From Our Non Sibi Community to Yours: Thank You
Be a part of All-School Meeting as we celebrate the work of 2,080 volunteers in 140 projects worldwide
October 08, 2009
— The PA community spent the Oct. 7 All-School Meeting reflecting on the hard work of more than 2,080 Non Sibi volunteers worldwide—the event's largest number of participants yet. Click here to see the meeting, which features thoughts from Ric Best '10 on the campus Waste Audit Project, as well as a slideshow featuring pictures of students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends the world over taking part in the third annual day of service. To share your Non Sibi Day experience and learn more about what others were doing, visit nonsibiday.ning.com.
Non Sibi Day was established in 2007
through collaboration between the Alumni Council and the Community Service
Office to connect members of the Andover family through community service
projects and to provide them an opportunity to work side by side in the spirit that serves as our school motto.
More than 140 service projects or events took place in 26 states and 17 countries, on Saturday, Oct. 3:
- Andover Alumni in Sydney, Australia kicked
off Non Sibi Day 2009. Volunteers visited senior citizens at their homes and worked
together to provide lawn work, gardening, and planting.
- U.S. Navy Cmdr. Rob Patrick ’88 and fellow sailors currently deployed in Djibouti have a partnership with two local orphanages. Next week they will visit the baby
orphanage (newborn to 3 year old boys and girls) and distribute more than 10,000 units
of baby layettes donated by Carter’s (made possible by Tom Beaton’s ’73's
relationship with Carter’s). At the second orphanage (for boys ages 7 to 16),
Patrick and his team will deliver over 40 soccer balls that were
donated by Merrimack Valley alumni, parents, faculty and staff, packaged
by the Andover’s Girls' Cross Country team, and shipped to Africa last
Saturday.
- On campus, the first-ever Campus Waste Audit
project took place: A group of students and faculty, including School President Faiyad Ahmad '10 and Head of School Barbara Chase, thoroughly sorted over 1600 pounds of
materials from our dumpsters. Over 1100 pounds was, in fact, trash. The
remainder included 300 pounds of recyclables, 150 pounds of reusables (clothing, etc. that could be
donated to local groups), and more than 50 pounds of compost. The knowledge gained from this
exercise will assist the campus as we strive to reduce our environmental
footprint. The tentative plan
is to conduct a similar audit each fall going forward to track our
progress.
- In Villahermosa, Colombia, a team of
teenagers and Christine Balling ’86 built a new playground, which is now
named Non Sibi.
- The Watts Housing Project in Los Angeles has
a new garden as a result of the hard work of a dozen LA-area alum.
- Soldiers returning on a 22-hour flight from
Kuwait were greeted by Dallas-based alumni and parents.
- In Moldova, an orphanage and a children’s
cancer hospital received visits from Andrei Macovei ’09 and others.
- In Boston, breakfast, lunch and dinner were
served by Andover alumni, parents, and faculty at The Pine Street Inn on
Saturday. The first shift reported for duty at 5 a.m.
- Danielle Vardaro ’03 led a group that worked on
a restoration project with the Nature Consortium, a grassroots
community-based organization whose mission is to teach environmental
lessons through the creative arts and hands-on conservation projects.
- Many Pennsylvania prison inmates will soon
receive books. Andover alumni
read the letters from inmates requesting educational materials, searched
through a library of donated books for a good match, and packaged the
books for mailing.
- Alumni in Cancun, Mexico, rescued hundreds of
endangered Blue Crabs and helped them reach the ocean safely to lay
their eggs.
Susan Donahue ‘73, current Alumni Council
President has been a strong supporter of Non Sibi Day since
its inception and a participant for the past three years. In an e-mail earlier
this week Susan wrote, “I want to take a moment to thank the administration,
faculty, and staff for supporting the Alumni Council in this endeavor. Even in
the best of times, I know how stretched resources and time are in institutions
like Andover; however, everyone at Andover has been behind us 100 percent, and
without the commitment and energy of the Andover community, the council’s dream
of a worldwide day of service would have been a non-starter. I can’t tell you
how much this means to the council. The school’s willingness to embrace our Strategic Plan and make it a reality empowers all of us who serve on the council. Thank you for valuing us and our work.”
On behalf of the Alumni Council, alumni, parents, and off-campus friends, the Office of Alumni Affairs and
the Community Service Office extend thanks to the entire Andover community for
its support of Non Sibi Day.
Please Join Us for Non Sibi Day Oct. 3
September 23, 2009
On Saturday, Oct. 3, Phillips Academy's widespread family will once again turn out in force to tackle community projects and problems from Andover to Djbouti to London, Hong Kong, and beyond. Last year's second annual day of service saw nearly 1,500 students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents working in a wide variety of venues worldwide to address unmet needs pertaining to the environment, literacy, health care, and social services.
It is projected that there will be more than 100 different projects this year. To register for a Non Sibi Day project in your region, click here. If you don't see a project in your region but would like to volunteer to be a project leader, please contact Jenny Savino at jsavino@andover.edu or 978-749-4278 or Whitney Grace '98 at wgrace@andover.edu or 978-749-4216.
Participants are also invited to share photos, videos and stories of their experiences on the new Non Sibi Day social network!
