Venango Christian High School - Saga Yearbook (Oil City, PA)

Text from Pages 1 - 88 of the 1964 volume:

4c RaAtj ue VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL “Let the word go forth that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans. VOL. II, NO. 1 FALL, 1963 Table Of Contents School Life: WHAT IS THE NEW BIOLOGY?.................... P-3 By Diane Wilson and Nancy Petulla ONCE UPON A SCHOOL DAY.....................P -6 By Stephen Szalewicz WHERE THE GRADS ARE ........................ p.9 By Michael Yaeger THE CLASS OF '67: LEAVEN...................p .ll ROVING REPORTER: IS THE DAY TOO LONG?.... p.14 By June Woods Feature: SMILE AWHILE.................................p.4 By Daniel Goodman EINSTEIN, DON’T WORRY....................... p.4 By Patricia Breen GRANDMA’S CHERRY TREE........................p.9 By Suzanne Marshall SNIPS AND SNAILS AND PUPPY DOG TAILS........p.15 By Joyce Walentosky ACCENT ON YOU...............................P-14 By Daniel Goodman Sports: COLOR IT BLACK AND BLUE......................p.5 By Michael Y aeger THE SIDES AREN’T MATCHED.....................p.5 By Michael Y aeger Fiction: LITTLE BOY ALONE.............................p.8 By Ann Logue Poetry: WAR GAMES...................................p.9 By Michael Fletcher Editorial: HAIL TO THE CHIEF..........................p.16 THE BARQUE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL 1505 W. First St.Tel. 64-61264 OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA Editor-in-Chief.............................Daniel Goodman Executive Editor............................Flrank Shialabba Managing Editor......................................Nancy Petulla Copy Editor................................kfichael Yaeger Sports Editor..................................Gary Hawk Photography.................................Stephen Szalewicz Art Editor..................................Karen Blumensaadt Exchange Editor.............................DmnaPedorek Circulation Manager.........................Pamela Eckert Production Editors................Ann Whitcomb. Patricia Kleck Varitype Operators................Ann Whitcomb, Patricia Kleck Reporters............ Kathleen Rice, Diane Wilson, June Woods, Rhea Ann Stevenson, Jean Mahaffey, Karen Burke, Carol Eng- lish, William Walenia, Allen Stempin, Joseph Novicki, Terence Rodgers, Walter Moran, Thaddeus Szalewicz, Christine Cartwright. Headmaster........................ Rev- L. J. Antoun Advisor................-.... Sister Mary Peter, O.S.B. 2 What’s New About the New Biology? An interview with Sister Miriam, O.S.B. SISTER MIRIAM WITH REPORTERS NANCY PETULLA AND DIANE WIL- SON: Progress is an expensive luxury. Q. Can you give us an example of the instruments that are contri- buting to these costs. Sister? A. Well, the new dissection micro- scope used for viewing opaque or non-transparent objects was pur- chased for the lab. A regular micro- scope can be used only for viewing transparent objects. The new instru- ment cost about $300.00 alone. Q. As a whole, how do the ma- jority of students react to this course in comparison to the tradi- tional? A. As far as liking the course, the students quite naturally prefer it to the traditional because the lab work makes it much more appealing. It is, however, very time-consuming. Q. Does the course require much outside work? Biology, the once dead study of dead organisms, is being approached from A. Outside reading is required in a new angle in today’s high school laboratories. order to prepare the students for the Exactly what is this course? What is its purpose? Why is it changed? lab. Specimens must also be collec- Sister Miriam, head of the Biological Sciences Curi culum Study at VCHS, ted by the students for their indivi- describes the course and gives some interesting information and insights into dual experiments, these questions. Q. Would you explain what the B.S.C.S. biology course is? A. The Biology Sciences Cur- riculum Study covers fewer biolo- concepts than the traditional course, but each one is viewed at a much greater depth. Q. What is the most important difference between the traditional and the present course? A. The most important differ- ence in the approach is that now the laboratory is the integral part of the course. Before it was a matter of memorization and de- scription. Now, however, the stu- dents realize it is lab centered. Q. What is the purpose of the intensified lab program? A. Ironically enough, the tradi- tional course approached biology, a study of living things, by exam- ining dead organisms. In this pro- gram the experiments are called ’open-end experiments because each one is to lead the pupil to new discoveries. Q. This course is referred to as a three-track program. Exactly what does that mean? A. This is called a three-track program because there are three different approaches to the course. They are equally difficult and cover much of the same work, but the actual attack is different. Q. What are these programs? A. The yellow program approa- ches biology from a cellular level, the blue from a molecular level, the green from the standpoint of ecology. Q. Which program is operating at Venango? A. Venango is using the yellow program at present. Q. What are some of the disad- vantages of the course? A. The important disadvantage to the course is the cost of the program. There are no disadvantages to the program educationally, but the cost of setting it up and maintaining it poses a serious financial burden. Q. What schools in this area have adopted this course? A. Cathedral Prep in Erie and Franklin High School are two of the very few schools which have adopted the course. Right is right when nobody’s right, and wrong is wrong when everybody’s wrong. COVER STORY The BARQUE photographer found freshman Timothy Walsh engrossed in his drawing board. It was one of those moments which, when seen against the mountains, proves that VCHS has a heart as well as a head. It was one of those moments that are part of the Viking legacy. 3 By Daniel Goodman Some people chink of a high school as just a warehouse with a gymnasium, a storage place for desks, books and teen-agers. This is not true in our case. Our school is an independent community. We have a restaurant, Y.M.C.A. style,a hospital, the one room type, and a book store. You can see that we have everything that is necessary for survival. The cafeteria is the finest eatery in the school; it is also the only one. The cooks are famous for their foreign cooking: pizzas, ravioli, and that famous old Irish dish, glomkis. They do have a little bit of trouble when it comes to arranging the meal however. Take for instance the day we had canned corn, corn muffins, corn meal mush and corn flakes. The head cook realized the mistake before it was too late though and to everyone’s joy substituted the corn meal mush with com fritters. She knew that too much starch would make us sleepy. SO MAYBE our cafeteria isn’t the Waldorf of Oil City, but we have one of the finest book stores in the world. The only problem is that they don't sell books in it. They are sold in the cafeteria. You can buy just anything else though. They have paper, pens, folders and other stuff that is just as easy to borrow from someone else. Not everyone can borrow unfortunately so for the ones that must buy they have lowered the prices. A baker’s dozen of those little two-tone erasers is only twenty-five cents. YOU KNOW, those are the ones that are supposed to erase ink as 4 well as pencil marks. Are they kid- ding? When they make an eraser that works like a wet finger then they will have something. Anyway, at those prices you'd think they would go bankrupt in no time. Not so. Every business has it’s secrets. They sell beautiful cartridge pens with two free cartridges for a dime. When the two cartridges are used, you return for more and then they tell you that those messy little in- ventions go for a buck a pack. Don’t waste your tears on the bookstore. Even though you don’t see many people making purchases just re- member that nine out of ten are bor- rowers. One guy is really buying for nine other people. In close affiliation with the book- store are our bus token machines. Those little baubles are now selling at the rate of two for twenty-five cents. You were probably patting yourself on the back when your first two-bits yielded three shiney tokens instead of the customary two. Good. Just don’t be surprised if the next time you get nothing but a low gur- gle from that one knobbed bandit. NEXT comes VC’s answer to Bellevue. In this spotless room one cot by a box of bandaids wide, you can be treated for any- thing from a cut finger to a dis- arranged mind. There’s a story a- mong the freshmen these days that’s interesting in a morbid sort of way. It seems that there was a young fellow who hurt himself in gym class. He managed to limp to the healthroom where he was told that he needed a permit from the office. With much effort he crawled up the hall to the office where he was informed that he could not be treated unless he carried school insurance. He has- tily filled out the form for the in- surance, received his permit and headed in the direction of the health room. They say he never made it. At VC we receive more than an education. We learn how to fast, beg, and suffer pain without com- plaining. BILL WALENIA: This school is getting so crowded I opened my locker and found a classroom. EINSTEIN, DON'T WORRY By Patricia Breene Allow me to define something which, unfortunately, I know very little about, despite the efforts of the American educational system over the past twelve yeass. It may be the only successful thing I do in the field. 1. Mathematics, you are one of the easiest ways to confuse me: the number of your rules is as infinite as numbers themselves. 2. Mathematics, the best purpose of the large slide rule in room 203 is to write notes under to your friends in the next class. The small ones are to test your eyesight. They are best read with a microscope. 3. Mathematics, the most potent danger to your image in this school is the class in which 1 attempt to learn your principles. Worse, every- body else is almost as bad off as I. (Ask Sister...Rather, ask Herby Heher.) 4. Mathematics, to me you are the organized study of the unnecessary. What cook (except my father) has to measure out to the gram the ingredi- ents of her concoction? Once, at a racetrack, my grand- mother won a fairly large amount of money by choosing the horses with the prettiest names. My grandfather, who studied racing results and forms and speeds and pace lengths for a week ahead of the day, didn’t pick a single winner. Mathematics, your graphsand sine curves intrigue me. They all look like snakes, but if you connect the dots right you can even make other things. My teacher says I’ve found more ways to do things wrong than anyone else she's ever taught. And every- time a new one says that it makes a bigger number. But, Mathematics, I would like to pass your classes. I want to graduate. s p o p T ■s COLOR IT BLACK AND BLUE Finally the black sheet of des- pair has been lifted from Venango’s short gridiron history. That once un- blemished cover was smudged with defeat after defeat after dreary de- f eat. But the very first cleaning agent has just arrived. After losing five straight con- tests, the Vikings came through with a surprising 33-6 win over Saint Mark’s. Dan Drozdo Provided the of f ensive punch with three touchdowns and an all-around fine performance. We had hoped, halved and honored our abundance of points with real vigor. Color them all bright so you can see them. In the season opener, the Vikings were tipped and trounced by the Devils of Cambridge, 28—6. The highlight of the fray was a Jez to Jablonski pass for our first score of the season. One more smudge; color it black. THE SECOND CONTEST, saw Randolph dissolve, dominate and defeat us in our own oval. Although Dan Drozdo managed some fine runs we found ourselves down by a 26-6 score. Add another smudge; color it blacker. Greenville! That one hurt. It was a case of pure strength against pure weakness. They murdered, mangled and mutilated us 65—0. Venango was moved, freshmen and all. Color it...on second thought, splatter it this time: find some invisible color. We did manage to hold North East to one touchdown after a somewhat spirited pep talk. But they fought, faked and flattened us, 7-6. What shade? A lighter black, naturally! WITH a revamped offensive to our credit we managed to score 6 points against Bradford. But they shifted around and scored 48 points to win rather easily. Color it, too; but don’t hurry. The Eagles of Kanty Prep dis- some excellent ability and the agil- ity to make use of it. We fought hard but fell short. They legged it over us 13-6 at the end. By all means don’t color this one black—at least not unless it’s gold-black. OUR LAST GAME came and went with another defeat to add to the list. The mammoth Townville team plagued our first Homecoming with a ghost called 32-13, them. Actually, we did very well at the beginning and the end of the game. Forget the middle. Finding something to wash off all those dark colors wasn’t easy for us but we managed. So color it whi- ter but not white; we still have a lot of looking to do yet. On second thought, why color at all. They seem to have more cray- ons than we do anyway. THE SIDES AREN'T MATCHED By Michael Yaeger What would you do if you for- got your gym suit for class? Would you take your punishment like a man? Or would you think up some sort of excuse like any average American Boy. In my three years of high school training, I’ve heard more reasons for forgetfulness than America has cars and, in many in- stances, I’ve used some dillies myself. Our educated gym instructor hears just about everything on a routine roll-call check. He lis- tens to the ABC’s of miscues from the alphabet of boys: Alter dropped his bag down the sewer; Baker lost his on the bus; and Carone left his at the bus stop. Drozdo left his at home to be washed; English’s was used to put out a brush fire and Faller’s was nowhere to be found. And this goes on past M,N,0,P, and Q to Zuilkowski who accuses someone of theft. By the time it’s all over, there’s not much time left for physical ex- ertion, and the Stallers win again. Game continued next gym class. Score: We-294, Coach-0. FOOTBALL: 1963 Cambridge Springs 28 VCIIS 6 Randolph 26 ” 6 Greenville 65 ” 0 St. Gregory, N.E. 1 ” 6 St. Marks Seminary 8 ” 33 Bradford 48 •• 6 Kanty Prep 13 •• 6 5 THE BLACK AND GOLD VIKINGS AND FRIENDS: That’s the way it was all season: their ball and their ball game. Some day we will get our own. Maybe.. ONCE UPON A SCHOOL DAY By Stephen Szalewicz Life, even young life and new life, can become a rou- tine thing, a rhythmic thing whose beat is a steady ca- dence of similarities that focus and blur against a thou- sand pale dawns. But there is so much that should never be forgotten; so much that will pass too soon. You know: The big orange school bus with the dirty windows and the ‘‘Chris and Bill” signs on the Emergency door; the memorable occasions when we missed it and the equally unforgettable times we didn't... The noisy, crowded, coin-jangling cafeteria where we made dates and checked detention lists and dragged our aching heads through the homework we forgot the night before... The four foot lockers they gave you for seven feet of books... The classes. The work-work-work, listen-listen-work classes. About all you’ll ever forget about them was the stuff you were supposed to learn there... The library permits: Name, date, pupil, subject, room, signature, period, time. Rrrrrrrrring! 6 The lunch hours you spent or didn't spend... 2:05. The period when your eyes ached and your watch stopped and your head drooped in the heat and they said: Pay attention. Whatever that was. The locker lunge: Hey, hold the bus! Now what is that thing? Right 32, left 16, right 13. Left 32, right 16, left 13?.... The bus tokens. Bus tokens? Well, how about a bot- tle cap. A razor blade? All right then. A slightly used lunch ticket? 7 By Ann Logue LITTLE BOY ALONE Pete Rollins stood alone on the sidewalk holding his violin case. He had to go take a lesson; the other guys were probably playing football. He swung his foot way back and, with everything he had, kicked a stone hard and straight and with satisfaction watched as it scraped the bark off a nearby tree. '•That's the Pete Rollins they don't know, he thought bitterly. That's the Pete Rollins who can do everything they can do if they wanted to notice. A memory came back and he closed his eyes to shut it out. They had no- ticed him plenty once. They had noticed him all 62 yards of the touchdown he had run tn the wrong direction. They had noticed and laughed the whole long walk back, not a warm That-guy-is-a-blast laugh that was friendly and in- clusive. No, it had been harsher than that. The way a guy laughs when he says What-a-fink or Throw him to the lions or something. It seemed that he'd been running in the wrong direction in front of them ever since. The noisy street- cars broke into his thoughts and he turned and walked toward town. Pete and his family had must moved to Mill City but Pete was pretty sure he didn’t like it here. It was so hard to make friends. He'd been a pretty big guy with the crowd back home. Everybody liked him; he could do anything. It had oc- curred to him recently that maybe he could do too much. He looked around him: the dirty old buildings, the littered streets, the crowded sidewalks. He hated the city! AS HE ROUNDED THE BUILDING opposite the Cozy Corner”, he heard loud voices and saw a crowd gathering. He recognized some of the fellows as he crossed the street and walked toward them. Joe Simpson, a red haired, pimply faced smart aleck, had grabbed a small boy by the arm and was picking the gro- ceries one by one from the bag the boy was holding and throwing them to the crowd. So they had another victim. Pete remembered the taste of the numb loneli- ness when it had been his turn. They’d been in Mill City for a week but no one had stopped at the house so, when his father mentioned seeing a group of teen- agers at a soda shop downtown, he decided to take a chance and make some new friends. When he walked into the shop, the place suddenly got very quiet. It was Joe Simpson who had come up to him too and asked him his name. Pete? Joe Simpson repeated and spat it out. Pete, Pete with the two flat feet. Pete had grinned timidly. Then, W hate ha' got there?” He pointed at Pete’s case. Ya play some kind of horn? I play the vio lin, Pete said eagerly. You play the violin? His tone was incredulous. Hey, guys, you hear that? He plays the violin. His movements grotesque and exaggerated, Joe danced around bowing an imaginary violin. The place exploded with laughter. Well, violin player, we got some rules for you, don’t we fellows? The group shifted and nodded ominously. Shall we tell Kreisler here the rules for violin players? The shifting started again. Simpson put his finger on Pete's chest. Listen, Petie boy, you gotta get asked even to walk by this place, understand? Asked. So out—until we ask ya to come back. The crowd lunged 8 forward and stomped their feet. Get out! Pete turned and ran. He could still hear them scream- ing behind him. Joe's loud, jeering voice brought him back to the present. How come your old lady doesn't do the shopping, sonny boy? Is she growin’ you up to be a girl?” The anger in Pete’s throat choked him. He pounded his case. Damn! When would they stop! I don't have a mother, the little kid said. She's dead.” Aw, ain't that sad, Simpson said and went on pulling the things out of the bag. Look, guys, good- ies. Anyone for hamburger, cris- py critters, weiners?” Hey, stop that!” the kid yelled. That's our supper. You gonna get tough about it, kid? One of the older boys hit the kid with his index finger so hard he had to grab the pole to keep his balance. He was bawling now. You don’t want to eat this do you, kid? Joe dropped a melon and smashed it into the ground with his foot. The small boy searched the crowd for a sympathetic face. His eyes found Pete's and pleaded. Pete stood transfixed for a moment and then turned abruptly. You dumb kid, he thought. This is your battle, not mine. I wanna go home, the boy cried and touched Pete's jacket. Did ya catch that—he wants Pete to take him home. Well, what's the matter, violin player ? Dintcha hear him? Pete could f eel the hot anger and embarrass- ment rise within him. The boy was still crying. God, Pete wished he'd quit. What’re you waiting for, Pete? Joe simpson's face was pushed menacingly in front of Pete’s own. The crowd had be- come quiet...waiting for someone to move. Pete braced himself and took a deep breath. He had spent a lot of days alone on the streets with his violin case. He reeled: Any kid who’s that much of a baby had his mother too long. Inside the store he couldn’t hear the kid crying anymore. WHERE THE GRADS ARE It has been said that,- What we do today will set the pace for to- morrow.” Questionaires were sent to all graduated students in order to determine their present positions and its relation to their high school work. THOMAS FORD works as a weigh- er” at Republic Steel Corporation, Warren, Ohio. Tom found that office practice and typing aided him in getting his j ob. RONALD J. DOLECKI is attending the U.S. Army Engineer School, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. He plans to become a draftsman” upon dis- charge from the Army. PAUL WALTER JOHNSON is attending Gannon College, Erie, Pennsylvania. He plans to become a dental surgeon some day. Paul took the academic course and feels that it was the best preparation for college work. CONNIE RINALDO is studying to become a nurse at Capital City School of Nursing, D.C. General Hospital, Washingto , D.C. First- aid and chemistry proved to be Connie’s best subj ects. LARRY LITW1NOVICH is studying at Saint Francis College, Loretto, Pennsylvania. He hopes to obtain his bachelor’s degree and possibly go on to graduate study. DAVID R. HARTSELL is majoring in accounting at Gannon College, Erie, Pennsylvania. He hopes to enter the service through the ”4 year R.O.T.C. Program. English was Dave’s most beneficial high school course. THOMAS HARTSELL is also attend- ing Gannon College, Erie, Penn- sylvania. His plans are to study law both in college and in graduate school. THOMAS OWENS is taking a Pre- Med course of study at the Univer- sity of Dayton, Dayton, Ohio. He plans to be a dentist, and chemistry was his most important subj ect be- cause it is the basic foundation for his present experiments. GENEVIEVE SMUTEK is majoring in physical education at Slippery Rock State College, Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. She hopes to be a physical education instructor in a high school. NEIL EDWARD TODHUNTER is a student at Saint Bonaventure Univer- sity, Olean, New York.