Red and White @ Silver

We dragged “Red & White @ Silver” out of mothballs for one last announcement: it’s time for the Class of 2001’s 25-year Reunion! The guys welcomed back Class President Morgan Miller to share the broad plans for our October 24 event on the NFA Campus and These Guys Brewing Company. Please look out for the formal invitations being sent out electronically and in the mail so that you can hopefully let us know you’ll be in attendance! (Ignore the part in this episode where we talk about a google form. We had a change in plans!) If you’re off the grid other than being subscribed to this podcast and would like to receive the invitation, please reach out to Jack Espinoza of the NFA Foundation at [email protected] with your email address, or reach out to class officers Morgan Miller, Ian Cheney, Debby Allard, or Kelsey Iovino.

On June 15, 2001, about 500 Norwich Free Academy Wildcats strolled across the graduation stage. And now, on the silver anniversary of that day, a podcast about their experiences ends.

In this episode, recorded earlier this month after a year away from their mics, Ian, Jim, and Zack reminisce one last time. They reflect on their experiences doing the podcast. They describe the special qualities of NFA. They also put together a sort of “clip show,” splicing together excerpts of each of our guests talking about NFA’s beautiful campus, special community, and more. Additionally, they share the latest on the class reunion process and identify opportunities later this year for the Class of 2001 to come together on campus. Oh, and of course there’s some trivia.

Special thanks to the NFA Foundation for supporting this podcast from the beginning. To find out how you can be the difference at NFA, please reach out to the Foundation for details. Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat!

Their names are Ian Cheney, Zack Lamothe, and Jim Wheeler, and they were honored to interview members of the NFA Class of 2001.

In the penultimate episode of “Red & White @ Silver,” for the third and final time the cohosts interview one of their own. This week, it’s finally Ian’s turn in the hot seat. You’ll hear about his dubious diet and exercise philosophy, his aimlessness as a high school and freshman college student, and how he turned it all around to eventually become a teacher at Waterford High School. (NFA Human Resources did not return his phone calls.) This episode gives insight into his teaching strategy, an approach that siphons inspiration from a specific couple of NFA teachers.

You’ll also get to hear about his personal life. Is he married? Does he have kids? Why did he self-publish a book if he knew no one was going to read it? And most important, what you really want to know: What is the status of “Presidential Politics For America”?

Ian also has the privilege of being the final RWS guest to reflect on his time at the Norwich Free Academy. He gushes about how the school facilitated his transition from a small town, he barely controls his emotions when talking about the dedication and grace of his teachers, and he tries to summarize everything that makes his high school so incredible.

His name is Ian Cheney, a proud cohost of Red & White @ Silver, and a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

In early June 2001, Tony Blair and his Labor Party held on to power after Parliamentary elections; President George W. Bush and his Republican Party signed a trillion dollar tax cut into law; and Justin Mazzella found himself just 13 days from his high school graduation. Twenty-five years later, he finds himself Zooming in to “Red & White @ Silver” as Ian, Jim, and Zack’s last interviewee.

And what a final interview it was! After listening to this episode, you might think we saved the best for last, as the truly hilarious and zany Justin brought the goods. His post-NFA life includes catering, ballroom dancing, barista-turned-corporate-Starbucks-man, hula hoop making, DJing at Margaritaville, a labor dispute with a robot, a labor dispute over wearing pants, and his becoming one of the premiere magicians in southern New England. (And he’s available for your next event at FunMagicBirthday.com!) You’ll love listening to the journey.

Then, Justin looks back at a Norwich Free Academy experience that he describes as “a blast.” He relays some of his favorite teachers, including yet another splendid description of the great Mr. Heffernan, and his gratitude at having such a quality culinary education. He also does some high-caliber introspection, as we all do from time to time, reflecting on young Justin and what he liked about him but also what makes him cringe. It’s a great episode, so don’t miss our final interview. (But fear not, RWS listeners. We still have two more episodes to go!)

His name is Justin Mazzella, and he’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

Even after 38 episodes we still had another NFA sending town to represent. Joining Norwich, Sprague, Franklin, Lisbon, Preston, Voluntown, and Sterling is now the beautiful Canterbury. Representing it is our wonderful classmate Shailyn Guy.

In this episode, Shailyn walks us through the last quarter-century of her life. Included are adventures in masseusery, Covid disruptions to her business, and now nursing school. Shailyn also shares her passion for nutrition as Jim peppers her with questions about meat. As the sole Canterbury representative on “Red & White @ Silver,” she also has to withstand obligatory Canterbury trivia. Now married with children, Shailyn went deep into the memory banks to share what she remembers about her time at the Norwich Free Academy, including lots of extracurriculars, singing at coffee houses, and old friends. In the process, the panel dissects the modern relationships we have with old friends we only see on social media. Oh, and Ian predicts a deep Patriots playoff run a year before it happens.

Her name is Shailyn Guy, now Shailyn Metcalfe, and she’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

In mid-May 2001, “Shrek” topped the box office, Dido’s “Thank You” topped the music charts, and Barry Keenan topped our Class Musician rankings. He was a month from graduation, but what happened after Barry walked across the stage?

