Clarene Vickery - July 7, 2014

Born on May 22, 1918, and raised in Collins, Mississippi, Clarene Vickery attended Wentworth College before moving to Portland, Oregon, where she and her husband intended to start their family. After Pearl Harbor, when her husband enlisted in the army, she moved back to Mississippi. Upon the completion of her husband's service, she and their two sons moved to meet him in Vienna, Virginia.

In Vienna, their first home was situated next to the W&OD Railroad tracks and Vienna Elementary School - so close to the latter that their boys could sprint from home to class and still make it on time. One son was enrolled in Fairfax High School, the other, in James Madison High School.

A long-time member of the Ayr Hill Garden Club, Clarene Vickery served as its president from 1988-1990. In 1956, she decided to teach a group of 14 kindergartners in her family home on 201 Park St. Numerous expansions, two relocations, and 58 years later, Parkwood School is still thriving under her jurisdiction.

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Family Home in Collins, Mississippi

Life During WWII; Moving to Vienna, Virginia

First Impressions of Vienna, First Home in Vienna

Vienna Elementary School

Fairfax High School, James Madison High School

Growth of Parkwood Preschool

Developmental Teaching Methods at Parkwood Preschool

Student Transportation for the Commute to Parkwood Preschool

Play Yards at Parkwood Preschool

Reflections on Parkwood Preschool

Reflections on Vienna

The Ayr Hill Garden Club

Tenure as President of the Ayr Hill Garden Club

All interviews by Leigh Kitcher and Sophie Abramowitz