"Men of Avon": 121 Graduate from Avon Old Farms Sunday

The class of 2011 graduated from Avon Old Farms School on Sunday morning in a ceremony that emphasized their commitment to community service and academic excellence. 

 A parade of faculty and underclassmen marched onto the Village Green to the tune of “Pomp and Circumstance,” carrying flags with animals representing character traits, including an elephant of “strength and longevity” for the senior class. The students and faculty then stood on both sides of the path leading into the Village Green to welcome Manchester Pipe Band and, finally, the class of 2011. 

 Gen. Anthony C. Zinni, who retired from the Marine Corps in 2000 after serving for 35 years in over 70 countries, delivered the commencement address and shared lessons he learned during 50 years since his high school graduation. He advised the graduates to establish a moral code to live by, and noted the importance of values like integrity and honesty.

“This code has to mean more than life to you,” Zinni said.

During his career, Zinni earned over 60 awards including the Distinguished Service Medal, the Purple Heart, and the Combat Action Ribbon, previously leading the U.S. Central Command. He is currently president, CEO, and chairman of BAE Systems, Inc., a global defense and security company that employs about 100,000 people worldwide.  

Zinni also expressed confidence in the graduates’ potential to achieve great accomplishments in their future careers.

“It gives me great pleasure and a sense of confidence that our country is in your hands,” he said. “Sitting here may be a president, or a general, or a great businessman, or whatever you choose to be.”

Following Zinni’s address, Avon Old Farms Headmaster Kenneth H. LaRocque presented several student awards, including the Founder’s Medal for academic excellence, community service and town government. Ten students earned the Order of Old Farms, which requires a unanimous vote of approval from the faculty and the student council.  Valedictorian Andreas Biecker was one of the recipients of the award, as well as Oliver K. Rothmann, who also won the F. Reed Estabrook Award for Citizenship.

At the end of the ceremony, alumni in the audience joined students in singing “Men of Avon,” the school hymn. The graduates then gathered for a reception in the refectory, also known as the cafeteria, where they enjoyed refreshments and cigars.

Graduate John Galloway, who plans to spend a year at Milford Academy before attending college, said he loved the opportunity to get “really close with the guys” that he would not have had at a co-ed public school. Galloway hopes to receive a football scholarship to a university where he can continue to play safety and study psychology.

Many of the 121 seniors who received diplomas have a strong family legacy at the school. Jim and Frankie Thorington travelled from Easton, MD. to celebrate the graduation of their grandson Graham Thorington, who will study at Iona College in Rochelle, N.Y. next year. Graham is the third of four brothers to study at Avon Old Farms.

“The school has been a great experience for all of the boys,” Frankie Thorington said. “They’ve just blossomed.”

Susan Thorington, Graham’s mother, agreed that the discipline of the all-boys school helped her sons mature.

“We’re so proud of everything they accomplish here,” she said. “They graduate men.”