John A Johnson High School - Maroon Yearbook (St Paul, MN)

Page 17 text:

. --lv A ef' . t IIRIDN Knitting ,Needles A door slammed and the tchildren coming from school stormed into the library. Their noise aroused their aunt from her reveries. Her book slipped to the floor. Oh, -Xunt Aurelia, we had such a good program at school. You know we celebrated Armistice Day this after- noon. ,-X soldier who had been in the Great Nliorld Wiar talked to us. Say, Auntie, in what high school did you teach in St. Paul? elamored eleven year old iQharlotte tffonnell. So fast dicl her tongue fly that it was almost impossible for her aunt to get a word in edgewise. -lohnson High-. Yes, l thought that was it. lle said he went to war when be was a sopho- more at johnson High School. Did you know him, -Xuntie ? VX'liat was his name 7' Mr, Swanson. lle told us all'about the Germans and Frenchmen and Rus- sians and lurks andw-and everybody. I guess he must have been everywhere, he knew so much. lle said his class- mates did a whole lot, too. lle-. Aunt Reoo. you tell us about it! interrupted Mary Louise. Htflh, do! do! chorused the other youngsters as they gathered around her chair. VX'ell. what shall l tell you about? About the warwork my class did at ,lohnson High? Yes, yes. Havent l ever told you about that before? l am surprised. Vilell. let me see, where shall I begin ?e -XVe had a big front wall. it. hung a were many or three of 17 assembly hall, and on the where everyone could see huge service Hag. There stars in this flag, and two l 13 them stood for members of the class ot which l was advisor, so, of course, we were especially anxious to help the boys in Uncle Sams forces. At that time my students were only sophomores, but they surely did do a large amount of workg quite as much, l think, as the juniors or the seniors did that year. The girls were not the only ones who helped either, for we had over a dozen boys who struggled with their knitting needles to keep them from getting tangled up in the wool. My, it certainly was a laughable sight. Here she stopped to smile at the re- collection of the boys trying so hard to learn to knit. ls that when you learned to knit, Aunt Reoo ? Yes, And I expect l made as many funny mistakes as some of the others. l think it was patriotic of those boys to learn to knit, and l'm proud ot them and all the others in our class. They actually learned how to do it, too They didn't knit any socks or sweaters, but they did knit a consider- able number of squares for the two afghans which the .class made. t l'hey learned how to make surgical dressings for the wounded, and a great number of them helped to pack and get ready for shipment boxes of supplies for the overseas hospitals. There was hardly one of my girls who didn't do something to help her c-onntry in its great need. the sewing' teacher had charge of a class in Red Cross sewing. Some of the girls joined that. They made hospital leggiiigs and undershirts. They worked hard on various kinds of clothing' for the little children in France and Belgium. who had lost one or both ot their

Page 16 text:

g commanding personalities and intluencel' that we owe that which we value most in our course at johnson. VVe shall be sorry to say goodbye to them. VVe dread to see the end draw near. XVhen Commencement Dax' ar- Carry Did you ever pick up a copy of the Junior Red Cross News which comes to our high stchool each month? lf you did, you doubtless read about the vari- ous helpful activities which are still carried on by countless schools, big and little, throughout our country. For instance, in a recent issue there was an article on gardening. it was an appeal to the Red Cross juniors to keep up their war gardens this year. The whole world is hungry, Mr. Hoover says. Do you ever stop to think of the tens Of thousands of boys and girlbl of your own age who go supperless to bed? just because you have enough to eat, are you going to sit back and say, I should worry ? As Red Cross juniors we ought to be anxious to help increase the produc- tion of food. We can, by taking bet- ter care of that garden that was started at home this spring. l.et's get up au hour earlier in the morning to pull weeds. The crop of vegetables will be twice as large as it would be without this extra tcare. There are other ways in which the junior Red Cross can help. At Christ- mas time each year the crippled chil- dren in the Home near Phalen are made glad by the people of St. Paul. XVhy can't we try to make these little un- fortunates happy throughout the year? The boys in the manual training depart- ment could make some toysg the girls could dress dollsg the art students could compile scrap-booksg while the expres- sion pupils could go out there to tell the children stories. Then there's the Home for the Friend- less on Maple and East Seventh. We Y 12 rives, we shall be loath to turn away from the school that has served us as a friend. as a guide, as a tutor, and as an inspiration to seek the better and greater things in lite. Un could go there in groups to entertain the old ladies, or we could go individ- ually to read to those who are almost blind. A few tlowers from the garden NVOllld cheer them up. Old people ap- preciate it so mulch when the young folks think of them. just try it once, and you will want to go again! The county poor farm is another wonderful .field of' opportunity. The poor need a little sunshine, too. Such a clean but cheerless place their home is' These poor people think that no one cares for them llOI' thinks of them. Let's show them that the Red Cross Juniors do. Did you ever stop to think of the many sick in the city hospital without even a Hower to cheer them? Let's remember them when our tiowers bloom. There isn't a better way to advertise .lohnson than through service. Xt 'Thanksgiving and Christmas time we have always looked up a large num- ber of poor families and provided them with their holiday dinners. This is a good work and should be carried on. Still these families exist all the time. Vlthv should we forget them three, hun- dred sixty-three days in the year? Our sewing department doesn't. They have outfitted from head to toot a fatherless little girl from the neighborhood. Those of us who are not in the sewing class could help to build up a fund to help the poor around us. Selfdenial days might just as well come oftener. Now isn't there a great deal that we as a school can do? Let's make our .lunior Red Cross amount to something. Let's carry on! :Xndrew Swanson, '2O. Agnes liinnerooth, '20.

Page 18 text:

parents, and had been driven from their and by saying food. ,Xll the pupils -s. 'i ' l ' l un homes by the cruel Gernians. The girls also knitted and made surgical dressings. l do not remember how many pairs of socks and wristlets they turned out, nor how many sweaters and helmets they finished, but .l. know that it was a creditable number. Some- times they would sit for hours niaking surgical dressings. There was a room at the school where the pupils eould go to make them, whenever they had a free period. Besides this. the Red Cross had stations at the publiie libraries and other places, and many of our girls went there to work in the evenings and on Saturdays, Everybody helped in every way he could, by working, by buying thrift stamps, baby bonds, and liberty bonds. could and did save by not eating candy nor chewing gum. The money that would have gone for these things, they used to buy thrift stamps or to increase the refugee fund. You know, eaeh room helped to take care of either a lfreneh or Serbian orphan. Besides that, we collected tin-foil, nut shells, and other waste products for the governmentf, Oh, but those were good boys and girls, weren't they. Auntie ? l always thought so. 'illut it was years and years ago. wasn't it? Yes, nine long years ago. My class graduated in 1020? l,ila llardenbrook, '2O. 11116 Like baby eyes-a wondrous hues! The summer sky is tinted blue. Clouds of milkweed down recline with ease, Quite undisturbed by morning' breeze. The meadowland, a lovely spot Of buttereup and touch-me-not, Wliile pale rose clover at my feet Bursts forth in blossom, honeyfsxveet. Close by the willowxxoocl there grows The daitodil and brier-rose. Sweet marjorams of mint abound, Perfuniing all the air around. lt is the time when all earth seems To be a land of youthful dreams. Emotions rise, that words eanlt tellf- Ah, ylinne, you east a mystic spell. l4 Gladys Blomquist. '20.