Assumption High School - Assumption Yearbook (Davenport, IA)

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Chuck Skelley ’61, amuses the student council and the freshmen class with his widely acclaimed impersonations during the Student Council program on Freshmen Get-Acquainted Day, Sept. 10. The program also included a mock Student Coun- cil meeting. Diocesan YCS Federates at Year's First Study Day; Parents Ponder Teen Problems in Christian Family by Mike Ceurvorst To form a diocesan federation, 230 Young Christian Students of the Dav- enport diocese gathered at Assumption high school Sunday, Sept. 27. At this Study Day they covered topics to be acted on by the YCS during the next three years. These include the fam- ily, human relations, and parish life. Highlights of the day included work- shops on such topics as the liturgy, labor, and the social inquiry. Focal point of the day was the Mass cele- brated by Fr. Marvin Mottet, YCS moderator. Led by Fr. William F. Wiebler the YCS’ers sang the Mass and participated in an offertory pro- cession. Fr. Louis Colonnese gave the ser- mon. He pointed out that the burden of reChristianizing the teenage society must be done by the members of that society, the YCS. Elected president of the federation was George Tibbets of Hayes high school, Muscatine. Sharon Rose, Our Lady of Lourdes, Bettendorf, was named vice-president. Art Johnson, lo- cal president of YCS, a parishioner of St. Mary’s, Davenport, was chosen national YCS representative. One of the events considered most interesting by the mixed teenage aud- ience was a panel discussion of par- ents who were in some way connected to YCS, either as CFM couples or as parents to YCS’ers. Controversial ques- tions were discussed. For instance, should the father ex- ercise his authority? The panel de- cided that the father must be the dis- ciplinarian but he should work with the mother. Parents should work on discipline that is understood by all. In regard to teens and rules made for them parents often forget that the teens think like adults while other younger members of the family don’t. But if a rule is restrictive to a teen he must be willing to make the nec- essary sacrifice if it will help the fam- ily. Some teens wondered why parents don’t explain the facts of life to their children. Panel members thought that often the parents don’t know when to talk about these things to their children. Either the children don’t ask or the parents don’t know how or what to say. The teens are often more ready to approach this subjects than are the adults. Advice to teens who have these questions is: pick the right time and place to ask. Remember that even if you know all there is to know about these facts you must have the proper moral perspective for that knowledge to have any worth. Parents should regulate their teens’ social life, the panel observed. The parents must set definite and strictly enforced rules concerning the tele- phone, television, study, dating (who- where-how long), nights out, what the teens read and don’t read. All of these rules must be elastic enough to adjust to a given situation but not so elastic that they become a farce. Students should put themselves in their parents’ boots if they can’t understand a rule. There should be mutual discussion of problems. Many and varied are the sources of irritation between parents and teens. Major problem is discipline. Discipline, respected discipline, is missing in many, many homes. It’s hard to give the kids what they want. Younger children are big problems. Few problems exist af- ter understanding is accomplished. Teens should think about this, panel members commented. Moreover, the parents must set an example of obed- ience to all lawful authority. Study habits should be regulated by parents. The primary burden of edu- cation rests on the parents, not the school. Parents must provide the right time and place for studying. Prayer life is difficult in the mod- ern home according to the experts on the panel. The busy trend of today keeps the family apart. It is difficult to get the family all home at one time. Everyone has “a lot to do.” If the cus- tom of family prayer has been hand- ed down, prayer is easy; if the custom has not been handed down, prayer is almost impossible. Parents must in- sure that the children receive the sac- raments and that they say at least the morning offering. They should en- courage their children to pray ejacu- lations during the day. Family prayers establish a close bond of unity that is hard to break. Making these observations were 3 sets of parents, each couple of which has a total of 7 children. They were: Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Walter; Mr. and Mrs. Francis Leonard, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Rossmiller. 7