(Con t., pg. 15.) By Suzanne Marshall I remember how it stood there mangled and inviting. I was just a kid then and every gnarled, knotted limb was a potential tree house. And I a pot ential Tarzan. All us kids used to climb it when the weather was nice, and we were nice. Nice in gram’s house was when everyone dressed to fit the weather. When it snowed, if we had on snowpants and mittens and all the other things kids wear when it snows, it was nice . So we climbed summer, winter, and fall. I wouldn’t climb in spring 'cause there were about fifty billion bees in gram’s tree. They rented our tree-house or something, I guess. At least that's what gram said so we believed her, of course. My gramma was the smartest gramma alive and, besides, she made the best cherry pie in the whole world. Jimmy (he’s my cousin) and I used to get little pies made especially for us ’cause ________________we were the oldest, we were also the WAR GAMES By Michael Fletcher Some people ride in speeding cars And others fly beyond the stars To get some fun from this dull life. (Some even try to get a wife,) But I have found a better way To get a kick from every day. All I have to do is this— ‘Cee, you sure look stupid, Sis-9 And books and missiles fill the air Pots and pans and silverware. Then 1 behind the sofa find A refuge and some peace of mind Until the opportunity Is finally afforded me To peek beyond my padded fort. Boy, this is exciting sport- A little bit of searching proves The enemy has made her moves. She9s sitting in her bedroom lair A raft of curlers in her hair. A verbal missile ready waits, The megaton she really hates. It finds its tar get with a boom; 7 ey, what is that thing in Sis9 room?9 The mop-up actions now begin. (This is why I always win.) 4Doggoney Sisy throw 9way that stuff. Without it you look good enough.' lousiest tree climbers around. One summer day when it was nice out, I fell out of Gram’s cherry tree. Cherries were all over the ground when I landed, so my mother couldn’t tell whether I was bleeding or not. I must have knocked down at half the cherries in the tree. That’s what Gram said anyway, and Gram was never wrong. I cried for all those cherries that couldn’t ever be in one of Gram's pies. All I got was a cherry sunsuit, a broken arm and an angry mother—which didn't par- ticularly bother anyone but me too much. THAT FALL when the leaves were getting all crunchy, Jimmy and I decided to go tree climbing again. My arm was all better then. My mother told me that tree climbing wasn’t ladylike but then I wasn't a lady. I was a kid who liked to climb my gramma’s cherry tree. I’m glad I did too, because it was my last chance. My cousin Jimmy fell out and broke his arm. He didn’t even smash any of Gram's cherries but he was a boy so everyone got scared and now there's a sandbox at the place where Gramma’s cherry tree used to be. 9 The Class of ’67: L,eaven FRESHMAN YEAR...The beginning ...Entrance exams...Uniforms... New regulations...Old regulations... Pink slips...white slips...yellow slipsmmu MARGARET BURNS AND LENA MAS- SON: Grade school was never like this. ONE: Mary Karien, Elizabeth Keating, Virginia Aaron, Deborah Allio, Kathryn Baj orek, Joyce Boczon, Theresa Bowen TWOi Kathleen Breene, Valerie Bunce, Morgaret Burns, Anna Caccavo, Karen Callahan Christine Cartwright, Rose Mary Coyne THREE: Katherine Duda, Jennifer Dziekciasz, Kathleen Paller, Bertha Everman, Made line Echenoz, Mary Jane Fink, JoAnn Gohr FOUR: Mary Gavin, Christine Guyton, Susan Given, Karen Guyton, Christine Horgenrad er, Marie Heher, Kristina Homan FIVE: Maxine Wojtowicz, Carolyn Hovis, Jean Hynes, Nancy Jarosz, Patricia Kalamojka 10 MESSRS STONE, CARTWRIGHT AND ECHENOZ: Which one are we doing? ONE: Roberta Lesco, Constance Logue, Barbara McFadden, Jonet Mackintosh, Lena Masson TWO: Mory Kocan, Joanne Kollor. Mwgaret Kozek, Cynthis Majdanik, Mary Landrum, Diane Wilson, Mary Margaret Welsh . .. . r-j THREE: Kathryn Molek, Patricio Moffett, Linda Moron, Martha Morris, Mary Ann Mortimer,Cd letta Neidich, Beth Niederritor f _ , FOUR: Constonce Nowak, Marsha Postrick, Kathryn Sfefer, Patricia Skiba, Carol Rekhert, Linda Roche, Z Anna Rodaers FIVE: Morto Savoge,Loretta Siebert, Ann Tipping, Caroline Thi eau, Mcrgaret Staab, Kheo Ann Stevenson, Mary Stone u, r, l u SIX: Laura Stroub, Lois Symons, Elizabeth Worcholic, Julia Ward, Marsha Weaver, Deborah Xander, Patricia Wollaston Lunch with seniors ..(whoops,capital i S00)...Confusion...More white slips... More confusion... THEN THE MATURINC PROCESS... Four years of... 11 Leetures...Criticisms... Praise... Impressions...New class mates...So many classmates...Classes...Tests... Failures...Football games...Dances... More regulations... Teachers... Demerits... JETTER, OWENS, SHINGLEDECKEK AND MARSHALL: We made it. ONE: David Adams. Samuel Armagost, Joal Barrett, Charles Bechtel, Ernest Brink TWO: Ronald Biondi, Gregory Camp, Richard Corone, Patrick Cihon, Glenn Cunningham, Jerrold Curran, Ronald DeLucia THREE: Thomas Dtbiel. William Eckert, Daniel Flannigan, James Froncek, Patrick Fletch er, George Gates, William Gatesman FOUR: Henry Gent, Robert Hajduk, Joseph, Harvey, George Howk, David Heath, Anthony He ros, Charles Jetter FIVE: Michael Kay, Daniel Keeley, John Kendzior, Michael Koziara, Robert Kriek, David Larkin, Arthur Lenar SIX: John Linehan, James Marshall, John Mayerslty, Joseph Morgan 12 ONE: Dono McBride. John McCollum, Carl Moran, Mark McGInty, Walter Moran TWO: Thomas Morkin, Barry Noon, John No- vicki, Edward Oliver, Stephen Olszowka THREE: William Owens, James Parson, Rob ert Raaon, Robert Reardon, Richord Reed, John Rogers, Terence Schneider FOUR: Stephen Sestrich, Paul Shingledeck- er, Richard Stiller, James Stover, John Straub, William Summers, Thaddeus Szalewicz FIVE: John Tarr, Donald Walentoski, Joseph Walkowski, Timothy, Walsh, Francis nil- tanger, Joseph Wisniewski, David Woo h wort h SIX: Joseph Wnuk Philip Wydro, Thomas Ye chim, James Zacherl FRESHMEN:...The largest class... The loudest class...The fastest class. And. finally, the shortest on prestige in the whole school...But they9ll grow. Let9s pray... 13 Accent on You bJ:rLy„ By Daniel Goodman One of the oldest success formulas is Be Yourself . Two juniors have proven that age hasn't done a thing to tarnish it. They are Margaret Coyne and Gary Hawk, the boy and girl elected by the seniors as the juniors they like most. Nobody would deny that Peggy Coyne is quiet and studious, but she still finds time to enjoy her friends. Though that includes a lot of people, Peggy knows that the crowd isn't always right...at least not by virtue of beingthe crowd. Because someone else isn't the norm of her existence, she's able to stick to her own convictions even when it means disagreeing with the gang. Gary Hawk, on the other hand, is an avant garde type of individual whose main interest is the welfare of the school. When he's not chosen to lead a project, which is seldom, he is invariably its best follower. Gary's sincer- ity is one of the reasons he's well liked. When he says he'll do something, it's as good as done. Obviously, then, these two j uniors are the school leaders that they are because they have strong opinions, so we asked them: SHOULD EVERYONE GO TO COLLEGE? Margaret: No. There are many jobs which do not require a college education. Gary: Yes. It's true that there are some j obs which do not require a college education but the number is dwindling steadily and their opportunities for ad- vancement are meager. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE SCHOOL SPIRIT AT VCHS? Margaret: It's pretty good. It's certainly better than last year. Gary: Something is definitely lacking. It seems to me that that something is an attitude of personal responsibility and interest. ARE HIGH SCHOOL COURSES TOO DIFFICULT? Margaret: No, they must be hard to meet rising standards. Gary: I’ve never thought so ...yet. ARE COLLEGE REQUIREMENTS TOO STIFF? Margaret: They have to make sure thit you're capable of the program you de- sire. Being operated on by a doctor who's a low D student doesn't appeal to me too much. Gary: I'll tell you next year. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE DEMERIT SYSTEM? Margaret: I don't have any demerits so I don't think about it. Gary: It's a good thing. ARE GIRLS SMARTER THAN BOYS? Margaret: That obviously depends on the individual. Gary: No, they j ust work harder. WHAT IS YOUR OPINION OF TEENAGERS? Margaret: Fun-loving Gary: They're good for the most part and a few are on their way to becoming great adults. Last year at this time another group chose these same two j uniors as the BAUQUE's personality of the issue. The fact that they made it again proves that it's not the rubber stamps, it's the thinkers that kick their way to the so- cial surface and float there. STAND UP AND BF COUNTED: Reporter June Woods sees that Carol meets the press . IS THE DAY TOO LONG? This year Venango Christian has a new activity period within the school day. In order to accommodate this period and maintain a 50 minute class schedule, it is necessary to be in formal session from 8:25 to 3:38. The Roving Reporter was interested in the reaction of the typical VC student to this change. SANDY MCDONALD, sophomore: I feel the activity period is a good idea. it gives everyone a chance to participate in extra-curicular activ- ities without worrying about how to get home after school. As far as the lengthened class day goes, I don't notice much difference. CAROL KOCAN, sophomore: The activity period is a good idea for students who live a distance from school are given a chance to join extra-cumcular activities. There is no woiTy about missing the bus or finding transportation home. The school day doesn't seem that long except for the lunch hour stretch. JACK KOWAL, senior: I think they should subtract time from otr period. Our periods are already long- er than the average school. KAREN CALLAHAN, freshman: I'm for it because I feel that it's very beneficial to the students who must find their own transportation if they are to participate in extra-cur- ricular activities. ANDY CHALOT, senior: In other schools class time is an average of 43 minutes, and 7 minutes sub- tracted from each period would ac- comodate an activity period with sufficient time. LINDA BEST, j unior: I'm for it. It makes the day seem shorter with a break in between. Before, transpor- tation was necessary. Now the 14 clubs are more inviting to the students. HENRY DOLECKI, senior: • 'I think the periods are much too long and shortening the periods would give more time for activities without lengthening the day. THERESA BROWN, junior: I'm in favor of it because now it gives the Franklin students a better chance to join more clubs without having to find transportation home. NANCY ENGLISH, senior: I feel that it is a good idea to have an activity period. It takes yoir mind off the school day. It lengthens on time in school, however, and leaves less time for out-of-school activities. Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails JOYCE WALENTOSKY, BOBBY AND JIM: There is one side of the story the Humane Society hasn't heard or at least won't listen to. ..yet. The babysitter's. By Joyce Walentosky Have you ever wondered what it must have been like to live in the time of prehistoric monsters? My im- agination isn’t flexible enough, but then I don't have to imagine. Some people aren’t lucky enough to have their own monsters and I want them to know what they’re miss- ing. Then, if they feel too bad about it. maybe I can donate two of my own. The names of my monsters are Jimmy—five feet tall and 13 years old—and Bobby—three feet tall and three years old. Their names have been changed to protect the...well, actually, their names were changed to protect me in case they ever read this. At 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, No- vember 21, I was sleeping soundly. That was my first mistake. 'Hey, come on, Joyce! What do you think this is? 'Saturday! That's what I think it is and if you don’t beat it, I’m going to call Mom.’ 'Huh uh. You're going to fix break- fast for me and Bobby; that’s what you’re gonna’ do.’ 'Oh, I am?’ 'Yeah, you are. 'Says who?' 'Me.' The sight of both of them in mv room was too much at that hour of the morning. I mean, what normal human being can function in the mid- dle of the night? 'Now, listen! 1 11 give you ten seconds to get out of here.’ 'Okay, if you’re going to be like that, I guess I’ll tell Dad what hap- to the car door.’ 'You wouldn’t dare!’ He walked into the hall. I heard him dialing the telephone. 'What do you want for breakfast?’ I got out of bed hating car doors al- most as much as monsters. 'Fried egg sammiches with may- onaise and Pepsi. 'Bobby! You can’t eat that for breakfast.’ 'Why not? Jimmy does. It took all the energy I could mus- ter to moderate the situation, but they finally settled for bacon and eggs, toast, pancakes, and cocoa withCheeze Whiz instead of whipped cream. Other than fixing a brunch, a mid- morning snack, a late-morning snack, an early afternoon lunch, and a ba- sic lunch, I did very little all morn- ing. My mother had chosen that day to go shopping, so I told Bobby to play outside while I did homework. I had just gotten started when the phone rang. When I came back up- stairs, I walked into my room and screamed so loud that I still have the sore throat. I don’t know what the thing was but it was crawling and that was enough for me. Anyway, I no sooner screamed than Bobby charged in. 'I’ll thave you. Don’t worry, Til thave you. But he got his maidens mixed— or I got my maidens mixed—because even as he was yelling, he grabbed me around the knees and knocked me down. 'Bobby, what is that thing on my nig.’ 'It’s a dime-a-thore and it's a dra- gon and it eats girls and when it eats them, it grows real big.’ 'Bobby, honey,’ I soothed, 'You don’t have to be afraid of that thing. It doesn’t really eat people.’ 'Didn't thay it ate people, juth girls.’ He went over and picked the creature up. 'Come on, Jerome, let’s go,’ he said and kissed it. I finally got my homework started, but around three o’clock I became suspicious of the silence. Outside my bedroom door a trail of flour led from the upstairs bathroom, across the hall rug, down the oiled stairs, over the sofa to the kitchen. There they stood, elbow deep in flour. Jim looked up bashfully. 'Aw, gee, we wanted to surprise you.’ 'We was baking you a cake tho you mad at us no more.’ said Bobby. Then they wonder why I’m dis- turbed. WHERE THE GRADS ARE.conV FRANK S. MALEK JR. is studying Medical Technology at the College of Steubenville, Steubenville, Ohio. He plans to enter the medical field in later life. WILLIAM H. STEWART is a math maj or at Clarion State College, Venango Campus. He hopes to pur- sue further study in the fields of Math and Science. It is interesting to note that of the 15 graduates listed, four remember the crowd they ran around with most of all; three remember the faculty in general and four senior English and its experiences in particular. The remaining four are still living graduation week and all its splendor. 15 Let the word go forth from this time and place to every generation that this generation has heard the challenge of the last, that it accepts it, and that it is grateful. i Jt-n'oTnrA?!r-t°LPreS1Jdent I°hL Fltz«erald Kennedy and a reminder to the generation to whom he left his chal- lenge, THL BARQUE has adopted the fragment of his inaugural address Let the word go forth that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans.” as the perpetual inscription on its banner. Ike liaA VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL Let the word go forth that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans. VOL. II, NO. 2_______________________________________________________________WINTER, 1964 Fiction: Table Of Contents School Life: STUDENT JOURNALISTS:...................... 6 By Stephen Szalewicz, Daniel Goodman CONFORM OR BE A SOPHOMORE................. 9 By Kathleen Rice ONLY A SUGGESTION........................ 16 By June Woods AN AMIGA OF OURS..........................16 By Diane Wilson Feature: SOMETHING EVEN A KID CAN’T DO............. 4 By James Cihon ACCENT ON YOU............................ 13 By Karen Blumensaadt THE NAME OF THE GAME: STOP AND GO.........14 By Michael Fletcher, Rosemary Bouquin SMILE AWHILE ........................... 15 By Daniel Goodman TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN....................15 By June Woods, Pamela Eckert Sports: WITH STRENGTH AND SKILL................... 6 By Gary Hawk Poetry: A TASTE OF TRIUMPH......... By Thomas Jablonski PATENT LEATHER TRUNKS By Julie Kachik WHITE GODS.............................. 8 By Suzanne Marshall Editorial: OF THE SPOILED IN OUR SYSTEM............ 3 WITHOUT YOUR HELP....................... 3 THE BARQUE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL 1505 W. First St.Tel. 64-61264 OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA Editor-in-Chief............................. Daniel Goodman Executive Editor.............................Prank Shialabba Managing Editor......................................Nancy Petulla Copy Editor........................................Michael Yaeger Sports Editor....................................Gary Hawk Photography................................Stephen Szalewicz Art Editor................................Karen Blumensaadt Exchange Editor...............................DmnaPedorek Circulation Manager...........................Pamela Eckert Production Editors................Ann Whitcomb, Patricia Kleck Varitype Operators................Ann Whitcomb. Patricia Kleck Reporters............. Kathleen Rice, Diane Wilson, June Woods, Rhea Ann Stevenson, Jean Mahaffey, Karen Burke, Carol Eng- lish, William Walenia, Allen Stempin. Joseph Novicki, Terence Rodgers, Walter Moran, Thaddeus Szalewicz Christine Cartwright. Headmaster........................... Rev. L. J. Antoun Advisor...................... Sister Mary Peter, O.S.B. 2 A TASTE OF TRIUMPH Take heed, my laddies, and hear me out the tale which I relate For I wish to speak of the tea party rout, and those who did partici- pate. It seems there docked a British ship filled up to its masts With tea to sell throughout the land bearing England9s import tax. “Are we men or mice, the cry went up, “to be forced to buy this tea? Have we no free wills of our own? I take orders only from me. “Ho, cried a young voice from the crowd, “Our feelings She shall know. We shall go to the harbor to plunder the ship, to the harbor we shall go. At the Boston pier the following night there happened a very strange thing; A group of Indians raided the ship and threw overboard every- thing. The crates were thrown into the sea to show their open defiance With cries of, “Down with the im- port tax, and to dirt with the British alliance. The action by this Boston mob did nothing to aid their cause; hor all the strife and anger shown, England passed more laws. And thus ends my tale of hatred and woe of the people9s fight for freedom. Here was the start of the young nation9s growth, and the leaders who would lead9 em. Of the Spoiled in Our In fractions... disciplinary reports... ITednesday9 s vigil around the bulletin board. This is the life cycle of the demerit system. Demerit: that is a black mark begged for by the student, issued by the faculty, and confirmed by the headmaster. Home life is based on reward and punishment. It uses this procedure to solve problems. The school community is also based on reward and punish- ment. We had a problem—trouble makers, and we were given a solution—the honor system. In lay terms an honor system involves minding your own business, keep- ing your hands off of other people's books or purses, making sure that your mouth is closed, regardless of the position of your neighbor's. In some instances it means having the courage to tell the ivise guy next to you that he needs a new attention-setter. The guarantee on his old one ran out. We tried it for a week or so. It looked like Kennedy's answer to Khruschev, final and compelling. Then, tradition conquered initiative, the so-called good kids chickened out, and the goof-offs reassumed the throne. Evidently this is what we want along with a strictly enforced demerit system. Apparently we have been asking for this. Fortunately, strict enforce- ment is working where mercy did not. Unfortunately, it had to be employed. If maturity is self-discipline, one look at the cafeteria bulletin board separates the sheep from the goats. Without Your Help Every day our newspapers contribute a considerable amount of space to American youth: Nineteen Year Old Kills Father; Fifteen Year Old Hobs Store; Teenager Elopes. Statistics indicate that these stories cover about 10% of that population bracket. Our question is: Where are the headlines reserved for the other 90%? Today, not much matters except speed. We rush education; automobiles fly low at speeds of 250 and 350 miles an hoi� ; super-sonic jets break the souid barrier, and in the middle of all this, teens are expected to rush their emotions and hiiTy their development, but Mother Nature refuses to co-operate. But, despite the opposition, our youth have discovered how to cope with this. They use their energy to win their wars the peaceful way. Ambitious teens have discovered new math methods and worked with scientific dis- coveries. At Venango Christian High School, out of 500 students, approximately 55 went out for the football team, 30 are playing basketball, 40 belong to the journalism staffs, 125 to the combined language clubs, 100 to the forensic league, 50 to the Hostess and Chef Club, 90 to the Red Cross, 27 to the band. VCHS congratulates the local newspapers, the Oil City Derrick and the News Herald, for spotlighting the local fraction of that 90% in their teen fea- tures, their school activities coverage, the column of college biographies and the photo features. It is easier to keep going when someone expects you to get someplace. 