REV. CANON DAVID FORBES FOUNDING HEADMASTER 1957, 1960–1972
headmaster of the School, and it was not all that long ago to me, that we stood outside, all 11 students, Georgia Dyer and her feisty dog, Shadow, and Dale Evans who came to us from Town School, semi-retired and an accomplished teacher; we stood out there and had our picture taken, thanks to Margot Doss, who was an intrepid colum- nist and then became an alumni parent of the School. And there we were, 11 of us. What was significant about us was that the students, their parents, every person there, and the Cathedral itself—we were all risk- takers. We were all risk-takers. I spoke to the kids yesterday at our wonderful Hymn Sing that we've done for so many years, and I said to them, "There's a risk-taker in every one of you. Never let it get buried." That was a unique-to-us time, and when I say risk-takers, it means the kind of person who isn't just sort of conformist and conven- tional, and we had some crazy people here. And I think the 1960 alumni here are testi- mony to it, even the Class of 1962. There was something that was remarkable about us. It was not always the best thing. Up on these catwalks, we could hear the patter of feet occasionally. Those were students, I have to tell you, who'd found the secret way up through the then- freestanding North Tower; they made their way some 80 feet up the spiral staircase and were pattering along up there just having the time of their life. The insurance company was going crazy. The parents were a little worried, but the parents were risk- takers, too. They said, "Oh, that's our kids." So, that was the kind of school we were. The teachers. Every teacher I chose, I did so because they were beautifully educated, cared about kids, and could communicate. They did not necessarily have degrees, but they could do all of that. So, we were a school of characters. I hope that we've never lost that and have brought that with us, because risk-taking is an essential part
of life, no matter how old you are. And I speak from the ripe old age of 92. So the question is, how does Cathedral School embody risk-taking? And I come back time and again to the motto of this school, which I have no responsibility for, but one of my worthy successors did and I hope will claim it. We are a school of “minds, hearts, hands, and voices." Think about that in terms of risk-taking. Minds. Don't take accepted wisdom. Don't take unquestioningly what you're told in a media full of disinformation, falsehoods, and a world that thrives on propaganda. Learn to think critically! Ask the toughest questions! And then, if it becomes important, ask controversial questions, without fear that you're going to be censured if you do so. Hearts. We all know how hard it is, really, to give your heart. How hard it really is to give compassion to someone that you might not necessarily like, but who's your classmate, or who's your brother, or who's your parent who you care so much about deep down, but who you're maybe so angry at. This world needs compassion. Do you know in 1965, the president of General Motors said once, "What the United States will need in the year 1980 is passion"? General Motors. Passion. That's what risk-taking is about, with heart. Hands. The community service work we do is not just an adjunct thing. It's not just an educational tool. It's part of expressing who we are, who we must be, and how the world might be a little bit better just because of us. And voices. Oh, how we can sing and how we should sing, but not just sing the praises of God in worship, but sing the praises of this world in which we live, to sing the praises of all that is noble, true, and beautiful. That's what is abiding about this school. And praise and hopes that this school will always live in that abiding way, no matter how many of us we are embodied as the years go on.
I do want to congratulate those who finally redeemed the blue on our new alumni tie. My esteemed successor was a USC grad- uate, poor guy, but we all know that Stanford and Cal-Berkeley are the universities that really matter. So, we've got them here. Last Easter, Malcolm Young, our Dean, preached a memorable sermon in which he laid out what I think is a theme for the evening. He said that today, where you sit, you carry with you every person you ever were. You carry with you every person you ever were. It's not just a memory. It's so often that I think about being a two-year- old; really, two years old, being carried out to a sandbox in the sun in Palo Alto where I was growing up. It doesn't seem all that long ago that Julian Bartlett and I sat down and dreamed about the possibility of a school with Bishop Pike's enthusiastic support. So, there are many things that we carry with us that are not just dreams, that are not just memories, that are not just sort of empty or just about things past, but about who we are today. And that applies, it seems to me, so much tonight, to Cathedral School. Cathedral School today is every school it ever was. Every generation, every year that Cathedral School has existed, still exists in the warp and woof of the School. That's a remarkable and wonderful thing to think about. Like all lives, there have been ups and downs, but ups really are what have mattered. And we have never let success kill us, as it has so many institutions, nor have we ever let it make us into just an institution. We have stayed small because we want to be small, because we want to be with people we know—faculty, students, administra- tion, trustees, parents. There are a couple of things about this that I think might be significant. First of all, think back about the person you have been, you still are. And what about that? Think about that in terms of Cathe- dral School. For 15 or 16 years, I was the
MALCOLM MANSON FORMER HEADMASTER 1990–1999
Now, this is in addition to my speech, but I have to say this. I am one of the last few people standing—David is another —who actually elected Bill Swing, bishop of this diocese (consecrated as the seventh Bishop of California at Grace Cathedral, San Fran- cisco, on September 29, 1979.) And I want you to know when he got up at the altar and sang, a shudder went through San Francisco. When I was being interviewed by Jim Kropf, he said that we were having some enroll- ment problems. So I said, “What does your Admissions Director say?” To which Jim replied, “We should have an Admissions Director?” I calmly assured him,”Yeah, that would be a good idea.” So God sent us, and I really mean that, a wonderful woman by the name of Dorothy Wiley. And she was admissions director for some years. She had all the skills that were needed for that job, but she had a heart as big as you can imagine. And she recruited generation after generation of families who understood Cathedral School—the warmth, and the love, and the compassion everyone
has talked about. So, that was a good thing I did. Another good thing I did was to take a look at the sports program. We had gotten to a point that we could actually now afford an athletic director. We were going through the process of interviewing, and I was going on vacation. And Michael [Ferreboeuf] called up and said, “There’s this guy that was being recommended by parents. What about that?” And I said, “Well, if he’s any good hire him, but don’t pay him too much.” That guy was Steve Glass, and he changed the way boys and families thought about sports in ways that are very important to the School. So, that was a good thing I did. And the third good thing I did, in my very first year, was to hire somebody to be the next Upper School Head, who would make me look good for the next eight years, and that was Michael Ferreboeuf. And I’m so proud to have been part of his life.
I’m Malcolm Manson. I was headmaster of the School from 1990 to 1999. And then I became connected with the school again, eight years ago, by joining the Board of Trustees, which has also been a great honor and a great privilege. The 1990s were literally a dusty decade. We had chosen to demolish the old cathedral house. We had chosen to do some enroll- ment enlargement of the school. So, there was a lot of building. And it was really gutsy because neither the Cathedral nor the School had close to the money they needed to do it. I remember being summoned by the bishop at the time. And he called us all in and gave us a pep talk to improve our fundraising. And he said, among other things, “Let’s remember to whose glory this is. God will be with us.” And after the meeting, one of the leaders of the campaign took me aside and said, “Can I talk to you?” And I said, “Sure.” And she said, “Do you really think God will help us?” And I said, “I’m not totally sure that God needs a two-story parking garage on the top of Nob Hill. So, we better do that ourselves.” And we did.
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