George W Wingate High School - Mosaic Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

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MOSAIC? WHA T'S THA T? Our school yearbook gets its name from the beautiful mosaic outside the main entrance to the building by the steps. A mosaic is a unified composition created by assembling separate pieces of material. IVlosaicists of old used to' select tiny pieces of colored stones, set them close together, and give the surface a high-gloss polish to eliminate the separateness of the parts. It is an art form most distinguishable from painting. One of the reasons for the special appeal in a mosaic is that the viewer unconsciously takes an active part in the creation of the unified picture. If the viewer looks at a mosaic from a distance, he sees it as a unified whole, but upon closer inspection, he can discern the individual and unique elements each part of the design contributes to the whole. The colorful Wingate mosaic by the steps pictures the many and various courses of study and skills offered in the school. Beginning at the lower left of the mosaic, the fine arts of painting and sculpture are depicted, just beyond is a guitar symbolizing music, above, the masks of tragedy and comedy represent drama, and an open book suggest liter- ature. ln the center of the mosaic on the bottom are a saw, a hammer and a compass, stand ing for various aspects of the industrial arts, to the right of that are beakers, test tubes and charts representing the sciences, above them are a set of triangles, one inside the othe other, and alongside them is a spiral, all signifying mathematics courses. To the very upper right is a pitcher of water and somewhat below is a shape that resembles a water faucet- probably meant to signify our home arts classes. Between the pitcher and the fauce is a needle with colored cloths - representing our clothing and fashion courses. And finally in t1e lower right corner are a baseball, a football, and a baseball bat. We all know what they stand for! lf you look for yourself at our mosaic mural outside the main entrance you will probably see a great deal more too. ln the dedication section of an earlier yearbook, we likened the organization of the school to the structure of the outside mosaic: A mosaic, is a combination of different pieces of colored glass and tiles. When they are put together, they form a beautiful picture or design. Wingate is one huge mosaic. The different pieces of glass and tiles are the students, the teachers, the parents, the admin- istration, and the different clubs and teams. When these are all united, they form the Win- gate Mosaic. l r,l t I The graduating class of 19 77 also takes pride in being a part of the great Wingate IVlosaic.

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But George Wingate did not give up his education. During the next few years, he con- tinued his studies at night. He especially worked on his athletic training. Two nights a week, he practiced in a gymnasium. Wingate's interest in physical health is admirable. He was physically handicapped due to a severe burn in early childhood, but through hard, rigorous, persistent training, he be- came a man of unusally well-balanced physique. lVloreover, he was skilled in fencing, tennis, golf, gymnastics, boxing and wrestling. As a sportsman, he glorified in the great outdoors and was an expert hunter and a crack rifle shot. This love of athletics and sports George Wingate never lost. When civil war split the nation, he rendered conspicuous service to his country, serv- ing in the 22nd N.Y. Regiment as General George W. Wingate. ln later years, the General distinguished himself as a skillful lawyer, an active mem- ber ofthe Board of Education of New York, and a valued supporter of many recreational clubs and civic organizations. ln 1867, as an officer in the New York National Guard regiment, he formulated the rules for systematic rifle practice and made it a part of mili- tary instruction in this country. He was instrumental in organizing the National Rifle As- sociation of America in 1871 and was its president for 25 years. The General's greatest achievement was his helping to found the Public Schools Ath- letic League in 1903. He never lost his love for sports and strove continuously to spread the gospel of athletics and games as a means to sound health and good citizenship. To a young friend he wrote: Athletics teaches better than anything else promptness, quickness in emergencies, self-reliance, control of the temper, square dealing and determination - all those mil-ualities which will best enable you to bear yourself manfully in the great battle of i e. As president of P.S.A,L. the General worked hard to urge upon the Board of Education and local government officials the importance of providing more athletic fields, more ade- quate school yards, and more after-school centers. He rallied newspapers, athletic clubs, colleges, and universities to give their support to school athletics through trophies, awards, and scholarships. On lVlarch 22, 1928, General George Wood Wingate, lawyer, soldier, sportsman, and great civic leader, died. W

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