Bennett High School - Beacon Yearbook (Buffalo, NY)

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SENIOR CLASS HISTORY The blue sky spotted with the whiteness of the bil- Iowy clouds is aflame with the dying rays of the setting sun. The end of the day draws nigh and we, Weary from our journey, can look back upon our travels with fond memories. How we remember the first day-the embarking of our ship and the new found hopes and aspirations of reaching our home port-graduation. After we ascended the gang plank, we were ushered into the huge assembly hall where we were given our first. sailing instructions by Admiral Emmons B. Farrar. We were then assigned our state rooms where we encountered our lst touch of sea-sickness-white cards, yellow cards, orange cards! All of which, as we would soon see, had to be filled out every day of our voyage. As members of Deck D-CFreshmenD, we voted to help the officials navigate a steady course by electing Stuart Bargman our representative to the executive staff of the passenger council. Sylvia Fleck and Pat Krueger ranked highest on the honorary passenger list and Frances Celniker and Bar- bara Tzetzo recorded the events of Deck D in the BEACON Journal. Deck tennis was a favorite sport and Alan Gerstel assisted in capturing the coveted Bapst cup in an unde- feated season. The passengers were taken to the grandassembly hall where we were marvelously entertained. This was the day when the documentary movie- We Go to Bennett was shown and we were all fortunate in being able to attend its Premiere. Jackie Jocko and the King's Four were transported to our line by Bob Wells. Our first opportunity to entertain the passengers and crew was anticipated by all. Diane Gotthelf, Mary Krikorian, and M. C. Martin Packard Camong othersj pleased their critical audience on Deck D. day and San- ford Shire represented our deck in a pantomime in the Variety Show. The experiences of the first day prepared us for deck C-the deck of 'Wise Fools'. Sue Getman, who was elected to guide us as our representative on the Execu- tive Staff, wrote a prize-winning essay for the Science Contest. Those who excelled scholastically joined the newly initiated honor classes where, in the English Depart- ment, we amalgamated the study of Dickens with the study of classic comic books. Janice Chalmer and Sue Getman entered the inci- dents and occurences of Deck C in the BEACON Jour- nal in which appeared the prize-winning essay of Mary Ann Schaefer- Hocus Focusf' The ship's theater welcomed Diane Gotthelf and Linda Sturner into its portals, and a troup of 61 Deck C passengers won acclaim in the Ship's Variety Show. The B. B. S. reported that We had successfully won the Thanksgiving day classic football game and cap- tured the Yale Cup for Basketball. We again claimed the Bapst tennis cup and retired the Cornell Baseball Trophy after winning it for three successive years. Vice Admiral Carl Walz was transferred and pro- moted to Admiralty of the good ship Riverside and Lloyd A. Miller, his appointed successor on the H. S. Bennett, was accepted with much enthusiasm by both the passengers and crew. Night came and another day was born. Then at the half way mark of our journey, we moved bag and baggage to Deck B. Entirely groomed to the Ml -I-:nl Sophomore discussion in World History procedures of ship life, our thoughts turned to higher and larger liners of learning-college. College Day pre- sented to us the opportunity to acquaint ourselves to various liner representatives and the travel agency fthe Guidance Officej, arranged the excursions and sight- seeing expeditions. Paul Cherulnik, Gerald Dankner, and Sylvia Fleck won the opportunity to leave the ship and travel the Waters of continental Europe and Israel as did Dickie Judelsohn, who tried his Spanish in Panama.

