Sacred Heart High School - Vine Leaves Yearbook (Vineland, NJ)

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Leaves At Mass that morning we realized our importance for after all we were Sophomores. There were now babies beneath us and what babies they seemed. We felt confident that we weren’t that bad when we were Freshmen. We felt so badly for them that year that we had a party for them in November “Welcome Freshmen”. As Sophomores our lives were really increased for we suddenly realized how important we were to S.ll.II.S. The hgures in Geometry were all so simple, and getting through Caesar’s Gaelic Wars was no trouble at all. We were somewhat amazed, therefore, on that first report card day when all the Sophomores suddenly began singing the “Dies lrae dies ilia”. As the production of “Where there’s a Will” came into existence we let the Freshmen who didn’t know any better get the ads and sell the tickets, for after all we were Sophomores. Sopho- mores, we later learned knew nothing but they thought knew everything. As Spring came the first signs of Spring fever hit the class and some of them were bitten by the old love bug and have never yet recovered. It was only a few, however, who did manage to get to go to the Junior Prom so the theme song that year was “Jealousie . As Graduation night came there was less noise in church for now we had control over our knee action. Perhaps it was due in some measure to the fact that fewer of us made that trip to the altar that night to receive awards. That always remained the mystery, why we who were Sophomores and who knew so much could not convince the faculty of the vastness of our knowledge but such was life, we thought for no one ever really understood Sophomores. The year was filled with many memories for that was the year that the Mighty Mites went through their basketball year with great zest and when many of us took the long trip to Trenton with high hopes in our hearts. We held our heads high that year in town for we conquered the City Championship. This was the year too that Sacred Heart set off on her Baseball career. What pleasant memories of that year of years, when we were the best sophomore class ever. That Summer was a cool, wet one for the thirst for Knowledge was not longer with us and the zeal of 1943 had become water logged by 1945, when we with hesitation made our feet trod back that long last mile to Landis Avenue. Again as we went to Mass we felt compassion for those youngsters setting out on their High Sch x)l activities. They were cute “kids” but who liked kids. When Basketball Games started being the topic of the year, we now started making more trips with the team for we were starting to use buses. This was the initial trip for Spagettti and it was the year of great activities for after all we now had several represenatives on the Cheering Squad. The Basketball Team didn’t fare so well that yt»ar but after all, we were comparing them with the year before when we had a championship team. Then as the spirits of Christmas were dying down, faint rumors were starting to spread that Play Practice was in the coming. Then we started the practices, those Sunday afternoons when we tried the dance steps and did our songs. Finally the opening Night when we came down in all the finery of our evening wear to charm the spectators with our poise and talents for after all we were the Juniors of Sacred Heart. “Anne of Green Gables” was a huge success that year, and we never let on but we knew very well that it was because this was the first year that we were in it. Then as Spring came closer and we began to thaw out from the winter we entered the Magazine Drive with full pep and vigor. For the first time we not only reached our goal we far sur- passed it. With the passing of Easter we had a new activity added for it was then that the weekly dances started. What a chance to keep up on all the local happen-

