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Unsung Heroes

The days of January and February can be tough ones at independent schools. Daylight is scarce, coursework is in full stride, and spring break in nowhere in sight. For me, it is a busy nexus of admissions, employment contracts, and a new budget cycle: I feel like I am working hard. But all of that seems insignificant in comparison to the daily experience of our six-member maintenance crew during these winter months.

From Left: Paul Calo, Richie Knowles, Kathy Keefe,
Dan Bresnahan, David Hamilton
Even before we get to actual snow days, I am amazed by the amount of mornings they are here scraping ice, throwing salt, and shoveling snow. There are no days off for these people in the winter months. They are here on weekends checking boilers and pipes to make sure things are working for Monday. They deal with faulty fire alarms in the middle of the night and rescue the Head of School when he locks his keys in his house. On days when it actually does snow, it is not uncommon for them to work fifteen hours in windy, demanding conditions clearing the 40 developed acres of this campus. Even worse, on days when we might have a delay or try to start on time their work can begin as early as 3 a.m. My experience is they just do what is necessary in the spirit of serving the kids. They feel our mission and values as deeply as any member of this community.

Paul Calo
Just a few weeks ago, we honored Paul Calo for giving us 37 years of hard work taking care of this campus. In his video reflecting on that time, it was incredible to hear him talk about the campus as “his world” with a wry smile. There was such a sense of pride in his reflections, indicating how seriously he took finishing projects “just right” even if no one would ultimately notice. It was clear that this is a man who has been working hard to do things the right way on the Hilltop for many, many years – even when no one was looking.


Jason Murray, Director of Facilities
And we know there are others on that team as well – taking care of 15 buildings and 80 acres on a shoestring budget. There is camaraderie and pride in their collaborative effort, but I know there must be hard mornings of dragging themselves out of bed during icy conditions. I guess it just felt like a good moment to remind them that people on this campus do notice more than they realize, and I wanted to publicly say thank you.

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