Fairfield University - Manor Yearbook (Fairfield, CT)

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l li . lift' el o FRANCIS H. DOHERTY l48 Wall Street Meriden. Connecticut B.S.S. Government Senior Class President: Sodality l.2,3,4g Student Council 1.2.41 Stag 3.4: Central Connecticut Area Club l,2.3,4g Democratic Club 2. Foreign Rela- tions Club 2g Freshman Orientation Chairman 33 Sociology Club 23 Winter Carnival Committee 4. CLASS OFFICER gh STEPHEN J. KELLY 48 Ramona Avenue Waterbury. Connecticut B.S.S. Ezllaruliort Senior Class Vice-President: Sodality l.2.3.-ll Presidents Advisory Board 41 Debating Society l.2: Education Club 2.3.41 German Club l.2: Sociology Club 1.2: Student Education Associa- tion of Connecticut. Delegate 3: Vice-President 4: Veteran's Club 3.41 Waterbury Club l.2.3.-1. y . -qi an-0-1 CHARLES W. WILLIAMS ROBERT A. HUGHES 24 June Avenue I4 Slonybrook Road Norwalk, Connecticut Fairfield. Connecticut B.S. Physics B.B.A. Bu.t'ir1e.s.t Senior Class Secretary: President's Advisory Class Secretary 4: Glee Club 33 Aquinas Acad- Board 4g Aquinas Academy 43 German Club 1.2: emy 4: Bridgeport Area Club 2.3.41 Business Club Math-Physics Club l,2,3,4g Norwalk Area Club 2. Debating Society 4g Junior Prom Committee l,2,3,4. 2.3: Winter Carnival Committee 2.3.4. 25

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T J' . , . K2 4'- 1 SQ' .ji --sl r J, sg v . ,. , . 5 vi 1125,-I' :' '. ifzx. ' vm Dr. James P. Vail Assistant Professor of Sociology Rev. Francis Torras, S.J. Rev. James A. Walsh, S.J. Instructor in Physics Professor of French and Mathematics and Theology :J-' -3 A ,--.-rf.. Rev. Francis X. Wilkie. SJ. Thomas F. Davis, M.D. Professor of Biology University Physician Miss Mary Kirk, R.N. University Nurse 24

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Senior Class Histor lt was almost noon when I first saw Xavier Hall on that fateful Autumn day in 1954. Another newcomer was standing there on North Benson Road squinting up at the building, Al, he said his name was, and as we shook hands I realized that I wasn't the only stranger here at Fairfield. There were a lot of other newcomers, too, and we were all young, tanned from the summer sun, and eager to meet the challenge of college life. l'm a little scared, Al confessed as we made our way into the maze of corridors, blank forms, and smiling wel- comes that were our first impression of Xavier Hall. But he was smiling broadly when we emerged a little later, slightly dazed, but now officially Freshmen of Fairfield University. Still feeling a flush of excitement, we made our way down to our new kingdom, the Cafeteria, a kaleidoscope of smiling faces, friendly hand-shakes, and brightly-colored booths planned to entice young Freshmen into joining extra-curricular activities. Later Al beamed proudly. Guess what! he said. I just joined seventeen clubs, including the N.F.C.C.S.! What's that? I dunno, but it must be pretty important! And then school began, and our formal introduction to the Ratio Studiorum. Wow, what a history teacher l've got! Al cried en- thusiastically. I can't pronounce his name but he's fun- nier than Milton Berle! Don't be too sure of yourself, Buddy, I cautioned. Wait till you get his first exam. Well, the first exam came, and the first disillusionment. Al sat in a corner of the Cafeteria looking a little shell- shocked. Well, how was the exam?'! I asked. Don't talk about it, he answered, a little shakily. I'm gonna drown my troubles in a coke! We met many unforgettable characters that first year. English students were brain-washed by Father O'Calla- han, Mr. Riel, and grey-maned Father Bonn, who played -singlehanded-Romeo, Juliet, the Nurse, and about half the population of Verona, and was terrific in every role. Some of us made our way into the political arena: Stan Sytka, Sal Gilbertie, Fran Doherty, and Stan Bartnik were our Student Council representatives. We had our athletes, too: Ken Felsmann, Tom Callan, and Brian Rogers were scoring aces of the Frosh basketball team. And a new secret society was formed: The Birdwatchers, they were called, in whispers, and the more elite of our class, Bill Doyle, Gordie Willard, and Gerry Gingras were initiated, and assured us that it wasn't a new Masonic order, though they seemed a little bleary-eyed from the initiation cere- mony. That hrst year ran swiftly by, and Al and I began to settle into the ways of college life in general and Fairfield in particular. You know, Al said to me one moming, It's too bad Mrs. Brady is already married. I've got a crush on her-that Irish charm and that coffee. What a combination-wow! I guess we all felt pretty much the same way, with our affections divided between Mrs. May and Mrs. Watkyns, who sort of adopted all of us. And there were opportunities in all directions. For the budding Carusos and Lanzas there was a Glee Club to compare with the finest in the country. And for those who loved controversy, well, there was the famed Blazer Issue. For some reason we picked as color fire-engine red, and Al and I were among the first to buy them. A week later we were mistaken for ushers in a Fairfield theater. One day Al turned to me with a rather surprised ex- pression on his face and said: Hey! We're sophomores! It was true. Somehow a year and a summer had passed, and we all developed a new-found maturity and savoir- faireg some of us were smoking pipes and even wearing vests. And-how could we forget-we were introduced to two striking members of the English department: Mr. Ed- munds, a sort of intellectual Mickey Rooney, and Mr. Meaney, who seemed to be a combination of Barry Fitz- gerald and Attila the Hun, and had a phobia against white bucks and students who talked like Maxie Rosen- bloom. This time we entered politics with all the enthusiasm and spirit of a rodeo, and out of the jumble of campaign posters and speeches four men emerged victorious: Bill Doyle, our first and very capable President, Paul Nagy, Vice-President, Pete McGovern, Secretary, and Howie Hickey, Treasurer. But they weren't the only politicians: Jim Masterson, Sal Gilbertie, and Fran Doherty were our Student Council representatives. Sophomore year was filled with isolated incidents that somehow fitted together in a colorful jigsaw puzzle both scholastic and social. It was the year that Tom Squires and the entire Knights of Columbus challenged Mr. Meaney's Irish ire, and even now it's hard to say who won that battle of principles. It was the year of the glorious St. Patrick's Day Parade, when even Italian and Polish students burned with zeal for the Old Sod and tramped proudly down Fifth Avenue with Fairfield ban- ners fiying. It was the year that the Glee Club made their first recording for R.C.A. Victor, and we all agreed that they made beautiful music together. It was the year of the touching Flowers for Father Shanahan gesture of the resident students. And this unforgettable year drew to a close in a blaze of fellowship and camaradarie in the testimonial dinners for Mr. Meaney and Mr. Edmunds, and as Al and I stumbled joyously home, he mumbled happily, It's been some year, hasn't it?