Alumni Profile: Professional Community Alumni Share Their Love of St. Margaret’s

St. Margaret’s alumni who work at the school presented at a professional community meeting at the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year, sharing their memories as part of the school’s 40th anniversary celebration.

By Ryan Wood

In August 2019, St. Margaret’s alumni who work at the school presented at a professional community meeting at the beginning of the school year, as part of the school’s 40th anniversary celebration.

With graduation years spanning from 1987 to 2012, the professional community members shared their memories of being a student, the teachers that inspired them (many of whom are still at St. Margaret’s) and what being a Tartan means to them.

First Days at St. Margaret’s

Jeannine Clarke ’87: I came to St. Margaret’s as a 7th grader.  I was the only new girl.  It was 1981, the third year of the school, and all classes met in a few portables. There was one portable for 7th grade and one portable for 8th grade. Even Chapel was held in one of the portables! Open fields surrounded the school campus.  San Juan Capistrano seemed far more remote back then.  We wore almost the same uniforms Middle School students wear today, plaid skirts and navy sweaters.

Jillian Taylor ’90: When I came to St. Margaret’s I was in the middle of my 8th grade year. The school was very small. I loved the small class sizes, and that everyone knew you on campus.

Dave Tomlinson ’95: I remember walking through the Lower School building before it opened with my dad, who was a city planner for the City of San Juan Capistrano. One of my earliest memories is drawing dinosaurs in kindergarten. 

Mara Balak, ’03: Many of my earliest St. Margaret’s memories revolved around sports.  I remember going to so many games - football, basketball, volleyball.  Even though I was very young, I went to all the varsity games. 

How It Used to Be

Dave Tomlinson ’95: I spent many lunches playing on the Lower School blacktop right where it is today. I remember Smokey the Cat in the Library with Mrs. Sillers. There was a fireplace in the library and you could sit beside it on cold days. 

Jeannine Clarke ’87: The arts helped me find my way in a new school. I was Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. That performance was at San Clemente High School, since of course we did not have a performance space. That didn’t happen until Sillers Hall was built my freshman year. 

James Harris ’96: It was a bit of wilder time as far as personalities among the faculty. You had more generalists who did everything, and there was an adventurous aspect to that. It was a period of growth and discovery for the school. Today you have real experts in the right roles to work with young people.

Jennifer Blount ’87:  I remember playing volleyball outside on the asphalt and many skinned knees. This was before we even had a gym and kneepads that actually remained intact when you dove for a ball. 

Memories of St. Margaret’s Teachers

Jennifer Blount ’87: I remember Father SIllers’ passion for education, and I remember that even when he disciplined students, he was kind. 

Clementine Marcus ’12: Mr. (Rob) Lakeman was my 5th grade teacher. We learned so much that year and had lots of fun. He really influenced my teaching philosophy. 

Mara Balak ’03: Teachers I remember are Mrs. Clarke and Mrs. (Kellie) Paul in 6th grade. Mr. (Billy) Assaf was my English teacher, and Fr. Rob (Edwards) was head girls basketball coach.

Marina Morales Gonzalez ’12: Ms. Amy Warren had a huge impact on me. She was a motivator and supporter. She changed everything for me. 

Lindsay Eres ’00: In Middle School, I was fortunate enough to have Diane Adamson as my history teacher. In Upper School, Nancy Linaweaver was my advisor, coach, and physiology teacher. Mike Allison was my track and field coach. In fact, he taught me how to triple jump—an event I would one day coach at St. Margaret’s. 

Jillian Taylor ’90: Kellie Paul was my JV volleyball coach.  She was such a great coach. She was always so nice and fun and I always remembered her.

Why Did You Come Back to St. Margaret’s?

Jennifer Blount ’87: In 2012, I returned to St. Margaret’s as Lower School Principal.  I felt a great sense of duty and commitment to make the school even better. I knew that I wanted to continue Father Sillers’ legacy of passion, grace and kindness.

Kristina Taylor ’05: I always knew I wanted to return to the institution that invests in the entire child, a school that educates the hearts and minds. It is truly an honor to be a part of the St. Margaret’s story both as a student and a teacher.

Dave Tomlinson ’95: I felt called to come back here to give back to a community that has given so much to me and my life. So I returned to St. Margaret’s in 2007.

Jeannine Clarke ’87: I knew my purpose was to give back to the place that shaped me and to contribute to shaping the hearts and minds of young people.

Returning to St. Margaret’s

Kristina Taylor ’05: I remember being in Mike Allison’s 8th grade U.S. history class. He challenged us to write a letter to our future selves explaining how we would change the world. I wrote that I would become a teacher. In 2016, I returned to St. Margaret to teach history in the Upper School, and that letter now hangs on the wall of my classroom. Mike Allison is the reason I am a history teacher today.

Clementine Marcus ’12: I returned to St. Margaret’s in 2018.  That year I was an instructional assistant with kindergarten teacher Colleen Beshk. We were in the same classroom where I was once a kindergartner.

Spencer Keane ’10: It’s fun to be on the other side of things and see today’s students embrace the same shows we loved. I guess I’m still a lifer.

What Has (and Hasn’t) Changed

Mara Balak ’03: Now as a teacher, I feel that although the school has grown, our teachers still bring the support and love for our students that I felt as a child.

Jeannine Clarke ’87: Father Sillers had the ability to find and hire the perfect people to execute his vision. The people he found were servant-leaders, people who were willing to take on any job. People who asked the question “what is this school to be?” The answer—thoughtful, graceful, humble—came from the traits of those key people in the beginning. Today, all members of our professional community are asking more questions: “how can I help make St. Margaret’s better?” and most importantly, “What is best for the students?”

Clementine Marcus ’12: I felt so supported as a student, and now I feel supported as a faculty member. My teachers put so much time and love into us as students. I can now give back to this place that is so near and dear to my heart.

Jennifer Blount ’87: I believe that community and friendships are at the genesis for St. Margaret’s, and they still are today.