Morna Hyatt was born in Bryn Athyn in 1918, graduated
from the Girls School in 1936 and the Academy College (now
Bryn Athyn College) in 1941. She taught mostly in the Girls
School over those 67 years, but also in the Bryn Athyn Church
School and Bryn Athyn College. She taught math and science
to three generations of students, and even some Latin and PE.
And she was principal of the Girls School for 18 years, over
two separate terms. (A memorial address by the Rev. Eric Carswell appears on
page 333.)
In 2006 she set a record that will never be challenged, marching in her
nd
82 consecutive Charter Day procession. (In the early days, the elementary
school children were included, so she started marching in kindergarten.) Even
after her retirement she continued teaching part time in Educational Support
Services.
The 2007 Senior Yearbook was dedicated to her as “an institution of the
institution,” and said in part: “She enjoys teaching with games and seeing
students when their eyes light up with understanding. She once said that you
shouldn’t cover a textbook; you should uncover it.” The dedication also noted
admiringly that she had moved to Cairnwood Village ten years previously
“and has faithfully walked to school for chapel every day.”
At the 2005 Charter Day banquet, dedicated to The Heroes and Heroines of
the Academy: Our Teachers, Morna was honored for her lifetime of service as
“one teacher whose whole career stands as a symbol of what being an Academy
teacher is all about.” She was given two prolonged standing ovations – waves
of affection and appreciation for this dedicated woman who left her mark on
countless lives, and will never be forgotten.
•
I had some kinship with Les Sheppard, as we were born
in Australia about the same time, yet did not know him well.
But everything I knew left me with a smile. As a young man
he got his hands dirty in the noisy, intense world of race cars.
But he was a good and gentle man, who had a special way
with people and always lifted their spirit.
He served most of his career in the Brisbane New Church
in Queensland, Australia. But he spent some time in Bryn Athyn, where he
was a favorite religion teacher in the elementary school. Boys especially loved
that he not only made learning fun, but also loved fast cars and riveted them
with tales of race track pit crews.
Friends in Sarver, Pennsylvania, adored him and his wife, Bev, when he
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