OneWoodberry 2023

Thank you to the alumni, parents, and students who made OneWoodberry 2023 an outstanding day across the world. 

It was wonderful to see so many Tigers at our eleven regional events around the country, and to hear from so many of you over the course of the day. We received gifts from forty-eight states and at least a dozen countries; thank you to the Tiger in Australia who made the gift that came from the location furthest from campus. 

We’re grateful to everyone who made a gift, attended an event, encouraged a friend to give, or followed along with the live broadcasts from WFSPN. Particular congratulations and thanks are in order to several classes and individuals:

The Class of 1948 and the Class of 1951, both of which reached 100 percent participation. We’re grateful some of our most distinguished Tigers continue to lead the way in loyalty to their alma mater more than seventy years after their graduation (and we hope to see the members of the Class of 1948 on campus in April for their seventy-fifth reunion). 

The Class of 2000 for leading the way with the highest number of gifts, and the Class of 1963 for contributing the largest amount toward our goal.

The Class of 2021 for leading young alumni classes (2010 and younger) in participation.

Parents of third- through fifth-form students. For the second year in a row, more than 90 percent of these parents have made a gift to the Amici Fund.

The alumni and parent volunteers around the world who worked to make this day a success, particularly those who joined us on campus today to work with current students. 

The students of WFSPN who hosted twelve live broadcasts over the course of the day, and the faculty, alumni, and parent guests who joined them on air. Replays remain available here. Thank you to the more than 2,300 of you who tuned in to at least one broadcast.  

The Alumni and Development Office will take the next few days to ensure all OneWoodberry gifts are accurately logged, and we look forward to reporting our final results in an email next week. 

Thank you again for a wonderful OneWoodberry in support of the Campaign for the Boys!

As we head into the home stretch, we've passed 3,000 gifts and are pushing hard toward our goal of 3,500. Thank you to everyone who's made a gift today!

Tigers have gathered around the country to celebrate OneWoodberry. Here are some photos from those gatherings. 

Triangle Chapter

Charleston Chapter

Capital Chapter

Charlottesville Chapter

Charlotte Chapter

Triad Chapter

The varsity basketball team finished in second place in the Prep League this year and has an overall record of 22-5. The Tigers host Trinity Episcopal tomorrow night at 6:00 p.m. in the Prep League Tournament semi-finals. 

Tune in to WFSPN tomorrow night as the Tigers face the Titans. The team will be back in action next week for the state tournament. 

L-R: Head Coach Craig Dawson, Wallace Hardison '23, Amir Crawford '23, Justin Gagnon '23, Geoffrey Woodward '23, Brett Booth '23, Coach Frankie Lewis, and Coach Keith Johnson at senior night earlier this month.

We’re in the home stretch of OneWoodberry 2023, but there’s still plenty of time to make your gift to help us reach our goals of 3,500 donors and $3 million raised for the Amici Fund!

Join us on WFSPN at 7:00 p.m. for a live update from volunteer headquarters, as well as interviews with volunteers who are holding on-campus sessions for students in the Entrepreneurship Club, Electronic Music Club, and the Caucus.

And tune in at 9:30 p.m. for a late-night visit to the Fir Tree as members of the class of 2023 enjoy milkshakes and fill us in on our progress in the day’s final hours. 

Though WFSPN’s live coverage will end after that segment, remember that all gifts made before midnight tonight count toward OneWoodberry and the Campaign for the Boys. Thank you for an incredible day. Let’s finish strong!

Thank you to everyone who's made a gift to so far today. With fewer than seven hours to go, we're more than 75 percent of the way to our goal of 3,500 gifts, and almost 90 percent of the way to our goal of $3,000,000 for the Amici Fund.

WFSPN will be live again at 6:00 p.m. from the dining hall and shortly after 7:00 p.m. from the Walker Building.

On Saturday the indoor track team defended its state title. The Tigers scored 143 points, with the second-place team scoring 41. Woodberry's score beat the combined tally of the second through fourth place teams.

This team victory is the eleventh state championship in track and field for WFS, including both indoor and outdoor seasons, since the 2010-2011 school year. In that time the Tigers have set or tied ten State meet records; earned 225 All-State Honors (top-three finish), including seventy-five first place finishes; and broken or tied 126 school records. 
There were many outstanding performances last Saturday. A selection of them includes:

• A state championship and school and state meet high jump record of 6'9" from Jaden Ferguson '24.
• Three state titles from Robbie Handelsman '23, who won the long jump, 55m dash, and 300m dash.
• A state title and state meet record in shot put from Rodney Lora '23.
• A state title in pole vault from Anthony Kodjo '23.
• A school and state meet record high jump of 6'8.25 from Edward Woltz '23, who was runner up to Jaden.
• A school record in the 4x800m relay from Abraham Warui '25, Parker Tallman '24, Lawrence Tankard '23, and Taylor Myers '23. 
• Coach of the year honors for Curtis Phillips.

