Stoneham High School - Wildlife Yearbook (Stoneham, MA)

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about Dick Price and Gordon Mansell . . . be- fore we knew it the baseball season had rolled around. We came up with a beautiful veteran infield, though I confess 1 can ' t recall all of the hoys who played in it. There was Dick Wright at first, and Bud Dill at second . . . What’s that, Neil? . . . Oh. Bud played shortstop. That’s right — Art Donaghey played second. Who was on third? . . . Don Whiston? . . . How about the other positions? . . . Johnny Coffin pitched and Bob Morcira caught . . . That’s right— and that year we finished second in the league, missing the championship by losing a game to Winchester 4-3 in extra innings . . . Did we have a prom, did you say? . . . I ll say we did — our first Junior-Senior Prom, and what hap- pened! We went sixty dollars in debt! The funny part of it was that we held a school dance two weeks later and cleared the debt with a couple of dollars to spare . . . Then came Grad- uation . . . Remember how poised Don Whiston and Pat Morrell were as class marshals? . . . And after the evening was all over, we realized we were seniors ! “Then, after the summer vacation, we em- barked upon the most important year of our high-school careers. It was also to he the big- gest year Stoneham High had had for a long time . . . The first event of importance was the arrival of a foreigner in our midst. Dottie came from Missouri and, through her person- ality, mannerisms, and quaint accent, gave us a lasting impression of the way students in other countries act and live . . . When class elections were held, we found that Don Whis- ton had succeeded you as president and Ralph Livingstone had taken Dick Mercer’s place as vice president. Margie Coles entered her third straight year as secretary; and Bob Murphy, after having been treasurer for three years, turned that job over to you. Incidentally, you were a class officer every year, weren’t you, Neil? . . . Co-captains John Rolli and Ralph Livingstone led the footbal l team through an excellent season, sporting a record of six wins and two losses . . . We sure had a classy cheer- ing squad, too, led by Margie Picot. Let’s see. who were the seniors on the squad? There were Barbara Court— Joan Wandless — and, oh. yes, Ruth and Virginia Morin . . . Remember the dance the football team ran to get money for sweaters? Mr. Higgins really got in the groove when he jitterbugged with Margie Picot to the tune of ‘The Sheik of Araby.’ From ‘Boomps-a-Daisy’ to jitterbugging in one year — boy, he really was solid! I wonder if he in- cluded those pennies in his income-tax return . . Speaking of teachers, when Miss Dunning left us to take a teaching position in Turkey, we lost an outstanding teacher and a valuable friend. She was replaced by Miss Gross . . . Our class made many ‘firsts,’ one of them that we were the class that started the first Boys’ Glee Club that Stoneham High ever had . . . The basketball team was hit hard by the loss of hoys to the service, but they carried on in the fine Stoneham spirit under the capable leadership of Co-Captains Bud Dill and Wes Parsons. If I remember correctly, the most exciting game of the season was with Melrose at Melrose. Wait a minute — I think I’ve got a clipping about that game in my wallet some- where . . . Yes, here it is. I ' ll read it to you. ‘In the dying seconds of the Stoneham- Melrose basketball game, Stoneham was struggling to overcome a 42 to 40 lead. Suddenly Tony Coletta threw in a basket and the game ended a few seconds later in a tie. A three-minute overtime period fol- lowed. After a Melrose score and a foul shot by Bud Dill, the score stood Melrose 44, Stoneham 43. With Melrose trying to freeze the ball. Bud stole it, dribbled a little past half floor, and let the ball fly. It swished through the basket, and the game ended 45 to 44 in a turmoil on the Stoneham bench.’ “The Winter Carnival, climaxed by the Car- nival Ball, was the next big event. King Don Whiston and Queen Margie Picot presided, and the greatest attraction was the first public appearance of the combined Boys’ and Girls’ Glee Clubs. We were a big success . . . Doc Gordon said his hockey team that year was the strongest and best balanced that he had ever coached. He boasted two good lines, two sturdy defencemen, and an excellent goalie. I remember that after having lost to them twice, Stoneham met Medford in the last cru- cial game of the season, the game that was to decide the championship. Here’s another clip- ping on that. ‘Medford had a big edge in territorial play, hut Stoneham came through in the titular contest because of better balance. Stoneham had only seven shots at the Medford goalie but, capitalizing on a mini- mum of opportunities, scored on goals by Wally Cogan, Bob Murphy, Bay Clark, and A1 MacHenry, winning the game 4-2.’ That game clinched the first championship Stoneham had won since 1937, and what a game it was! Six of the boys made the all- scholastic teams — Boh Murphy, Co-Captain Don Whiston, and Fred Flynn the first team; and Wally Cogan, Bay Clark, and Ralph Liv- ingstone the second. On top of losing Co-Cap-

