Curwensville Area High School - Echo Yearbook (Curwensville, PA)

Page 13 text:

THE ECHO GRANT NORRIS Jn bdzzcafoz ln the passlng of Grant Norris hls famlly has lost a lovlng and dexoted father the commuruty has lost a progressive and patrlotlc cltlzen and the public schools have lost a good instructor and a staunch advocate ln my assoclatlon wlth hlm durlng the past ten years l have always found h1m lnterested ID our boys and glrls and ever anxlous to do all ln hls power for thelr advancement He had lmpllclt faxth ln the younger generatlon and both by word and act de fended them agamst the calumny whlch we so often hear heaped upon them As pr1nc1pal of the Curwensvllle schools he asslsted m and vutnessed a declded advancement and expanslon He was a man of wlde vlslon and was constantly planmng for better thlngs for our boys and girls Many of these projects were not attained durlng hxs llfe but yet the vlslon was there He was also a tlreless worker for the advancement of hrs communlty and Curwcnsvllle has taken some decided steps forward due IH large measure to hls plannmg and enthuslasm As l knew him hls characterlstxcs mlght be summed up nn the llnes of the poet Browmng Take the joys and bear the sorrows nelther wlth extreme concern' Llvlng here means nesclence slmply s next llfe that helps to learn Shut those eyes next life Wlll open stop those ears next llfe wxll teach Hearlng s ofhce close those llps next llfe Wlll glVC the power of speech Or lf actlon more amuse thee than the passive attltude Brtvely bustle through thu being busy thee for 111 or good Reap thls life s success or fallure' Soon shall thlngs be unperplexed And the rlght or wrong nom tangled he unraveled ln the next XV P Trostle Supt of Schools Clearfield County Q -1 -1 1 Q . . . . . V . . . . . 7 . y - . . x . . . i x . U - . . . . , . , tl . , . . , E v xl ' - V - Y, 1

Page 12 text:

THE ECHO A TRIBUTE By a Faculty Member By the death of IVIr Grant Norrls we of the Hrgh School faculty have lost a frlend Through our daxly assoclatlon wrth hlm ln our school work we learned to know h1m to appreclate hxm to slncerely respect hlm Great as were hrs educatxon his experience and hls executive abllxty rt was not these qUal1tlCS that especlally endeared IVIr Norrls to those who knew hlm It was that whlch came from wlthm his sympathy hrs unselfishness hrs tact his kindly humor that gamed for hrm such loyalty among hls fellow teachers as few men have the ablllty to rnsplre Nothlng was ever too much trouble for hlm no one ever found hrm too busy to glVC hrs help I-Ie was always just open mlnded optlmlstlc He never dlctated to those who worked under hlm he collaborated wlth them In short he was to each one more than director and gulde He was a personal frlend whose Ioss we feel keenly but whose frlendshlp we are proud to have had Gretchen Lerb WKGW AN APPRECIATION By a Board Member We the members of the Board of Educatlon of Curvxensvllle pay the last trlbute of respect to our Supervlsrng Prlnclpal Prof Grant Norrrs not on account of any custom or duty but ln appreclatxon of his worth and a sense of loss at hrs departure Our schools were hrs prlde and he was an enthusrastlc advocate of every measure calculated to lncrease thelr efflclency and elevate thelr standards of scholarshlp and Intellectual culture IVIany tlmes we have heard hlm say he loved the work and the schools of CUTWCDSVIIIC were ever dear to hlm No sacrlfice was too great ID educatxonal matters for the advancement of the girls and boys of our community I-Ie took prlde ln the development of our schools and ln the development of our town and vxas foremost I mlght say ln doing thmgs for the advancement of our communlty I-Ie has left many concrete evldences of hls energy and loyalty IH our commumty truly he has made hls mche ID CUYWCHSWIIC Anna B Klttelberger, Secretary I 0 ' . . , 7 - . , . , , , , , , .

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I2 THE ECHO GRANT NORRIS A Frzend In order to understand IVIr Norris as a friend I think it is well to conslder some of the qualities that enter into a great friendship This is a subject that has been the theme of poets and philosophers from the very beginning of ClVlllZa tion and it will probably continue to involve the mterest of the human race to the end of time Probably no other subject has received more attention and probably no other experience has added more to the happiness of the human race While different writers may stress different qualities as being important factors in a friendship I think every one will agree that the greatest yearning of the human heart in every class of society old and young poor and prosperous wise and foolish is for sympathetic understanding The person who can only stare when you speak of something that stlrs your soul IS a poor companion The person who is not touched by scenes that bring tears to your eyes is of I1ttIe comfort in times of trouble The person who can see no reason for your joy and your sorrow lacks feeling and understanding Some one has said that Loneliness does not consist in being alone for then ministering spirits come to soothe and bless Loneliness IS to endure the presence of a person who does not under stand Grant Norris had wonderful ability in understanding the feelings of human the democrat He was able to converse with the man at the plow as well as wlth the man in the office I-Ie was ready at all times to talk about fishing or philosophy I-Ie was able to enter into sympathetic relations with people of all classes And in addition to his deep understanding he had an unusual amount of tact rn getting along with people Few people have ever been hurt or offended by hls criticism I-Ie was unusually kind This made him a most comfortable companion This does not mean that he was not a man of definite notlons and strong convictions I-Ie was generally the Ieader of the group with which he was asso ciated This came about partly because he was well informed and largely because he was an easy conversationallst and an excellent debater He was quick to take advantage of the weak spot in his opponent s argument And along wlth the keenest arguments he was always well polsed and affable So he was a real favorlte in clubs and social gatherings His deep interest and Iarge sympathy with the world crowd did not prevent him from having some close friends who belonged to the inner circle Those who were privileged to know his deepest nature will agree that he had the soul of a poet and the mind of a phllosopher I doubt if any other man has ever quoted as much poetry to me as he has He used to revel in sollloquies in the conversa tions that great men held with themselves and in whlch they justified their con duct or lamented thelr fates And with all his ability as a speaker he was a perfectly good Ilstener I-Ie enjoyed soc1aI intercourse and was a master in the greatest of all arts Irving in harmony with his surroundings D S Swaney WHILE? GRANT NORRIS A Publzc Servant I knew Professor Grant Norris for a great many years I-Ie was very broad minded in everything he undertook and as a result of this splendid trait he was recognized as a Ieader Professor Norris a natlve born and raised son of Clearfield County was generally acclaimed her most successful educator I-Iis reorgamzation of our beings in all walks of life, He was as much at home with the aristocrat as with