3 Something Even a Kid Can’t Do By James Cihon To put a model together, either a model plane, train, car, or boat, a certain amount of energy must be ex- pended, but the results are worth it. You have something you are proud to display on your mantle, or, if not, on your T.V. set, if you have a T.V., or on your grama- phone. The first step in assembling any model is to secure the necessary materials: 1.) a model kit. available for fifty cents ($.50) and 78 box-tops from “Krispy Crunchies, P.O. Box 009, Sheboygan. Wisconsin, zip code no. 17854324905. 2. ) a set of the tools necessary for construction, i.e., a hammer with a broken handle, and a paint brush, full of hardened paint, used to drive nails with until your hammer gets fixed. 3. a tube of glue—the type used to take paint off furniture, ruin good clothes, cause a rash to break out on the skin, and hold parts of model kits together- available for ($.10) ten cents and 87 boxtops from “Krispy Crunchies, P.O. Box 009, Sheboygan, Wis- consin, zip code no. 17854324905. 4. ) the creative instinct which every normal person has. You are normal, aren't you? THE NECESSARY materials having been acquired, next you open the kit and dump its contents. Throw away the instructions first; this contributes to a more original design. Open the tube of glue by pushing a straight pin through the nozzle. When you have finished assembling your model, set it aside two hours to allow the glue to harden-and to give you time to clean the hardened glue off your clothes and skin. (Be sure to clean the glue from your skin immediately, before a peculiar rash- of the type now clearly visible on your right forearm- breaks out.) After you have completed all of these steps, I am sure you will want to place your model where it belongs- in your trash can-and go out and buy something which you are proud to display on your mantle, or T.V. set, or gramaphone, a ready-made model. Some people think that buying a prefab job inhibits one's creative instincts. But it certainly does not. To the alert hobbiest a ready-made model has many possi- bilities. He can improve his plane, train, car. or boat by customing it. That is, he can cut something off, put something on, or paint it. To customize a model, first determine what you want your finished product to look like; planning ahead is important. Then get the necessary materials: 1.) some- thing to cut with; a modeler's saw is usually good, but. if you don't have one. a single-edged razor blade is effective. (Single-edged because it's the model you're cutting, not your arm.) 2.) something to fill in with like “model putty.” (It is available from the friendly folks at “Krispy Crunchies,” P.O. Box 009, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, zip code no. 17854324905, for thirteen cents ($.13), and 127 box tops, or at better stores everywhere.) DECIDE on some unessential part of your model, the wing of a model plane, for instance, and cut it off. Careful you don't cut...Wouldn't listen when we said to use a single-edged razor blade, would you? Put a band-aid on your cut, wipe the blood off of the model, and pick out some area of your model you would like changed. Apply the model putty to that area and shape it with your fingers, paying careful attention that all rough spots are smoothed. Continue this procedure until you have a design that is truly your own—no one else would ever think of it. The last step is to paint your improved version of the prefab model. Since your hardened paint brush can't be used, and “Krispy Crunchies has not yet offered a brush, you'll have to do without. But, this is not a drawback. Open the j ar of paint once more using care, so you don't spill it all over your table...well, that is a brighter color anyway. Set your improved prefab model aside to dry and look at it. I'm sure you'll agree there must be a better use for box tops and mantles-or T.V.'s-or gramaphones. 4 With Strength And Skill About the only thing we can’t do on a basketball floor is make baskets. And that could be for several reasons. We don’t have the height to get the ball or the skill to keep it. Either one can hurt a team and we’ve been wounded by both. Head basketball coach Bill Eckert says the Black and Gold have been playing good ball but they’re hitting only 25%. According to Mr. Eckert a team has to make 35% of its shots to stay in the game. It’s always been a rule that you must have the ball before you can shoot it. WITHOUT THE necessary height to rule the bank- boards, a team, any team, is in the dark. With the return of our tall man, 6 5” Tony Schill, the boards will be tinted Black and Gold. Then if we were really lucky, the return of sharpshooter Joe Fonzo could raise our average above the 35% mark. On December 3� despite Schill’s absence, the Vi- kings held their own against the experienced alumni team. When the smoke cleared the scoreboard regis- tered a 49-46 victory for the Black and Gold. The j unior varsity team upheld the tradition by crushing the MCA team 46-29 • We laughed all the way to the locker room. The December 6 game with the Ramblers verified Coach Eckert’s statement. Despite the 13 points scored by big Stan Kukla and another 11 by Mauer we were turned inside out to the tune of 67-35. THE J.V. TEAM came out a little better. Pat O’Mal- ley and Joe Homan led the Junior Vikings in scoring and to a 39-36 victory. The future is promising or hope springs eternal or something like that. The first league contest at Kanty Prep showed the best display of ball handling this year. We played neck and neck ball with the stronger Prep team but could not muster up enough whatever we have to mus- ter up to keep them from a 41-35 victory. With blood in their eyes the local team vowed revenge when they clash again on February 15. Oremus. Although Kanty’s J.V.’s emerged with the score- book also, it was by no means an embarrasing defeat By Gary Hawk LETA. IIOMAN AND KUKLA. Up, up and away. for our J.V. team. The last ten seconds told the story, 33-30. We lost again but this time when the corpse came off the floor it was still warm. So both Viking squads eagerly awaited the encounter with Clearfield. A score of 83-65 shattered our hopes of patching up the broken record. Despite the figures, though, the boys proved that hope is not loss. The ability to ral- ly was still theirs. Beware. CLARION. We won, 43-41. Music to our ears. Nothing could go wrong for us and apparently nothing did. At last the Vikings got some practice being good winners. The Clarion J.V.’s never had a chance either. The score was 53-32. Obviously anything we could do they could do worse. The return match with Punxy told a different story. We lost 50-45. They say losing is losing but when you lose by a skinny 5 points it hurts a little bit more. Anyway, put away the confetti for awhile. BILL TIPPING AND STAN KUKLA. The basketball was Black and Gold. The scoreboard was Maroon, however................. J.V.’S BRUCE AND LINEHAN. They may have a futire to smile about. Like every other profession, the staffs of the BARQUE and the STAR have their specialists. The only difference is that in our case everyone is a specialist. In fact, about the only outside aid we get at all is from the kid who brings us coffee every Saturday about midnight. KATHY RICE AND DONNA FEDOREK: Cut, paste, tape and try again. That's the song of the set-up staff! ANN WHITCOMB: The machine is called a Varityper but don't let the name fool you. Typing was never like this nor was sanity. PAT KLECK AND CHRIS GURECZNY: The second generation gets taught. The first got an operator's manual and Turns. KAREN BLUMENSAADT AND FRANK SHIALABBA: The staff artist and executive editor find out that little characters with bulging noses and headlines with misspelled words don't draw themselves. Well, back to the drawing board and composing stick again. Student Journalists: Always Willing, Often NX eary By Stephen Szalewicz and Daniel Goodman 6 THE BOOKMOBILE: Some things may run on love but this maga- zine takes money. Lots of it! THE STAR: Joe Earner's newspa- per is printed in the daily 'Derrick', lie can afford to look calm. No bills. THE PHOTOGRAPHER: Now here is a nice quiet, relaxing job. THE STAR MAILING LIST: A Cir- culation of 25,000 and some friends. THE PRESS DANCE: The freshmen wonder how some literary activities can be so unliterary. STAR TYPISTS: How would you like to find out the type wasn't on. THE EDITORBills, bills and more... Well, I'll be. An advertisement. Life is looking up or at least possible. We used to be foolish enough to think that it was something of a dis- tinction to write a magazine. That was before we bought a Varityper. Suddenly our lives are complicated by pica inches and extra increments and headline sticks, by paste-ups and layouts and vertical spacing problems, by production staffs, and business staffs, and, oh, yes, re- porters. But always our motto is Prepare for the Future . We look forward someday to doing this type of thing monthly, to running it on our own off-set printing press, and to living on this fringe of literary lunacy for ever. It’s hard to say exactly why, but maybe it’s because wallowing a- round in printer's ink is the best way we know to preserve yesterday, to prepare for tomorrow, and to pos- sess today. L WHITE GODS By Suzanne Marshall 314 1 I In the frosh dorm at Southhampton University all was quiet. Lights were out. The dingy halls were dark and almost empty. In the basement section a slouched thin figure braced against the door of room 314 and yelled. Hey Abe, come open the door willya? Rufus? Yea, it's me. Now willya come open this door? The door's unlocked. Oh. He opened the door unsteadily. I'll never figure out why the hell room number 314 is in the basement, anyhow. You been drinking again. I'm celebrating. Celebrating what? My own private Emancipation Proclamation. I'm going home in the morn- ing and, you know, you'll be the only nigger left around here. Shut up. Good thing you got that scholarship, Abe. But they'll hate you, too. After you win all their lousy basketball games. Just three more. Enj oy them. You'll be the big hero till then. Knock it off, man. Abe made a face and moved away. God, do you stink! Do me a favor and go gargle or something before I choke to death. Look, big man- Abe stood erect, his huge frame squared, and he stared down at Rufus on the bed. Yeah, smart boy, he answered , What? Go to hell, that's what. Rufus pulled off his shiny, worn suede jacket rolled over, and went to sleep. MORNING arrived quickly. Blankets, draped over the small open windows, held back the light. The cramped room was dark when Rufus awoke. His head was spinning as he changed his clothes and threw his other things into a tat- tered suitcase. Abe was still sleeping. He decided not to wake him. He opened the door and stared at it for a few moments. 314 he whis- pered. on the basement floor. Then he closed the outside door and began the long trip to the station. Leaves crunched under his feet. Businesses were still sleeping. The early shifts were changing at some of the big plants. Dirty, worn men trudged along the cold gray street with lunch pails in one hand and the morning ‘Times’ in the other. Rufus stopped for a stop light. He fumbled with his blazer and stared down at his watch. Then he realized how early it really was. He hadn’t planned to go early but Abe had set all the watches and clocks ahead so he wouldn’t be late. He never knew how far ahead to set them though. Abe was an odd guy. As he passed all the little food stores, he remembered he hadn’t eaten anything substantial for a couple of days. At the next cafe he stopped and walked in. The clock on the wall said he had an hour to kill. An elderly shab- by negro was the only person at the counter so he sat down and ordered coffee. The other negro began the conversation. Morning, my name’s Dorn. What’s yours? Name's Rufus. Where ya going? Home ’ The old negro stared at the bright gold crest on Rufus blazer. Riots scare ya at that school or something? Nope. It's not the leavin’ that’s scarin’ me; it's the homecoming. Fight with your parents? Sort of. Well all kids do. What was yours about? It was a crazy job. Porter in the gutter, that's what I was. I hated it. Then why'd you do it? Not good enough for anything else. But you took the job anyway? Yep. I needed application money and carrying trunks and hat- boxes was one way to get it. You took a job you didn't like to go to Southhampton? Can't see no gain there. Why not? I'm as good as those damn white gods. Better'n some of 'em. So what happened? I got accepted and I knew it all. Knew what? That I could beat out my dad; get a good job; do just as good as any other guy-white guy that is; knew everything there was to know except that a black man can't go to a white school—regardless of what the law books say. Not too many black boys go to South, you know. Any others like us in the place? YEP. My roomate, Abe, a basketball player’He stared at the counter. Nigger or not, he averages thirty points a game. Well,they can go to hell. What about your parents? Think they'll take you back? Why not? Maybe they think you should be earning enough to support yourself. Naw. They have to take me, eventually. I'm their son. Anyway, I still have my friends. Every- thing'll be okay. Same as it always was His face looked quiet for the first time. Maybe I ought to call Vivian. Who’s she? My girl. She’ll talk to me. I know she will. He looked at the clock again. She ought to be home by now. She works at the glass plant from 3 to 5. The old man nodded. Rufus brought out his wallet and called across the counter to the waitress. Hey, you got any change? Yeah, she said, just a minute. “Hurry, willya? I am. I am. Rufus swept the two dimes off Con't. on p. 13 8 Confi orm or be a Soph omore By Kathleen Rice SOPHOMORE YEAR...Old pros nou...Simply whirlwinds of ideas ...New faces to meet...New teach- ers to pester...New freshmen to tease...Last year's “old stuff9 ... Chemistry classes...Explosions d, I SOPHOMORES: Jane Kleck and Sharon Chelton: Third down and four flips to go. ONE: Sam Anderton, John Andrtt T homo s Baker TWO: Thomas Barr, Gerald Beichntr Emily B I iznask y THREE: P iarre Bouquin, Patricia Bowen, Mary Breene, Gail Briggs, Ruth Brinkley, David Bruce FOUR: Raymond Brzezinski, James Bucholz, Karen Burke, Bonita Burns, Shirley Comp, Cynthia Cannon, Donald Carberry FIVE: Sharon Chelton, Sally Clark Robert Culp, Diane Czlonka, Suzan Dabrowski, Karen D io- mond, Robert Douglas SIX: Robert Ebbert, Pomelo Echert, M ilton E mery SEVEN: Raymond Ende, Carol English, Michael English 9 •••Giggles...Chemistry labs to clean...Library passes...Books... More books...Crowded lockers... Busy corridors...Blue slips... Yellow slips...Classes... 11ome- work...No homework... demerits . JOE KAMER AND JOE FRANK. Ah, their finest hour. ONE:Lindo Etzel, Kathleen Evans Donna Fedorik, Carol Fisher TWO: Mory Fitzgerald, Joseph Fitz- patrick, Kathleen Florek, Joseph F on z o THREE: Linda Formankk, Joseph Frank, James Frawley, Thaddeus Gabreski FOUR: James Gavin, Chorleen Gehann, Jerome Gressley James Guyton FIVE: Margaret Hortsell, Linda Heath, George Henderson Suzanne Henry SIX: Timothy Hinds, Josehh Homan, James Hricsina, Susan Hynes SEVEN: Kathleen Irwin, John Jar- zob, Judy Jarosz, Diane Jas- iota, Joanne Hohnson, John Jolley, Joseph Kamer EIGHT: Richard Karg, Michael Kay, Joseph Kenniston, Andrew Keyes, Nancy King, Lawrence Kissinger, Jane Kleck 10 More tests..Praise.,. Criticism ““ Roys...Girls... Dances... Clubs... Juniors to please...Rells... Noise ...More noise...Teachers...Less noise...T ests...Grades... ONE: Corol Kocon, Mary Kokai, Jerome Kowal TWO: Thomas Koziora, Cynthia Kulinski, Dobra Lee Joyce Leicht Georgia Lenar, Jeanne Mahoffey, Lorraine Morchibroda THREE: Kay Mortin, Joseph Martyna, Thomos McCollum, John Mc- Carthy, Patricia McCarthy, Sandra McDonald Dwight McGinnis FOUR: Terrence McGinty, Mary Lee McGrow, JoAnna McGreevy,John McNerney, LeRoy Meehan, Sarah Meehan FIVE: Gregory Moses, Joyce Mott, Linda Novicki, Thomos O’Brien, Linda Oliver, Patrick O'Malley, Wanda Palmer SIX: Ann Proper, Mary Lou Reid, James Reinsel SEVEN: John Rekas, Karen Repman, Veronica Ruby 11 More tests...Praise.. Criticism ...Young men..Young women... A SOPHOMORE..The living con- tradiction...! he walking cloud nine...A confused encyclopedia of facts...The mystery that unfurls when a j unior ..Let s hope... PAM ECKERT, JUNE WOODS, MARY JO STAUB AND PAT MCCARTHY. They're buying ‘Barques', of course. ONE: James Schettler, Richard Schiffer, Karan Schnaidar TWO: Jamas Seyler, John Shrove, Richard Siefer THREE: Arthur Simpson, Mary Kay Smith, Linda Sobrowski FOUR: Candace Sporer, Charles Stoab, Mary Straub FIVE: Corol Steinecker, William Strowbridge, Joseph Streczywilk, John Sullivan, Fred Susi, Emily Sustak, Ray Taft SIX: Thomas Torr, Williom Tipping, Mory Ann Tobin, Marj orie Toy, Donna Truscott, John Voloshin, Joseph Waddell SEVEN: William Wolenia, JoAnn Worcholic, Edward Wojtowicx, Donald Wolbert EIGHT: June Woods, Linda Woodworth, RoyceAnn Xonder, Corol Zimoski 12 Accent on You ony Horos By Karen Rlumensaadt Not long ago the staff took a poll among the seniors to determine who of that large, uncombed, unsettled, unknown body were the most popular fresh- Although we were worried at first, the seniors actually handed in papers with names on them. When the score was tabulated it was clear that the “Fresh- men the Seniors Admire Most ’ were Connie ,Logue and Tony Horos. They were almost as surprised as we were. If a senior knows your name you're great, if he thinks enough about you to think you're nice you've got it made. A rare combination of both was enough in Tony Horos' words “to make him flip. We thought you might be interested in knowing what goe6 on inside the head of popular freshmen. Tony Horos prefers high school life to grade school. He feels that the student body is more united and everyone seems to know everybody. In short, the school spirit is coming back from the grave. CONNIE Logue likes changing classes and getting to know her other class- mates in different courses or situations. She never expected upper classmen to be so nice. An academic student participating in freshman speech, foren- sics, and great books, Connie plans to study at Pitt and be a high school English teacher. In the sports department she favors bowling. The demerit system? It's O.K. Tony is also an academic student. His activities include football, foren- sics, freshman speech, Spanish club and student council. It's a wonder he finds time for school. Tony would like to be an architect and plans to study at Penn State. Not typical of most freshmen. Tony wishes that school would slow down. “I can wait to be a senior. Deeply concerned with political issues,, he feels that Bob Kennedy should run on the democratic ticket for president but feels that Goldwater will probably win it. It's strange to find a freshman that's satisfied, but we did. Tony feels that “needed changes-if there are any-will come in time. So. freshmen, look to the future. Someday you'll have to vote for the most popular freshmen. Be a conscientious voter. Get to know the student body now. WHITE GODS, con't from p. 8 the table and ran across the room to the beaten phone booth behind the door. While he waited for his connection, he stared at all the initials kids had carved in it's sides. He wondered how many times he and Viv had done the same thing in other booths in the park. The harsh voice of the oper- ator startled him back to reality. “Hello, he said. “Hello. “Just one moment, sir. Miss Vivian Blakely? “Yes...Yes, hello? “Hello, Rufus shouted. “Hello, Viv? Viv, honey, I couldn't wait to surprise you. I had to tell you right away. He was really excited now. “I'm cornin' home, Viv. “Who is this? “It's me, honey, Rufus. “Well, hello Mr. Misplaced