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Student Council In honor of Dennis Vozikus, the student council established the “Den- nis Vozikus Award” at its last reg- ular meeting, Wed., Sept. 23. This award will be given to the underclass- man, boy or girl student council mem- ber, who manifests outstanding serv- ice during the year. This award will be in addition to the student council awards given each year to the boy and girl who have contributed most to council activity. (A story on Den- nis Vozikus appears on page 4.) On Wed., Sept. 30, a committee will see Fr. J. O. McAuliffe, regarding the social activities which may be per- mitted by freshmen. This project was brought to the attention of the coun- cil by two non-student council mem- bers, Jim Miller and Les Bickford. All students are urged to feel free to bring suggestions to meetings, Fr. W. Dawson, moderator, observed. In the interest of promoting school spirit, a committee has been assigned to look into the possibilities of the formation of a pep club. A report on this should be ready by the next meet- ing. Though not appearing in this issue, the student council will again spon- sor a “Youth of the Month,” though the policies under which it will be selected will be altered. The student council will again be in charge of programs sold at the football games. Ads are being solicited and information readied for programs for the Wahlert-Assumption game, Oct. 9. Considers Award, Pep, Activities Preparing for the state student council convention, Judy Eggers points out Ames. Ia., to Mike Cuervorst. Pat Deluhery types as Kathy Kehoe suggests an idea. Jeanne Myers contacts area schools for comparisons. Greg Cusack is absent for the picture. KB Survey Says Jazz is Crazy, Man by Jim Johnson Jeanne Meyer, Judy Egger, Kathy Kehoe, Pat Deluhery, Mike Ceurvorst, and Greg Cusack are preparing a pan- el for the state student council con- vention to be held in Ames, Oct. 19. Kathy Kehoe will also present to the convention a report on the State Workshop held in Cedar Falls, July 12-17. Scholars Vie A flurry of tests with highly-valued scholarships as possible rewards are seen for juniors and seniors. The deadline for entry into the Iowa- Illinois Gas and Electric Company Scholarship Program was Friday, Sept. 25. Three four-year college scholar- ships will be awarded on this program. The first step in pursuing these awards will be the Preliminary Scholastic Ap- titude Tests, given by the College En- trance Examination Board on Oct. 24. The PSAT tests will be given to juniors on that date as a means of guidance. Approximately 80 students will be taking this test at Assumption. “Jazz music is crazy and classical is long hair,” one student thought. An- other said jazz was fast and classical slow. Neither was right. These and 30,000 other answers were given in the Knight Beacon survey taken as a poll of student opinion to serve as a guide for publication. The survey revealed many things; such as, only 10% of the students didn’t know who the director of As- sumption High School was. The 10% was comprised mostly of freshmen. Oddly enough, many boys did not even recognize the change in the habits worn by the B.V.M.’s but most of those who noticed the change liked it. Many of the students thought the new habits looked more comfortable on the nuns. Most students, bored with the sum- mer routine, were glad to get back to school. A few capitalists, neverthe- less, were sorry to give up that sum- mer job. The summer was not com- plete boredom, however, for the aver- age student saw five movies and did some reading. Tolstoy’s War and Peace was on one boys list of books. According to the survey the majority of Assumption students are college- bound; moreover, 20% more boys than girls plan to attend. Most of the stu- dents had not determined the college they planned to attend. School spirit was considered by 45% of the girls and 31% of the boys as the school’s biggest problem this year. Several girls cited the boys’ reluctance to dance as the greatest problem. Few had solutions to offer. About 60% of the student body dates; 25% of these have gone steady. Approximately 95% of those who date have done so in a group. Through the year the results of this survey will be utilized and seen in the pages of the Knight Beacon. 6

