Westerly High School - Westlyan Yearbook (Westerly, RI)

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CLASS OFFICERS IN 1943 As You Were . . . The Class of 1945 photographed when they were Sophomores shows many faces of classmates who have gone into service. The Class of 1945 as they appeared as Sophomores

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Thf. Sfnior Year Book — 1945 coiled his trusty right arm and heaved a simply divine pass! Goose Gentile nabbed it: scampered down the outside line midst a horde of frantic bears; hit pay dirt to sew up the game! Nice work, fellas. . . . And later in the game our own Joe Sis dashed fifty long yards for a touchdown only to have the play called back. The fans went wild, surged out onto the field. Some fun! If you thought jhat was fun, you should have been in on our Senior Prom fireworks! We had Achilles’ heel trouble again, but definitely, and in both heels. We had class meetings and more class meetings. Joe Keegan warned us of impending danger, then he begged us, then C’orinne Palm (Minister of the Exchequer) threatened us, and then Mr. Mason threatened us. It seems we had gone right ahead with our plans and had engaged a $65 orchestra with something like $17 in the treasury. Everything worked out very nicely, though, and “the Prom was a huge success.” (Where have I heard that before?) Next on the slate of hysterical historical happenings was a Sadie Hawkins Dance, introduced for the first time by the East-West Club. It was an informal affair, and everyone had loads of fun. We trust that in years to come our school will be brightened by many more. A four-star award should go to the East-West Club for their splendid work. The dance was new and different, carefully planned, and very well carried out. The evening was highlighted by the election of “Miss Sadie Hawkins of Westerly High.” Marilyn Frechette was our lucky and lovely Sadie for '44 and ’45. Honorary mention should go to the decorating committee which spent many a sleepless night worrying about rain, corn stalks, corn borers, autumn leaves, the shortage of crepe paper, Lathrop’s beachwagon, and the mysterious disappearance of their precious red ears of corn. In spite of everything, the committee did a marvelous job. Before Christmas, plans were already underway for the presentation of an operetta, and after the holidays we dug in, hammer and tongs. Marilyn Frechette, Mary Ferendo, and Alec Houston played the leads in our “Waltz Dream.” For a few short weeks, school was in a state of chaos with mighty comings and goings, and make mine chocolate, but the operetta was an A-one production. It delighted the people of Westerly and played before capacity crowds both nights! We cleared expenses, too! Now, while discussing finances and success, is an ideal moment to pay tribute to Miss Endicott and her “S” Club. The membership of the club is restricted to girls of the Senior Salesmanship class, and a hard-working lot they are, too, with their president, Mary Geary; vice president, Janet House, and secretary, Rose Gencarella. To them fell the distasteful task of making school functions not merely an artistic and a social success, but equally as important, a financial success. Just to illustrate the calibre of their work, the members of the “S” Club sold fifteen hundred tickets to the operetta, saving our costly “Waltz Dream” from being one big, beautiful, financial flop. And it is these same girls who, each Wednesday morning, have pleaded and prodded and begged us to dig down and buy a war stamp. Not because of, but rather, in spite of us, they have come through our various bond and stamp drives victorious. Miss Endicott, we salute you and the members of your “S” Club. Our ’44-’45 basketball season ended on a solemn note. For the third straight year we marched triumphantly through our season’s schedule, and emerged undefeated ! We overpowered a twice beaten, but still dangerous St. Raphael five for the Class B championship; slapped down our classy South Kingstown friends, champs of Class C; and went on up the narrow winding path toward the state title. And we do mean NARROW, WINDING path! Sports writers called the Westerly-East Providence state championship fray “the most exciting game in the history of this series”! We lost (50-48) in a heads or tails, “sudden death” ruling. Heartbreaking as it was, we couldn’t have lost to a finer lot of fellows. They were ball players, every last one of them, and - 11 )►-

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The Senior Year Book — 1945 they got the break. Lady Luck wasn’t sitting on the Westerly bench that night, but nevertheless, our team showed the up-staters that their heart was in the right place. Long Bob Ulles, who, with his own talent plus the generous support of his teammates, smashed all sorts of state and national records this year, lived up to everything the newspapers had said about him, and did it with a sprained ankle and bad knee, too. He and Joe Si-ciliano were named to the All-Tourney team. To the basketball team—Bob Ulles, Joe Siciliano, Don Barber, Goose Gentile, Skank Pellegrino, and Irv Panciera—our thanks, for giving us a priceless something to look back upon, with pride. There was a momentary lull in sports activities at school, but never fear, we formulated another plan to bring a fresh attack of nervous agitation to our silver-locked professors. The class threw' itself into a mighty dramatic production— “The Barretts.” It was a big job in any man’s language, but we were ready and rarin’ to go. The play is based upon an authentic love affair of the great English poet, Robert Browning, and Elizabeth Barrett. Doris Bradshaw' assisted Miss Evans, our director, and the cast was as follows: Robert Browning—John Lathrop; Elizabeth Barrett—Doris Payne; Henrietta— Jean Phillips; Octavius—Joseph Keegan; Miss Mitford—Doris Rathbun; Capt. Cook —Thomas Salimeno; Cousin John—Richard Owens; Wilson—Barbara Flynn; Ara-bel—Elinor Gray; Milly—Eileen Rea; George Bairett—Thomas Jursa. We are far too modest to elaborate upon the tremendous success of our Senior Play, but it really was a tough job well done. » Our little regiment with its humble deeds has paraded before you. Its sturdy ranks are marching proudly into the battle smoke of tomorrow’. There is an air of fearlessness in those receding shoulders; defiance in the tilt of that chin, and fresh hope in those sparkling eyes, eagerly fixed on far horizons. There is determination in the rhythm of their tread, an untried determination w'hich says, “We shall and w’ill go on to greater heights, and w'rite a far nobler history. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here today, but, God willing, it shall never forget what we do here—tomorrow.” —THE CLASS OF ’45 -«t{ «3 £►-