White Man, and how do you like the world of the blonds and the fair? Did your kinky hair and fat nose match everything okay? “LISTEN, VIV. can the smart talk. I said I was coming home today. For good. Don't you understand? “You bet I do. Maybe you ought to find a nice little Irish lassie to bring home to mama. “Aren't you funny, though? You been runnin' around with that Peter- son again, I suppose? “And if I have that ain't none of your business. He's a black man's black man anyway. And let me tell you something else, friend. If you even dare to bother me one more time. I'll call the cops, so help me. Goodbye! He clicked the receiver over and over and yelled wildly, “Viv, I'm coming over. You hear me, Viv? I'm coming over. He slammed open the booth, grabbed his suitcase and ran out the door. A burly redheaded man bumped him, knocking him off balance. “Watch where you're going, nigger, he taunted. Rufus gritted his teeth hard, then stopped at a corner to find his bearings. “Hey kid, which way's Pine Avenue from here? “That way, mistah. How's about a nice shine' Rufus ignored him and stepped over the edge of the curb. The shiny faced negro boy looked up at Rufus' j acket. “Too good for a niggah shine since you been up to the big univer- sity, huh? Rufus’ lips tightened. “Shut your damn mouth. Then he turned and tore down the now busy street, switching the beaten leather parce l from one hand to the other, weaving in and out of the crowd. As he approached the outskirts of the business district, the crowds thinned. Up ahead he could see a group of people clus- tered around the Lincoln monument in the park. As he got closer he recognized a few Southhampton j ackets. He was panting as he skirted the the assembly. All the people were chanting. Suddenly they turned and scattered in every direction. The noise was awfui. Someone grabbed his bag and yelled. Hey, we got one! Rufus babbled nervously, “Now look, I didn’t do a thing, See; I got a j acket j ust like your's. A group began gathering around them. They pushed him from one to the other until his nose bled and his clothes were shredded. He heard himself yelling for Vivian and Abe and his parents and his friends. But no one heard the scream as he fell under the blow of a rock found near- by. No one heard that one black cry in a sea of white. He leaned up on one arm. A second rock smashed against his eye. He tasted the sand on the pave- ment and felt the blood in his mouth. I got a j acket—j ust like your's, he said. “Look, he said. “Just like yours. COVER STORY Sophomore eager Bill Tip- ping is proof that even though the Vikings may lose, they lose fighting. That's good enough for us. 11 The Name of the Game: Stop and Go By Michael Fletcher and Rosemary Bouquin His Side: BE CAUTIOUS Ever since the dawn of women’s rights, the ladies have been taking larger and larger shares in what has traditionally been labeled for meji only.” But despite their great amount of talent in everything from child psychology to politics, the weaker sex can't seem to master the simple art of driving. I use, as my proof, extensive personal observation and a few stories that I have heard on the subj ect because to question about it would only lead to the biased opin- ion that all male drivers are maniacs. The trouble, however, lies with the ladies themselves. All women drivers display charac- teristics with which you can easily detect them. THE WOMAN DRIVER usually drives twenty miles per hour below the posted speed limit. I say usually because there are exceptions who drive twenty miles per hour above the limit. Personally, I prefer the speedy ones; you don't have to put up with them for long. Another thing women drivers don't believe in is turn signals. So if you’re following a woman and she suddenly slows down, the best thing to do is stop. My father says that the one thing you can be sure of if a woman puts her hand out to signal a turn is that the window is down. With automatic turn signals, modern man is deprived of even that small degree of security. After you spot a woman driver, the next step is to avoid her. To do this a few simple rules should be ob- served. They may not work but they should certainly be observed. There are rules to every sport. Maintain a buffer zone. A usual buffer zone consists of one car length for each ten miles per hour. The buffer zone for avoiding women drivers is measured in kilometers or range of vision. Know the route well. Keep in your car a handy reference map showing the location of alleys, back roads, width of sidewalks, etc. It is much safer to duck into an alley than to face a woman driver. There are a few alternate tricks such as carrying a wig in your car, (Women rarely attack one of their own kind.) or, this has proven very successful, driving a B-61 diesel Mack truck. Her Side: BE HONEST Men say that women drivers are a problem, but women know that the real problem is the cars that the men build. For instance consider the common case of a stalled car. To stop without really trying you must have the right kind of car. This is the type that has some elusive mechanical difficulty that makes it stall in the most embarrassing places. Take a busy corner, a hot day, about a million people in a hurry to get home, a red light, and our car. It will reach the corner j ust as the orange light turns red, the car will shake a little and j ust as the light turns green, “Pooh! you've stalled!” After several futile attempts to start it again, the light turns red and the car lurches over the white line—and stalls. Another good time to stall without trying is when you’re late for school or an important business appoint- ment. Racing the motor only tends to aggravate it and time after time it stalls. The minutes tick by, you get angrier, and the angrier you get the more it stalls. Sometimes, the stalls may come as a surprise. After starting out per- fectly, you travel down a busy street and your car begins to shake. You slow down until you are crawling- fearful that when you turn the corner it will stall— for good. This is your only consolation; you’re right. The procedure is to raise the hood, take off the big blue thing in the middle and run back to the front seat. Start the car, get out again a d run to the hood, replace the blue thing, close the hood and get back to the seat be- fore it stalls again. Chances are you won't make it but the exercise is good. Stop signs aren't menaces in them- selves. Stopping at the sign presents no problem; you simply stop at the sign, look both ways, resume travel- ing till you get to the middle of the street, then stall. When you have successfully stopped traffic in both lanes, like magic, this is the time for you to start. But the most successful method and one which is in use by many make drivers today, appears to be the best. They all moved to Kenya and became hermits. On the other hand there is the car that you can't let stop. It is the one in which the battery has died. This usually occurs when you have a big date. If you wait for the mechanics to come to fix it, you will be an hour late, so you take a chance. You get to her home, beep your horn and pro- cede on your way. Just as you turn the corner, you see her standing at the door looking for you. This time you have it figured out. You will blow the horn before you get to her house. When she comes out she can jump in the car, but she hasn't figured this out yet so around the block you go again. After your date is safely in the car, and you're going around the block again to pick up the shoe that she lost, you may take the mud off of your license plate. Men don't really want to know who you are, just that you are exactly what they figured you would be— a woman driver. PATENT LEATHER TRUNKS By Julie Kachik A young girl’s purse holds many treasures: Reminders of last summer’s pleasuresy A flovier from Mary ’s wedding cake, A seashell to remember that day at the lake. Here’s a wrapper from a stick of gum-- Geey I wonder where that came from. A compacty lipstick, file and a comb, The key that opens the door to my home. Pcncilsy pens, erascrst too, A library card for books that are due, A ticket from the baseball gamey The real cute pitcher (what was his name?) A purse is a place trunks used to be for. There’s only one disadvantage: they oughta’ hold more. 14 To Whom It May Concern By June Woods and Pam Fckert The things you learn in high school often have very little to do with aca- demic subjects. You take a half step out of childhood and a very shaky step into adolescence. This is a very special world, unique in our country. The most uncomfortable members of the society are the freshmen (initiation doesn’t help), and the most reluctant to leave are the seniors. All of us adjust in var- ious ways. Some by never adjusting at all. If you are a trouble totin’ teen- ager, you lie someplace between the two extremes of the pendulum. We think we pretty well know where, but you have the right to determine your score in secret. Try the following exercises. Simply check the ones that apply to you, multiply by five and subtract from 100. Exercise I: Effective rationaliza- tions 1. Cheating is hard work; not too many have the qualifications. 2. This modern math sure has me dating a lot of strange fellows. 3. Education isn’t with it these days; I don’t understand it. 4. Who wants to make first hon- ors? I can’t stand all the publicity. 5. Who needs a Viking jacket; I’ve got my parka. 6. Of course I’m on probation; gum helps my nervous stomach. 7. I know the faculty will learn to love me as soon as they get to know me. 8. I would have been elected student council representative, but I live so far away from school. On the other hand, there are f ive major crises you will face in your high school career. If you can mas- ter these, you are ready to to to college. 1. The coach of your gym class comes at you from behind with his paddle. 2. You study hours for a biology exam. It’s postponed. 3. During your chemistry class, you create an illuminous fire. Sud- denly the fire bell rings. 4. The first classbell rings: an important timed test is awaiting you: you can't remember your locker combination. 5. You maneuver into the cafeteria for lunch. Before you is an un- labeled color scheme. You are supposed to eat it. Finally, there are seven maj or incidents that occur at least once during your high school years. Show your experience and match them. PARTIES 1. Faculty Meeting 2. Homecoming Dance 3. Thanksgiving Dance 4. French Welcoming Party 5. Pep Club Meet 6. Football Dinner 7. Odd Ball Dance INCIDENTS 1. You fall asleep 2. You are expelled from school 3. You forget to elect a queen 4. You come in spring attire 5. You speak Spanish 6. You come in school uniform dress 7. You invite a basketball coach as speaker By Daniel Goodman Tinfoil. Now they want tinfoil. Some people rely on the first robin or the first daffodil to herald the arrival of spring. The first snow flurries are generally a sign of winter. I have found a much easier method to detect the change over from fall to winter, however. Tinfoil. Approximately one week before our first snowfall, we are all reminded to bring tinfoil for our lockers the next day. By the end of the week- the re- quest is a law and tinfoil is manda- tory. You might as well go home and put the storm windows on; it’s bound to snow within a week. It’s a funny thing about our lock- ers. The top part, where your books go,is about 12 inches high. If you’re lucky, you can squeeze in two or three books. The bottom part is about four feet high. Plenty of room for your coat, your suit, your tux, and five or six umbrellas. The lock- ers are about 11 inches across- The binders you buy in the book store are twelve. WELL, the tinfoil goes in and everything is fine for about one week. After 7 or 8 days of wedging your books in the top shelf you give it up. It's a lot easier to put them in the bottom on the tinfoil. Of course, when you thro your boots in on top of the whole mess, it gets a little bit soggy. As long as they are on the tinfoil though, nobody complains. Some students argue that there is no need for tinfoil. I agree. For them there is no need for tinfoil. They are the ones that come into school stamping their feet as if they were trying to rid the world of insects. There are other students who very nicely remove their boots outside and come strolling in carrying one in each hand. About halfway down the hall they clap them together. A soak- ing wet Saint Bernard couldn't do any better than that. There are, of course,the strong ones among us who come with no protection on their feet but their shoes. You can recognize this individual anywhere. His nose is red and swollen, his feet are frozen and his hands are numbed (gloves are no fair either) He is easy to find, j ust follow the pudd- les. A soggy school is indeed a serious problem but tinfoil doesn’t quite seem to be the answer. The best solution I have heard so far was from the sophomore who wanted to put a bed of glowing coals in front of the main entrance. By the time you got in-if you did--you would be thoroughly dry. 15 THE ALUMNA: ONLY A SUGGESTION By June Woods Not everyone has to learn the hard way that the world beyond high school is very demanding. But al- most everyone. And j ust as regular- ly, the ones who did learn under some amount of duress try to warn the ones who won’t learn at all that it’s a sink or swim proposition, a study-now-or-learn-on-your-own-later kind of world. We happen to have a few of these experts tucked away in the graduate files ourselves. And they want to take another stab at it. Maybe they think that the advice of the present generation will underline the points that an older one has been trying to make. Maybe. ROBERT GABRESKI (University of Dayton): English should be stress- ed in classes other than English. College teachers subtract points for poor English usage regardless what subj ect matter’s involved. CONNIE RINALDO (Capital City of Nursing, Washington, D.C.): If you don’t know how to study by the time you graduate and you plan to go to college and stay there, you better find some summer course that specializes in miracles.” JOAN BAJOREK (St. Vincent School of Nursing, Erie): A student should realize that most of the study and learning must be done on his own. Each day’s work is based on what he was supposed to have learned previously.” THOMAS HARTSELL (Gannon College, Erie): Form good study habits now. When you get to college there’s no time for it. Study is a re- warding experience.” LAWRENCE LITWINOVICH (St. Francis College, Loretto, Pa.) College is rough. A high school course of study doesn’t even ap- proach it .” PAUL JOHNSON (Gannon College, Erie) No one could tell me how im- portant and necessary education would be. Get as many A’s and as few B’s as possible. That’s a stiff order but it’s a must if you’re think- ing of higher education.” FRANK MALEK (Steubenville College, Ohio): Study like crazy; college is hard.” Anyway, the comments are candid and, we presume, correct. Someday we’ll write back and verify the issues. An Amiga of Ours An interview with Lupita Ongay JOHN KOWAL, LI PITA AND TIIE PINATA. No Olympic coach ever trained a team with more intensity-or more success. Toying with a fountain pen in the school library, Maria Guadalupe Ongay, or Luoita, made a charming picture. Occasionally her face wrinkled in agitation; she found it hard to express her ideas clearly. But for the most part she appeared to be a relaxed, yet vibrant, in- telligent youth, and once, with al- most intense sincerity, she ex- claimed: I love this country!” For those who might yet not know, Lupita Ongay is our Mexican ex- change student. She is second youngest in a family of four children, Maria Eugenia, Jose Enrique, Maria Guadalupe, and Juan Manuel, coming from the peninsula town of Mexida. At the present time she has only vague ideas about American life and can cite but few differences. HOME life in the two countries appears to be quite similar, but the Mexican girl did stress one thing. In her native land, the mother finds herself more restricted concerning job opportunities outside the home. A young girl usually works for a time before she is married, but once she is married and a mother, full time is devoted to her new j ob: that of a housewife. Some mothers work if it is absolutely necessary. Lupita herself feels that in the United States parents are too pre- occupied with things other than their children: Some do and some don't,” although her first reaction was Don't ask me about it!” Because they are very cheap in Mexico, at least two maids are em- ployed by almost every family. These maids, who are usually Indian women, do the cooking, dishes, and housework but never have charge of the children. It is almost an unwritten law that the mother has sole char ge of her children. Pin comparison to this country,” she stated, our income is low, very low,” but it is sufficient to meet their needs. The Indians, about whom she declared: I love them very much. They are so warm, so friendly...” receive hardly enough to keep them alive, Something to note is that, regardless of the fact they are so poor, they are very clean. LUPITA went through eight years of grade school, the same as we do, but secondaria lasts only three years. She studied the same sub- j ects which are covered in four years in U.S. high schools. She noted that in her country students have no choice of courses. I like choosing.” Lupita attended a Catholic all girls' school conducted by the Maryknoll Sisters. Something which she definitely prefers here is dating without a chaperone. It may seem strange to us, but Mexican girls are accustomed to having their mother or one of their mother's acquaintances accompany them on every date. Fifteen year old Lupita neve r dated in Mexico because girls there do not go out until they have grad- uated. But a group of girls, and sometimes boys, frequented her home on Saturdays where they would play records like here.” They have another custom, more likeable than the first. On Sundays in Veracruz, the girls and boys have a chance to get together. The girls line up and move in a circular direction around a band. The boys, usually from the Army and Navy, form a line and circulate in the opposite direction. Then they go round and round.” Her comment: That's fun...” 16 7 4e Ranc oe. VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL “Let the wort go forth that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans. VOL. II, NO. 3 SPRING, 1964 TABLE OF CONTENTS English Isn't Bad Enough....................... 3 By Diane Wilson Facts, Facts, Overdue Books and More Facts......6 Roving Reporter................................ 8 By Carol English Miracles Are Made of This.......................11 By Ted Szalewicz FEATURE: Smile Awhile................................... 4 By Daniel Goodman So What Else Is Funny?..........................4 By Patrick Cihon Accent on You....................................8 By Karen Blumensaadt What's This World Humming To?.................. 8 By Denis MacDonald What Happened to Fairytales? Nothing!..........10 By Michael Hajduk Whither Wisdom?................................14 By Joseph W alkowski Mr. Clean Wins Again........................... By Ann Logue and Mary Pindel Russian Roulette, Anyone?......................,15 By Kathleen Bajorek SPORTS: I'm Not Fit to Be Fit........................... 5 By Patricia Henry POETRY: Dilemna......................................... 4 By Nancy Prenatt The Hero...................................... 8 By Margaret Schettler Blast-Off...................... By Margaret Schettler A Childhood Disease............ By Kathleen Hartsell Under the Laugh................ By Arthur Simpson EDITORIAL: Some Friend.................... 9 9 � o 3 THE BARQUE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL 1505 W. First St.Tel. 64-61264 OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA Editor-in-Chief............................. Daniel Goodman Executive Editor............................Prank Shialabba Managing Editor...........................................Nancy Petulla Copy Editor..............................................Wchael Yaeger Sports Editor..................................Gary Hawk Photography. .............................-Stephen Szalewicz Art Editor.................-............Karen Blumensaadt Exchange Editor...........................................Donna Fedorek Circulation Manager......................................Pamela Eckert Production Editors................Ann Whitcon . Patricia Kleck Varitype Operators................Ann Whltcordb, Patricia Kleck Reporters............ Kathleen Rice. Diane Wilson, June Woods, Rhea Ann Stevenson, Jean Mahaffey, Karen Burke, Carol Eng- lish. William Walenla. Allen Stempin, Joseph Novicki, Terence Rodgers. Walter Moran, Thaddeus Szalewicz Christine Cartwright. Headmaster.......................... Rev. L. J. Antoun Advisor.................... Sister Mary Peter, O.S.B. o 2 English Isn't Bad Enough An interview with Father Salvatore Luzzi Rising from his chair behind the guidance room desk, Father Sal- vatore Luzzi, head of the language department at Venango, is no tow- ering or frightening picture. In fact, he's slightly short and stocky and his dark eyes seem to be in a constant state of motion. Yet there's something about his approach to a subj ect that leaves no doubt about his mastery of it. Father Luzzi, as head of the language department, is responsible for choosing the plan and books to use here since there are no state regulations. Concerning his author- ity as decision-maker, Father made this comment: The other language teachers co-operate very well in this. A chuckle followed. Of the various programs con- sidered, he decided the direct method, under the Cleveland Plan, would best train future language scholars. According to this approach, conversation in the lan- guage being taught is used in the classroom as much as possible. The French book, Sauze, and the Span- ish book, Salas Y Salas, are prod- ucts of the Cleveland Plan System. ALTHOUGH IT IS the most modern, this course is not suffi- cient in itself and must be supple- mented with tapes, records, and some complementary reading matter. A native of Armenia and now a resident of Oil City, Mrs. Karien is an excellent example of a supple- ment. She speaks French fluently and holds conversation classes every Thursday. The four year plan was introduced at Venango in the first year of the school's existence. Many of the state public schools are gradually adopting it also. The state educa- tion department is showing a trend to insist upon four years of a modern language. Under this plan a student would no longer take Latin in his freshman and sophomore years but would begin immediately with a modern language and pick up Latin in his j unior and senior years if he so chooses. Father claimed: Four years are most necessary if you want to give the student a sufficient knowledge of the language so that he can use it rather than having j ust a reading and grammatical knowledge. In this day speaking knowledge is essen- tial. Another advantage is that the students save money in college. Today, colleges require two modern languages taken on the campus. After taking four years in high school, a student who passes the placement test may be placed in the advanced class. This means only one year of study and a savings of over $100 per year. The priest also advises a second language in the j unior and senior years, especially for those planning on a mathematical, scientific, or teaching career. Spanish, French, and Latin are offered at Venango but Father stated that Spanish, French, Ger- man, and Russian should be found in any well-rounded high school. MR. BERNARD KLECK AND FR. SALVATORE LUZZI. What are we going to do about the other genera- tion? We do hope to add a German teach- er next year and Russian will come eventually but teachers are j ust not available in the area. Math and science students will be required to take four years of Ger- man and two years of French once the third modem language is added. This requi rement may seem unneces- sary now but the two are positively essential for those who wish to ob- tain their masters and doctors de- grees. How much of your grade is really yours? My report is mine in name only. It all started back in my freshmen year. Who could deny the late shows were certainly more interesting than co-sines and conj uctions. So in my grade school way, I put homework completely out of my mind. When I arrived at school the following day, I realized the assignment must be completed. Jack was a good friend and he had done the work, so I copied it. After all, he used my basketball whenever he wanted to. From that day on. Jack was workinq for both of us. Four years later, I entered college with Jack’s diploma but without Jock. I had an expert's knowledge of how to write on the smallest of surfaces and how to read at a 180 degree angle but it seems that the professors had seen my caliber before. After that I left college without Jack, without a diploma without a future, and with a debt. You see, I need a job that requires knowledge of my independent code, plenty of small pieces of paper on which to write my code, and a tie in which to hide them. But I j ust can’t seem to findjhat j ob. I wonder if Jack's having as much trouble with trig as I am filling out Social Security forms. Probably not. That Jack was a smart kid. And a real good friend. 3 By Dan Goodman So What Else is Funny? The lengthening of the class per- iods here at V.C. has proved very beneficial. By extending each per- iod, each student is given five ex- tra minutes in which he can secure demerits, detention or both. The whole problem seems to be that the teachers, most of whom are accus- tomed to 45 minute periods, automat- ically run down at the end of that time. The rest is left to the stu- dent’s initiative. Fortunately, they usually don’t conj ure up anything worse than an unapproved discus- sion group. With a more creative group, the school could probably be tom down and resold as Do-It- Yourself-Barbecue-Pit” kits so with the lengthened school day the students are provided with an activ- ity period. Some of the various activities are sleeping, walking the halls, and watching the clock. The idea of this period is to interest more students in extra-curricular activities. When the meetings are held during class time, the students who live a distance from the school are able to attend. The monkey wrench seems to be that by the time everyone gets into the meet- ing, wakes up and takes notice, the advisor only has enough time to tell them that they will have a meeting after school that night. To provide for the increase in time, it is necessary to start school a mite earlier. It might be exagger- ated, but I’ve been told the students coming to school sometimes bump into the ones that are getting out of their activity meetings. It’s a great place to visit but I’d hate to live there. I HAVE found that to get the re- commended eight hours of sleep, I must retire immediately after my homework is completed. Usually I can make it in about three hours. Don’t be too impressed though. Remember that I’m using the stu- dent definition of study. (If the books are in sight you can, without blushing too much, say you were working.) All in all, Venango’s a darn good school. I mean they’ve got every- thing: books, pens, desks, teachers, the whole bit. I really like it here, but it sorta shook me up when I found out the doors only lock from the inside. 4 In recent months, a new fad has appeared in humor—Elephant Jokes. These are bits of wit such as: “How do you catch an elephant?” “Hide in the grass and make a noise like a peanut.” Clearly, these must go. Look at it from the elephant’s point of view. How would you feel if for years you had lived a good, quiet, peaceful life in the j ungle, and all of a sudden, millions of people are laughing at you? Some Jokes go so far as to suggest vio- lence toward elephants. Take for example: “How do you kill a blue elephant?” “With a blue-elephant gun.” Why do these terrible things have to happen to elephants? What have elephants done to deserve this—being ridiculed by millions of j uvenile delinquents.The only things worse than elephant jokes are double-barrelled-elephant j okes, such as: “Why do elephants run in herds?” “So they can buy tennis shoes at a discount.” “Why do elephants have wrinkled feet?” “From wearing the cheap tennis shoes they bought at a discount.” These have to go! This implies that elephants are so cheap that they stick together only so they can get their tennis shoes at a discount. Anyone with some intelligence knows that elephants wear low-cut loafers and they run in herds so they can tell each other grape jokes. THE ONLY SOLUTION to the elephant joke problem is to tell grape jokes instead of elephant jokes. What good are grapes? Elephants are clearly superior to grapes. If a grape and an elephant had a race, who would win? Why the elephant, of course. All grapes do is hang on the vine all day long for the whole summer in those vicious little clusters. Their sole purpose is to make wine so people can see pink elephants. People blame seeing pink elephants on innocent pachy- derms when it is all the grapes fault. The next time you hear an ele- phant joke be strong. Don't let your temper lead you to physical vio- lence. Just retaliate with a grape Joke, because grapes are clearly no-good. Instead of ruining the reputations of innocent elephants, ruin grapes' reputations. Don't let those damaging, slanderous elephant jokes survive; bury them under grape jokes such as: “What's purple and lives in Macedonia?” “Alexander the Grape.” DILEMMA At midnight it is hard to see; If I’m through with English or history; If algebra’s done and Spanish is next; If the other kids are all this vexed; If I’m writing shorthand or maybe Greek; If Macbeth is strong and Hamlet weak; If office practice can be put away; If I should reread that other play; If my biology report is really done; If school is still a lot of fun; If perhaps I should put my books away, Forget about work and start to pray. Nancy Prenatt Not Fit to Be Fit By Patricia Henry It isn't that I don't believe in physical fitness. It's just that my constitution won't take it. Experts claim fitness is the key to a long healthy life. What they neglect to mention is the mental anguish it causes. For years I have been content to live a happy, normal, relaxed life. But all of this has changed since the advent of “physical fitness!'' HEADSTANDS. A debatable way to get up in the world. KATIIY STRAUB AND JOANNE SZABAT. The weaker sex? I'm not accusing the government, the schools, American industry or Russia for this sudden interest in health. I’m not even blaming my gym teacher. I realize this program has stemmed from the space race and a mere fad, but I'm wondering how much longer I can hold up under the stress of push-ups, pull-ups, bends and jack-in-the-boxes. I am no soon- er over the sprains, strains and stories of one we ek of physical edu- cation until the next week is upon me. It's one vicious cycle that's be- ginning to drive me nuts. I'm sure fitness is suitable for a great number of people but I do not happen to be one of the multitude of fresh air seekers and fifty- mile hikers. I can not abide these so called fitness enthusiasts who must do deep knee bends before every meal and sleep with the win- dows open in zero degree weather. MY FRIENDS CAN not compre- hend the fact that I do not consume five gallons of milk, three quarts of orange juice and two bushels of okra each day j ust because it's healthful. Gymnastics are pure tor- ture to my unused muscles. After twenty minutes of rigorous exercise, three laps around the school and a brisk game of basketball, it is next to impossible for me to continue my daily schedule plus several flights of stairs, two mile corridors, and the lunch hall rash. School jokesters delight in my PAT FLETCHRR. Mr. Physical Fitness. COACII ZAGORSKI AND MIKE SCHNEIDER. Possibly there is an easier way to make a living. attempts to do a simple bicycle. The excuse that my chain broke does not effect the phys. ed. teach- er nor does she accept the fact that I am coasting. My inability to shoot for the right basket and the fact that I can not tpuch my knees let alone the floor lead to some em- barrasing moments for me. I have dreams, or better yet nightmares, about the annual fitness tests which I annually flunk. It is sheer terror for me to walk into gym class on these days. No matter how many excuses I invent, I am still forced to go through forty-five sit- ups, (I am only able to do six) forty-six pull-ups, (I manage twelve of these) my two foot broad jump and my fifteen minute lap around the school. AS I SAID BEFORE, squat- thrusts and shuttle-runs may be fine for some people. But after much blood, sweat, and tears on the part °f my gym teacher as well as my- self, I still remain number 240 in a class of 240 physical fitness en- thusiasts. 5 I Facts, Facts, Overdue Books and More Facts One of the most popular of all the activities at VC is the forensic league. Their purpose—dissection: the victim—j ust about everything. The methods they employ are var- ious, but the results are always the same. t BARBARA KAWESKI AND A COMPETITOR. When you can make your competition laugh, who cares what the j udge thinks. KATHY RICE AND PANNI BAUER. Next time I will skip the first round. BOB MEGNIN, JEAN MAHAFFEY, AND OPPONENTS. It's amazing the number of opposing authorities a nan can collect on a single subject. A dull classroom scene is trans- formed into a platform at Gettysburg where Abe Lincoln is discussing the Great War. Lady Macbeth comes alive and lives her horrifying exper- iences over again in a short but enduring 7 or 8 minutes. An old fairy tale we thought would bore us to tears is presented in a new and delightful way. ALTHOUGH IT may seem strange to the non-member, these students were not bom with the words of Lincoln or Kennedy branded in their minds. Preparing for a forensic meet is a process that never ends. For the debator it's many long hours spent at the library, gathering facts, facts, over-due book bills, and more facts. After a speech is written, it must be polished and re-polished, said and re-said. The student in drama or humor strives constantly for the technique that will assure him of a coveted and crowded first place. Members of the extemp divi- sion have to know everything about anything. Yet, despite the feverish preparation, it's not all work. Meet- ing people in many different places compensates for the energy put forth� 6 Going to the meet is an experience in itself. In the front seat you hear a Greek tragedy; a little further back somebody's reading a humorous play between the budget figures or the time table of the U.S. space program and other minor expemporaneous problems. In the last seat huddle a small group of debators who are more than willing to disprove anything you say—whether you've said it or not. AFTER ALL THE MAGAZINES and old speeches and ballots are swept away, though, VCHS and all the other schools in all the other leagues have breathed into the clay that is their students the firm belief that understanding is next to survival. SYLVIA McMAIION. In summation I would like to say ... I would like to say—any thing that’s in summation. FR. DALEY, BOB MEGNIN, AND JOE WADDELL. And now a word from the coach. JULIE MOTT, DIANE JASIOTA, KAREN CALLAHAN. CHUCK STAUB, JOHN JARZAB, JOE WADDELL. This is the bus trip to the meet. We are sooo serious. LARRY SCHWABENBAUER AND CAROL 1LALL. We are reading over their shoulder but that is oi culture case. CHUCK STAUB, JOHN JARZAB, JOE WADDELL. This is the same bo? trip-home. We are hysterical and hilarious and out cold. 7 Accent on You June Woods By Karen Blumensaadt Pat 0 Malley Out of the midst or mist, perhaps, of a group that somewhat presumptious- ly consider themselves old timers come the sophomore personalities the seniors admire most, June Woods and Pat O'Mally. At pep rallies June is the J.V. cheerleader with the short pixie and the big j ump, with the wide smile and a piston full of pep. An academic student from St. Stephen's, June is also an active reporter on the “Barque staff. June is very active in swimming and diving and she enjoys skating dur- ing the winter months, but her favorite spectator sport is basketball. Future plans include college and, although no special field of study has been chosen, it is rumored that her main interests lie in design or fashion merchandising. Pat O'Mally, who moved to Oil City from Farrell where he attended St. Anne's, is a J.V. basketball player. While living in Farrell, Pat collected a considerable amount of trophies bowling on a local team. Pat takes the academic course and is a regular honor student. Pat's sights are set on Annapolis right now, though he's given thought to law school. Now, however, Pat favors biology and math and enjoys mechanical drawing. Congratulations to Pat and June, our Sophomore Personalities of 1964. ROVING REPORTER: MARKS OF MATURITY? By Carol English The question, What is your view- point about smoking and drinking? brought the following responses from eleven fellow classmates questioned at random. LINDA NOVICKI a happy-go-lucky sophomore, puts it this way: I find no reason for teenagers drinking. As for smoking, I don't think it is right for girls or even boys. It has been proven that boys who don't smoke have more athletic ability than those who do'. and maybe our teams should consider this aspect serious- iy- I don't think anyone younger than a j unior should smoke, states CAROLYN HpVlS,an active fresh- man. She firmly declared that girls who smoke look cheap. As far as drinking goes, forget it! � Senior MIKE HAJDUK feels that smoking is definitely harmful, a waste of money, and a hindrance to smokers of any age. We should ab- stain from drinking for it may have physical as well as mental effects on our maturity. SHARON OWENS, ]. V. cheerlead- ing manager, declares, I detest drinking. Those who drink j ust for the sake of drinking simply degrade their character. However, I think smoking is O.K. for those who have permission. It is their own money and health. TIM WALSH, freshman, thinks that drinking is definitely out for teenagers. Those who smoke merely do so to get a feeling of being one of the gang. I think smoking is all right if we have our parent's approval, replied senior JACK KOWAL. He summed drinking up quite briefly, Pretty ridiculous. As far as smoking is concerned, with legal permission and your own health in mind it is acceptable in social life, concluded our junior representative, PAM GUYTON. But drinking is always degrading. BILL WALENIA, an active bas- ketball player, states that smok- ing is a pleasure which most teen- agers enj oy. It is not harmful or a sin if you have approval. But no drinking till you're 21! S RON DeLUCIA, freshman repre- sentative, sums our discussion up quite well. Kids smoke because they want the feeling of being one of the crowd. When young folks drink they again want the reassurance of being accepted. Wait until you are 21 and make up vour own minds. Our only experienced questionee, COACH ZAGORSKI, declared that from all of our present-day know- ledge and scientific data, smoking has been proven harmful. At the present I don't smoke, but I used to smoke. I can say from a smoker'a viewpoint that anyone can quit smoking. Alcoholism is a stimulant and can be a habit. There is no such thing as a sociable drink. One leads to another, especially in youth. You are impairing your physical struc- ture and slowing down normal body functions. Sophomore spokesman, CINDY KULINSKI thinks that drinking is out of the question until you're twenty-one. It can be done in the privacy of your home with parents supervising. Smoking should be left for the older teenagers and then in moderate amounts. OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES TERRY SCHNEIDER: Imagine the problems if Senator Smith is elected president! What will they call her husband? The first MAN?! THE HERO The sun shone bright on the East- ern shore, But Michael some trouble did smell. The morning was calm as always it was Until someone tolled the bell. Off he ran to the country store, Where news was perpetually known. The clerk was out in the street in front But, yea, he was not alone. The townsfolk many, young and old, Around a messenger gathered. The Red Coats were coming by land and sea Was the only news that mattered. Only one week passed until Michael was gone, His home he left behind. But for nary a moment did he turn back. To himself he was hard and blind. He'd win this war, oh you can bet, He and his rifle and knife. The Red Coats would wish they never were born, Or at least not in Michael's life. The war has been over for a war and a day. And the sun shines brightly since then, And the boys have come home to their mothers and wives. But no one's seen Michael again. Margaret Schettler J BLAST-OFF It's easy to see by Friday noon: The week-end is coming and coming soon. Clock-uatchers sing their battle cry Is papers rustle and pencils fly. The periods drag as never before Till all of a sudden there s a rush for the door The bell has rung and we are free. Hut wait a minute pardon me- There's still that homework, hours of it, l ll work for a while but then 1 11 quit; There's a dance to go to, a game to wint I hen it's five more days till Fri- day again . By Margaret Schettler UNDER THE LAUGH Make them laugh And laugh and laugh. At your funny faces. At your funny chases, At your funny climbs to high places. Make them laugh at how you're dressed; Make them laugh without rest, For laughter is your life. Though sadness is a stabbing knife. And you are slowly dying. Not all clowns are glad. For without your paint, Your funny clothes. Your little red nose. You are a clown That is alone And sad. By Arthur Simpson A CHILDHOOD DISEASE It's hard to tell when ten years old How long my parents can be told: I don't wanna go to bed. I wanna watch T.V. instead. I don't wanna wash my hands. I wanna make mud pies from sand. I don't wanna hang my coat. I wanna sail my big red boat. l don't wanna . . . must I .. . why? This his pleading, ponderous cry Is often called the don't wanna stage Involving all, ten years of age. By Kathleen Ilartsell What’s yd This d World A Humming To? . 