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Class History Our hearts were young and gay that bright September morning in 1943. Mom wiped away a few tears and Pop burst a tew buttons when they saw their little darlings setting off for their High School career. As we attended Mass that morning we knew that S.H.H.S. now had a class that would long be remembered. We knew that we were destined to break all records, but, alas alack, there were few who would agree with us. As we left Mass and took up our high school life, tears filled the eyes of all who stood there watching us for now they knew that Sister Dolores Christi’s babies had grown up. To the eyes of all the upperclass- men, however, we hadn’t advanced one bit since we all sat in Sister’s classroom. We soon learned why our chests had been swelling for we discovered that now for the first time Sacred Heart High School had two Freshmen classes. That first day with its a -f- bs; its amo— amare’s and its H20’s made our head spin a bit but we wouldn’t admit it for there were many strangers with us now who came from other parishes than ours and with whom we had never been in class before. That first year, of course, was a quiet one for no one was ever aware of the Freshmen unless there was work to be done and then they were the most im- portant people in the school. When it came time for the dances we fell back quickly into our niche for no one ever thought freshmen were old enough to know how to dance. When you finally did build up enough courage to get out on the dance floor you could see the eyes of everyone upon you, with a mixture of two emotions; — one of amazement that we could be so bold, the other of pity at our helplessness and you knew very well that in their hearts they were saying Does your mother know you’re out!’’ To add to the general confusion, they had us all fingerprinted which in no small way created the impression of There s the Culprit”. Oh what joyful bliss that first year when we knew nothing and knew we didn’t when our theme song was still Mammy ”. As the months wore off and we got used to our present surroundings, we caught the excitement of the new production of “Mother Carey s Chickens” but this too had a very remote bearing on our life concerning itself mostly with ticket sales and lists for patrons. With the coming of Spring and preparations for the Prom our theme song became “Make believe” but our hopes always remained hope and our dreams were all “Paper Moons”. May with its Procession as the culmination of weekly Sodality meetings was closelv followed by June which carried with it the fears of grad- uation. Our knees that night kept time with the organ notes as some of the more fortunate intellectuals went up to carry off the honors. Many resolutions were formed that night about what we would do next year in class. That night did wonders for us for we seemed to have aged immensely, we were no longer Fresh- men but now Sophomores and suddenly we gained in popularity with the upper- classmen. That first summer as High School Students must have been a warm one for it dried up most of our fonner zeal and the resolutions of that night of graduation faded as mists before the sun. The bells of the following September seemed to have a more plantiff call as they summoned us back to the classroom and we still had some zeal but it seemed to have fallen into our shoes to make each step back to Myrtle and Landis harder to take.

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Leases ings, for we could come down and see who brought whom and what kind of dancers they were. There was the bother of cleaning up of course hut after all, we were Juniors and somebody would manage to stay and do it. Across the horizon there broke a new sun for now we all lived in great anticipation to that Junior Prom. The gvm was decorated with much ado, tickets were sold quite easily, the seniors had been invited and all was aghast at the opening that evening of “Spring Ensemble.” The best ever, naturally, and no class ever decorated as well. With the joyful memories of this still in our heart we celebrated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the coming of the Sisters of St. Joseph to Vineland. Many of the former teachers came hack that day to help us celebrate with much pomp and ceremony. Then came Class day, and what a class day. Frankie Testa was on hand and few of us could keep our feet still as he played those smooth entrancing notes. Oh ves it was a great year and there was a hit of sadness in our heart when we went to Graduation that year for we knew that was the end of it all. Our remorse was, however, rekindled for now we knew that we suddenly became seniors and as seniors would he the leaders of the rest. Of happv thought, so it was with many dreams of what the following year would hold and many secret plans that we set off that summer, the summer when we were seniors. That September there were some mixed emotions within our hearts as we made the journey back. The feeling of sorrow since it was the ending of the vacation and the feeling of importance since we were seniors after all. With the air of all importance we t x k our places that day quietly and efficiently surmising the whole arrangement of things. We were the seniors and had to set the pace for all the underclassmen. The freshmen, naturally, were hopeless for they were so naive in their viewpoints. With proper aging they would probably live through it all. Tvping, Stenography. Chemistry, Histon' and French all fell into their proper places but no one took them too seriously, so things were pretty enjoyable. The one fly in the ointment, so to speak, suddenly appeared from a rather un- expected source for it seemed that the Juniors had suddenly grew to apparent maturity in the race for running things. It seemed hard to imagine that this was that small timid class that we had to hold the welcome party for to make them aware of the fact that they were in High School. Drastic measures had to be taken to keep this hidden enemy down. Saturday Night Dances continued so this gave us a chance to keep the social life intact, of course there was attached to these the necessary evil of cleaning up afterwards but after all Seniors weren t meant to do such menial tasks and after all we were seniors. The bus excursions to the awav games were still active and “Spaghetti” inevitablv turned up on these. It was at this point in the year that the bovs received word from John L. Lewis that thev would have to join the Window Washer’s Union while the girls did a rather efficient job in keeping the library well dusted. Tacks and spools of thread kept some periods in confusion, the trips to the Third Floor Lab when Sulfuric acid was found detrimental to stockinirs and that soap could often look like paint all made this vear the vear of vears. Per usual the French and religion tests found us much perplexed and worried. But we did manage to live through it all. High School life acquired a new aspect when the School staged an amateur show for the Hosptal Fund. The reminder of those costumes, that singing and musical selections still fills us with a certain sense of smugness, for after all when we mustered enough courage to