Fairfield University - Manor Yearbook (Fairfield, CT)

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Since humility is one of our STACYS hnest characteristics, he now gratefully acknowledges the members of his class, who motivated and stimulated his greatness. However, our intelligent leader is equally appreciative of the wonderful efforts of all our parents and professors, for he realizes that without them, our class, intellectual, spiritual, and social development would have been practically nil. , , ,-Jiri' .f t Q55 5 LQ? fi +1t:fEff f??1 W- 'I h 'YSE 7',f if :ilk f g it

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CLASS HISTORY OF 1962 On a balmy September morn in the year i95B, 316 fresh- men registered at a young yet progressive Jesuit institution in Southern Connecticut titled Fairfield University of St. Robert Bellarmine. All were greatly impressed by the natural beauty of the spacious campus. Each individual wondered with deep and mixed emotions about his uncertain future. Can l handle the heavy academic load which will be placed on my untested and boyish shoulders? was the tremendous question which perplexed us all. However, despite this, there was a warm and encouraging feeling of optimism present. Several factors motivated this attitude, with the maior cause being a highly spirited and cooperative student unit, which bore the tradi- tional name of the Freshman Orientation Committee, These congenial Juniors, along with two devoted Jesuits, Father George S. Mahan, S.J., and Father T. Everett McPeake, S.J., had literally spent months preparing a truly impressive and memorable Orientation Week. During our initial days several beneficial events, such as a Student Activities Assembly and a Stag Night were suc- cessfully staged- The latter affair was greatly appreciated, since it followed a rather grueling but necessary day of test- ing, conducted by a dynamic and well respected Jesuit psy- chologist, Father Thomas McGrath, S.J. On that Wednesday, we really let loose while listening to the smooth, mellowing tones of Lee Williams and his Con- servative l'?l Rockers, and laughing at the timely remarks of a rugged-looking history professor, often referred to as Mr. D. One of his most enioyable anecdotes was that a frosh had zealously asked him if he could immediately ioin FairHeld's Newman Club. Also on this occasion, most of us heard for the Hrst time one of the greatest baritones in the history of Fairfield, Steve Dempsey, '6l. On the following afternoon, the conversation from the nicely-kept rooms in Gonzaga Hall to the loaded cars head- ing back to Bridgeport, New Haven, and other areas was centered on the same mutual topic - the profs: Father Bonn, S.J., Kenny Kunsch, Roaring Walter Retry, and Artie Riel were widely discussed. Also, since we were the first freshman class to tackle philosophy, we all remembered that basic syllogismz All men are rational animals. But John is a man. ,'.John is a i'? Friday evening was indeed interesting, for this was the night billed to be the week's social climax, and truly it proved climactic. At 5:30 PM, two buses packed with youthful, naive Fairfield men headed up toward West Hartford with high hopes in their ioyful hearts of meeting their first college honeys. Atter a brief three-hour drive we finally arrived at the farm. As the buses unloaded, it was quite obvious that the Class of '62 had an abundant supply of zeal and drive, as droves of us made a spirited dash for the local latrine. The music was donated by the No Beats of Salvation Army fame, and the refreshments were supplied by CARE- The girls lall six of themi were really out of this world, and all of us certainly agreed as the dance closed at lO:OO PM that they never had quite seen anything like it. ln fact, it is rumored that upon this occasion Teddy Arnold first mentioned his patented remark: I don't believe it. Also adding to the excitement was the fact that Mike Maloney was granted the Typical Freshman award, which consisted of two Tootsie Rolls and a four-year subscription to their campus newspaper, Chastity. Following the t'blast, we proceeded ioyously to push one of our streamlined buses halfway across the Con- necticut Valley. Saturday brought a fun-filled Sports Day, while the week concluded on Sunday with Mass, a Communion Breakfast, and the Rresident's reception. The fond memories of our first days at Fairfield will never fade, and certainly we are most grateful to all those who were responsible for exposing us to this impressive Fairfield tradition. The next six weeks were most vital, for we had to adiust to the academic challenge or be overwhelmed by it. Various i prefects and faculty advisors were most helpful. Just prior to our first bout with the bluebooks, class elections were con- ducted. Vinny Carafiello, a Fairfield Prep Qfgdllgfe was selected President, while Jay Behr, Mike Guglielmo, and Gene Papa were our remaining officers. Shortly after this, our first retreat was conducted. Although every effort was exerted by several priests, especially Father Joseph Murphy, S.J., the retreat was only moderately successful. Some felt the reason for this was that the best retreat is usually a closed one. Two extremely comical incidents occurred at this time. It has been stated that during the ses- sion devoted to the opening of the question box, one rather nervy and witty student astonished the young Jesuit conductor by inserting the inquiry, Is it all right for two Catholics to practise rhythm, if they aren't married? The second incident took place on Friday afternoon, iust prior to closing cere- monies, when two overly-enthusiastic altar boys almost trans- formed Loyola altar into a gigantic fortress of melted wax. However, few dorm students will ever forget the semester's biggest laugh, the famed turkey incident, which unexpect- edly occurred on Halloween- This venture was adroitly engi- neered by Schaefer, Dowling, and the rest of the adventurous G-2 Boys, with the help of a speedy day-hop, who cleverly smuggled the feathered cargo through Fairfield's own Iron Curtain. Even though this happened before the days of the infamous campus cop, this was almost an insurmountable task, since our fair campus was heavily guarded by the world's two most skilled detectives, one, a rather tall indi- vidual, appropriatedly nicknamed the Ghost, could mysteri- ously walk through most obstacles, while his short, rugged, equally witty, cigar-smoking partner, once referred to in the STAG as Fidel, would knock down the remaining ones. How- ever, the record speaks for itself, and history is dictated to chalk one up for the Class of '62. Soon Christmas time was approaching and many of us recall the controversy over the scheduling of our vacation, Certain seniors took the liberty of composing a frank musical recording of their feelings and played it in the world-famous Loyola Cafe. The Christmas Banquet, which featured our usual steaks, was held on the snowy day of our freshman intramural football finals. This highly spirited contest ended