1 By Denis MacDonald An acute problem has arisen in the United States in the past few years. It has run rampant through America, propagated by songwriters and recording artists and pro- moted by disc j ockies and recording companies. Stim- ulated by the radio and record player, it has reached epidemic proportions. The problem is the amount of unin- telligible songs being produced. If you don't tune in at the very beginning, you'd swear that you were listening to a Radio Free Europe broadcast directed to the Zambizi or Swaheli. It's come to the point where songwriters are writing songs about what they had for dinner the night before with titles like Gravy, Mashed Potatoes, and Hot Pastromi. I don't see how they can use the same alphabet we use and come up with such a different vocabulary. I have a record at home entitled Quarter to Three. I've had it for a couple of years now and I still don't know what they're saying. CAN YOU IMAGINE scientists looking upon these re- cordings in the next few centuries as the key to our civ- ilization? I can see the headlines now, Leading Scien- tist Cracks Up While Trying to Decipher Surfin Bird. He kept screaming, Papa-OOh-Mow-Mow as they dragged him away. That brings the number of breakdowns among scientists to twenty-six! Or can you imagine the effect on biology teachers of that era when they hear that a cobra shifted into high gear and passed a Stingray? Somebody will certainly know that cobras don't swim. Questions will arise such as to what really happened at 442 Glenwood Avenue? Scientists will search ancient maps for a j umping place called Surf City. The results will be the retardation of knowledge, panic among the populus, and the collapse of nations. Barbarism will reappear and the entire cycle will begin again, until some character, called a scop, cuts a swingin' littlei number entitled Beowulf. ..----- ® 9 What Happened to Fairytales ? By Michael Hajduk An assembly supposedly united for the purpose of making an ill- fated journey to California and a group of overgrown boys, who along with their daddy, are trying to run a piece of land of quite a few thou- sand acres. are the bases of two of today’s so-called adult west- erns, Wagon Train and Bonanza. The plots of both of these shows are thoroughly disdainful. Wagon Train's is seemingly written by a combination of a marriage coun- selor and an Indian hater. Rarely is there a show in which some good Samaritan is not pairing some couple up or patching up a family quarrel. As for Indians, what western would be without them? Meeting three or four different tribes during the dur- ation of the show is altogether ridiculous though. Worse yet is the fact that by the end of the show nearly every one of these pug- nacious savages has departed to the happy hunting ground via the rifle slug of some Wagon Train sharpshooter. BONANZA COULD well be written by a distraught Sunday school teacher who couldn't stand facing a group of seven year olds every Sunday and turned to script writing. You can be sure that good will always triumph over evil. One could almost expect to see at the start of the show a little old lady of eighty being blasted through the back of her rocking chair by a hardened killer. The Cartwrights, the stars of the show, would then take the killer into their humble abode (humble in the sense that only the state of Texas is bigger) and explain to him the evil of blast- a little old lady through a rocking chair. The killer would then see the shocking truth in their explanation and vow to be a good cowboy and stick to the straight and narrow path. Both shows have as their main character a god who is incapable of doing wrong. The wagon master is a sort of combination of Ann Landers and General Pershing. Throughout the show he is kept busy solving problems and telling the men of the wagon train which Indians to shoot (usually the ones with the most feathers). On the other hand, Ben Cartwright of Bonanza could best be portrayed as an Old West den mother. His weekly project is to keep one or more of his four scouts...er..sons out of trouble and then leading the whole troop...er..family in changing the arthritic little old lady into a good cowboy. THE STORIES THAT are por- trayed on Wagon Train supposedly take place on the way to sunny Sacramento from St. Joe, Missouri, according to my fifth grade geo- graphy book this is a pretty big stretch of land but one would never know it by viewing the scenery that 10 Nothing is characteristic of this show. Either the wagon train is going in circles or there are a lot of beddin- down places that look the same. Besides, who ever heard of snow- capped mountain ranges in Kansas and Nebraska. I must say that the scenery on Bonanza is quite differ- ent but even I get tired looking at the living room of the Cartwright mansion week after week. Maybe next week they might show the front porch. I think they did that once about a year ago. The premise of Wagon Train is usually contained in the title (you can find that in T.V. Guide.) I think that someone must have switched the premises for each show though. After all, how could a show with a title like Motherly Love Overcomes All Obstacles be based on the scalping of the wagon train scout? On Bonanza, you aren't lucky e- nough to have the premise stated in the title. But usually it isn't too difficult to figure out. Just think of something that would fit blasting little old ladies through rocking chairs. If you should still insist on watching a weekly western, I would recommend Wagon Train• At least you can say the show is trying to ease the labor situation. After all, who else would hire a couple of hun- dred people to run around acting like a bunch of Indians. q Miracles Are Made of This j Prom worries—Homework—— Prom worries—Juniors busy, intelligent, and most school spirited individuals? Newly oc- (fuired drivers liceneses-Mark of maturity-and poverty! KATHY SETTLEMIRE, LINDA VO- LOSHIN, AND PAM KARNS. “Gosh! I got my picture in it! ONE: Rose Andros, Nancy Andrews TWO: Sheila Borret, Pannl Bauer THREE Lynda Best, Margoret Blockhurst FOUR: Koren Briggs, Thersa Brown FIVE: Doris Buczek, Linda Compagna, Margaret Coyne, Suzanne Duda, Mary Fisher, Karen Fitzgerald, Kay Gatesmon SIX: Mortho Gieclach, Josephine Goreczny, Koren Gressley, Christine Guereczny, Pamela Guyton, Carol Hall, Anne Hibbord SEVEN: Lynn Huff, Barbara Korg, Lindo Korg, Pamela Korns, Barbara Kaweski, Suzanne Koy, Connie Keating. 11 There’s no rest for the wicked j unior——Disorganization— prom, announcement party, banquet——Second in seniority. First in activities and—Demerits! SUE DUDA AND KAREN FITZGER- ALD, “Hello, Mom? About that bus I missed . . 12 Busy weekends——lleclic Mon• days— The alarm rings— Up and at um— Cobble food —Run to corner—Catch bus —Arrive at school—An hour late!— Tomorrow9s Seniors! ONE: Richord Frowley, John Gormong, Doniol Goodman, Robert Hortlo TWO: Gory Hawk, Thomas Heath, David Henderson, Jamas Hibbard THREE: Williom Hill, Michoal Horos, Chorios Lomborton, Louis Karg FOUR: Josoph Kostok, Jamas Krowiac, Jamas Krasanski, Sam Lata, Jamas Logua, Thomas McGroovy FIVE: Michoal McGuckin, Christophor Mouar Robert Mizwa, Gaorga Nalapa, Thomos Omiatok, David Ossoff, Thomas Propar SIX: Tarranca Rodgers, Anthony Schill, Michoal Schnaidar, Jamas Scurry, Jamas Shefchunas, Frank Shiolabba, Joseph Smith SEVEN: Allan Stampin, Jamas Strus, Thomos Strus, Francis Wishnok, Michoal Yaagar, Joseph Zaccaria, John Zuilkoski TOM OMATIOK, TOM McGREEVY, AND MIKE McGUCKIN. Buy your own subscription! Mr. Clean Wins Again ...and again - i Vj ___ „ By Ann Logue and Mary Pindel Television commercials are unbearable. The increased volume is certain- ly unappreciated but it’s the stupidity of the situation which insults most of US. Take, for example, the knight on a white charger who makes dirty work- clothes cleaner than new with a sweep of his lance. The ability of the pro- duct to remove dirt is only mentioned once, the rest of the time we are subj ect to a display of not so good horsemanship. If Sir Soapflakes would point that lance at himself, he would do us all a favor. The Madison Avenue advertisers have to live too, but do they have to earn their living by forcing me to eat a spoonful of Cheerios just because I’m not wrestling an alligator at the moment. Many companies, such as Lucky Strike Cigarettes, advertise themselves as being meant for adult tastes. That way they get the adults who fear they will become immature if they do not use that product and the children who think they are adults, or who would like to be adults. 1, for one, certainly don’t want a giant in my washing machine, to buy a new pair of hands in a grocery store, or to shine my pans with Twinkle. I don’t need to brush my teeth with toothpaste that looks, smells, and tastes like pep- permint. I hate peppermint, 1 have an allergy, I break out even when I see the commercial! WHITHER WISDOM By Joseph Walkowski To be honest, today’s student Is little more than a teen-aged know- it-all. After nine years of intensive studying in classrooms, he is an intellectual wizard. Backed by such educational media as comics, mov- ies, and television, he can be ex- pected to know more about cosmic- ray guns and Interstellar flight than the U.S.’s top space engineer, and more about ancient Egypt, Rome, and Greece than did Caesar. But, alas, these genuises of today are in for a big let-down. Who will tell them? Who? Mars is not a planet inhabited by menacing, six-limbed creatures, and Cleopatra never had a romance with Napoleon. Imposs- ible as it may seem to the dreamy- eyed youth of today, such things as mentioned above are truly fictional. Mars has no vegetable growth to support such a race, and Napoleon was nearly twice Cleopatra’s age. The word must be spread, and where is our school system? OF COURSE, they are too busy attending to a b - (-c) x b ♦ a (or something like that) or protein glucose starch (which is Biology, of course). The teachers cannot be concerned with such nonsense. The true nonsense is the failure to cor- rect the nonsense of T.V., movies, and insane reading. The teacher, when confronted by a question like, How did Ranger Tex shoot eight of Black Dan’s henchmen with only one six-gun?’’ will answer foolishly, Well...uh...maybe he got two with one shot...or something’’ and gives no definite answer. (Your regular followers of Ranger Tex will know that he is really j ust a fast reloader.) Parents, too, have little know- ledge of modern methods of educa- tion and also must dodge teen- aged questions. Doesn’t anyone know why Chester limps or how Little Joe Cartwright can recover so fast from gunshot wounds? Is it any wonder why today’s teenager struggles through a world he knows nothing about? No one has the cour- age or decency to explain things to him. The teen and his friends are of a different race than adults. They live alone, breathing different air than teachers, parents, and the like. It is I who will take the respon- sibility of telling all of today’s youth the long-awaited answers to their questions! It is I! Eagerly, 14 pen in hand, paper, stamps, enve- lopes at my side, I will await the flow of inquisitive mail to my door. TEACHERS, parents, stand with me! Down with Flash Gordon, Ser- geant Rock, and Wyatt Earp! To blazes with them all ! Hear, O Plato, Socrates, and Pasteur, and listen to America’s new youth crying out! Rest assured, great men, Little Lulu, and Richard Burton will haunt your learned minds no more. I have faced and accepted the responsibil- ity of awakening today’s youth. Possibly, I have considerably short- ened my own. U e %'tna of qour «£■ beofu+iful f i l s THE RESULTS of the many tooth- paste tests always show that the f A Crest group had 25% fewer cavities, “v 9 no doubt they had 25% fewer teeth. Another thing, while watching the cavalry ride again and seeing the action mount fiercely, my concer tration was interrupted by the Jolly Green Giant. 1 don’t mind the Green Giant, but why is he always so dam jolly! Every night I sit down to watch a 90-minute w-estem and end up watch- ing 78 minutes of commercials. I don’t mind the commercial at the be- ginning or the one at the end, btt when Mr. Clean appears instead of the showdown, it’s all 1 can do to keep from putting my foot through the screen. Last night was the final straw. When a three minute pain reliever pill came on instead of the climax of Ben Casey, 1 lost control. Our T.V. is now minus six wires, ten tubes, and one plug. It wasn’t a total loss, however; my worry head- ache vanished one minute faster than the most advertised product on tele- vision. I COULD go on forever but I might J miss one of those modern-day master pieces. I think I’ll write one; I’m sick of watching others—’Td rather do it myself!” Russian Roulette, Anyone? By Kathryn Bajorek For two long years now, I have been wrestling with the problem of finding a toy or game guaranteed to amuse a child for the entire length of his visit...maybe his life. Al- though my experience is very broad, I still have not found a perfect solution. When I finally decide that most children invariably enjoy Mon- opoly, the trend changes and Par- cheesi is a must. It has become so that I hate to answer the door on Sunday after- noons for fear that one, or even two or three of the species, will greet me with a happy “Hello” and the inevitable “What's there to do?” After much contemplation, I have decided that it is easier and less nerve-wracking to take things as they come. Instead of storing toys and games in every possible and impossible niche and cave in my small bedroom, I am leaving them right where they are. INSTEAD, I attempt every possi- ble manner of dissuading them from playing with my old bead set and Perry Mason game. “And why.” you ask, “do I begrudge these poor children a good time?” If you had to run upstairs, dig into a chest to get the bead set and venture into the attic to find the game, you would say the same thing. I want no part of it. Therefore, I have been at- tempting to persuade my little cousins to play Canasta (a feat that seems impossible to accom- plish), musical chairs, or anything else that's easy and downstairs. I must admire their determination; not once have they agreed. On sec- ond thought, I admire my determin- ation. In tackling the enormous task of locating what they want to play with, it is necessary to wear a sweater (our attic isn't the warmest) and take a flashlight (you never can tell where you'll find the game). It's the approach I’m going to use that's the problem. The easiest is to empty the chest of all its belong- ings, finally reaching the bottom where we will surely find the de- sired box. while quickly grabbing lights the prized object, the lid flies off and beads spill in all directions. It wouldn't be difficult to pick them up if only they were the huge ones, ideal for a baby. However, with my luck, they have to be tiny micro- scopic ones that blend in so well with the bedroom rug. if I refilly hurry though, it will take only ten minutes longer. THEN ALL THE other boxes of myriad shapes and sizes assumedly fit as snuggly as a j igsaw puzzle. I must admit that this is true, but what can one do with the dozens of things left over? There is one so- lution-gather all the leftovers and shove them into the already crowded corner of the closet. Mom will never notice—I hope. A very important factor to be em- phasized is time. If I don't get down there in five minutes, Mom will get desperate. She will show them my coin collection. I really don't ob- j ect to my cousins seeing it—they will profit immensely. It's j ust that I finally got them arranged in the right order and I won't appreciate finding Indian Head pennies with Morgan dimes. Now all I have to do is rush into the attic, burrow through the various games, take out Perry Mason, re- place the boxes and run downstairs. Sounds very easy, doesn't it? Per- haps it will be. A box bearing “Perry Mason” in big black letters is third from the top. I carefully lift the first two boxes with one hand and slide the third one out. I replace the boxes and start content- edly downstairs. That's funny. I never knew that game had so many movable parts. You don't think I might have the wrong game, do you? Please, please say it is the right one. Well, I really ought to look. Carefully I lift one corner. Does anyone recall seeing a king in a Perry Mason game? Perhaps he's a suspect. I might as well face it. Really, chess is a very interesting game, but modern youth always de- mand their own way. They just don't appreciate chess, canasta, or musical chairs. NOW, I MUST find a game labeled “Chess for Beginners.” Hope fades. There it is on the bottom of the stack. All I have to do is lift seven boxes and reach for the prize, re- place the stack, change lids, hurry to my bedroom and pick up the box of bead . As I go downstairs, I feel an air of self-satisfaction. I did it. It took time and energy but here I am with just what my cousins want- ed. But where are they? Then I see Mom waving on the porch. She says calmly, “They only stopped in for a moment; they thought they'd bother you with finding toys.” Slow- ly I start back up the stairs when suddenly a thought occurs to me—I can rest seven whole days before Sunday again brings its triumphs and difficulties. Go very, very slow’ week. 15 On Fashion Day, Tuesday, January 18, senior home economics students modeled clothes made in advanced sewing class. They were all os pretty as a picture so we took it. Cover girls, Pam Kamess, Marcia Camp, Barbara Gabreski, Pam Allio, Ka- thy Klescz, Mary Bechtel, Gloria Campagna, and Kathy Quinn are VC's own Mary Welsh, a Study in local lovliness, would enj o n Fashion Day every- day if she could be certain she'd have enough books for every boy to carry. Jim Cihon, Francis Gressley, Dave Anderton, Jim Wilkinson, Tim O’Connor, and Rick Brezinski are obviously all willing to take the course. Twenty-five other girls modeled their own fashions. Not included in the picture were the following: IN SUITS: Diana Wolbert, Ginny Hynes, Connie Kelly, Nancy Prenatt, Pat Henry, and Karen Blumensaadt. IN JUMPERS: Marge Rogers, Jane Meals, Pat McNerney, Kathy Hartsell, Marge Ward, Joyce Walentoski, Judy Curran, Carolyn Gates, and Sue Callahan. IN SKIRTS: Pat Kleck, Diane Schwabenbauer, Pat Sporer, Sharon Carson, and Pot Fennecy. IN DRESSES: Peg Schettler, Jean Rybak, Rita Wojtowicz, Betty Olsolfka, and Karen Carroll. suwmtn Ikz Rotulae VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL “Let the word go forth that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans. ' VOL. II, NO. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS SCHOOL LIFE: For Freshmen Only............... By Dione U ilson and Christine Cartwright How the Other Half Lives......... By Michael Yeager and Daniel Goodman And Would You Miss Us, Too?..... By Patricia Breene The Price of Progress ........... CSPA Says We’re First............ FEATURE: Smile Awhile.................... By Karen Blumensaadt Me and My Neuroses............... By Dennis MacDonald and Suzanne Marshall Photos Finished-Phew!............ By Patricia Breene Who Me?.......................... By Suzanne Marshall Accent on You.................... By Karen Blumensaadt Ninety-Nine Per Cent Caffeine.... By Michael Fletcher Humor Him—He’s Sane.............. By Joyce U ale n to sky Whisker Wax, Anyone?............ By Betty U arc ho lie SPORTS: The Season—A Reason?............. By Gary Hawk POETRY: Letter from a Soul in Hell... By Daniel Goodman SUMMER, 1964 The Desire Shall Perish............................... 4 By Jane Kleck To an Expectant Lover.................................15 2 By Daniel Drozdo The Dart ............................................ 9 By Daniel Goodman L Revelation .15 .10 5 .5 8 ...8 9 15 14 By Susan McCarthy THE BARQUE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF VENANGO CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL 1505 W. First St. Tel. 64-61264 OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA Editor-in-Chief............................ Daniel Goodman Executive Editor...........................F ank Shialabba Managing Editor..........................................Nancy Petulla Copy Editor....................................Michael Yaeger Sports Editor...................................Gary Hawk Photography ................................Stephen Szalewicz Art Editor.................................Karen Blumensaadt Art Assistants ...............Rosemary Coyne, Ronald DeLucia Exchange Editor..........................................Donna Fedorek Circulation Manager.....................................Pamela Eckert Production Editors...............Ann Whitermb. Patricia Kleck Varitype Operators...........Karen Gressley, Christine Gureznv, Pam Guyton, Jean Lauer Lithographers..................Daniel Goodman, Charles Jetter, Stephen Sestrick , W. Edwards Layout staff.............Christine Cartwright, Donna Fedorek, Joanne Johnson, Diane Wilson Reporters............ Kathleen Rice, Diane Wilson, June Woods, Rhea Ann Stevenson, Jean Mahaffey, Karen Burke, Carol Eng- lish, William Walenia, Allen Stempin, Joseph Novicki, Terence Rodgers, Walter Moran, Thaddeus Szalewicz, Christine Cartwright, Patrick Cihon, Emily Sustak, Joseph Walkowski Headmaster............................... Rev. L. J. Antoun Advisor.......................... Sister Mary Peter, O.S.B. Cheating for Fun and Profit? LETTER FROM A SOUL IN HELL By Daniel Goodman Hot is a u ord Many miles auay. Here, here it is a time, A life. ! reason, 1 purpose. Hot is our mind. Our thought, Our food. Our drink. There is nothing else here. Some imagine rocks. Pits, Caves, Rut, they are from the world of words. I remember such a w orld, A world of words. And I would do the greatest penance. Or hill the purest child To make hot just a word here. For Freshman Only By Diane Wilson and Chris Cartwright Having once been a freshman and now nearing the end of his final year, senior class president, Dan Mansfield, feels qualified to make a fairly accurate comparison between these two states in life. Before going any further, his viewpoint should be clarified. Dan is an academic student, having transferred to this from the general course in his sophomore year. He described himself as being an aver- age student, and plans on going into business administration at Bryant- Stratton. Almost immediately, Dan declared that, although most freshmen long to be seniors, he would much rather be back in the ninth grade than where he is. There, the work is just as hard but there is less of it. He feels that responsibility just naturally increases as a person gets older. In other words, this virtue has not been too generous with the un- derclassmen as of yet. I think all freshmen are silly. He hates to ad- mit it, but it is true that even he was silly at that age. Responsibility can be developed in many ways; for Dan, it meant get- ting a job. In his junior year, he worked as a stockboy at Heath’s Market. Your days get much longer because you have two things to keep up with. I don’t know how those oth- er guys do it. But if you can handle a job and your schoolwork too, get it. As far as Dan is concerned, re- spect is still a necessary part of ed- ucation, but seems to be lacking in the majority of youngsters today. Many times, in dealing with teach- ers, it hardly counts. It is not a matter of respect, but of getting along with them. They seem to be down on freshmen at first, and seniors obviously have an advantage: they are better acquaint- ed with the faculty. But then, most things do come gradually. He firmly believes that freshmen should have more respect for teach- ers and upperclassmen. It is good training and they will appreciate it later. Freshmen are equally as aware of world affairs as anyone else, ’ stated Dan. It hits you like a ton of bricks when you find out there are problems in the world. In grade school thay might cover up to keep you from having nightmares, but in high school they tell you the facts. Socially, today’s freshman seems to get around as much as the senior of four years ago. They do have two An Interview with Dan Mansfield major problems: parents and trans- portation. At seventeen, you are more on your own and, If you’re lucky enough to have a car, ’ you can drive. There is nothing wrong with a full social life provided the schoolweek is devoted to study, al- though freshmen shouldn’t be allow- ed out as late as seniors. It is better to have senior privileges when the time comes or you won’t appreciate them when you get there. Since he is not yet in college, he has few original ideas about the sub- ject. College entrance exams prompt- ed this comment, though. They are not tough if you have been a student all four years. I would advise any freshman to develop good study habits right away or he will regret it later. Also, use the five-day school week for school, and the weekend for social life. 3 Me and My Neuroses By Dennis MacDonald and Suzanne Marshall This is a great theme but did you ever see a Paris theme------- You are mystifying and sometimes baffling. You are the only thing I know that can be written in English and come out sounding like a dialect from the deepest part of Africa. Foetry, what are you? Poetry, you are Hiythmic but it’s like no tune I ever heard before. Poetry, you are divided into feet. I know this well for everytime I try to read you, I trip over the ones in my mouth. Poetry, with you literature is com- plete. Without you it is easier. Poetry, you originated with the scops, those geniuses of rhyme. You were handed down from generation to generation until you are with us to- day. Boy! would I like to get my hands on those scops. If I have left the impression that I do not like poetry then I wish to re- fute it right now. Poetry is as neces- sary to literature as medicine is to a sick person. It’s hard to take but very important to their well being. Six Public Servants Whom I Wish Were Not in My Service: 1. My wonderful, cheery milkman, who blots his milk bottles on the morning paper. 'I. My courageous mailman , who tracks mud on the porch after I scrub it. y. Mv scrupulous, gentle clean- ing man, who blocked my sweater to fit mv dad. 4. My lovely, charming Avon lady, who leans on the doorbell and screams and screams Avon cal- ling while I’m in the bathtub. 5. My perky Jewel—tea man, who sells everything I don’t need except jewels and tea. 6. My prompt handsome taxi driver, who arrives to answer my call about two hours after what I wanted to attend is over. The Des «M Shall Perish PARODY - PSALM 112 By Jane Kleck Happy is the babysitter’ who finally sees the parents, who greatly delights in their return. The father’s rule shall be mighty in that house; and the mischief makers shall be spanked. The broken plates that were used for flying saucers and the potato chips trampled into the rug shall be viewed by the elders; and father’s punishment shall be felt forever or almost forever. He stumbles through the darkness, trying to get to bed, he trips on a roller skate; stubs his toe, he is boiling mad, unforbearing and ready to punish again. Well for the father who is mad and spanks, who conducts his punishment with an iron hand. The child cannot move or sit; and that spanking shall be in everlasting re- membrance. An evil report he shall fear; his heart beats rapidly, fearing father’s iron hand. His heart palpitates; he shall not fear till he looks up at the stern face of father. Lavishly he makes excuses, but to no avail for he shall feel father’s hand once more. The other children will sec and be good; they will eat their spinach and never trample potato chips into the rug again; the desire to be wicked shall perish. 4 They spelled my name wrong Among the new and challenging experiences of the high school se- nior’s nine months of glory” are the sittings for the senior pictures. If you’re a girl the ordeal is even more thrilling. First, decisions: whether to wear a dress, sweater, or one of those black curtains...I mean drapes. And what goes best? Pearls, a pin, or a chain...or forget the whole thing. A girl rushes starry-eyed to the hairdresser the night of her sitting appointment. Her hair is washed, set, brushed, teased, combed, and sprayed ’till it doesn’t even look like it belongs to her; then after ail that she goes home and does it over herself. Finally, her time comes; prompt- ly at 8:42 she arrives at the studio. Then the master” goes to work on her. Turn your shoulder back...tilt your chin back...now just incline your head a little...” When she leaves, she feels like a pretzel. She might even need a brace. . Smile- bigger! Open your eyes, don’t squint. Now just look serious.” The whole experience is rather like a brain- washing session; you know, the lights and all. How can a person smile if her face is frozen, (from fear...besides it’s cold outside) or look serious when some joker is making faces at you behind the photographer’s back? We’re told we will remember and treasure these mug shots all our lives. And I believe it! After all, they’ll be in the local paper with an accompanying article. ..about two months after we graduate. We can throw darts at them to release our frustrations maturely. They should be useful for scaring rats and or little brothers. As for memories, what better way is there to remember your high school daze? All you need is a black magic marker and a ruler. Take your picture and draw bars. Too bad it’s not a full shot; you could draw your ball and chain. Anyway, at the top place your home room number; at the bottom, your locker number and com- bination. Probably the one thing that I’ll always wonder about these pictures is: Why can’t I look like that after 7th period? Who Me? By Suzanne Marshall Adolescent, you are a paradox. You live recklessly for approxi- mately ten years. You are undertak- ing a vast program of physical growth; however, your mind is riding in reverse. 1. You exist on a diet of peanut butter and jelly and coke. Sometimes you settle for potato chips and Pepsi. 2. You grow two inches a month and your pants are above your ankles. You abhor ties and you would risk your life to cut the sleeves out of every single sweat- shirt on this earth. 3. YOUR PROPERTY IS a happy mixture of chaos and excitement. You save every rusty bolt and every baseball card you can lay your lanky fingers on. 4. You are a constant threat to the economic status of your father, you eat more in one hour than he eats in a week. Your bill at the clothing store is exhorbitant. By the time dad gets those size 10 sneakers paid for you are barely sq ueezing on an eleven and a half. 5. YOU ARE A SIX foot two ulcer for anyone close to you. You drive your mother to nerve pills and geri- tol because you absolutely refuse to play with your little sister unless you can swing her by her ankles. 6. You trip in the middle of the gym floor over the breeze from your own ambulation. 7. You hate girls with a passion! You would rather share your music book with the teacher that than clunky Mary Jones. You think all girls think about is beating boys. 8. YOU LOVE BASEBALL and football and anything else that gives you a chance to yell and laugh and run, and get back at Bobby Brown who told Mary Jones you liked her. Yes, adolescent boy, you are real- ly something: you crave excitement and you sometimes hate it. You are an amalgamation of everything it takes to be a normal all-boy boy. 5 By James Cihon and Margaret Schettler How the Other Half Lives Reverend Salvatore Luzzi Sister M. Maureen, O.S.B. Reverend Lawrence J. Antoni Sister M. Antoinette, O.S.B. Sister Mary Philip, O.S.B. No more pencils, no more Sister M. Bemadine. O.S.B. Sister Miriam, O.S.B. books, no more teacher’s - - - well, anyway, with graduation so close, a senior’s thoughts turn to the prospect of graduating from high school, of going on to col- lege or out in the world, and of never being a high school student again. But we can’t believe that’s all that would fill a senior’s mind. A senior thinks, too, of the teach- ers who had the singular oppor- tunity of teaching him while he was a carefree, careless, care- not - at - all freshman. Over the years they offered advice, assis- tance, and even demerits. But most of all, they gave themselves. 6 UNO ELSE would have OK’d the the idea of giant snurds for the odd- ball and going to the zoo on class day, of term paper extensions and variety shows and style shows, of intramurals and early excuse slips, and unexcused absence slips, of no tests and easy tests and re-tests? Our thoughts will turn often to them and to VC and the many good times we had and the hard times we had and the long time we had. And we’ll remember, most of all, the times we were told to act like ladies and gentlemen’ because, you know, after four years, we’re not acting anymore—thanks to you. Sister Mary Bernard, O.S.B. Sister Mary Peter, O.S.B. Sister Mary Regina, O.S.B. Sister Mao' Magdalen, O.S.B. Sister „ Catherine 0-S.B. Reverend Bernard Webber Reverend Joseph Bobal Reverend Stephen Kotyuk Sister M. Adrian, O.S.B. Sister Mary Louis, O.S.B. Mrs. Zora Karien Sister Mary Liguori, O.S.B. Miss Joan Rush Reverend Richard McGuire Reverend Robert Cohan 7 THE PRICE OF PROGRESS If progress is how far you go after you think you’ve arrived, then VC is just beginning to go places. New eq uipment has been pur- chased for each of the departments and includes: Stage lights: 4 ellipsoidal, 6 super spots, and dimming system. Gymnasium divider. 2 overhead projectors; 1 portable screen, 1 Bell and Howell movie projector; 1 Wilson Viewer, 1 con- trolled reader. 70 band uniforms, 2 dissecting microscopes, 1 oil immersion micro- scope, 16 political and history maps, a complete Shakespearean record library. Varityper, Multilith 1259WL, re- vised stage public address system, including 6 stage mikes, 1 auditor- ium mike; a phonograph and projec- tion outfit. 100 card tables, 2 portable sewing machines, 4 lecterns, 2 gym mats, 500 library books. 4 selectric typewriters, an add- ressograph, and various cafeteria eq uipment. CSPA SAYS WE’RE FIRST According to the Columbia School Press Association, The Barque is very well planned, especially since it was established in 1962 and de- serving of a first place award. Judges considered “ the humor subtle and in good taste; the editor- ials well expressed; the poetry and essays in appropriate style; and the covers attractive. Suggestions included the use of informative articles, additional fea- tures and club news and the inclu- sion of photography and art credit lines. The Barque received a total of 865 points out of a possible 1000. COVER STORY Senior advanced biology stu- dents are looking into the last microscope they’ll use in a high school lab period. Coach Zagor- ski hopes they're seeing bac- teria, but some of them may be looking into a whole future of starched coats and sterile tubes. Accent on You James Cihon Ifarjorie Rogers tty Karen Blumensaarit When asked to choose the senior personalities, the freshmen class showed good taste by coming up with James Cihon and Marjorie Rogers. Margie, a member of the National Honor Society, Is an academic student. During this year, she was a Forensic contestant in the prepared category, and an officer of the Hostess Club. Margie served as a member of this year's home- coming court, as she also did in her sophomore and junior years. After her graduation, Margie plans to attend Mercyhurst College in Erie. Jim, also an academic student and National Honor Society member, is the President of Student Council. He is a member of the Math Club, and ham radio being his favorite hobby, he is president of the Radio Club here at Y.C. At present Jim plans to enter St. Mark's Seminary to study for the priesthood. We wish the best of luck to both Jim a«d Margie, oir senior personalities. Ninety-Nine PerCent Caffeine - i ( « j By Michael Fletcher I'm not sure what I’d like to do when I graduate, but I’m positive that being a coffee taster is not my cup of tea. In the course of my life, I’ve drunk every type of coffee from Yuban to Brand X’’, and try as I may, I couldn’t tell you whether it’s Hills Brothers or Nescafe that’s good to the last drop. Frank- ly, they all taste alike to me—flat. Just think of the poor guy who has to sip coffee from an endless sup- ply of cups, each containing a slightly different mixture of coffee; and, after his taste buds are com- pletely numbed, must decide which mixture the public will buy. There are fellows like that—we can’t all be John Arbuckles, you know. Such a man with such a job must certainly be a burden to his family. He gets up in the morning, (usually around 11 because the caf- fein in his blood system kept him awake till 2A.M.), dashes into the bathroom, dashes back, throws his clothes on, and leaps down the stairs. (Caffein is also a very good heart stimulant.) Meanwhile his w-ife, a milk drinker, has had break- fast ready for three hours. She hands him his cup of Salada as he dash- es by and wishes him a happy day at the office. In the first hour of his shift, he might sip mixtures of coffee from 3,000 little cups. All this time he’s thinking of where the coffee came from. He knows that not more than two weeks ago these coffee beans were drying in the sun on some lit- tle semi-tropical island. Everything from iguanas to tse-tse flies to bare- foot natives writh athlete’s feet have been walking on them. 3,001 ...3,002 ...when is the coffee break? After the coffee break, he gargles with Listerine , and 3,012—3,013- At last his day is almost done; he’s drunk 9987% cups out of his quota of 10,000. As he punches out he must fill out a report designating which mixture he liked best. Well, w'hich one was it? 347? 671? or 34? So when it comes to drinking coffee, I take the advice of the A- merican Dairy Association: Don’t. 3 Humor Him-He’s Sane THE DART By l)an Goodman By Joyce I don’t really mind getting up in the morning. It’s waking up that I hate. When I was younger, I used to get up, get dressed, cook and eat breakfast, and never wake up until I walked outside. It really kept the peace around the old homestead un- til the day I boiled the bacon in the coffee pot and fried the coffee in the skillet. You can probably see why I gave up the idea of sleep- walking. It can be dangerous. I’ve discovered that the only way to maintain a happy day is to wake up cheerfully. (If you can do it, you’d better see a psychiartist, be- cause humans aren’t made in a way that allows them to awaken cheer- fully.) Clock radios are specially pro- duced to make for a cheery awaken- ing. I tried it. I think my clock radio had the worst personality ever! Every bright, cheerful morning, I’d wake up to hear Do you suffer from pains of headache, neuritis, neural- gia?’ or Are you a victim of tired blood?” By that time I’m too sick to even try to get up. Sometimes I tune in on an in- vigorating musical session. Someone wails It’s The End of The World” or Too Tired To Die.” Listen to these two songs if you really want to feel springy at 6:45 A.M. Now, occasionally, I hit a pop lYalentosky music station. This is the oVie that will get you out of bed. When you hear Schloop lop be dop bop, schloop lop be dop” you’ll fly out of bed to see if someone committed sui- cide outside your door. When you discover that the sound is not gush- ing blood, but the radio, you will be awakened by the shattering sound of glass when you send the radio flying through the window. Alarm clocks are a good way of waking if you’re not afraid of a heart attack. One minute I’ll be sleeping soundly; the next I’ll be sitting straight up trying to figure out if there’s a four alarm fire in my clos- et. It’s even more fun if you have a little brother who likes to put alarm clocks in metal waste baskets. I can't begin to tell you how peppy this sound makes me feel. At one time, I asked my mother to wake me. She forgot so she asked my brother to do it. I woke up all right. His whistle just knocked me out of bed. Then I decided to try waking up naturally. That way I’d be cheerful, since my sleep wouldn’t have been rudely interrupetd. Boy, was I ever happy when I woke up at 7:35. My bus leaves at 7:39. If you want to be perfectly happy and cheerful all day, take my advice Stay in bed. Here in the jungle of concrete and iron, There stands an old shack On the lane of Saint Byron. The man u ho lives there is old and forlorn. His clothes are quite tattered, The subject of scorn. Reading and writing He never quite mastered. And on Saturday night He always got plastered. Out of a case That is falling apart, He takes an old horn. He calls it the “Dart.” He wails the blues In a masterful way. And no one dares talk While the master doth play. • And all the bold people If ho were preparing to laugh Almost went deaf At the “Dart’s” first loud blast! His horn told old stories Of legend and lore. And when it talked of evil. They say the horn swore. When the horn talked of love. It was soft like green grass. But the story of hate Has an ear piercing blast. When at last morning came The old man was dead. Filled up with booze, He fell on his head. His horn is now silent. In the gutter it fell. Last are it’s stories Of heaven and hell. 9 And Would You Us,Too CLASS Oh 61 If e all began it differently. Some of us started out as big shots. The girls had the run of the patio, and the boys hud the big playground all to them- selves. W e ran out to the lav. through the gym, over the seventh and eighth graders, and around the fac- ulty. And ue had “dreams of future glory when the grade sehooVs “alumni drove down from the hill in a noisy, shiny red car: when we were absolutely for- bidden to ride with any boys! Then everything changed. Instead of the kings and queens of the halls. we were freezing outside on the sidewalk with a ton of books waiting for a bus. In- stead of being in a happy gang sitting in “our cor- ner of one classroom all day, we were mapping out a small maze of corridors, to time a few minutes to talk to our old and netc friends. And finally we squeezed out the confidence to walk past the office ivithout shaking and the poise to talk to the seniors. This new life brought proms in the place of square dances, more work, and more fun. Fun and work like in biology (how to raise hamsters for fun and profit) and sailing paper airplanes out the math class window (aireodynamics). Then the days of small halls and long lunch hours were over. We were still riding buses, but now in the opposite direction. If e were stuck up on a hill again: this time in the middle of nowhere. It is beautiful, Is PAM ALLIO: Mercyhurst, Elementary Education; KAREN ALSBAUGH: Seton Hill, French and Biology; DAVID ANDERTON: Gannon, Electronics; 2: MARY BECHTEL: Belloine Beauty College; JOHN BECK: Navy; RAYMOND BEI- CHNER: Navy; 3: KAREN BLUMENSAADT: Peace Corps; ROSEMARY BOUQUIN: Duquesne U. Chemistry; MARY BROWN: Soint Bonoventure, Chemistry; 4: PATRICIA BREENE: Seton Hill, Biology; RICHARD BREZINSKI: Venango Campus, Chemistry; HENRY BURCHANOWSKI: Bryont Stratton Accountant; 5: SUE CALLAHAN: Presbyterian Hospital, Nurse; MARCIA CAMP; Saint Vincent, Nurse; GLORIA CAMPAGNA: Spencer School of Nursing, Stewardess; 6: KAREN CARROLL: Saint Vincent, Nurse; SHARON CARSON: Secretory; ANDREW CHALOT: Gannon, Moth; JAMES CIHON: St. Mark's Seminary ; EUGENE COMBS: Navy; JUDITH CURRAN: Spencer School of Nursing, Flight Nurse; HENRY DOLECKI: Highway Department; 7: DANIEL DROZDO: Penn state. Forestry; JUDITH EATON: Nursing School; NANCY ENGLISH: Villa Mario, Elementory Education; MARY FINNECY: Secretary; JUDX FITZGERALD: Mercyhurst, Medical technologist; MICHAEL FLETCHER: U.S. Naval Academy; Annapolis, Md.; ELIZABETH FOX: Mason Felix; 10 hut the snou and mud get pretty thick sometimes... never the grass. It had halls like runways and great big lockers for all your valuable junk: crepe paper from the last dancef tinfoil, notes, a “do not disturb99 sign, a stray tennis shoe, a coat, maybe soggy boots, an apple for lunch, and any books you might have room for somewhere. This year was different too. 