Thomas Jefferson High School - Aurora Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

Page 11 text:

DEDICATED TO Dear Graduates, Thank you for dedicating the June 1957 AURORA to me. I deem it a great honor. As I write these words I picture you a few weeks from now, in your caps and gowns. Commencement is a joyous. impressive and exciting occasion. It marks an important milestone in your lives, a goal successfully attained. But at the same time it also heralds a moment of decision. After graduation, what? For a cogent answer to this query, let us briefly take stock. During the past four years you have learned many skills, absorbed a large number of facts, and amassed a considerable amount of knowledge. Of equal value to these are the intangibles to which you have been exposed and which have undoubtedly left their mark. From your social studies you should have acquired a feeling for tolerance. justice. and democracyg from your study of mathematics and science a realization of the value of order. logic, truth and honesty, from your music, art, and literature an awareness and appreciation of beauty. From my contacts with you in the classroom and in my capacity as grade adviser I know that most of you have a real thirst for knowledge and a keen desire for self-improvement. Thus equipped, the future presents a hopeful challenge for you. This is a time when our nation urgently needs a large number of highly-trained, educated young men and women. Opportunities abound in all fields. In selecting a career, take a long view, choose carefully and prepare thoroughly, and your reward will surely be a useful, meaningful and rich life. Congratulations upon your graduation, and my very best wishes for the successful fulfillment of all your future hopes and aspirations. Sincerely yours, Haskel Epstein l-IASKEL EPSTEIN

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REIVIINISCENCES Memories have a strange effect on a person. At the moment, I seem to be captivated by a bad case of nostalgia. I see once more the crowded staircases and corridors, the teachers sitting at their desks, hoping to get their ideas across to the students, and of course, all the experiences that accompanied a Jeffersonian throughout his four years. The main floor was always a very busy place. The Attendance Office was usually flooded with late-coming students, the Advisors Oflice had its share of problems with programs for the students, and the General Office was occupied with various work for the school. During the first and second periods, the Band and Orchestra were heard in the auditorium practicing for the various Assembly programs. The library, equipped with a great number of books, was a tremendous help when one needed any sort of reference or books for reports to be done. The statues of the Liberty Bell and of Thomas Jefferson were favorite meeting places and of course, those unforgettable S.P.'s posted on each corner. If one was caught without a program card or pass, he was naturally duly prosecuted. On the fifth floor, the most popular place is situated-the Lunchroom. Here is a combination of homework done in a rush, pushing, broken dishes, and an abundance of noise. Those buying lunch are usually nudged by a few elbows here and there before they are able to get to their tables. As I will recall the past in twenty years from now, there will always be a deep and knowing memory of that tall red building where four years of my schooling were spent. Ruth Klein 4 4