Lifer Connections and Legacy Run Deep

There’s something special about this year’s class of senior lifers. There are 12 of them, call them the Dynamic Dozen if you will, and it was a pleasure to spend a few hours on a Saturday afternoon with these accomplished and impressive LA students and their families at the Lifer Luncheon in the Oakwood Room. 

As a 1983 LA alumnus who has worked at his alma mater for the past 15 years, I clearly value connection. I have watched these lifers grow up at WardlaLAartridge, having begun my employment here the same year in which Sydney Geissler ’24 entered the school in Pre-K. Eleven other lifers began their LA careers soon after in JK, Kindergarten and first grade, and this group and their families have built an incredible bond over the past decade plus. I have taken thousands of photographs of these students over the years and witnessed their growth as students, athletes, artists, performers and young adults. 

It was clear from the synergy in the room at the Lifer Luncheon that these families have treasured their LA experience and connection to each other. They perused old yearbooks and shared stories and memories. They laughed and became emotional while watching a slideshow of images and videos from their children participating in concerts, trips, Field Day, Earth Day and many other wonderful LA traditions. Going through archive videos and photos, I was thrilled to find a performance from the Lower School Winter Concert in 2013, when they were first graders who enthusiastically performed Blitzen Boogie. 

Perhaps what distinguishes this year’s lifers the most from previous years is the commitment and legacy of their families. Many of this year’s lifers are the last in a line of two, three or four siblings to attend the school. The 12 families represented by this year’s lifers have graduated a whopping total of 29 students from the school. Hannah Yin ’24 is the youngest of four siblings to attend LA, following in the footsteps of older brothers Brandon ’15, Jason ’18 and William ’20. When Anushka Dalal ’24 accepts her diploma at the 141st Commencement Ceremony on June 14, she will culminate more than two decades of family education at the school after brothers Aditya ’14 and Akash ’16 graduated previously. Naomi Valcourt ’24 and Simrah Razvi ’24 are also the youngest of three siblings to graduate from LA, following siblings Nadia ’21 and Nate ’22, and Yousaf ’14 and Anna ’21, respectively. 

Other lifers who are the last to graduate from their families include Samina Aziz ’24, Charlie Silver ’24 and Nidhin Kumar ’24. Fellow lifers Vineel Bandla ’24, Diya Patel ’24, Sanya Sidhu ’24 and Zara Zaidi ’24 still have siblings at LA. 

There will always be students and families who come and go, but this year’s lifers have spent 12-15 years at LA and their parents have invested in our school and entrusted their children to us. This commitment is noteworthy and something worth celebrating. I have enjoyed watching these students blossom into impressive and confident young adults ready to lead in succeed in a world of global interconnection. I look forward to remaining connected with these graduates and their families for many years to come.