|
 Herby
Raynaud
Weapon: Sabre
Born: April 17, 1971
Birthplace: New York, New York
Residence: Brooklyn, New York
Height: 5-foot-8
Weight: 165
At the Peter Westbrook Foundation, Herby Raynaud is a
jack of all trades. Besides sitting on the Board of
Directors, he is one of the Foundation’s best fencers.
He also coaches for the Saturday morning program and
organizes the Foundation’s tutoring program.
“It was a fluke how I ended up fencing. It found
me.” In 1990, when Herby Raynaud was 19 years old, he
had never fenced a day in his life. He was attending
Columbia University, which required students take physical
education classes. Fencing was the only class that fit
into Herby’s schedule. So, he decided to give it a shot.
Herby stuck with it and excelled.
To encourage his interest in the sport, Herby’s
college fencing coach introduced him to Olympic fencer
Peter Westbrook at the NY Fencers Club. Herby says, “I
was undecided on fencing until I saw Peter fence. If
anyone is a fencing master it is Peter.”
 While
impressed with Peter’s talent, Herbie was surprised to
see African-American fencers were not so common. ”I was
taken back about what the reality of fencing was.” Herby
says he was shocked to see that most of the fencers were
affluent and mostly white. “You do feel isolated as a
black person.” Herby admits if he hadn’t been exposed
to well-known minority fencers like Peter Westbrook, Don
Anthony, Bob Cottingham, Mika’il Sankofa, Rachau McLloyd
and Jerry Rodriquez he probably would have given up the
sport. ”I wouldn’t have felt the comfort of the
community.”
A year after Herby met Peter, Peter began a foundation
to get inner-city youth involved in fencing. The Peter
Westbrook Foundation seemed to echo Herby’s longing to
make the sport more accessible to kids like him. Since
Westbrook’s program was originally designed for younger
kids, 20-year-old Herby was over the age limit to become a
student. So, he got involved with the Foundation as a
coach instead. ”For the first 7 or 8 years (of the
Foundation), whenever I didn’t have fencing meets, I
would come and help out.” Herby didn’t represent the
Foundation at tournaments until 1996. All the costs
involved with competing came out of his pocket. Between
air and hotel bills, lesson fees and equipment - it was a
lot - but Herby earned just enough to afford it. That
wasn’t always the case.
Herby was born in New York to poor Haitian immigrants.
His father died when he was just a little kid. Soon, his
mother moved back to Haiti with Herbie for 4 years. When
his mother re-married, they moved to Park Slope, a
middle-class part of Brooklyn. Herby attended public
school there and credits the teachers there with providing
him a sturdy foundation. Herby says, “It was the best
school I ever attended. It is responsible in more ways
than anything else for the type of person I am now.”
The Park Slope days didn’t last long though... Herby
was 9 when he and his mother moved to Florida after his
mother divorced. From this point on things got worse. At
11, he moved to Flatbush, a high-crime area of Brooklyn,
and at age 12, he moved into an even tougher neighborhood
known as Bushwick. “I fought when I had to, but tried
not to most of the time. I knew what my limit was. I had a
gun pulled on me twice.” Here, he also faced the most
serious challenges associated with being Haitian. Herby
says, “There was a lot of anti-Caribbean prejudice due
to the emerging AIDS epidemic there.”
On top of that, Herby lived in a terrifying physical
environment. He says his neighborhood was filled with
“rubble, drug dealers, and crack was king. I got
involved with the wrong crowd.” Herby says he’s
terrified for kids growing up in these types of
neighborhoods. “I don’t know how they get through.
It’s not inconceivable that you can get caught in
gunfire.” Herbie, himself, has witnessed several
shoot-outs. Despite the negative environment, Herbie
managed to stay on track. He says, “I was fairly
intelligent and good at diffusing situations with humor
and pretty savvy at a young age. You have to make
alliances, almost like survivor.”
Herby graduated from the 9th grade Junior High School
as valedictorian. As a result, he was selected to take
part in a city program that sends kids from troubled
inner-city neighborhoods to private prep schools. Herby
attended the Hotchkiss School, a boarding school in
Connecticut, and was confronted with what he describes as
“a new set of challenges.” He says he had to prove to
his friends back in Brooklyn that he wasn’t
“whitewashed or brainwashed.” ”I was still the same
person but something had switched in my brain. I had
something concrete to aspire to, a certain lifestyle, not
that I necessarily aspire to that now.”
Herby describes this time of his life as having a foot
in each world. “You feel rejected from where you came
from and not really accepted by this other community
either.” Herby says, “There’s a great benefit
obviously of having such intimate exposure to two really
different environments. The drawbacks are actually minor
compared to all the benefits.” Now, Herby feels
comfortable wherever he goes. “People are drawn to
people who are comfortable with themselves. I wouldn’t
change anything about my experiences” - especially his
experiences at the Peter Westbrook Foundation.
Herby says Peter is “very gifted with insight into
what makes people tick. He’s invaluable to me. I have a
list of people I admire most. Of course my mother is
number one, followed by Malcolm X and Mohammed Ali, then,
Peter is a close 4. I attribute 50% of my psychological
and emotional development to Peter.”
Herby finds his coaching work at the Foundation
extremely rewarding. Herby says, “When you realize you
have these kids looking up at you; you realize that this
person has this image of you and look towards you for
guidance.” He affirms, “It makes you want to give
more.” Herby is also finding satisfaction in witnessing
his own fencing skills soar.
Today Herby is among the top 5 sabre fencers in the USA
... a list that includes Akhi El-Spencer, Keeth Smart,
Terrence Lasker and Ivan Lee. While he’s had many
accomplishments, he was deeply disappointed when he
didn’t make the 2000 Olympic team. “I felt heartbroken
that I was poised to make my Olympic debut but... I
didn’t get a spot. I’d like to give it another shot in
2004.”
In the future, Herby is sure he’ll stay involved with
all aspects of fencing. He says Peter is trying to groom
people for leadership. “Coaching high level fencing is
in the back of my mind... maybe a referee... both
domestically and internationally.” He also flirts with
the idea of becoming a “dot-com billionaire” in 10
years.
Peter has always told Herby, "...the way you are
in life is the way you are in fencing.” Perhaps that’s
why Herby is a champion on and off the fencing mat.
Gibbs Staff Compiled report
2/7/05
|
Keeth
Smart is one of two Americans who competed in the
individual men’s sabre event at the Sydney Games, along
with teammate and longtime friend Akhi Spencer-El.
Smart was ranked number two at the 1998 and 1999
U.S. Nationals and is a two-time NCAA champion for St.
John’s University in New York.
Erin
says, “Peter is a role model for me. He paved the
way for all of us. If it wasn’t for him I
probably wouldn’t be fencing.” Fencing also
influenced her desire to attend college. “I
didn’t have that many goals college-wise before
fencing.” Now, Erin attends Barnard, the women’s
college of Columbia University. Keeth credits
the Foundation for many of his academic achievements.
He’s a senior at St. John’s, attending on a fencing
scholarship and majoring in finance.