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GlaAA UiMaly. W ell, there 1 was, all set for a nice, quiet eve- ning at home in my Park Avenue penthouse. The servants had the night off, the wife was away for the week-end, and 1 was sprawled out on my favorite sofa. The radio was playing a Chopin nocturne. 1 was just starting the latest Crime Club mystery when the telephone rang. I was tempted not to answer it ; but after due consideration and a great effort, I removed my- self from the sofa and picked up the receiver. “Hello? Yes, speaking . . . Who? Neil Glynn? . . . Sure I remember you. I haven’t seen you since we graduated from Stoneham High School ten years ago. How are you? . . . Glad to hear it . . . What’s that? . . . Reunion Ban- quet? Say, I’d forgotten all about it. When? Next week? . . . And I’m supposed to give the class history! Why hasn’t someone told me? 1 can’t remember back ten years; you’ll have to help me out. Can you recall anything that hap- pened our freshman year? . . . What? . . . Wait a minute; I ' d better jot that down. ‘Paints and Patches’, operetta, starring Madolin Daley, Riddy Hayden, and Gordon Hansell — O.K. . . . You were vice president that year, weren’t you? Do you remember the other officers? . . . Jack Borthwick, president; Mary Crowther, secre- tary; Bob Murphy, treasurer. Didn’t Stoneham win a second-place cup at the Lower Merrimack Valley Basketball Tournament that year? . . . I thought so . . . And the hockey team finished second in the Greater Boston Inter-scholastic League, you say? . . . Thanksgiving Day game? . . . Oh, yes, we were the under-dogs and hadn ' t had a victory all season and we won by one touchdown. That sure was a thriller ! “What about sophomore year? I remember that first Winchester hike and the football game. Boy, that sure was a heartbreaker, losing in the last thirty seconds of play . . . What, Neil? . . . You say Dick Mercer and Bob Mur- phy were the only lettermen? We had quite a few players on the second team, though. What was the name of that Dramatic Club play? . . . What? . . . Oh, yes, ‘A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court.’ Mickey MacLean was hilarious as the jester and Riddy Hayden did a swell job as the king. Pat Morrell and Bill Riggs displaved fine talent, too. The class wasn’t very active that year, was it? I guess that was because it was our first year in senior high and we didn ' t know what it was all about. Who were the class officers that year? You were president ; Dick Mercer was vice presi- dent; Margie Coles, secretary; and Bob Mur- phy, treasurer — right? Things are starting to come back to me now. Let’s see about junior year. Probably the one event we’ll remember longest was the death of our principal, Mr. Watson. His death was a great loss to the school and to the com- munity. We were lucky to have Mr. Nadeau to step in and take his place. How about school activities that year? Remember the football dance when the cheerleaders put on that screwy sketch; and remember how Margie Picot, after it was over, had to explain to the poor innocent teachers what the ‘Academy’ was? Wasn’t that the dance where Mr. Higgins did the ‘Boomps- a-Daisy’ with Miss Regish? . . . That was a riot ! Margie Picot and Joan Wandless were the only two from our class on the cheering squad, weren’t they? ... I ' ll never forget the smile on Riddy Hayden’s face when he intercepted that pass in the Woburn game. He was grinning from ear to ear. And speaking of football, didn’t we have a couple of groovy managers, what with their peg pants and all ! . . . What’s that? . . . Oh, yes, I’d forgotten about the field hockey team. They beat Reading 2-0 and tied their old rival, Melrose, 2-2. There were quite a few junior girls on the team. What about the ice hockey team? . . . Two big upsets? . . . Remem- ber them! How could I forget! The first was the 1-0 win over Melrose, brought about by the superb goal-tending of Don Whiston, a trans- fer from St. Pat’s, and a goal made by Bob Murphy after only fifty-two seconds of play. I didn ' t see that Medford game. Do you remem- ber the score? . . . 1-1. you say? . . . What? . . . Yes. they must have had brilliant team- work. Who were the juniors on the team ; I remember Bay Clark and Joe Doherty . . . Who? . . . Dave Bicknell? That’s right — and Fred Flynn and Ralph Livingstone. As I recall, it was mainly these two games that clinched an all-scholastic berth for Bicknell, Whiston, and Murphy, who, incidentally, was co-captain in his junior year. That’s something that doesn’t very often happen in high-school sports . . . The basketball team finished third in the Middlesex League, didn’t they? ... I remember Dick Mercer played, and Harry Lynch, Bud Dill, and Wes Parsons . . . Who else? . . . Oh, Bill D’Annolfo, Jack Borthwick, Art Donaghev, Larry Meuse . . . Dick Mercer went into the service shortly after the season ended, didn’t he? . . . He started a long line of boys that left our class. The only others I can think of are lack Borthwick, Dan MacLaughlin, and Harry Lynch . . . Pardon? . . . Oh. yes, I’d forgotten