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VALEDICTORY Tonight four years of hard work, fun, and growth have come to an end. This fact is not yet quite real to us who are most greatly concerned, for our hearts and souls are still deeply embedded in this school. Indeed, we may not fully realize the Hnality of this evening until next fall when, for the first time since our early childhood, we will not return to public school. We will be too old, and this is strange because here- tofore we have on so many occasions been too young. Four years ago when we first came to Bennett, we were children. The long corri- dors and strange faces frightened us. Our freshman subjects seemed difficult and our homework long. Now we stand before you, young adults. This has been no change magically wrought by the wave of a wand. The work, efforts, and hopes of many people have made this transformation possible. Tonight, as we leave high school forever, it is only appropriate that we should express our gratitude to those who have so helped us. Our greatest debt is certainly to our parents. They have encouraged and advised us for as long as we can remember. Throughout our years of school they have been at our sides. When we failed, they reassured usg when we were worried, they com- forted usg when we were in trouble, they helped usg and when we did well, they rejoiced with us. Whatever success we have achieved is due largely to their assist- ance. Parents can not be always with us, so a second debt is owed to our teachers. To- night, each of us can name silently in his heart those instructors and counsellors who have most inspired him. The impact of these dedicated lives upon our own cannot be measured, but the ideas and beliefs of those who have taught us are stamped indelibly upon our souls. No school can be truly great unless it has great leadership. During our four years here, we have been privileged to study under the direction of four outstanding men. Our principals, Mr. Farrar and Mr. Miller and our assistant principals, Mr. Walz, Mr. Miller, and Mr. Raiken have always stood ready to give us a helping hand and encouragement when we needed it. To all of these people we give our heartfelt thanks. Tonight is the consummation of the hopes and dreams of those who have been so concerned about us. Our parents and teachers have done their best to equip us with education and good training-the tools for successful living. Their work is com- pleted, and the rest is up to us. Now, at the end of four years of high school, it is time for us to think seriously about our futures. Tonight is the end of nothing but the beginningg indeed, gradua- tion exercises are rightly called Commencement-the beginning. We stand on the very threshold of life, ready to enter our chosen fields of endeavor. It is to our child- hood and to our years of preparation that we say Farewell, Frances C. Fowler 21

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A new-comer, hailing from Southern shores, Frances Fowler earned the highest scholastic honors of the pas- senger list. She further proved her intellectual achieve- ments when both she and Clara Dusch became semi- finalists for the National Merit Scholarships. Patricia Hoffman was appointed keeper of the Deck B journal and Stuart Bargman was once again elected to the Executive Staff. Speaking of elections, the results of the officers' ballot wereas follows: Captain-Donald Alexander, First mate-Susan Getman, Navigator- Judith Clarke, and Pursers-Frances Celniker and Ste- phen Gosch. Deck B proved to have a 'healthy' atmosphere, and to keep within the spirit of things, we produced sports- men by the dozens. Frank Ralabate, still running, earned an All High position in both track and cross countryg Alan Gerstel, by brilliant performance, became All High in tennis. Deck B Day proved to elicit the talent of our young orators when Cynthia Hall and Richard J udelsohn were proclaimed winners of the annual Mercer Speaking Contest. As the third day came to a close, we marked the re- tirement of Admiral Emmons B. Farrar. His glorious twenty-five year command over the ship was at an end, and his successor was our own Lloyd A. Miller, our present Admiral of the H. S. Bennett. Our journey was almost at an end, and our course had been well plotted. We, the passengers of Deck A, had the wheel-it was our ship now. Joel Greenberg became chief of the passenger council and James Blinkofi' chief of the BEACON journal. Once again we cast our ballots for our commanding officers: CAPTAIN--DONALD ALEXANDER FIRST MATE-JUDITH CLARKE N AVIGATOR--FRANCES CELNIKER PURSERS-SUSAN GETMAN STEPHEN GOSCH STEWARDS--KATHRYN RESTORFF ROBERT YOST KEEPERS OF THE LOG-STUART BARGMAN CARLA STEINBERG STAR GAZER-JOEL GREENBERG VALEDICTORIAN-FRANCES FOWLER SALUTATORIAN-SYLVIA FLECK Waiting, waiting, waiting! The liner lingo turned to College Boards and acceptances to the colleges of our choice. The travel agency was booking passages every- where and could barely keep up with the requests of the passengers. We welcomed from Swedish waters, Elizabeth Gus- tavsson who worked by our sides as if she had begun this voyage with us. In her honor, the H. S. Bennett sponsored a dance and concert, both of which were very successful. The efforts of our sports teams proved abundantly fruitful. The football team easily procurred the Harvard Cup championship and George Zilliox became all high. Not to be outdone, the Cross country team captured the Columbia cup, with Frank Ralabate and Donnell Williams attaining All High positions, and we won the Yale Trophy in basketball. How pleasant the memories of one sweet night in June-the memories of the gala prom for which Deck A had waited so long. It was a scene of dancing feet and laughter arising from amidst the crowd. Those Junior year Held trips! But how quickly the scene changed, and how quickly we found ourselves driven deeply into our books of learning. Our final tests proved us seaworthy, and the period of uncertainty vanished, we knew we had navi- gated a true course. And the rays of the sun are growing dim, the port of our destination is in view. And we know that although this voyage is over, tomorrow will bring a new day and a new voyage. Senior Class Historians