Transporting the entire Upper School faculty and staff to a tropical paradise on a bitter February day was no mean feat. Those who came, however, had no doubt that venturing over the ice brought them to an unimaginable place. Bright pinks, yellows, and greens of tropical plants and festive table decorations transformed Straus Library into as much of an island as it has ever been. Delectable foods of all kinds and in great numbers once again treated faculty and staff members to life beyond what they know in the day-to-day School world. The event was the much-heralded annual faculty and staff appreciation brunch, organized, produced and graciously extended by the Upper School Parents’ Association. Through snow, torrential rain, flooding and then ice, the Parents’ Association persevered and provided an extraordinary party and expression of thanks from grateful parents to faculty and staff, who were likewise, grateful (and full).