'e had changed schools so often our transcripts looked like ue were disciplinary problems. But it looked like we'd finally be anchored to a place...even if it was 70 blocks from civilization. A junior is pretty well set in hign school life He is old enough to be included in things, and he has someone to look down on and pester. H e were the lords of second lunch, e had great times. Like when some- body or something (a tape recorder maybe?) got trapped in a gym locker. And we discovered the joys of a driver's license, and the horrors of a term paper, and the chemistry lab. And also how to ride the freshman and annoy the seniors, and other incidents better left in oblivion. (A few more demerits is the last thing we need!) Is JAMES FOYBusiness SchoolBARBARA GABRESKI: St. Mary s,Home Economics; CAROLYN GATES: Office Worker; 2: CHARLES GILLILAND: Navy; FRANCIS GRESSLEY: Marines; MICHAEL HAJDUK: Gannon, Pre-Med; 3: KATHLEEN HARTSELLs Mercyhurst, Elementary Education; HERBERT HEHER: Bryont Stratton Accountant; PATRICIA HENRY: Saint Vincent, Catholic Loy Worker; 4: VIRGINIA HYNES: Medical Technician THOMAS JABLONSKI: Gannon, Re- search Scientist; STEPHEN JEZ: Slippery Rock Teachers College, Physical Edu- cation; PAMELA KANESS: Teaching or Nursing SANDRA KEATING: Medical Recptionist; CONST ANCE KELLY: Mercyhurst, Teocher; 5: KATHY KISTLER: Ex-Roy Technician; PATRICIA KLECK: Secretory; DENISE KLESCZ: Teacher; JOHN KOWAL: Clarion, Science; STANLEY KUKLA: Slippery Rock, Biology and Physical Education; ANTHONY LENAR: Steubenville, So- ciology; ANNE LOGUE: Mercyhurst, Teacher; 6: JUDITH LUKASIAK: Airlines or Office Worker; JAMES LYNAM: Venango Campus, Moth; DIANE MACKINTOSH: P.tt, Math; 7: ROBERT MALENE: St. Mark's Seminary or Novy; DANIEL MANSFIELD: Bryant Stratton, Accountant; SUE MARSHALL: Pittsburgh Hospital School, Nurse; 8: ANN McCALLUM: Mercyhurst, Teacher; DENNIS McDONALD: Gannon, Priest; MIKE McMAHON: Work. 11 RICK BRZEZINSKI AND BOB MEG- MV And what’s really funny is that big people think it’s educational. Many of our junior memories tvill be tied up with the prom. The se- niors were so nice to us, and they smiled as we carried tons of card- board and glue past their beady eyes and under their pointed noses. Me- mories were building a magnificant steed in someone9s basement with- out knowing if it9ll clear the cellar door, much less how we9d get it to school. And when about 50 deter- mined kids were crammed into a tiny attic with cardboard and paint and chickenwire. R e literally had to watch our step. And like when the banquet chairman and the kid who was supposed to be building the fountain finally hitched a ride to town for lunch at 2:00 and got stran- ded...just because some other jerk- needed some crummy dry ice. Right then was when excitement and nostalgia both got us: when we tried to steal back our prom decor- ations, and got measured for our rings, and fixed our senior sched- ules, ond finally watched the bunch ahead of us leave. For about a week RAY BEICI1NER. And to think I don’t even like Juicy Fruit1 12 we were the oldest kids in the place• He just got all set for the leadership and responsibility bit and they kick- ed us out too, but only for three months. When we came back we were the oldest.Absolutely, we were the big- gest ones in the school...almost. Lct9s say biggest. Now we were the lords of first lunch. The freshmen laughed at our jokes. The faculty made many changes for us... ac- tivity period, l.D. cards, the gym rope, and rats! They changed the style of the hall passes. To think we saved those dumb things all summer. I guess we know what youthful exhuberance is. H e9ve got it. We9re in our second childhood already... sometimes. We9re running again... down the halls, over the freshmen, and around the faculty. Only cocky seniors in their second childhood could trip the cheerleaders and do ttsnake during an assembly, slide down the bannisters, go down the hall doing shuffle-hop-toe to She Loves You99, and build snowmen during lunch without having men in little white jackets chasing them. And you surely don't see anybody after us?! JANE MEALS AND PAM AI I JO. Well, we knew Pam was domestic, but Mealsie?? We spent first quarter wondering if we had really made it and ad- justing . (That sounds like a good word for it.) Then came second quarter, when we were slaving like dogs and worrying about college. R e spent third thinking: about when to do our term papers, and when the juniors are going to start the prom, and if the faculty's really serious ODDB ALL SALESMEN KUKLA, I1AJ- DLK, BIRCH ANOWSKI. O.K. Me Gin- ty, that’ll be $.67 plus a penny if you about graduating us, and about how long we can hold off before spring fever catches up with us. During fourth quarter spring fever really has us. We daydream about the months and years ahead, and con- template our last thines over the year...last football ana basketball games, last quartersessions, last. KATHY QUINN AND NANCY ENG- LISH. Stuff grows in here'. Useless stuff, but it grows. class, and last Mass in school. All this makes us happy and fearf ul at the same time. These are our last times together. Halfheartedly, we might harass a few freshmen or faculty members. JEAN RYBAK AND MARJORIE RO- GERS. Quick, hide the candy bar f-� O Cl a Sir JUDY FITZGERALD. Ev- ery sponge has a noble place in the world. 1: PAT McNERNY: Union Memoriol, Nurse; JANE MEALS: P ittsburgh Hospitol, Nurse; ROBERT MEGNIN: N. Y. University JOSEPH O'CONNER: Gannon, Mechanical Engineer; ROBERT OLIVER: Gonnon. ELIZABETH OLSOFKA: X-Ray Technolo- gist; MARIA ONGAY: Villa Maria, Nurse; 2:CATHERINE OWENS: Recording or Mason Felix, Beautician; MARY PINDEL: Mercyhurst, Teacher; NANCY PRENATT: Our Lody of Victory, Child Psychology; KATHY QUINN: St. Elizabeth, Nurse; MARJORIE ROGERS: Mercyhurst, Elemento- ry Education; JEAN RYBAK: Seton Hill, Biology; MARGARET SCHETTLER: Mercyhurst, Elementary Education; 3: DIANE SCHWABENBAUER: Office Worker; LARRY SCHWABENBAUER: Clarion, Spanish and Biology; PATRICIA SPORER: St. Vincent, Nurses Training; JOANNE SZABAT: Edinboro, Physical Science; STEPHEN SZALEWICZ: St. Vin- cent, Biology; RICHARD WALENTOSKI: Army; JOYCE WALENTOSK h St. Vin- cent, Nurse. 4: MARJORIE WARD: Mercyhurst, Elementary Education; MARY FRANCES WELSH: • Humboldt Institute, Internal Trovel, Secretary; ANN WHITCOMB: Office Worker : JAMES WILKINSON: Bryant Stratton, Accountont; JOHN WILLIAMS: Navy; RITA WOJTOWICZ: Receptionist 6: ROBERT WALLOSTON: St. Vincent, Pre-Mod; DIANE WOLBERT: Spencer. Nurse; PHILIP YASHINSKI: Service; DENNIS DECHANT: Gannon, Electrical Engineer. ITp seniors get special treatment: senior pictures that make us look beautiful and handsome, candid (or candied) Barque shots that make us look naturally awful, our oddball, a class day, final exams, a cap and goun, a long formal for us girls, and a tuff jacket for us boys. And then we’ll all squirm through a graduation ceremony. Our parents will look proud, the faculty will look relieved, and the underclass- men will just look. 11 hen we get our diplomas, probably none of us will react the same way. Should we clap or cry or jump for joy? Some of us will show our feelings, others won't. We’ll all take off to celebrate, exci- ted yet sad. We’ll all miss different parts and things of our last years. Old ties and habits will be hard to break, yet most of us have very dif- ferent paths to follow from now on. Like fireworks on the Fourth of July, we’ll take off in a burst, each go our separate ways, shine, and die out. We hope when we die out we’ll all be together again. I nd if it’s not too much to ask, we'd like I . C. to miss us too, at least for a while. 13 The Season- LETA AND KUKLA: The form was By Gary Jan 3 Venango's cagers started out the new year with a hard fought game against the tough St. Gregory team at North East. Very much like the football team, they started rallying in the last few minutes of the game-which was only 29 minutes too late. We lost to them 107 to 89. Kukla lead for our team with 34 points and Schill netted 20 more. J.V. The J.V.'s turned in a win against the same school in the pre- liminary, 59-47. Faunce, Cunning- ham, and Nalepa led the Viking victory. Jan. 5 St. Pat's auditorium hosted the game that looked as though it was going to be the greatest upset of the year. V.C., a class C team held Cathedral Prep of Erie, class A camp contenders, to a one-point lead in the foorth quarter until Prep's tall boys stretched and struck for a 61-37 defeat giving V.C. the 8th loss of the season. J.V. Even the J.V.'s toppled this time, 50-30. O'Malley and Faunce represented most of the offence by dumping 31 of the 39 for V.C. Jan. 15 Excitement ran high when the scoreboard at the end of the fourth showed 60 for Clarion, and 60 for us. Pulling ahead by 3 in the overtime, an old time rival, Immacu- late Conception High, pulled the cat out of the river and won 65-62. Schill netted 24 but to no avail. 14 -A Reason? nice but the results were meager. Hawk JAN. 18 Who said in defeat there is disgrace? Titusville's game with Saint Joe's gave us a 53-73 loss but the whole team played a good, scrappy game, and challenged the lead twice. J.V. With 30 seconds left, the Viking J.V's took the lead 30-27. Foul shots, theirs, decided the 32- 30 defeat. Who paid the refs? JAN 22 Somebody ate a lot of crow. Snapping a four game losing streak, we showed our stuff in a fine team effort for a 78-50 victory over Meadville. Kukla, Schill, Leta, Homan, and Henderson all netted in the double figures. __________ J.V. The preliminary was a clear and most of the reserves got in to dump the Aggie's, 57-24. Cunning- ham led with 17. JAN 24 Well on our way to a .500 average, we snatched our fifth win against 10 losses by upsetting the latter team from Saint Francis with a 69-61 victory. We saw a hard fought, closely-run race with Do- lecki, Schill, Homan and Leta loop- ing 57 of our 69. J.V. The preliminary laid way for the varsity by swamping Saint Fran- cis 44-25. Cunningham was high scorer with 19. JAN 28 We faced an unbeaten Saint Michael's and suffered a 58-35 boot in our ego. We trailed in the third quarter by only two points but the fast moving cagers ripped back with a 21 point fourth quarter to remain unbeaten in the league. Just like we thought J.V. The J.V. game was a pleas- ant reversal, though. Tied most of the way until the fourth, we posted a 38-33 victory. O'Malley led in points with 20. JAN 31 Plagued with our early season trouble, we hit only 20% of our shots against Saint Bernard's, and ended up on the lamentable end of a 73-40 loss. J.V. Excitement ran high in the overtime thriller. The Vikings squeaked by with a 34-32 win over Bradford. M B 2 Annin the boys tr i: ProiW came to hit from all angles. When the smoke had cleared they had tal- lied a score of 81 to our 45. FEB 11 We thought the game was over , was all we could say after we bowed to Saint Aggies of Mead- ville in overtime. We tied at the end of regulation time, 52-all, and then failed at three chances to score. We can say that game was stolen TOTAL PLAYER POINTS VARSITY Tony Schill—262 Stan Kukla—183 Sam Leta—165 Joe Homan—132 Dave Henderson—87 -''Tom Baker—75 Chris Mauer—51 Pat O'Malley—50 Henry Dolecki—41 Bill Tipping—35 Boh Faunce—7 George Nalepa—2 JUNIOR VARSITY Pat O'Mai ley-175 Bob Faunce—146 Glenn Cunningham—146 Ray Brezinski—83 Tom Baker—80 Dan McBride-49 Joe lloman—44 Dick Erawley-42 George Nalepa—36 Jerry Beichner—14 Jim Bruce—14 Philip Wydro—12 Bill Walenia—10 Bill Eckert—9 Tony Horos— 6 Barn Noon—2 Bill Summers-1 m j) Whisker Wax, Any one? By Betty Warcholic best When I was six, I lived on a ranch in the middle of town. I was the cowboy on the block. I could out draw, out rope, and out ride anyone for miles around. That is, all except my brother who was about 10 pounds heavier and 3 inches taller than I. During the day we would round up cattle, fight bad guys and do all the other things cowboys would do. At night we would sit around the camp fire in the middle of the kitchen and roast marshmellows. Once or twice my brother's would catch on fire and I would put it out with my 45 squirt gun. After that I would go out to the barn, which my mother uncompromingly insisted that I call my room,to dream of my heros, the men with the long black mus- taches in the Western movies. Unfortunately , these men usually turned out to be the bad guys but their big black mustaches compensated. Take the Pansy Kid), for instance. He was a cowboy who wore a hat three or four sizes too big that came down to his big black eyes. He had black bushy hair parted down the middle and plastered on his forehead. His long sideburns antedated Elvis Presley by ten years. His clothes were as mustered as his hair and hat. But the bit which really stood out about him was his big black mustache. He kept it neat with a smarter of lard each morning. In the worst dust storm, while his hat blew off and his clothes were torn to shreds, not a hair of his mustache blew out of place. I bet you could find the Pansy Kid today riding down Deer Valley with his black hat and his can of lard. from us. Leta and O’Malley were high scorers with 13. J.V. Easy victory, with Glenn Cunningham's 13 points, and another •leather for the hat of the heavily burned J.V.’s. FEB 15 There is some sneaky psychology in the diocese that is designed to let VC win for three quarters and then clobber them in the fourth. It is subtle but success- ful. We had the powerful Kanty Prep going toward an unexpected upset until the fourth where they came from behind to beat us 48-45. Three more to go. J.V. In the preliminary Faunce and McBride led the scoring column with 12 points each and romped to a minor league victory, 37-23. FEB 19 Tall and aggressive, St. Joe's from Titusville gave us our 16th loss in 21 games in a 79-54 battle. Tony Schill tallied 18. There were still two more times to be good losers. Lucky us. J.V. The preliminary showed the same results with a 55-41 upset for St. Joe's. Frawley was high scorer with 10 for the Black and Gold. FEB 24 St. Michael's from Green- ville went home with a win, closing their first place position, but a ittle less confident after a hard fought game tallied at 46-33. Stan Kukla paced the boys with 12. FEB 29 This was like it should have been all along. What a game! The walls of Franklin are still shak- ing with the cheers from both sides even after the scoreboard showed the end of the game, a 59-58 victory for V.C. over Meadville. High scores were Schill with 24 and Kukla with 14. FEB Two more games left and we were out to win this one. But again the boys of Kanty Prep outscored us by a slim 3 points to steal the game 48-45. Kukla was high scorer again with 10. J.V. The fight our boys put into the game paid off with a 37-23 vic- tory over the favored Kanty team. Faunce and McBride were high scor- ers with 12 each. FEB The last game. Saint Joe's had been matched in the second and fourth quarters but outscored us in the third to win the game 79-54. Schill netted 18 for us; Leta 11. J.V. The preliminary showed the Kime results with a 55-41 upset for Saint Joe's Irish. Frawley was high scorer with 10 for the Black and Gold. REVELATION By Susan McCarthy Seeking, not finding... Listening, not hearing... Looking, not able to see... Persuing, not gaining... Reaching, not grasping... Trying, not able to be... ITondering, not knowing... Wanting, not having... Searching for something... The something that s me. TO AN EXPECTANT LOVER (Apologies to the Cavaliers) By Ban Drozdo have waited too long for love, l ow it has made its flight. Like the stars that shine up above Before dawn grows out of night. Pve spent too much time as its 1then?99, “Where?9 I always asked. So lake it from me—I know best: Don t wait for love unmasked. Take it while you can! Make haste!! Lest like the columbine, After so long it becomes waste, Dead at the hand of time. There was also Weights Gun- ner--the toughest, strongest roan out West, next to me. He was like a western Robin Hood, except for this big black mustache. He spent his spare time going af ter bank- robbers, recapturing escaped prisoners and running the biggest cow ranch in Texas. He wore black buffalo skin pants and a toad skin jacket. On his boots and guns, tiny mustaches were engraved in 14K tin. Weights would ride through floods, swamps, and fires to get to his favorite saloon. With the names they had it must have been a hard choice. The Golden Garter, The Sil- ver Palace, Dick's Devil's Den—I wouldn't know which one to choose. But Gunner usually went to the Forged Dollar where the owner, Pen- elope Furd, was his friend. In my room hung pictures of every cowboy west of San Francisco's Chinatown. Those who didn't have a mustache when the picture went up have one now. The gallery made no attempt to distinguish between the good guys and the bad guys. The cri- teria was the black mustache, and eventually, as all the psychologists maintain, this child-hero deal had an effect. My future came into focus loud and clear. I would go to Holly- wood, invest in a can of lard and grow a mustache. 15 r UlsrtC . SENIOR AUTOGRAPHS yjf ■ft J0 %e 'X' JjJ'0 ' ' a yo je-' IK LEAD A MAN UP IN THE WAY HE MUST GO . t,.. S y yy v AND WHEN HE IS OLD HE WILL NOT DEPART FROM THE WAY. A rxr .V. 1964 GRADUATES Pamela Ann Allio Karen Ann Alsbaugh David Gordon Anderton Mary Joyce Bechtel John Charles Beck Raymond Henry Beichner Karen Jo Blumensaadt Rosemary Helen Bouquin Richard Edward Brzezinski Patricia Ann Bre ene Mary Lee Brown Henry John Burchanowski, Jr. Mary Suzanne Callahan Marcia Ann Camp Gloria Jean Campagna Karen Ann Carroll Sharon Lorraine Carson Andrew Michael Chalot James Joseph Cihon Jonathan Eugene Combs Judith Marie Curran Dennis Allen Dechant Henry Joseph Dolecki Daniel John Drozdo Judith Ann Eaton Nancy Ann English Mary Patricia Finnecy Judith Ann Fitzgerald♦ Michael Henry Fletcher Elizabeth Ann Fox James Leo Foy Barbara Collette Gabreski Carolyn Marie Gates Charles George Gilliland Francis Jay Gressley Michael John Hajduk Kathleen Mary Hart sell Herbert Bartholomew Heher Patricia Jane Henry Virginia Anne Hynes Thomas Joseph Jablonski Stephen Joseph Jez Julia Ann Kachik Pamela Ann Kaness Sandra Louise Keating Constance Eileen Kelley Mary Kathleen Kistler Patricia Joan Kleck Katherine Denise Klescz John Florian Kowal Stanley Francis Kukla Anthony George Lenar Anne Marie Logue Judith Marie Lukasiak James Richard Lynam Mary Diane Mackintosh Robert Michael Malene Daniel David Mansfield Janet Suzanne Marshall Ann Marie McCallum Dennis Lee McDonald Michael Patrick McMahon Patricia Ann McNerney Jane Marie Meals Robert Volkmar Megnin Joseph Timothy O’Connor Robert Lawrence Oliver Elizabeth Jean Osofka Maria Guadalupe Ongay Catherine Louise Owens Mary Jane Pindel Nancy Jo Prenatt Kathleen Joan Quinn Marjorie Grace Rogers Jean Marie Rybak Margaret Ann Schettler Diane Jane Schwabcnbaucr Larry Douglas Schwabenbauer Patricia Anne Sporer Stephen Stanley Szalewicz Joanne Szabat Joyce Anne Walentosky Richard Eugene Walentoski Mary Margaret Ward Mary Frances Welsh Ann Marie Whitcomb James Paul Wilkinson John Allen Williams Rita Louise Wojtowicz Diana Lee Wolbert Robert Bruce Wollaston Philip Le Roy Yashinski Members of the National Honor Society. COMMENCEMENT PROGRAM Venango Christian High School Oil City, Pennsylvania Tuesday, June 9, 1964 Most Reverend Edward P. McManaman, S.T.D., Presiding Processional .................................... Exultation VCHS Band Star Spangled Banner.........................Francis Scott Key VCHS Band Salutatory... Ann Whitcomb Presentation of Graduates Reverend Lawrence J. Antoun (Please do not applaud individual graduates) Presentation of Diplomas Most Reverend E.P. McManaman, STD Graduation Address Dr. Russel V. Morgan Valedictory Michael Fletcher Our Bishop’s Message Most Reverend E.P. McManaman, STD Alma Mater The Graduates Recessional Alma Mater VCHS Band AWARDS Archbishop Gannon’s Award for the highest average Michael Fletcher Derrick Award for highest girl’s average Ann Whitcomb Derrick Awards for Excellence in Business Education Julia Kaehik Mathematics. Diane Mackintosh English Suzanne Marshall Social Studies Mary Lee Broun Fourth Degree Assembly, K of C. Award for Excellence in Christian Doctrine. Kathleen Hartsell Sterlingsmiths of America Home Economics Award Mary Margaret Ward Crisco Home Economics Award Margaret Schettler American Legion Award for honor, courage, scholarship, and leader- ship; James Cihon and Judith Fitzgerald Venango Chris tian High School Awards for Excellence in French: Karen Alsbaugh Spanish: Mary Pindel Science: Patricia Rreene Awards given at Senior Communion Breakfast, June 9, 1964 MEMBERS OF TUE BOARD Most Rev. Edward P. McManaman Right Rev Msgr. James M. Powers Very Rev. Msgr William R. Hastings Reverend Lawrence J. Antoun Reverend Joseph A- Kacprowicz Reverend Stephen J. Kaxyuk Mr. Edward P Boyle Mr. Harry W. Gent. Jr. Mr. Fred Manion. Jr. Mr Charles Prenatt Mr. Louis Lenovich Mr. David Schrcckengost Venango Christian High School Alma Mater The Cross and Star are shining bright Above the winding stream These symbols on their lofty height Stand in the sun’s gold gleam. And ;o the world proclaim The glory of the Christian name VENANGO! Out of your halls arise Our dreams of future glory. VENANGO! W'ith joy our voices rise To fell your wondrous story We sing of your beautiful hills Where stand «he Black and Gold Where learning thrives and wisdom thrills Our hearts with words untold W’e plan our future ways. Remembering these happv days. •r.'j