Benjamin Franklin High School - Electron Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

Page 7 text:

:Z fMZcAenez,4 fwefsmie IONEERS have ever been men of courage and daring. The members of the First Class of the Benjamin Franklin High School have very truly been a vanguard. I am confident that you have set a pace and an example that may Well be emulated by those who will follow you. From our first days together, I have realized that it Was asking no easy thing to have you transfer your allegiance from a school under Whose banners you had marched unto your ultimate semester. That you have been Willing and that you have so quickly and easily adjusted yourselves has been to me a matter of constant and great satisfaction. Day by day I have watched your goings and comings with rare delight that you have been Willing to take the Blue and Gold as your oritlarnme. Our school has speedily crystallized into a definite organization. We are conscious of an individuality, and a fine spirit is readily discernible. Every Record Book is significant. This particular volume is of peculiar importance, because it is the first to issue from a school that, new in title, was practically a complete institution from its inception. I have mentioned pioneers. It is my ambition that every' graduate of this class shall feel a personal responsibility in creating an enviable reputation for our school as the first of its membership to enter the life that is beyond our walls. Accept my genuine gratitude for your endeavors on behalf of the school and for your kindness and loyalty to me. I shall carry your memory in my heart, and shall expect that as time permits you will return to our doors to renew the happy associations that have been ours. As you go forth, you bear with you my heartfelt wishes for your success in your various avenues of occupation. Wealth is not always- a test of success. Fix your determinations upon worthy goals, and cling steadfastly to the principles of noble living that have been set before you. May the richest ble-ssings of a kindly Providence rest upon each and every one of you. ' Page3 IUNE,,1939

Page 6 text:

To A. OSWALD MICHENER This First Record Booic is dedicated to si1ow our Appreciation oi his Friendiiness, Sincerity, and inspirational Qualities.

Page 8 text:

To the Members oi the First Graduating Class: S YOU are being graduated from the Benjamin Franklin High School, America is filled with people who are -M literally or figuratively - leaning on shovels. To them lite has lost its zest and tang. lt has become a test ot endurance. And the reason lies not in the sort ot job they have, but rather in the tact that they Won't do the job, Whatever it is. ' 1 - Nothing could be more pertinent, there- tore, than to urge each of you to learn the dig- nity and real satisfac- tion that lies only in Work well done. What- ever mind or muscle nature has given, you will tind its fullest nat- ural expression only in Work. The great men of every generation have invariably been the men lwho have Worked hardest and most persistently at something. Few will care, or ought to care, how long you live or how much you enjoy Working. During your years in this school, you have had opportunity to learn the joy oi good Work willinglyvdone. Some of you have seized that opportunity and have given splendid account ot yourselves. Others ot you have still to learn how great injury you have done to yourselves by doing less than your best - by leaning on your shovel. Never in your lives Will you have a better opportunity than the present to Work long and hard tor what seems a meagre return, but in the long run the rewards are in proportion to the eitort. I urge you to learn the sheer joy ot hard Work, not alone because it will make our school or our nation great, but also - and especially M because by Work alone can you achieve the highest satisfaction in your own life. ROBERT W. CLARK. FRANKLIN ALMANAC Pqgefl