Thank You for Supporting Our Benefit!!!
May 16, 2025
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| Dear Parker Community, Last Friday, surrounded by the glorious, natural landscape of June Farms, our community came together in celebration of Lynn Schuster and in support of our own beautiful school. The evening was cool and rainy. However, in true Parker fashion, our guests turned out ready to brave the elements, and the weather tipped its hat, rewarding us with calm skies and a glorious evening of joyful revelry. Our Benefit provided our guests with so many fun and exciting ways to support Parker. Guests were invited to join our raffle, with a Board sponsored gift globe containing wine, coffee, and chocolate up for grabs. Benefit guests also enjoyed delicious food thanks to Crafted Catering, and a Fund-a-Need paddle raise to support Amplified Voices. Thanks to the incredible generosity of our community, we raised nearly $64,000 in total funds to support Parker! This includes over $13,000 in funds dedicated to supporting Amplified Voices, a local collaborative artist-in-residence program! From their website, “Amplified Voices is a community collaborative public mural project spearheaded by artist Jade Warrick to amplify the voices of local artists of color while also providing youth mentoring opportunities.” Amplified Voices will partner with Parker art teacher, Claire Sherwood, and the faculty as a whole to bring additional visual art, poetry, and music making experiences to our students throughout the 2025-2026 school year. |
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| However, the true heart of our evening and event centered around honoring Lynn Schuster, Parker’s current Director of Academics and DEI and longtime faculty member, for her incredible legacy of 25 years dedicated to our school. As Jennifer Gresen’s, Parker’s Head of School, shared at our event: “I first met Lynn over 13 years ago, when I was hired as a reading specialist at Parker. I was only going to be in her classroom for about 2-3 hours a week at most, but Lynn welcomed me with the level of attention and enthusiasm usually reserved for long lost friends. She asked thoughtful questions, listened carefully, and had that magical quality of making me feel like I’d known her forever. That’s just who she is. Those of you who know Lynn well know exactly what I mean. Right away, I could tell Lynn was something special. The way she spoke about her students – so full of compassion, joy, and unwavering belief in their potential – she believed they were capable of anything, and under her care and guidance, they WERE. Her classroom was alive. It buzzed. It hummed. Kids laughed. They learned. It was sometimes a little extra for my rule-following self, but it was magic. It was the kind of room you wanted to be in. If you’re a parent whose child had Lynn as a teacher, you know exactly what I mean. She just got your kid. She saw them, heard them, and knew them – really knew them. Their strengths, their quirks, their love of the compliment sandwich, their deep hatred for long division, and their tendency to hide behind her futon mid-lesson. And she loved them – not in spite of those things – but because of them. It was a gift. And she gave it freely, to every child, every day. When I stepped into the Head of School role, I knew right away that Lynn had to be our Director of Academics and DEI. Not just because she had the experience, the insight, and the initiative (though she had all of that in spades), but because she had the look. You know the one. The “I’ve seen a lot, I’m onto you, but don’t worry—I’ll walk you through this with grace, patience, and just enough side-eye to keep you on your toes” look. It was clear she had that rare combination of steady wisdom, deep empathy, and just enough sass to keep us all honest—and grounded. That’s the kind of leadership every school dreams of. That look (also known as the Schuster stare), paired with her deep sense of justice and her relentless drive to honor every person in the room—that’s leadership. Real, compassionate, roll-up-your-sleeves, heart-forward leadership. She’s been amazing. Lynn leads with heart, with thoughtfulness, and with the kind of patience that maybe only Katie Thornton possesses. She takes the time to consider all perspectives—yes, all of them—even when I’ve already decided and I’m just looking for someone to nod. She loves to go deep into all possibilities, deeper than you thought was possible at any given moment. But her insights always help to get you closer to a solution. Lynn, your career at Parker is the definition of a legacy. And yes, I know ‘legacy’ sounds very dramatic— but your legacy is one of love, laughter, equity, joy, and so many incredible, life-changing moments for the children and adults lucky enough to know you. We will miss you terribly. Your laughter. Your wisdom. Your color-coded calendars and amazing shoe collection. Your refusal to never, ever settle for “good enough.” Thank you for everything you’ve given to this community. Thank you for every child you’ve supported, every colleague you’ve lifted up, and every time you reminded us why we do what we do.” |
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| Our Benefit honoree, Lynn Schuster herself, also spoke about her long career at Parker, sharing: “I can’t believe I am standing here on the verge of RETIREMENT. Some people imagine this moment but I kinda never did. I have been completely absorbed in my life and work at Parker. When I walked down the halls of Parker the first time, I was smitten. I felt our special hum — engaged students in real conversations with adults, encouraged to make things, to experiment. Ask questions. The mutual respect. The embrace of challenge and the commitment to making a difference. I had found my home. Not everyone in this space knows me as a classroom teacher, but up until four years ago, that’s what I did here. I’ve had the honor of teaching hundreds of unique, unforgettable students. Some were quiet observers who shied away and were just looking to be seen as themselves–and then burst into bloom. Others started every day at the highest decibel, full of questions and energy. One cold evening in the parking lot around four years ago, Jennifer pitched the idea that I take on an administrative role. I took the leap. This role has expanded the pride I feel for Parker. I work with our fantastic team, and have been drawn into a whole new set of questions and aspirations. How delightful that this hard work is punctuated with big ole laughter, joy, and deep commitment. No matter the level of difficulty on tricky days, or the sprint you go through as a teacher and administrator–I have always known exactly why I was here, why I chased a job here, why I always got a second wind and regained my footing. It’s because of this special life-affirming community we share. After two decades of driving my car across the river, up Parker’s driveway and onto our gorgeous land, two decades of walking down our sunny halls and peeking into classrooms alive with chatter, greeting people I love and truly respect…I’m on to a new chapter. I feel complete. I know how lucky I’ve been. THANK YOU |
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| Our Benefit theme this year, Changemakers, honors our core Parker values of nurturing confidence and creativity with the goal of cultivating compassionate citizens who engage meaningfully with their world. In her time at Parker, Lynn has combined her talents of inspiring students and faculty towards self-discovery, drive, and pursuit with her passion for informed citizenship, social justice, and advocacy. This has resulted in a more fiercely empowered community of learners, aware and prepared for the challenges of the future, and willing to tackle them with reason, humor, and humanity. Lynn has gifted Parker with her time, her knowledge, her many talents, and most importantly, her incomparable presence. Our gratitude for all of this is enormous. As is our gratitude for YOU. We would like to extend a HUGE thank you to our community for your incredible support of our Changemakers Benefit and silent auction. ALL proceeds from the event will help Parker in fulfilling its mission to cultivate critical thinking and purposeful action through a challenging learning process. We continue to be inspired, humbled, and amazed by your incredible support for our school!  |