The Potter Family

A common theme in the Fenwick community is seeing multiple members from one family graduate from Bishop Fenwick, and in this case, ten of them did! And why did all members of the Potter family choose to attend Fenwick. According to Bruce Potter ‘74, “My parents were believers in the best education possible for their children, and that a strong education helps even life’s playing field.”

We were excited to connect with all of the Potters: Bill ’65, Rick ’66, Shawn ’67, Mark ’68, Mary ’71, David ’72, Suzanne ’73, Bruce ’74, Adria ’79, and daughter of Bruce, Alexa ’19, for this spotlight story. According to David’72, “There was a point in time that not once but twice there was a Potter in every grade at Fenwick. Attending Fenwick was a family tradition for us!”

A Fenwick education was a common dominator for all the Potters. After Fenwick their professional careers took them in many wonderful different directions: Bruce the COO of a bank, Adria a special education teacher, Suzanne a nurse, Shawn a banking and health care executive, Mary a hospice liaison, Rick a teacher, David an insurance executive, and Bill a member of the CIA. It is clear their Fenwick experience prepared them all very well!

When asked what were some of their favorite Fenwick memories, we heard, “The undefeated 1974 Boy’s Varsity Basketball Team”, “Being in the cast of Camelot my senior year”, “The Friday night dances”, “Speaking at Graduation as the Class President”, “Receiving the Steven Donaldson Award”, and “Being a member of the School’s very first varsity football team”.

Many great words of advice were offered by the Potter family to today’s Fenwick students, such as “Be yourself”, from Alexa’19, “Take advantage of all that Fenwick has to offer, giving you opportunities to explore in a very supportive environment”, from Adria’79, “Stay curious”, from Bruce’74, and “Treat others as you want to be treated”, from Suzanne’73.

Thank you to the Potter family for being such great believers in the Fenwick community. You are all shining examples of the school’s motto: “Goodness and Loyalty”.