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tain Dave Bicknell to the Navy after the sec- ond game of the season, we lost Bob Murphy to the same branch immediately after the all- star game with Montreal. These two losses hurt us greatly and were largely responsible for the loss to Natick in our bid for the state championship. Dave Bicknell got his first leave just in time to receive, with Don Whiston, the Oscar Martin trophy at the banquet. That was a grand finale to a season of great accomplish- ments . . . Speaking of accomplishments, Mickey MacLean sure deserves a lot of credit for the big mural he painted depicting all phases of school life. 1 remember that when he was called to go into the Army Air Forces, he devoted his whole two weeks’ February vaca- tion to the mural so he could finish it before he left . . . Remember Rita Reed rushing around the corridors, taking candids of every- body in sight for the yearbook? She must have had a stack a foot high before she was through . . . Didn’t we have a swell time during the senior play? I suppose the third act was your favorite, but boy, it was the second I really enjoyed ! Say, remember how I forgot about the second scene and started changing - into my third-act costume? It ' s a good thing you and Riddy had changes to make. I guess I was still under the effect of that kiss. Didn ' t Riddy do a swell job as Mr. Grayson? Rehearsals weren’t so bad, were they? More darn fun! . . . We must have set a precedent, too, when we held that dance in the assembly hall. Everyone agreed that it was one of the best we’d ever had . . . That assembly when the class honors were announced must have come in April. I don ' t think anybody was surprised when Mr. 5, aducUian AdcUell So nigh is grandeur to our dust, So near is God to man, When duty whispers low, “Thou must,” The youth replies, “I can.” Emerson How nobly this challenge rings in our ears today! We are American youth answering the call to duty. Many of us have already re- sponded to it by serving in the greatest war of history. Seventeen of this graduating class are now in the armed forces. Those of us remain- ing and those returning at the end of the war have, as educated people, a chance to shoulder responsibilities and serve our fellow men as no other graduating class ever had. The security Nadeau named Dick Hodgson, Jean Doyle, and Antoinette Picano as winners of the MacDon- ald Medals and announced that Madolin Daley would give the honor address. It was hard to believe we were almost through school . . . We lost a lot of fellows to the service that last year, and the baseball team was hit especially hard. They lost four key men in Co-Captains Bob Moreira and Johnny Coffin, Art Donaghey, and Don Whiston, though Don played most of the season ... I wonder if I can remember all the fellows who left our senior year. Besides those I’ve mentioned there were Johnny Lembo, Peter Boudin, Nat Simkins — let’s see — Walter Cogan and John Rolli. Who did you say, Neil? . . . Oh, A1 Hanson, Richard D’Entre- mont, Robert Mirick, Sterling Hicks, and Wes Parsons . . . Bill White and Don MacKenzie, too. And Bob Dearth and Norm Houghton went almost at the end of the year. What hap- pened to Austin McHugh? . . . Oh, that’s right — he left to go to Northeastern University . . . Finally the night came when we were all sepa- rated and sent on our various ways, Graduation Night. 1 wonder how many of our ambitions have been realized. “Well, I thought it would be hard to remem- ber anything from high-school days, but 1 guess I’ve been kind of monopolizing the conversa- tion. I think I have enough material to work- on now . . . Say, why don’t you drop around tomorrow and maybe we can have lunch to- gether? . . . Sure, that’ll be fine . . . Okay, then, I’ll see you tomorrow, Neil . . . You bet — so long !” RICHARD SEWARD, ’45 of years spent in high school is over; we face reality now with all the vital problems that adult life presents. If we choose wisely, the road ahead may lead to an abundant life for all. Our opportunity is here, as in every crisis, to show a determined and resolute spirit ! America is passing through a crisis, the re- sult of which, we all hope will be salutary for the nation and its people. Those now in power aspire to establish a just and lasting peace in a world which never again shall be threatened by war. We, the youth of America, must pre- pare ourselves so that we can accept responsi- bilities and fulfill the high ideal. We gain confidence in unsettled times by re- membering the strength shown by other peo-