2014 New Year issue - Winters College

Issue 1
121 Winters College
Winters Alumni
4700 Keele Street
Newsletter
Toronto, ON
Contact Us!
M3J 1P3
416-650-8199
wcmaster@yorku.ca
A message from Marie Rickard...
Hello Alumni,
Are you looking for an old schoolmate or professor
that use to be apart of Winters? If you are contact us
with who you are looking for and we will help you find
them. Contact us at:
In This Issue:

Message from
WCAC & WCC
pg. 2

Profile:
Alexandra
Fotopoulos Pg.3

Profile: Fraser
Stevens Pg.4

Profile: Dan Durst
Pg.5

Lost & Found Pg.6
121 Winters College
4700 Keele Street
Toronto, ON
M3J 1P3
416-650-8199
wcmaster@yorku.ca
Dear Alumni,
Thanks again for your support of this newsletter. Your
emails and messages of thanks for keeping in touch
make the whole thing worthwhile! But please don't forget that we want your stories too, we want to hear
about your adventures and accomplishments - however
modest you think they are. We are interested in keeping track of your journey through the years, and this
means new jobs, special projects, new choices - even if
you aren't famous or have received the Nobel Prize!!
We are a vast community and our common link is a college that has always
had a vibrant sense of self.
This year we have again been busy. We had two guests from New
York - popular acting teacher, Deena Levy, and lecturer from Tisch School of
the Arts, Allison Leyton Brown. As always, we offered a series of concerts and
workshops, lively music performances in the Absinthe Pub, and we are especially pleased that the JCR has had a much needed facelift! Now it is a far more
conducive performance space and we would love to show it off to you. We are
also excited to introduce Nikos Markakis and Mahssa Chavossi as President
and Vice President of the Winters Alumni Chapter. Please get in touch with us.
Send photos!
I will be on sabbatical next year, and you can count on me sending
photos of my various travels.
All the best,
Marie
MASTER OF WINTERS – Marie Rickard
WCAC: Nikolaos Markakis
Comments? Opinions? We want to hear from you! We welcome thoughts and opinions from all Fellows and Alumni.
Please send your comments to: wcmaster@yorku.ca
WCC: Addie Batson
Winters Alumni Newsletter
Page 2
Message from WCAC : Nikolaos Markakis
Issue
Page 5
Profile: Dan Durst
Hello Winters Alum,
My name is Nikolaos Markakis and I am the new President of the Winters
College Alumni Chapter. This year myself, along side the power group of the
Winters College Alumni Chapter have worked long and hard to become an
affiliated entity of the York University Alumni Association, and that we did.
This new board consists of Vice-President Mahssa Chavoshi, Secretary Caitlin
Hartley, Treasure Sky Fairchild-Waller, Programme Coordinator Lindsey
Ostrosser, Communication Director Kelly Paoli, Past President Shayna Goldberg with help from our Master Marie Rickard and our Winters College
Council Vice-President of Public Relations Azam Hassam.
We have some exciting things lined up for you to come, so keep posted and
come on out to reignite your Winters Flame. Please do not hesitate to contact
me with any of your questions and/or concerns you can reach me by email
at markakisniko@gmail.com.That's all for now, until next time, Nikolaos
Markakis
Message from WCC : Addie Batson
Hi Winters!! Its been a great few weeks into the second semester. Over the month of January Winters College Council
worked collectively with our active student community and
Orientation Team to pump out one of the best Frost Weeks to
date! Commencing the second week of School Frost week
provided a number of interactive experiences for our First
Year Students. With a Polar Bear run, Stories of Winters Past,
Winters vs Winters Hockey Game, and a Beach themed pub
night, we captivated over 200 Winters students, alumni and
fellows alike with our week of engagement and inclusive
event programing.
With our major Montreal Trip, End of year Formal Gala and
election period coming up in just a few short weeks, we are
looking so forward to continuing our proactive engagement
with our community, and future events.
See You All at The Ab!!
Addie Batson
In the last issue of Winters college newsletter I noticed
a photo of me playing football when I was a student at
York which brought back a lot of great memories and
good times. It has been a long time since that photo
but I can report that York gave me the start in life that I
needed to be who I am today. So here is an outline of
my life since those days at Winters College. After graduation in 1980, I went on a 6 month
trip to Europe with Dave Doyle, another York grad. When I returned, I enrolled in the Ontario College of Art and graduated in 1984. After this I attended Queens University in the
teachers program and graduated i In 1985 I started teaching at St. Peters Secondary School
where I taught Art. In 2006 I transferred to Holy Cross Secondary in Peterborough, and am
currently teaching Communication Technology at Holy Cross Secondary School in Peterborough.
