University of Rhode Island - Renaissance / Grist Yearbook (Kingston, RI)

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The GRISTETTE January saw five of our class tapped for Sachems, and, indicative of condi- tions on campus, these five were all girls . . . Lou Anthony, Dee Dahlquist, Jeanne Freeman, Margie Harrington and Betty Thresher. In February the ASTP’s left us, and no longer did the windows of Davis and Roosevelt blaze with lights. They were ghost places . . . and the absence of marching feet, khaki, and “Hup, two, three, four” made the campus a dismal place. Scarcely had they gone when the first accelerators of the Class of Forty-five donned their caps and gowns for assem- blies. Thirty-nine of them . . . backed by us . . . and yet it was sad that our class should be divided in that way . . . As those thirty-nine graduated, we be- came “the seniors” of the school. In this year we should have been complet- ing our Junior year . . . and yet in one more semester we, too, would be gone. That June saw the entrance of a large group of freshman boys who were de- stined to put into that one semester the spirit and enthusiasm we had been trying not to lose. An association, Tau Sigma, was formed that summer to re- place the fraternity life which had been discontinued for the duration of the war. The freshman boys went through a Hell Week for Tau Sigma . . . and that Hell Week gave a certain warmth and a sense of happiness to the whole campus ... it reminded us of our won- derful freshman year. Two class representatives, Jeanne Freeman and Joseph Daly, were elected from our class to serve on the Student Board. That semester, too, Elsie Mar- tin was elected President of W. S. G. A., this setting somewhat of a precedent. Betty Whitaker had served as that of- ficer the preceding semester, so that, as in no time before, we had two stu- dents from the same semester holding the same office. Another tradition w’as broken when Jeanne Freeman was elect- ed Moderator of Sachems, an office al- ways before held by a male student. Four of our members, Marian Aldred, Norma Bugbee, Ann Hopkins, and Yvonne Hunter Yare, received the high- est award of honors, in July: that of being elected to Phi Kappa Phi. In Au- gust the Sophomores showed their de- sire to bring back some of the pleasures of normal times by holding a success- ful Soph Hop. That same month we had our Cap and Gown Day . . . only a few more in number than the class which had just preceded us. We walked down the aisles of Edwards . . . and we could see those seniors who had done just that when we were freshmen ... we could see the service flag ... and we thought of our own song again . . . “The cry resounds when we’re around, Let every freshman now proclaim, ' The Class of Forty Five is marching Toward its goal and aim ’ Five short weeks and we were there ... in the midst of our Senior week- end . . . with its Class Day and Com- mencement Ball . . . and finally its Grad- uation . . . the Class of Forty-five . . . one section already graduated . . . two more sections yet to graduate in the following February and May. We tossed our tassels to the left and sang our Alma Mater as minute-old alumni . . . and as we did our minds had many thoughts ... the war . . . the future . . . those boys, our boys, who we had dreamed just three years ago would still be with us, and who were now represented by gold stars and blue stars on the flag to our right. Once away from our Rhody we shall begin to remember many things . . . the campus under a blanket of snow . . . the Elmer’s tune of our freshman year . . . the sound of the train going through ... the glistening of a full moon on Quinn’s roof ... the bell . . . bon-fire rallies and the “Fight song” ... the green of the campus in springtime . . . From these we shall never escape. . . . To honor State and Land and College, Our hearts and minds will ever strive, W e are the best at Rhody, .... IF e re the Class of Nineteen Forty Five. -4 22

