Center held on the con- struction site in December. When Ardila realized that RE Board Chair Andy Ansin ’81 and several other trustees had gathered for the event, he extended his stay on campus, lingering to watch the photo shoot and admiring the architec- tural rendering of the building displayed on one of the construction fences. He expressed amazement at the size of the lot created by the demolition of several administrative buildings and Timken Hall, and showed great interest in the scope of the plans. “The campus is fantastic,” he said. “It’s an incredible location; sometimes you forget that it’s right on the bay.” As the photo shoot concluded, he bade farewell to RE’s leadership and headed out. He passed through the recently acquired La Brisa property as he departed. There was some symbolism there: He was taking a new path to a new career path. Weeks later, he would be settling in at the ambassador’s residence in London. “I’ll do the best I can,” Ardila said. “It’s a learning experience. It’s something that will give me a fresh look at life and the world around me. I hope I will be up to the task.” “I’ll do the best I can. It’s a learning experience. It’s something that will give me a fresh look at life and the world around me. I hope I will be up to the task.” – Antonio Ardila ’75 on becoming the Colombian ambassador to the United Kingdom Antonio Ardila ’75 with Head of School Penny Townsend at the STEM Center groundbreaking