Congratulations to the outstanding track team!

Thank you to everyone who has made a gift today in support of OneWoodberry! Remember to make your gift before midnight to help us reach our goals of 3,500 donors and $3 million raised for the Amici Fund.

We hope you’ve enjoyed WFSPN’s coverage this morning. Tune in at noon for the debut edition of a new series called Woodberry’s Cookin’ as a brave group of alumni, students, faculty, and staff test hot sauces and other spicy products from the Tiger nation. It's Hot Ones, Woodberry style.

Also, all live segments from earlier in the day remain available for replay. Click the button in the top right corner of the video screen to see those posts.

We've reached 2,000 gifts on our way to our goal of 3,500. Thank you so much to everyone who has given, whether today or in the weeks leading up to OneWoodberry. Remember to encourage your friends and classmates to make their gift before 11:59 p.m. tonight!

There are so many classes doing wonderful things this year, and we want to give a special shout out to the classes of 1948 and 1951 for reaching 100 percent participation. These Tigers, who attended school more than seventy years ago, in the days when J. Carter Walker was headmaster, are steadfast reminders that every alumnus is a Tiger for life. Thank you, gentlemen, for your support of OneWoodberry.

Though Woodberry has had a robotics team off and on throughout the years, this year the group has become an afternoon activity and started competing in tournaments. 

Thanks to Leo Wang '24 for this video update about TimberX, the school's robotics team, and for preparing this writeup.

Robotics Expands as Afternoon Activity

By Leo Wang '24

We teach every individual member, from the basics of CAD and 3D Printing to Java Coding and Portfolio management up. Even if you are not interested in the robot, you can help make the portfolio and notebook we present to judges or work on the financials/fundraising/sponsorships/graphic design/video editing.

The Team competes in "FTC," a global robotics challenge | The First® Tech Challenge. FTC challenges teams of high school students to build industrial-size robots to play a difficult field game in alliance with other teams while also fundraising to meet their goals, designing a team “brand,” and advancing respect and appreciation for STEM. We have competed in three tournaments, placing 6th, 23rd, and 7th (out of ~35 teams), respectively. We have received both the Innovate and Design Awards (for our ingenuity and creativeness), been the top scorer in Qualifiers, and advanced to Semi-Finals in our first tournament.

Our competitors range from other startups to decade-long competitors who also aim to compete and advance. We compete in the name of Woodberry Forest School to inspire our fellow students and teachers to take interest in FTC, Robotics, and STEM. We have exceptional student leadership and organization, a vast network of connections through our school, and the benefits of being neighbors and teammates as we are based in a boarding school.

Right before our very first tournament, we received a generous donation from a Woodberry parent, which greatly expanded our options and allowed for a complete redesign of our robot, which we attribute to ranking very highly in our competitions. Because of Woodberry, we were able to create this team and succeed in what we love. 

You can learn more about our team and our work at https://timberx.wixsite.com/timberx-robotics.

In honor of OneWoodberry, the staff of The Oracle has released a special digital edition today. You can read it here. And remember that you can always stay up to date on campus news by reading The Oracle online at https://thewoodberryoracle.wordpress.com. 

Because they know many of you live far from campus, sixth formers Colin Nicoletti and Henry Royster set out last week to talk with current students about what they love about Woodberry. Check out their "Woodberry Walk Talk" as you wait for live coverage from WFSPN to begin at 9:30 a.m., right here on this page.

It's a great day to be a Tiger!

The relationships formed at Woodberry Forest remain with boys well beyond graduation. Woodberry alumni are there for one another throughout the milestones of life. Amici Usque Ad Aras; friends until the very end.

Harley Shuford and Landon Ellis, members of the sixth form, have built an enduring friendship. From their first meeting as eighth graders in the stands at The Game, through an iconic comeback against EHS in 2021, to serving this year as prefects on B Dorm, Harley and Landon have supported each other through highs and lows. They described in their own words what they value about the friendships formed at Woodberry.

We hope you will consider making a gift during OneWoodberry to honor the enduring friendships formed through your connection to Woodberry, whether you’re an alumnus, the parent of an alum, or the parent of a boy here now. Join us tomorrow to enjoy live coverage from WFSPN and to track our progress. 

Both current students and alumni frequently say that coming to Woodberry Forest changed their lives. And while our appreciation for the experience on campus often grows with time, what’s also special is how many new boys can see a difference in themselves before a full year has concluded. 

We asked three boys to reflect on their first year at Woodberry — what they’ve enjoyed and how they’ve seen themselves grow. From little things like learning to do their own laundry to big things like developing confidence and independence, Woodberry prepares boys for their future.

The Amici Fund supports the experience of the boys here now. And your gift is an investment in the same life-changing experience.