Coalinga High School - Petrolia Yearbook (Coalinga, CA)

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June 1937 The Petruliu Page 3 FOREWORD In ibis East-moving world of to- day, the spirit of modern times is typified by the baste and ac- tivity wi b which everyone works. Each individual seems to have a definite and limited amount of time in which to carry on the ne- cessities of living. School life has speeded up to keep apace with the rush of i be machine age in which we are now living. The present-day newspaper best characterizes this ac ivity. T e r S e headlines flash news throughout the world, enabling one to be informed en last-min- tlte happenings at a mere glance. Sub-heads and stacks carry the details: feature stories and freaks add human-interest and local col- or. The members of I be staff of this year ' s Petrolia have attempt- ed to capture this trend by pat- terning the 1937 book after the modern newspaper. The conven- tionality which has usually tied the hands of a yearbook staff has been done away with, and in its place have been substituted up- to-the-minute ideas. In keeping with the theme our efforts have been turned toward a more unique arrangement of material and a greater diversity of sections. In place of the old still pictures, action photos and candid camera shots have been presented. Just as the influence of the aewspape r is unquestionably stamped upon the lives of the public, it is our earnest desire that this edition of the Petrolia will stamp memories of school days upon tbe life of every individual in the school, till the h a n d of Deatb writes 30 on your career. DEDICATED TO ONE WITHOUT WHOSE cooperation and confidence so cheerful- ly given them for six years, members of this outgoing senior class would not have had inspiration. WITHOUT WHOSE perseverance and understanding, our rise would not have been forceful. WITHOUT WHOSE services as faculty adviser for The Pe- trolia for the past two years, we would not, nor could not have been successful. WITHOUT WHOSE staunch refusal to be honored, this sur- prise dedication would not have been so pleasurable. MRS. RUTH LiMUNYON

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Page 2 The Petrolia June 1937 Vice Principal Gives Message To Graduates Elbert Hubbard once s a i d, The true test of one ' s education lies in the possessor ' s ability to serve. At no time has this statement been more applicable than tcday. As young men and women com- pleting your high school work, the challenge of the world lies in the one word service . The one thing in which I he world is inter- ested is your ability to serve. You will not ne cal ed upon to give an account of how m u c h work you have taken in school or how much you k n o w. The world is not interested in your tack recoids. your position on the debating team, or school lien- ors you have taken, unless they are indications cf your ability to serve. It is in erested in what you can do. It is interested in your ability to give to your fel- low men. in service, that which goes beyond doing what you have agreed to do. what you have been paid for doing. It is interested in that additional service w h i c h makes your work s and out. and above the ordinary requirements of the task. As an example of the difference between required w o r k and service, let us take the case of the gasoline station operator, who nils your gas tank and puts w a- ter in your radiator, and w i t h this, considers his task complet- ed. Now let us compare him with the man who, with a smile, wipes your windshield, the rear w i n- dow, checks y o u r battery and tires as a part of the work of selling gas and oil. We need not ask which station is going to get your patronage. And still, both j men perform the required task, j One, however, gave you some- thing that money cannot buy. The willingness to take care of the things that were, perhaps, not absolutely necessary, but added greatly to your c o m fort and frame of mind. Service Plus Duty It is service of this kind that the world is looking for, and is willing to pay for. There are plenty of opportunities for these who have trained themselves to consider their work or their posi- tion as worthy of more of their time and energy t h a n just the eight hours per day. which is the actual requirement of your job. It is this type of service, willing- ly given, that has taken a young- freight clerk and placed him in the railroad president ' s c h a i r, and it is this kind of service that has produced the things w h i c h have made this world a better place in which to live. There are today, as there have been in the past, opportunities for those who have prepared themselves for work in some par- ticular field. To the student who has trained himself to do this work well, who can find work to do without being told, and who can do it with a smile, the word failure will have lost its mean- ing. And. to the Class of ' 37, if you give to the world your best, it will return its best to you. — T. A. ELLESTAD.

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Students Plan for World Peace The topic for the annual Senior Essay this year was World Peace . Such a topic is especially fitting at the present time because of the horrible war that is raging in Europe and the trouble that is brewing between the more important nations of the world. At the Seventh Annual Ideals Conference held in Fresno on April 3, one of the discussion groups was on the subject of Youth and World Peace. The underlying theme brought out in every discussion on the subject was the fact that the peace of the civilization of the future rests in the hands of today ' s youth. We must realize that if our world is to be made free from the ravages of war and the iron hand of dictatorship, a constructive plan must be in- itiated today whereby such a situation could be brought about. Universal peace and good will is a patient, logical building, step by step, as constant as evolution and as unfaltering as time. Countless plans have been suggested, and every proponent thinks that his brain child is the only appropriate one. There are pessi- mists and optimists who will give innumerable views on the subject, but through it all one fact remains. The time has come for a change, and only those who do not have the energy and initiative to undertake it can fail to see the need. One of the most logical plans that has been proposed is that the solution of the prob- lem lies in EDUCATION — primarily a revi- sion in the methods of teaching in regard to militarism and peace. The first step in such a plan might be a change in the manner our young people are trained in the home. This would alter their view-point and allow them to look at the subject of peace and war with minds that are unbiased by prejudice. In many of the countries of the world, especially Ger- many, children are taught that the greatest honor attainable is to die for their country. They are taught to blindly worship their lead- er, even though he may be a ruthless dictator determined to destroy the very civilization of which they are a part. All of this is good pa- triotic sentiment, but what does it get us be- sides heartbreaks and destruction? The next step to attain would be a revi- sion in our system of teaching in the schools and universities on the subject of war. This could be begun by a revision of textbooks deal- ing with the subject. They should be made up-to-date and not continue to cling to the idea of hatred that is so prevalent. It is only when we can understand and analyze a situ- ation that we can constructively work to over- come it. At present vivid pictures are painted in our minds of the horrors and terrors of war, but we are not taught how to prevent them. We are not told that it is the job of youth to build upon past experience and actually make plans whereby peace can be effected. When all this is accomplished we have laid a solid foun- dation on which to build. Such a system could then be extended. By wider use of the radio and the control of hos- tile propaganda, nations could be brought in- to closer contact with each other. The habits and peculiarities of other countries could be learned and allowances made. By expositions of the fine and applied arts the culture of other races could be studied. By means of interna- tional forums and student correspondence edu- cational facilities could be brought together and the topic made universal. By means of all these things just mentioned race prejudice could be entirely done away with and in its place a great amelioration between the nations of the world. A challenge has been made to the youth of today. Let us meet this challenge squarely, and fight with every fibre to overcome the monster of war, lest it overcome us.