Clinton High School - Memorabilia Yearbook (Clinton, MA)

Page 14 text:

al Qu i Gla i • • • ...FRESHMEN On a bright autumn morning in Sep- tember, 1947, there entered the stately portals of Clinton High School approxi- mately one hundred seventy pale, shaking and wide-eyed members of the Class of ' 51. Although it seemed unlikely at the time, we survived the pranks, jokes, and kidding of upper- classmen, and soon became accus- tomed to the routine, so that before long we could actually find our way from the basement to the annex to the hall, without thinking ourselves in the midst of a Chinese maze. Our activity as a class this year con- sisted mainly of contributing a dime each to the Senior Yearbook, but none- theless, we were given the pleasure of becoming acquainted with our ad- visor, Mr. Martin Gibbons, in whom we all immediately recognized sterling qualities of ability, leadership, and honesty, without which we would certainly have been lost. As the months rolled on, Mid-years loomed on the horizon, and it was with sinking hearts and splitting headaches that we faced the last week of January, 1948. But they went as quickly as they came, and we presently forgot all about the dreadful things in planning for Interclass Dramatics. Although the lowly Freshmen didn ' t win the prize, we were happy to learn we had made a fine showing. With the approach of June the Frightened Freshmen were com- pletely reformed, and we disbanded for the summer feeling that our first year in high school had been well spent. . . . SOPHOMORES A marvelous change had come about during vacation. We were now Sophomores and we could look with pity on the green Freshmen who were wandering through the corridors in a dazed manner. Recalling the treat- ment we ourselves had received as Frosh , it was easy to apply a little of it and perhaps with interest. Although some of our classmates had left us, nevertheless we were still a goodly number, and the time came when we deemed it necessary to choose leaders to carry on our class activities. So we elected the follow- ing officers: President, Nick Polymeros; Vice-President, Mary Jaquith; Treas- urer, Walter Fallon; Secretary, Ann Kittredge. We also selected our class colors, maroon and silver, and were appalled by the thought of having to pay the immense sum of twenty-five cents for class dues. In our second Interclass Dramatic Competition we earned the Oscar with our fine play and talented cast under the able direction of Miss Mary Kerrigan. We then retired with our laurels to give needed attention to our studies for Mid-year examinations which this time we faced with a bit more con- fidence. June — highlighted by our first, and never-to-be-forgotten trip to Whalom — finally arrived, and we happily began our vacation — ten weeks of carefree bliss!

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L L t y ROBERT A. MURPHY Modern History, Latin I ELIZABETH G. THOMPSON Modern History, Household Arts HENRY M. O ' TOOLE U. S. History MILDRED SMITH Manual Arts, Mechanical Drawing SUSAN D. SMITH Retired NATALIE R. PRADERIO French II, Italian III, IV, German III, IV CHARLES YOUNG Music MARY GIBBONS Secretary to the Principal WALDO T. DAVIS Retired

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. . . JUNIORS The Junior year is always a red- letter period in the annals of school life. Graduation is beginning to ap- pear on the horizon, and all the activi- ties leading to it are begun. In the middle of a brilliant athletic season we elected as officers: President, Walter Fallon; Vice-President, Mary Jaguith; Treasurer, Thomas McEvilly; Secretary, Lois French. Immediately a program of dances was started, the object of course being to secure funds to defray the expenses of the Junior Prom. Selection of our class rings and im- patient waiting for their arrival also marked our important third year. We need not linger long on ' ' Mid-years ' ' as, by this time, we found them com- monplace. When the Interclass Dramatics Com- petition came around, we chose our play and cast with the confidence born of experience. Our hopes were justi- fied. We won again. About this time our second annual Talent Show was held and our prestige was again augmented as well as our treasury. This being Centennial Year, we de- cided to publish, as our contribution to the gala celebrations being held at this time, a newspaper, The Cen- turian, ' ' which was a great success. The final event of the year, our Prom, will go down through the years as one of the most memorable events of our lives. With moonlight and roses as our foreground theme, and Paul Redmond ' s orchestra in the back- ground, we surely set a high standard for the coming year. And again, va- cation was upon us. ...SENIORS At last we are Seniors! The capping- climax to our high school career has arrived! We consider C. H. S. our second home, and act accordingly. We plunged ahead, full force, into the hustle and bustle of many activities, and elected Walter Fallon, President; Ann Kittredge, Vice-President; Andy Friedrich, Treasurer; Lois French, Sec- retary. Determined to surpass all pre- vious books in accuracy and novelty, we soon began work on our Class Book. Christmas time came, and we pro- vided gala holiday entertainment, at the same time fattening our treasury, by sponsoring a Novelty Talent Show in the Town Hall, with contestants from several other towns competing with our local talent. “Mid-years came and went, and immediately afterward the photogra- phers arrived and started taking pic- tures, showing how rapidly The Day was approaching. In February, and again in March, we brought to Clinton audiences for the first time the hilarious game of Donkey Basketball”, the profit from which, together with the proceeds of a movie at the Strand, a food sale, and a Tag Day were to be used to defray expenses of the class trip to New York, during the Easter vacation. On and on the year goes towards its culmination. All paths have led this way, and all roads have turned in this direction, until now, at last, the beacon shines clearly before us down the trail to Graduation.