The following is adapted from Tom Gibian's words to the community during the re-dedication of Scott House on Nov. 15, 2011.
We are here to celebrate our 50th anniversary and, by doing so, we are celebrating many of the aspects of Sandy Spring Friends School that are important to us. We celebrate our community, our Quaker values of simplicity, tolerance, integrity, stewardship of the land, peace and, my personal favorite, the notion that there is that of God within each person. That each of us is brilliant, has great natural talent and, importantly, the responsibility and challenge to discover our own unique gifts, to follow the Light within and to let it shine. This last thing, our responsibility to do our best, to never give up, to remain curious, interested, and capable of delight is why Quakers started schools all over the world, why a group of Sandy Spring Quakers started our school, and why we are now all together at this time at this special place.
Discovering and following our Great Natural Talent is not a predictable or linear process. The land on which we stand had been a farm for many generations of the same Sandy Spring Quaker family. It eventually passed on to become Esther Scott's farm. When I think of Esther, I think of how one person can make a difference in the lives of thousands of people. Not just people she knew, but people who came later - across decades and perhaps centuries. My wife Tina, class of '80, used to sneak over to Esther's farm house, Mt Pleasant, when she thought no one was looking and, along with another daring friend of hers, they would jump on Esther's horse and ride barebacked. They would then go inside and find Esther and tell her what they had done. Esther was something of a rebel and, from my recollection, did not always feel the need to do the predictable or expected thing. She probably didn’t color within the lines. In any event, she got a kick out of those girls.
So I feel and I hope and in my heart I know that Esther would have thought an adventure park was pretty cool, that a Wildebeest Watering hole would make one of the prettiest spots in Montgomery County, and that it makes a lot of sense to have a community garden that will put fresh, local food on the table for 570 kids and over 100 adults every day. Just like the rest of Sandy Spring Friends School, Scott House too, now 50 years old, continues to change, continues to adjust, continues to find the best way to serve. I love the pictures of Esther and others from the Sandy Spring Meeting and their neighbors sitting here 50 years ago on a chilly November day dedicating this house. They were full of hope, spunk, faith, orneriness, and, I believe, the certainty that they were all taking the first small steps so that we all could pause today and think, with Esther and Brook Moore and the others as an example, what wonderful things we will do with our Great Natural Talent and our fierce determination.