Peterborough has been an amazing place to live and raise a family and offers many close to
home natural lakes, rivers, trails where I enjoy cottaging, mountain biking, skiing, snow shoeing
and other outdoor activities. I have lived with my wife Loretta in Peterborough for the past 30
years and raised a family of 4 children. Although none of my kids were fortunate enough to
go to York they did manage a high degree of success. My oldest son Matthew works as a
successful project manager in Toronto developing smart phone apps. My second Dylan just
finished his Architectural exams and will be a registered architect early this year and is working in Toronto. My daughter Kathryn is a successful animator working at an animation studio
in Toronto and was an intern with Pixar studios in California. And finally my last son Luke just
completed his electrical engineering degree at Queens University and is set to begin his career as an engineer.
The highlight of my career focuses around the social justice work in Honduras that we started
at the High School 10 years ago. Each year we take a group of High School students to Honduras to work with the poor in rural mountain communities. I am also the coordinator for child
sponsorship for the organization FRIENDS OF HONDURAN CHILDREN and we now sponsor
over 150 amazing orphaned and abandoned children in Honduras through an organization
called Sociedad Amigos de los ninos. I also run an adult brigade to Hondruas, and this summer we plan on building a playground at our children’s village at Nuevo Paraiso in Honduras.
If you would like to join us our website can be found at: http://dgd5380.wix.com/hondurassummer-brigade#! Or you can have a look at the project we are involved in at http://
dgd5380.wix.com/playground
Thanks for the great memories
Issue
Page 4
Profile: Fraser Stevens
I have very fond memories of York and the Winters Community. The residence, in my first
year, was my departure point; immersed in the student life of a large city having come
from just outside the small town of Arnprior in the Ottawa Valley. At the beginning of my
second year I was hired as a porter for the front lobby; in my third I obtained a Don position and was made the liaison between the Winters College Council and the residence,
along with the Residence Representative; in my fourth year I was elected to Winters College Council as President, while maintaining my position as a Don. I created many friendships with the students in residence, many of my colleagues in the Residence Life system, the
past members of the council and the people I met through these two organizations. The atmosphere of the community was excellent, from the steadfast social life at the Ab, to the
initiatives of council, and to the calm, and sometimes absurd, life of residence – it was a great four years.
I graduated with a B.A. in theatre in 2010, with a focus on theatre studies as well as production and design, and proceeded on to
obtain my M.A. from Aberystwyth University in Wales, graduating in 2012 and my time in Wales was an equally great experience in
a very different way. During my studies I was hired as a technician in the department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies, while
writing my dissertation. My focus, an interest I developed at York, was investigating constructs of identity and their relation to the performative aspects of everyday life. The foundation I received here at the University and within the community helped prepare me for
the experience I had, moving from the city of 2.5 million back to a town, this time of 15,000. Upon graduating from Aberystwyth I
made the move over to Amsterdam, where I reside now. In the past year year and a half I have jointly founded a experimental theatre/performance company called Almost Human. With them I have begun travelling across Europe performing in festivals, the pinnacle
so far being an invitation to the quadrennial conference of World Stage Design, which was held in Cardiff, where we were invited to
not only perform but hold a workshop and discussion on our methods of creation, performance, and investigation.
At the moment I am in the process of negotiating a PhD position at the University of Amsterdam investigating covert operations training
methods utilized by the Allied Forces during the Second World War from a theatrical perspective. Our company, Almost Human, has
been invited to put forward a proposal for a research grant by Dr. Stephen Tooth of the department of Geography and Earth Sciences at Aberystwyth University. The goal being to explore how artistic work can be utilized to communicate raw scientific data to the
larger public, which will use the affects of the Tropical Storm Dando on Kruger National Park in South Africa as the case study. Finally
our company has been accepted to the Prague Fringe and we are in the process of detailing a tour through Germany as a part of the
