Motivated by a love for Canterbury that perhaps only a
founding parent can feel, Anita Cast is one of the charter members of The 1977
Society. Anita traces the very
beginning of Canterbury back to a Fort Wayne Philharmonic Board meeting in 1976
when she and the Rev. Cory Randall, also a founding parent, learned that the Fort
Wayne public schools were forced to make yet another cut in their fine arts
program. She described how she and Rev.
Randall shared their concerns over coffee and talked about
alternative school possibilities. They
put together a list of others who might be similarly interested, and the school
that we know today began to take shape.
Although Canterbury was never an Episcopal school, the Episcopal Church has a long tradition of supporting education. Through Rev. Randall’s involvement, Canterbury used the facilities of Trinity Episcopal church rent-free in its formative years. Although this was of great financial help to a start-up school, as one visits with a founder, one realizes that the love, dedication, pioneering spirit and absolute commitment to succeed that Canterbury enjoys from so many – including the Casts (Bill Cast was Canterbury’s first board chair) – is perhaps its true secret of success.
Only Meghan, the youngest of the three Cast children, attended Canterbury. She was in the school’s first first-grade class and its third graduating class in 1989. According to her mom, Meghan “sailed through” the University of Virginia majoring in English with a minor in theater and recently received her MBA from the University of Southern California. Anita credits the foundation in learning that Meghan received at Canterbury with her collegiate success.
When it came time for Anita to discuss estate planning with her attorney – “a sobering experience” – she realized that Canterbury is still one of the things most near and dear to her heart. She feels that the plans she made for Canterbury in her will are a natural extension of “doing what we can to support the school and the community.”
Anita and Meghan had the occasion to tour the school this spring, including sitting in on a strings rehearsal for graduation, which brought “tears to my eyes,” Anita said. She said it has been so exciting to watch Canterbury grow and enjoy success. And in particular – given Anita’s love of music – it has been exciting to watch the wonderful things Canterbury’s talented fine arts faculty are able to accomplish with and for the students.
Anita and Bill are both very active in the community. Along with many other interests and involvements, Anita is a former president of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic and continues on its board; a former president of the Friends of Music at Indiana University and continues on its board; and is a board member of the International Violin Competition in Indianapolis. Bill is president of Dupont Hospital, a partner with Fort Wayne Otolaryngology and on Canterbury’s Foundation Board. Anita shared that Bill often says that helping to start Canterbury has been “the most rewarding thing that he’s done.” The school is truly and profoundly grateful to the Casts on so many levels and in so many ways.