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The GRISTETTE To honor State, and Land and College, Our hearts and minds will ever strive . . It was hard at first to keep things going in those times . . . everyone’s mind was on the war . . . but we knew we had a definite responsibility; that now, as Sophomores, we had to work hard to keep State qnd its traditions, and that it was our duty to show the new Freshmen what college life should be. We elected officers again: Carl Beck- man, again as President; Jeanne Free- man, Vice-President; Edward Dahl, Treasurer; Dorothea Dahlquist, Secre- tary, and Gordon Davis, Social Chair- man. Our adviser. Miss Reilly, went on leave to work for her Doctor’s De- gree in English. The first formal dance of the year, in October, was our own Soph Hop for which Sam Donahue’s Orchestra played. Dee Dahlquist was selected to be Queen of the Sophomore Class. We had a football team and a basketball team, and many of our boys made Varsity . . . Miller, Topazio, Bennett, Donabedian, Davis. At the same time, some boys of the Class of Forty-five had made Uncle Sam’s Varsity team. Girls, too, were prominent on the hockey field and the basketball court . . . Anthony, An- gell, Browning, Jones, Freeman, Pin- gree, and Whitaker. All the clubs on campus received our hearty support . . . Portia, Wranglers, Home Ec Club, the Choir, Phi Delta, 4-H Club, Camfera Club, Student Senate. W. S. G. A., and the Beacon. The war was brought even closer by the arrival of C. P. T. groups . . . our football team did well but we realized that it was a “w ' ar time team” after the physical slaughter by New Hampshire . . . December, and the last Junior Prom at the Biltmore . . . basketball team beaten in the Garden . . . the last Mil Ball in April and Dee Dahlquist was chosen Sweetheart of the Regiment . . . another graduation in June, the second since September for one had taken place in February. This accelerated program had really taken hold of the campus, and most of us planned to continue as first semester Juniors through the sum- mer. There was no denying the presence of war on the campus that semester. Two hundred and fifty Army trainees moved into Eleanor Roosevelt Hall, and our own Senior R. O. T. C. boys were put into the regular Army, and lived with the ASTP’s. Our cafeteria was given over to their use, and the stu- dents used the housing units as dining rooms. The civilian boys, regardless of their fraternity, were moved into T K E, Alpha Tau, Lambda Chi and Beta Psi. The other fraternity houses were occupied by dorm girls and fresh- men. We heard talk of donating blood ... air raid drills . . . war diplomas . . . and then a service flag for our Rhody boys, some of them members of our own Class of Forty-five, was hung in Ed- wards Auditorium. That made us real- ize how close to home the war was, and, although we were proud of them, wp were saddened at the sight of the blue and the gold stars. September came and brought another graduation. Those of our class who had not attended school that summer re- turned, and the Class of Forty-five then existed in three sections. Football was a casualty that fall, along with the Soph Hop, Junior Prom, and so many of the clubs. Girls were forced to take over many of the organi- zations ; even The Beacon staff was nine- ty per cent feminine. . . . Our girls made a good showing in basketball and hoc- key . . . and our Rhody basketball team played in Philadelphia and the Garden. That year we had no class officers, but instead each semester sent one repre- sentative to a Student Board. Jeanne Freeman was chosen as our represen- tative. That winter we were grateful for the presence of the ASTP boys . . . they were the inspiration for the opening of the Union, a sort of Campus USO for which purpose Beta Phi was used. The soldiers produced a play, “Misbehavin’.” and held a winter formal, the “Crystal Ball.” Somewhere . . . somehow ... we hoped our boys were having a little fun. -4 21 fr-

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Sunset of Our Day The events which comprised Senior Week were telescoped into a few crowd- ed days in this wartime commencement. However, none of the special gradua- tion spirit of mingled joy and sadness was lost. Jeanne Freeman and Joe Daly, as semester directors, were general chair- men of the Senior activities. The plans arranged by them and their commit- tees are as follows: August 25 Senior Movie Party at the Community Theatre. Joe Daly acted as “daddy” to the twenty-eight class members and Miss Reilly. “Father” paid for the bus and theatre tickets, and for sundaes afterward. The pic- ture we saw was “Mr. Skeffington.” September 21, Senior Picnic at Thirty Acres. The committee, Barbara Martin, Janet Joyce, Ruth Atkinson and Ann Hopkins provided a delicious meal, con- sisting of hot dogs, hamburgers, cole- slaw, potato salad, fresh peaches, cake, coffee, and cocoa. Miss Emma Kimball, cafeteria dietitian, assisted the commit- tee. Swimming and games were a part of the program. September 22, Senior Banquet at Lippitt Hall. It has become a tradition for the Senior Banquet to be given by the faculty. Mr. Charles Hall alumni secretary, had charge of the arrange- ments. September 23, Class Day under the Elms. The other semester director, Jeanne Freeman, had charge of this program. She was assisted by Miss Mary A. Reilly, Miss Frieda Kemos, and Dr. Lee C. Wilson. The class day program is as follows: Procession from Edwards Hall to the Elms. Invocation by Rev. Mr. Ernest Allen. Welcome by Joseph Daly, Class Di- rector. Presentation of Gift to Class Adviser, Elsie Martin. Acceptance of Gift, Dr. Mary A. Reillv Presentation of Class Gift to the Col- lege, Jeanne Freeman, Class Director. Acceptance of Class Gift, President Carl R. Woodward. Class Day Oration, “Our Responsi- bilities as Alumni,” Edgar Barwood. Class Prophecy, Barbara Martin and Ruth Wyatt. Class Will, Dorothea Dahlquist and Elizabeth Whitaker. Farewell, Irene Vock. Procession from the Elms to Green Hall for the Planting of the Ivy. Ivy Speaker, Barbara Drummond. Ivy Planters, Norma Bugbce and Louise Anthony. Song of the Class of 1945. Benediction, Rev. Mr. Francis Wyatt. September 23, Commencement Ball in Lippitt Hall. In accordance with State tradition, this dance was given by the Junior class. Marcia Cady and Shirley Lalime, as representatives for the fifth and sixth semesters, were co- chairmen of the dance. Tommy Falle’s orchestra supplied the music for this dance, to which everyone was invited. September 24, Senior Breakfast at Lippitt Hall. Florence Wynne, Lucie Meola, and Elizabeth Whitaker direct- ed the arrangements for the breakfast. September 24, Commencement Exer- c ' ses in Edwards Auditorium. The Commencement program was under the direction of the faculty. 4 23 ►-