Saline High School - Salinian Yearbook (Saline, MI)

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'TOMORROW IS WHAT WE MAKE IT' by Alice Klein--Valedictorian Parents, teachers, classmates, and friends: Welcome to our Commencement exercises. Tonight marks the end of the first short phase of our life. Tomorrow we will be out in the world, and more or less, as we say, 'on our own.' Since we will now be expected to meet and solve our own problems, we want you to observe the motto we have chosen as ours: 'Tomorrow Is What We Make Itn. This motto places the full responsibility upon us, the youth of America, to make our to- morrow a safe and peaceful one, one which will ever be free from the agony, suffering, and bitter pangs of war. First of all, however, we must be concerned with winning the war. It is much more serious and grave than we realize. Many people say 'We can't lose, it can't happen here.' gg, we can't loseg we can't afford toi we must not, or else all the degradation, all the misery and suffering that have been loosed upon Europe will be loosed upon us. We, of all people will not escape it. We dare not relax for a moment if we expect to end this war soon and victoriouslyg and thus have a chance to prepare for a 'brighter' tomorrow. If we are to reach this goal we have set before us, we must prepare our- selves now. Our success or failure will depend wholly upon how well we will be prepared to meet and solve the problems that will confront us. Education is going to play an important role in this preparation. Only young people who have been taught to make their own decisions and form unbiased opinions will be of value in solving future problems. There is a great force at work in Germany now, which we must prepare to conquer and completely subdue. This force is the present youth, they are going to be an even greater menace to the ideals and security of the world than is the present German Wwar machinen. It is the little boys and girls of whom I speak. They are the ones to which many people never give a thought. For nine years now the minds of these German children have been warped. They are not disappointed with Naziismg quite the contrary, it appeals to them. They are actually enthusiastic about it. Most of these children have been moved to towns in Eastern Germany. Hitler is very particular about them. With the exception of the soldiers, if it comes to starving, the youth will be the last to suffer. These children haven't been made to realize there is a serious shortage of food in Germany because they are very well fed and even receive special rations of cakes and sweets not available to grownups. They are given vacations every year at the expense of the State. Those small children still remaining in Berlin each evening are taken to the Fuehrer's own chancellery in the Wilhelmstrasse. There, they play in the luxurious basement, or else see movies or childlike plays. The Great Conqueror, whenever he is in Berlin goes to them and spends one-half hour talking small- talk to them. Those that have been transported to Eastern Germany live in open- air schools and play on great playgrounds scattered over the country-side. The strongest and handsomest of the boys are placed in 'Adolph Hitler Schools.' Their curriculum is amazing. In addition to studying German History, that has been arranged to suit Hit1er's purposes, and the three 'r's'---reading, writing and arithmetic, they are taught to mine coal, build bridges, and u dergo extremely rigorous physical tests. Outwardly their education is very complete, probably more so than our own, but their u derlying education is warping. They are taught to believe in German superiority to all other people. They are rigorously indoctrinated with the racial idea and above all are taught to nate. Christianity is decidedly denou ced and is never mentioned. The children instead are taught to believe in the divinity of the Fuehrer. They finish school techni- cally capable, strong, and alert, but with a sense of values not much more ad- vanced than any member of the gorilla family. These youngsters are going to be exceedingly dangerous to the world of tomorrow. There is no demoralization among their ranks, they are aching to become old enough to fight. Their toys are miniature tanks, airplanes, and gu s, some of which actually shoot. If we think the present Gestapo is brutal that is nothing compared to what it might be if these youngsters are ever permitted to rule. Hitler acquired

