Alum Shares Parker-Inspired Project

Alum, parent emeritus and recently published author Ralph Shayne ’85 returned to Parker to provide an update on his recently published graphic novel Hour of Need, inspired by an event at the school in 2017.

Shayne’s children Paige ’20 and Ian ’20 were sophomores when civil rights legend and U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District John Lewis and co-author Andrew Aydin came to Parker as part of a book tour for their graphic novel trilogy March, recounting Lewis’ life in the Civil Rights Movement in 2017.

The act of sharing one’s personal history as a graphic novel intrigued and inspired Shayne to explore a path very different from his prior 30 years working in venture capital and financial services. He knew the personal survival story of his mother, parent emerita Mette Shayne, as a Danish Jew rescued by the Nazi resistance during World War II and realized that sharing it in a more immersive graphic novel format would help expose more readers to the experience.

As a Parker graduate, Shayne was not afraid of the challenge of trying something entirely new and found he could rely on the Parker community to help him in his efforts. He had developed a wonderful relationship with David Fuder, 8th grade English teacher and peer parent of Anna ’20 and Audrey ’24. Fuder and Shayne assembled a focus group of student readers to provide feedback on an early draft of his working manuscript and input and direction to the author as he refined his narrative for the visual storytelling format. Fuder found 8th through 12th grade student volunteers to participate in this extracurricular activity, and parent emerita and Parker Board member Jenny Friedes, a professional scriptwriter, oversaw the discussions.

Shayne recently returned to school to share an update on his recently published Hour of Need: The Daring Escape of the Danish Jews During World War II: A Graphic Novel, which was developed in partnership with the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center and published as part of the 80th anniversary of the Danish rescue. Parent emeritus David Brown made the introduction to the Museum that led to Shayne’s collaboration, and the Museum has created an education guide to support the book’s use in middle school and high school curriculums.

Senior Grant Koh introduced Shayne to the audience and shared his personal account of participating in a review of Shayne’s book as an 8th grader during Fuder’s focus group sessions. Shayne then led the audience through his personal journey as fledgling author. From the event at Parker in 2017 to refining his manuscript, finding an illustrator, securing a publisher and beyond, he made it clear that bringing a graphic novel to life takes effort but can be an enjoyable journey. Shayne also shared more about the trip he made to Denmark while conducting historical research for his book, which helped him appreciate the universal story of kindness—as one community readily opened their borders, doors and hearts to another in their desperate time of need.

Shayne welcomed questions from the audience following his remarks and invited interested students to meet with him in the Kovler Family Library after the event for a copy of his book.

Parker thanks Shayne for sharing his story with the community and his mother’s story with the world in his new book.

 

Click here for photos from Shayne’s visit.