Lead Aviator in Anti-Piracy Mission to Honor PA’s Day of Service
August 25, 2009
—In honor of Phillips Academy’s third annual Non Sibi Day on October 3, U.S. Navy Commander Rob Patrick ’88 has announced that he and 12 of his sailors will spend that day helping feed, clean, and play with dozens of parentless children in two Djibouti orphanages near his U.S. naval base on the Horn of Africa. Patrick is currently the top-ranked U.S. Naval aviator leading an international coalition of over 20 countries in the fight against pirates off the coast of Africa.
“In the U.S. Navy we’re always looking for ways to reach out to the local community wherever we are,” says Patrick, who is the executive officer of Patrol Squadron 10, a naval aviation squadron of 364 sailors. “It reminds me of the relationship PA had with the local community when I did volunteer projects there as a student."
Patrick’s service initiative is the latest of more than 50 projects planned so far for PA’s 2009 Non Sibi Day. By October 3, the number of projects is expected to grow to over 100. Non Sibi Day is an annual event in which PA students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents participate in a day of service to their local communities. Named for the Latin phrase emblazoned on the school’s 230-year-old seal, which translates as “not for oneself,” Non Sibi Day celebrates the Academy’s mission to produce responsible global citizens committed to service and leadership.
In addition to tending to dozens of children in a baby orphanage in Djibouti, Patrick and his crew will spend Non Sibi day playing soccer and basketball with over 50 boys ages five to 18, who reside in another nearby orphanage. In the meantime Patrick is asking friends and loved ones stateside to donate baby supplies such as diapers, wipes, and baby clothes, as well as shoes, sneakers, clothes, and sports equipment for the older children.
"It’s our pleasure to be here trying to make a difference both militarily and with the local community,” says Patrick. “I’ve been blessed with a group of superb sailors and aviators who understand the value of volunteering to help those less fortunate.”
PA’s Office of Alumni Affairs will be organizing an on-campus drive to collect clothing and supplies to send to the orphanages. For instructions on how to donate, visit the project listing online.
To register for a Non Sibi Day project in your region, click here. If you don’t see a project in your region but would like to volunteer to be a project leader, please contact Jenny Savino at jsavino@andover.edu or 978-749-4278 or Whitney Grace ’98 at wgrace@andover.edu or 978-749-4216.
From Brazil to Bangkok to Boston: Non Sibi Day Spans the Planet
August 3, 2009
Phillips Academy alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, and friends are gearing up for the school’s annual Non Sibi Day on Saturday, October 3. Since its 2007 inception, an average of 1,700 volunteers have participated in the worldwide day of service to celebrate the school’s non sibi (“not for self”) motto and further its mission as a “private school with a public purpose.” Non Sibi Day 2009 is proving to be the most far-reaching yet, with PA alumni as far away as Germany, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, and Hong Kong joining forces with project leaders stateside in committing to new service initiatives in their respective communities.
In Honolulu, Tom Stirling ‘59 is planning to lead a group of PA friends in preparing and serving breakfast at a women’s shelter. Faculty emerita Cilla Bonney-Smith and others will be harvesting excess vegetables from a farm in Wolcott, Vt., for distribution to local food pantries. In Hong Kong, Calvin Hsu, a 1982 PA graduate, '82 will spearhead a day of activities for children with special needs at a local child development center. New Non Sibi Day projects also have recently popped up in New York City, Houston, and Jamaica.
To join a Non Sibi Day service project in your area or to initiate one of your own, visit the Non Sibi Day online community or e-mail Jenny Savino or Whitney Grace in the Office of Alumni Affairs.
Head of School Barbara Landis Chase announces global day of service on Oct. 3
July 12, 2009
Dear Andover Community:
I invite you to take part in Non Sibi Day, Andover’s global day of service, Saturday, October 3, 2009.
Non sibi, "not for self," originated as the motto of Phillips Academy in 1782 when the words were cast by Paul Revere as part of the school's seal. Today, as then, the words speak to the school's mission to educate students in a way that combines knowledge and goodness and inspires them to serve and lead on behalf of others. Non Sibi Day is meant to symbolize Andover’s year-round commitment to community service and service learning.
Get inspired
Click here to view projects, photos, and general information from past years.
Join us in the following cities for 2009
Click on the links below to read more about each project and to sign up. New projects are being added every week, so check back for updates.
Don’t see your city listed? Consider starting a project!
If there are no Non Sibi Day projects listed in your area, we hope you will consider organizing a project or volunteering as an individual. Your contribution to this day of service will be recognized as part of this global effort. Contact Jenny Savino or Whitney Grace in the Alumni Affairs Office to find a project you could lead or join, or to add your project to this list.
Connect with fellow alumni participating in Non Sibi Day
Already registered or thinking about registering? If you are an Andover alum, you can visit the Non Sibi Day Group located in our new online alumni community to connect to other alumni in your area, to share ideas, and to get excited about the day. You will eventually be able to upload photos and videos of the actual day into this group.
I have been proud to watch Non Sibi Day grow from inception to launch and now into its third year. I hope you will join us and be a part of this collaborative effort.
Sincerely,
Barbara Chase
Head of School