Woodstock Alumnus assists Kaplani School

A project that started nearly four years ago to assist school-going village children has finally reached completion. The Heidi Parker Memorial Building at the Kaplani School in Kaplani village (located five kilometers east of Woodstock) was opened to a gathering of local villagers, students, teachers, and Woodstock alumni on Monday April 26th. The building was contributed by Robin Parker (Class of '48) in the memory of his daughter Heidi.

The new building will allow the school in Kaplani to add a High School wing (up to Grade 10) to the existing Junior School. The Kaplani School is a project of the Mussoorie Gramin Vikas Samiti (MGVS) or the Mussoorie Rural Development Committee, established by Bob Alter (Class of '43 and former Woodstock principal).

"I have only given you a building," Parker told the parents, teachers, and administrators at the Kaplani School in the audience, "You have to now ensure that it becomes a school."

Others attending the opening ceremony on Monday were Dr. David Laurenson (Woodstock Principal), Glenn Conrad (executive director, Winterline Association), Prakash Masih (Chairman, MGVS), Saroj Kapadia, who helped with the development of the Kaplani School, Stephen Alter (Director of Development, WS), Jane Cummings (former Director of Development, WS) and Tenzin 'Momo' Nima (Class of '80), who had a major role in the completion of the project.

23 Woodstock alumni who had attended the WOSA Himalayan Odyssey Tour also got a chance to reconnect with the surrounding areas around Woodstock as they flocked to the Kaplani village for the opening ceremony.

Mr. Surendar Singh, the coordinator of the MGVS, spoke to the audience about the history of the Kaplani School, speaking about the roles of Mrs. Kapadia, Winterline, and Woodstock Old Students Association (WOSA) in getting the school running. He thanked Robin Parker for his contribution towards the High School building.

Students of the Kaplani School performed two traditional dances for the audience, including a Garhwali fold dance called the Tandi. A group of Middle School students from Woodstock also attended the opening to perform classical pieces on the flute and the clarinet.