Listen to this episode to find out. You’ll learn that he graduated from UConn, during which he led a Phish cover band, and worked at Mystic Seaport, during which he sang sea shanties. One such sea shanty, as you’ll hear, made its way into this awesome episode. Barry now works in special education, still fills in at the Seaport, and even married a fellow Seaporter before they produced a Seaporter daughter. With all this Mystic in his life, naturally he was subjected to some Mystic trivia.

Barry also recounts some NFA memories, including great teachers, the foundation of some lifelong friendships, performing in his namesake band Barry’s Leaving, and soaking in the long walks between buildings. He also shared that when he describes our great alma mater to his wife, she might quip, “Oh, you mean Hogwarts?” Yeah, pretty much.

His name is Barry Keenan, and he’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

(A quick side note for RWS fans: we’re almost done! After our awesome guest this week, we’re down to the final FIVE episodes: three more interviews with classmates, followed by our final interview of one of the RWS hosts, and then the series finale on June 15, the 25-year anniversary of our graduation. Please join us for the home stretch!)

This week we have our old classmate Lauren Carlson. In this interview, we get a sobering reminder that not everyone’s transition to the next phase of their lives was made seamlessly. Lauren opens up about her deep personal struggles experienced during freshman year at URI. A pivot to ECSU helped get her life back on track, and did she ever. She proceeded to ship up to Boston for not one but TWO Masters degrees, and she’s now a behavioral analyst. She specializes in parenting advice to all us parents who are trying to manage increasingly busy and messy lives. (Her business, Imperfect Parenting, can be reached at [email protected].) She now lives in Rhode Island with her husband and three kids, a well-deserved richness of life made possible by her perseverance. 

For trivia she’s quizzed about another, less quality podcast–Armchair Expert with Dax Sheppard–before then diving into NFA. Then hear Lauren’s memories about her Cranston experience, her positive experiences with teachers, and more. Her name is Lauren Carlson, now Lauren Burhans, and she’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, “Red & White @ Silver” is thrilled to welcome a classmate who spent post-graduate years in Mexico: Nathan Paluck! He Zooms with the RWS trio to fill us in on everything he’s been up to for the last 25 years. How does a physics major at Fordham turn into a teacher in Honduras and bartender/salsa dancer in Oaxaca and a journalist in Hartford and the president of a chess club? Nate is like the Dos Equis guy: the most interesting man in the world.

Then, after victorioso in a bit of Mexican history trivia, Nate has profound reflections on his time at the Norwich Free Academy. He reflects on our beautiful campus, his myriad of extracurricular activities, his valued NFA friendships, and he also becomes the latest guest to flatter Zack’s mom. Among Nate’s most cherished high school memories was working with a handful of classmates, including Jim and Zack, to record a song called “Brown Bananas” – a fawning ode from Dave Fan to a certain fellow 2001er. After listening to this episode, you’ll not only know to which classmate the song was dedicated (hint: her name rhymes with Banana), but you’ll also get to hear a 25-year-old recording of the masterpiece. You don’t want to miss it.

His name is Nathan Paluck, and he’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

This week, “Red & White @ Silver” listeners are in for a treat. First, RWS gives you a peak behind the curtain. Unbeknownst to Ian, Zack, and our guest, our A/V guru Jim was recording audio before the official start of the interview. Therefore, in lieu of our typical short cold open, you’ll hear several minutes of arguing and guest-prep.

The bigger treat comes afterward: our articulate and charismatic guest, Brett Levanto. You’ll hear how Mr. Levanto goes to Washington to study at GW, and to bartend, and to meet his future wife. You’ll also hear about some of the challenges that come with being married to a deployed sailor. Brett eventually nestled into a career, had two kids, and even began working as a high school football referee on the side, an unsurprising development considering he’s legally blind in one eye. He dazzles in his trivia segment where Ian offers him challenging football scenarios where referee Levanto needs to make the right call. (Brett would like to issue a correction about the yardage in the second question: it should be 4th and 15 and not 4th and 5. He’s admitted to this mistake having kept him up in each of the 668 nights since we recorded.) Brett finishes with profuse praise of our alma mater, including shouting out teachers and reflecting on his time with the Student Advisory Board and NFA basketball.

His name is Brett Levanto, and, as he tells you several times in various ways, he’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.

Have you ever wondered who has the biggest heart on Earth? Well, you can stop wondering. We found her. It’s our fellow Class of 2001er, Becky Majewski. Just how big is her heart? Listen to some of the jobs she’s held since high school. After becoming a UConn nursing major, she has since worked at a nursing home, in hospice care, and at the Oncology Department at Backus Hospital. One listen to this interview and you’ll realize how lucky her patients have been.

Becky also shared some very exciting news with the RWS trio: she has a daughter at NFA! You can imagine the guys’ reaction. Becky is clearly thrilled that her daughter is there, as you can hear in Becky’s voice the pride and appreciation she has for our alma mater, and she shouts out several memorable teachers. The highlight of the episode’s reminiscing was each member of the panel trying to remember their Spanish names, though honorable mention goes to smelling the dissected cats on the top floor of Tirrell. Finally, Ian tries to turn the episode into a hot take sports talk show, but our guest wisely defuses the situation.

Her name is Becky Majewski, and she’s a member of the NFA Class of 2001.