Columbia High School - Mirror Yearbook (Maplewood, NJ)

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Utirrnr lEittnn? ani Aimanra FRANCESCA A. PALMINTERI Editorial Advisor EDWIN FAUST Business Advisor 1003 SAMUEL M. ORNSTEIN Editor-in-Chief HARRIET REISEN Associate Editor ALLAN RYAN Business Manager 6

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(£la00 3Ht0tonj 1960- 1961 In September of I960 six hundred confident freshmen suddenly became six hundred wary sophomores at Columbia, no longer so sure, a bit anxious, and perhaps a little frightened. Our first weeks were spent in frenzied experiments of trial and error. Where was that English class? We were sure it had been there yesterday. Was the period omitted, or had we gone to the wrong lunch? Sooner or later we learned to find our way around Columbia. Our homeroom teachers and committee representatives patiently explained the countless rules and introduced us to the opportunities in sports, clubs, and student government. Our lives had become curiously compli- cated. Little by little we became a part of Columbia, and Columbia became a part of us. Some- how we knew that the words of the Alma Mater had become our words. 1961- 1962 As returning juniors, Columbia was no longer quite so immense or quite so confusing as it had been just a year before. We looked forward to a full year, and it proved to be just that. College plans were formulated, and the P.S.A.T.’s were just warnings of what was in store. Doubts were dispelled momentarily, however, for Junior Night was close at hand. The Class of 1963 presented Stage Door, never losing an ounce of the spirit that characterizes the occasion. Oversized shirts, pigtails, and ridiculous hats were the order of the day as hundreds gathered in Memorial Park at dawn. A few unfortunates found themselves in the brook that morning. It was a year of ac- tivity highlighted by a visit of four Argentine exchange students and the visit to Columbia by Governor Hughes. We worked hard that year, both in our schoolwork and in our extracurric- ular activities, looking forward to the time -when we would be school leaders. Probably the most popular subject of conversation was legal driving. Those w'ho had so patiently counted the days sympathized with those who were still waiting. As the year drew to a close, however, talk grad- ually returned to more important questions about the future. 1962- 1963 From the very first day, our senior year placed us face to face with the problems of get- ting into college and formulating plans for the future. There were more S.A.T.’s, achievement tests, and writing samples; and we spent hours completing lengthy applications which dared to ask for autobiographical essays. The waiting seemed interminable, and as our friends were ac- cepted one by one, we grew increasingly uneasy. However, Mrs. Howell, Mr. Fleming, and Mr. Gray helped us keep our sanity; and we buckled down to work, frantically relating every test to our chances for acceptance or rejection by the colleges. We welcomed a group of nine Ar- gentine exchange students from Colegio Ward. At last we were on top. Our president headed the Council; pur classmates held the leadership positions in those very same clubs, committees, and sports to which we had been introduced two years before. Mrs. Howell of the Guidance Department, Mr. Pontz, head of the Business Education Department, and Mr. Spear of the Driver Education Department retired from the faculty. Graduation in June was a happy occa- sion as we peered optimistically into the future, but it also proved to be a time of reflection. It was difficult to believe that three years were gone. Yes, now we look ahead, but we will al- ways remember our years at Columbia. 8