journey to Prague. In the future we hope to make the journey over to Canada in order to share our work.
As stated before, my time at York in the Winters Community was a sizeable part of my foundation, which has allowed me to do the
things that I have done since leaving. I hope that there are others that have had similar positive experiences.
For more information on the company Almost Human please visit: http://www.almost-human.org
Issue
Page 3
Profile: Alexandra Fotopoulos
Set your intentions, hold yourself in high regard, and be happy!
I recently visited Winters College over the Christmas break for a concert, which included music
alumni and the ever popular Wibi Jazzin . I was floored. I was inspired. I was saddened.
The performances were fantastic. The levels of skill in each performer artfully exhibited the same kinds of teaching that I myself received from the incredible faculty of York’s
music program. Teachings from the likes of Casey Sokol and Trichy Sankarin (who sadly
passed over his percussion class to another teacher the year I took it) were evident in their
playing. Each performer took the time to mention their mentors and thank them publically, as I do mentally every time I use the skills I
learned from them. The artistry of each performer was true to York ideology. The music was a pure expression of the individual spirit
creating it.
In my mind, I have not aged or changed at all. My dreams, desires, likes, dislikes and styles are the same as they have been. I
have learned and evolved, but I remain the same on the inside. Being among York students and York alumni I found myself somewhere
in the middle. I definitely don’t look as young as I feel compared to some of the students I saw, and I’m not musically where I aspire to
be… yet. Being in a space where both stages of [my] life were present, filled me with both inspiration and sadness.
I felt sadness because I felt that I had wasted my university experience. The music program at York is very free, explorative,
and can be as easy or intense as you like. This is an AMAZING opportunity that young developing artists should hold in very high regard. You have the freedom needed to explore yourself as an artist and the direction required to go deeper, push harder, expand
your horizons and shift perspectives. Not only that, but you are in an environment with others who are doing the same thing, and the
potential for creation and growth is out of this world!
I underwent many foundational life shifts during my early 20’s and being immersed in an environment that I both loved and
feared, made it very difficult for me take advantage of the full benefits. I was a commuter, which didn’t help in making and building
relationships seeing as though the kids who lived in residence were kind of cliquey and other commuters were as stressed out as I was. I
had part time employment as a music teacher, and balancing that with practice, and my crumbling personal life was no easy feat. Of
course nothing happens without reason. Fret not! I came out the other end victorious.
I felt inspiration because I know that I am on my way, I am on my musical journey and I’ve done pretty well thus far. I run a
very successful in home music lesson service called B Sharp Studios, which is heavily based on my teachings from both Casey Sokol and
Bill Westcott. I am a performing pianist/vocalist at upscale venues and private events across the city, and I am an emerging artist.
After establishing myself in the city as one of the most sought after teachers, I have been working tirelessly to amalgamate my
influences and talents to create a sonic sensation that feels synonymous with my being. The result is a vibe that combines my classical
roots, my love of house music and my soulful voice. I have not stopped working since the moment I graduated, and it definitely has not
been easy, but as cliché as it sounds every minute has been worth the effort.
Many people have helped me along my way, but it was I who set out upon my way. I first answered this fundamental question: what
makes Alexandra happy, then, I did everything in my power to bring those things into my life. This is the purpose of existence on this
planet; to enjoy yourself to search yourself and to express yourself.
Students of winter’s college! Artists of Winter’s college! I implore you to heed my words. Take full advantage of your teacher’s
brains and talents. Learn all you can from them. Study, Study, Study and Practice, Practice Practice! Explore yourselves to the deepest
darkest corners to shed light on them. Express what you find there. Perform and share what you’ve got with your peers. Don’t be cliquey! Make friends. Talk to each other. Explore each other. Create together. Build a safe environment in which artistry can dance, sing
and play freely. Finally I leave you with this: Set your intentions, hold yourself in high regard and do what makes you happy.
Alexandra Fotopoulos , Bsharpstudios.ca, Soundcloud.com/alexandra-fotopoulos