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Pubs and mead halls at Assumption? . . . Yep! For those unknowing souls, meadhalls are Anglo-Saxon taverns where men talked and sang of their brave adventures. Shown admiring the products of the boys’ senior English classes are, left to right, Walter Hunt- ington, Mary Ann Sunderbruch, and Tom Atzen, all seniors. Coaches Pour Concrete; Curbs, Drives, Walks Greet Wheels, Feet by John Berntsen “What’s that you say? 25,000 sq. ft. of concrete on this school’s property? I don’t believe it.” Well, believe it or not, there is. Dur- ing this past summer approximately 25,000 sq. ft. of concrete was poured. This includes sidewalks, curbs and drives. The regular maintenance men and Coaches Ray Ambrose, Gene Walton, and Mr. Joseph Maher worked six days a week for nine weeks in order to have it poured in time for school’s opening. Fr. Robert Amborn and Coach Am- brose supervised the pouring. Accord- ing to Coach Ambrose, “It was a busy summer, but we poured concrete every- day in spite of the shortage of mater- ials and help. The cement job was fairly routine. Everytime we found a path where kids were cutting, we put a sidewalk.” Sidewalks are only part of the im- provements started or finished during the summer. So far 260 shrubs have been planted. Over 100 have been planted in front with the rest scattered around the back entrances and the flagpole. Most of the work needed for the planting was done on a volunteer basis. Mr. Emery Sedlock, Our Lady of Lourdes parish, Bettendorf, super- vised the planting. Some of the types are: Blue Spruce, Scotch Pine, Globe, Hill Dundee, Hick’s Yew, and Douglas Fir. Deciduous trees such as elm, oak, and maple will be planted in November or later when the sap has stopped running. Other improvements include the parking lot flagpole donated by Mr. Charles Lepetit and Mr. Herman Alter of Joman Steel. Two cut stone retaining walls were constructed, one by Section D, an- other behind the convent. The wall by Section D collapsed because of water pressure but will be rebuilt. Frandsen Excavating company will start grading work soon on the land north of the parking lot. In years to come this land will be developed into football practice fields, baseball dia- monds, a track, softball diamonds, and possibly tennis courts. Alumnae Traipse to Convent Life, Alumni Migrate to Minor Seminary by Kathy Kehoe What a life! No men, fancy clothes, cars, luxuries, or social life. Can any girl actually live without these things? Apparently so, for, in the BVM order alone, 2500 women are doing just that. Assumption graduates Alice Leh- man and Susie Springer spent the past summer preparing for entry into the postulancy of the BVM and Humility orders, respectively. Alice, who will be a postulant until February, left for the BVM Mother- house in Dubuque on Aug. 2. At pres- ent, her schedule is filled with varied courses, including social graces, typ- ing, and speech. She will begin reg- ular college work soon, although the emphasis will be on spiritually until the completion of her canonical year. As a member of the BVM’s, a teach- ing order, Alice plans to specialize in math. Even in the convent, housework can’t be escaped, and the postulants are assigned special duties in the dor- mitories. The novices have the unique duty of chasing bats when they are in evidence, a situation reminiscent of Alice’s ICA days. Life is not all work, however. Pic- nics, tennis, and badminton enter into the picture, and when the Lehmans visit their daughter in October, they will bring a pair of bright red tennis shoes. Susie Springer has been in Ottumwa since Sept. 7 as a postulant in the com- munity of the Sisters of Humility. She will also take college courses, prepar- atory to a life of teaching, and will remain a postulant until June 8. Sister Mary St. Marguerite, BVM, the former Ruth McMeans, ICA ’58, is presently a junior novice. Sister St. Marguerite recalled that when she bought her clothes for the convent, she always too ksomeone along for moral support. One day when shopping for black heels the shoe clerk just gazed at her and sad, “Are these for you? Are you sure?” With the exception of this incident the various other clerks were very encouraging. After she left, Ruth’s letters were filled with requests con- cerning distribution of her clothes, and greeting for friends and relatives. Long walks, garden work, classes and studying make these prospective religious welcome a 9:00 lights out. Sister Mary Marguerite sums up the feelings of all three about their new life when she states, “Naturally, I just love it.” Assumption is well represented in the St. Ambrose College minor semin- ary by seven graduates, Leo Feeney, Larry Brafman, Pete Hart, Bill Walz, Ed Botkin, Jim Murphy, and George Warner. We’ll hear about their life in another story. 8