The Carol Stewart Memorial Fund
Loving Presence
We are pleased and honored to share that The Carol Stewart Memorial Fund has been formally established at Glen Urquhart School. This fund, lovingly and thoughtfully supported by her family and friends, will make small, annual gifts to help offset the costs of GUS preschool for the children of our faculty and staff. It is our hope that these funds will be available beginning academic year 2024-2025. This gift is most fitting for Carol who, throughout her life, helped so many young children at GUS in order to make their world - and the world- a brighter place.
“The late author Terry Pratchett once wrote that “A man is not dead while his name is still spoken.” To update that, and, um, make it a little more gender inclusive, mom is still with us every time we take a moment and remember her example. Every time we are empathetic. Every time we are compassionate. Every time we listen, really listen, to a loved one. Every time we make a child smile or appreciate a good book, we can remember what my mom taught us, and her impact on this world will continue to grow.”
From Katie Stewart ‘04
Being the child of a teacher was a special experience. I would go into school with her on the weekends while she wrote reports, or in early August as she prepped her classroom. She tells the story of how once I was with her at school when I was 5 years old and walked out down the hall where I encountered the then-headmaster Peter Kotch and Leslie Marchesseault. My mom heard a peal of laughter and went to investigate; Mr. Kotch said "Katie was just telling us that she's going to have a baby in her house soon," and my mom said "Yes, I've been meaning to talk to you about that."
My mom used to brush my hair into a ponytail in the morning before school when I would leave and walk to the fifth grade classroom. At all-school meetings, I could watch her quietly walk over to a kiddo in her class who was talking animatedly when they should be listening and put her hand on a shoulder or even just sit behind them with her calm presence to help them focus. She made Paul and I always go shake our teachers hand and look in their eyes, and even go up to the stern looking Mr. Nance after school events like Bread Day or Solstice Assembly to say thank you. This is how my brother and I learned to be connective, open, friendly and confident people.
I remember feeling my mom's pride from across the room when I would sing or speak in front of a crowd. Gathered in the Braemar building for most of our large school events, with many faces around, I could always feel my mom's presence-- calm, quiet, loving to all around her. Going to Glen Urquhart and having a mom like Carol Stewart is what allowed me to become so loving and proud of myself as an artist and creative, as someone who was a feeling, expressing human in a world that most often values left-brained logic and procedure. My creativity was celebrated by my mother. And whether I'm directing a play or listening to a client in my therapy office, Carol Stewart's love still exists in the compassion and expression that comes through me every day.
Some other images of my mom at Glen Urquhart include her in her long puffy coat at recess, and her overseeing the hatching of chicks in the 1st grade classroom. In the older days, when the first grade classroom kept a pet rabbit (aptly named Peter Rabbit), Mom would let him out of his cage while she was working on the weekend--he would follow her around, hopping all the way down to the copier and back. She was loved by children and animals. Mom loved reading stories to kids-- even in the last years of her life, when she was walking with a cane, she would hobble into the kindergarten classroom to read to the kids during their lunch. And she had the most incredibly neat handwriting. It was perfect, almost like a font. I know I'm biased, but I think it was the best handwriting of any teacher I have ever seen.
Mom's GUS community was hugely present at her memorial. Her original boss who hired her at GUS came to visit and pay his respects to our family, along with Georgia Bills, Señora Kelly, Donna Staller, and many more. Sandy Thoms, who was such a constant and beautiful friend to the end, wrote my family the most gorgeously loving letter, one that we photocopied so we could all keep it. She, like many, commented on my mom's quiet strength and humble, loving presence.
“Carol taught me by example, constantly demonstrating patience and that signature gentleness with her students, a special compassionate understanding with parents, and kindness and empathy towards her coworkers. What she brought to GUS, and to me personally, is woven into the fabric of our community tartan. I am so grateful for Carol’s mentorship, her support, and her friendship.”