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Class History Con't. Grob, Glen Haeussler, Weston Haeussler, Russel Hosmer, Alice Klein, Alta Kuebler, Dorothy Kohler, Virginia Luckhardt, Shirley Maschino, Beatrice Nelson Charlotte Phelps, Alberta Robison, Laura Sally, Eugene Weed, Harold wilson and faul Hack. Initiation by the mighty seniors had our hair standing on end but we survived to follow the navigator of our class, President Charlotte Phelps. Miss Deverna, alias Mrs. Niehaus, was our sponsor who accompanied us on our sleigh-rides, dances, and ice-skating parties. What fun we had--candy sales, amateur programs, and our version of Shakespeare's Caesar. In our sophomore year we settled down to just plain cruising. Mrs. Dinelly and Mr. Bickel were the class sponsors who assisted us in the terrific job of ordering our class rings. With nRed' Feeman as president, our class meetings were positively the best, calm and collected riots which ever occurred on the good ship Education. Russell Bearss, Lynn Burdick, Edward Anderson, and Arthur Singleton joined us. With our destination coming nearer and nearer, we entered our Junior year with Beatrice Nelson as president and Mrs. Washburn and Mr. Burgess as class advisors. Under their direction we greatly enjoyed our Wlearn how to dancen parties. Our play, 'Hold Everything,n produced by Mrs. Lee, netted us noddlesn of fun as well as financial backing for our J-Hop. The patriotic absence of paper in the J-Hop decorations almost Nshipwrecked' us but Mother Nature came to our rescue. We used green bushes and shrubs from the woods with many colored flowers to produce a lovely effect. Into the twelfth grade sailed the class of '43 with chins up and hopes high. Forty-five strong are we. Uncle Sam has already reduced our ranks: Joe Thomas and Russell Hosmer joined the navy early in the year, in February Eugene Weed left for the armed forces. Our class advisor, Miss Stoianowski, poured 'Oil' on our 'troubled watersn and finally brought us into port. Not only did Margaret Finch do a remarkable job as president but also she brought honor to our class by winning the O. E. S. Oratorical Contest. After much worry and hard work on the part of Miss Carrothers and the class, our play, 'Girl-Shy , came through in 'ship-shapen condition. Our Skip Day Trip to Jackson Prison was wonderful for its educational value as well as from the stand point of fun. Scrap and paper drives occupied most of our spare time. We thank the Junior class for the superb JvHop put on in our behalf. Now our voyage through the Saline Public School is finished. The good ship Education lies at anchor today. Soon it will sail again but then its passengers will be on different voyages: some will learn on the job, others in the armed forces, and a few in higher institutions of learning. May we all remember Columbus' words, nSail on, sail on and on!W

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Valedictory Speech Con't. the present Gestapo when the men were on the verge of adult-hood. Thes sters have been influenced and taught Naziism from infancy. Because of fact, they will be true Nazis. Once an idea has been taught and preach child until he believes it whole-heartedly, it is next to impossible to him change his beliefs. .Realizing the potency of these German children, we must educate as Americans as possible to off-set their influence. Not only the Germans the Japanese have a low moral standing and pg sense of fair play. Many hardly realize there is such a thing as ideals and morality. The Japan must be kept from ever exerting an influence upon others. The responsi of accomplishing this task will surely fall upon the shoulders of us Am We must keep alive our present civilization. Many of us do not realize e young- this ed to a make many but also of them ese also bility ericans. it, but it was a lack of education, ideals, and religion that caused that period in the history of the world known as the 'Dark Ages . If we are to prevent the re- occurrence of such a period, we must make every effort to uphold and en Christian religion as well as education. These two things are the very tion and symbol of a free people. courage founda- In addition to education and religion, there is a third factor to which we must give some thought and lifen. Since we are aware and that German youths are However, these impressions building nature and ppt de attention. The factor I am referring to is trained from infancy, we must do likewise in will and must be of a constructive and chara moralizing. It has often been said 'a nation 'home that first impressions on a child are most lasting America. cter- is as strong as its homesn. This is a very true statement and can be repeated to good purpose. It will surely be as true in our future as it has been in the past. We have all heard or studied the period in history when the Roman Civilization was the most dominant one. It was very powerful and important for several hun- dred years. However, even this great civilization began to crumble and later came the fall of Rome. One of the main reasons for this decline and ruin of Rome was the neglect of home life. Earning a living became so difficult for the common person that many were unable to care for their children, and if more children were born it was a common practice to abandon them and let them die of neglect. We must never let such a devastating condition occur in America. Our homes must be considered as one of our most priceless and valuable possessions. America has always been known as a nation of individualists. From the very founding of this country we have insisted upon our inherent right to live our own lives and plan our own futures. This is a privilege all people should and will have after all evil forces have been overcome. Until then, we have no right to call our life our own, but instead we should be willing to make any sacrifice and give our best toward final victory. After peace is restored and we again learn to live normal happy lives, we must try to extend our ideas and customs to people in other countries. They too must be given the benefits we in America enjoy. To us the democratic way of life means much, but it can also mean a great deal to others if they are given an opportunity to discover what it means to be free and independent, and not constantly dictated to by some power mad fanatic. After all people have learned to understand the customs and practices of others, then and only then will we be able to secure and maintain a lasting peace among the many nations of the world. Perhaps many of you are now asking the question, 'Exactly what can we do now in order to speed the day of victory and so accomplish the first part of our goal?' For some the question is automatically answered, they will be called into the different branches of service--several members of our class already are in the service. A few at least should go to college, in war plants or on the farms. Regardless of what we a useful and worthwhile task, and one that will bring final goal. If it is difficult to decide what course in mind, 'Choose the task your judgment tells you you your gll.' I thank you. can do bestg then others will fill positions do,let us make sure it is us one step nearer our to pursue, keep this idea give it