Windsor Locks High School - Herald Yearbook (Windsor Locks, CT)

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THE HIGH SCHOOL HERALD 27 also we are uniting the people for the purpose of preserving the free¬ doms we cherish so much. Let all of us pray to the God above that the flag of freedom, stal¬ wart, loyal, and true, will some day in the near future wave throughout the world. Catherine Giannuzzi, ’43. THE FOUR FREEDOMS One hundred and sixty-seven years ago, we, as a nation, through the words of that great statesman, Thomas Jefferson, asserted that all men were created equal, entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of hap¬ piness. Those were big assertions, but our will and desire as a nation have been to live up to them for the purpose of securing peace, not violence, that we might thrive and prosper. It is the dignity of every individual at the present to live in a society of free men where there exists a definite guarantee of freedom of speech, freedom of worship, free¬ dom from want, and freedom from fear. Today in the Atlantic Charter this is the way we express the four freedoms. Freedom of speech is the expression of thought and will. Therefore freedom of speech means freedom of the people. If they are prevented from expressing their will in speech, they are enchained in an absolute monarchy, governed by a dictator. In America, the people create their own government, making it what they know is right, allowing anybody to stand up and make attacks on it and say what he thinks. This freedom is the freedom which aids in the establishment of a true democracy. When we have the freedom to think and discuss things without fear, when peace and security are assured, when the futures of our children are insured—then we have established and cultivated the early beginning of a democracy. Men came across the sea, not merely to find new soil, but to win freedom for their souls—to think, to speak, and to worship as they wished. This last is the freedom men value most of all; for this they have borne countless persecutions and fought more bravely. They do not demand that others should worship as they do, or even worship at all. It is not held against them, for they understand that faith takes many forms. This is with us already an ancient heritage and because we knew such freedom from birth, we took it for granted and expected it of all mature men. So long as the fruit of our labor is denied us, so long will want manifest itself in a world of slaves. It is only when we have plenty of everything that we begin to understand what freedom means and it is then that we become a growing and creative part of democracy. Since our nation began men and women have come here for free¬ dom—especially freedom from the fear that lies at the heart of every tyrannical exercise of power by one man over another. They came here to find room to breathe and to have a chance to be men. When we speak of freedom from fear, we do not mean freedom from responsibility, freedom from struggle and toil, but freedom from the fear of starving to death,

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26 THE HIGH SCHOOL HERALD GRADUATION NIGHT PROGRAM Theme: Our Heritage Of Freedom SALUTATORY FREEDOM IS OUR HERITAGE Parents, Members of the Faculty, Members of the Board of Education and Friends: It gives us great pleasure to welcome all of you to our gradu¬ ation exercises. We want to express our appreciation for your kindness, patience, and loyalty throughout our school years. In these troubled times, we realize that there is a difficult task confronting us, but we also know that with your cooperation, we cannot fail. We, the youth of America, must and will march hand in hand with our soldiers along the road to Victory. Today, in this war-torn, darkened world, our men are fighting val¬ iantly at the front, on the high seas, and in the troubled sky. They are fighting our common enemies who have only one intention—to destroy mankind and conquer the world. At the present, our men are in vigorous combat on far-flung battlefields and have successfully driven the once in¬ vincible foe from Africa: and in the Pacific our men are now on the defensive. Yes, these men are fighting to preserve our greatest heri¬ tage, a symbol that will shine over our country forever—Our Freedom. Do we, the American i eople, know what freedom really is? Did we ever consider the fact that our freedom might be threatened? To most of us freedom is something that is just taken for granted, but if you ever have had the opportunity to talk to one of those fortunate people who have successfully escaped from territory that is occupied by our enemies, they would explain the true meaning of freedom. Faith and courage are all that we can offer to those conquered coun¬ tries which are now feeling the wrath of our enemies, where disobedience is answered with a firing squad, a concentration camp, or other cruel de¬ vices. To these unhappy conquered people, freedom is where children can play in peace, and not be harmed by sudden destructive bombs from the sky. Freedom is where families can once again be happily united. Free¬ dom is where people, regardless of race, creed, or color, can gather together and worship as they please, and where no dictator can destroy this prin¬ ciple of liberty. Freedom is where people can listen to any radio program that they may wish without the fear of being spied upon and turned over to the Gestapo. In other words, we in America should be proud of the fact that we still have freedom of speech, of the press, of religion, and of assembly. Today, a World War is being fought to see if freedom instead of slavery is to exist. Every man, woman and child must do his part during this crisis, whether it be buying defense bonds, working in defense indus¬ tries, or being a soldier of his country. Therefore, let us all do all we can for the American boys fighting for the United States, because we are not only helping America in preparing for the greatest struggle in history, but

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28 THE HIGH SC HOOL HERALD the fear of being a slave, and the fear of ghastly death for us and af our children because of the greed and power of w’ilful and evil men, and deluded nations. We hope that our children may grow to manhood and womanhood free from fear, that they shall have an equal chance to grow and develop and lead the lives they choose to lead. When we yield our sons and brothers to war it is in the trust that their sacrifice will bring to us and our allies, no inch of alien soil, no selfish monopoly, but oniy the privilege of winning the most precious gifts in life—freedom from want, freedom from fear, freedom of speech, and freedom of worship. If our sons and brothers accomplish this, if by their suffering they can carry to all mankind the stimulus of an ordered liberty, it will be the greatest achievement in history. To that purpose they are offering their youth and their blood. To that purpose and to them the rest of us, regret¬ ting that we cannot stand beside them, dedicate the remainder of our lives, keeping in mind our motto—“Victory Through Diligence.” Marjorie Riggott, ’43 THE CHALLENGE OF TODAY All the men and women in our fighting forces know what their challenge today is, but do we, who are left at home, really know what our challenge is? We at home must take the place of those in the armed forces as well as fill our regular work. We may not like the idea of being on various programs and committees for which there is little or no pay; we may not like the gas, butter, meat, shoe and all the other rationing programs; we may not like being told to put a certain per cent of our salaries into War Bonds and Stamps each pay day—but do you think for one minute that our few sacrifices begin to compare with those of the men and women at the fighting fronts? They are fighting to keep their land free from want and fear; to keep their way of life, the right way of life, from perishing. With these ideas in mind it will be easier for us to accept our chal¬ lenge. For those in schools today it is simple; stay in school. The more knowledge you obtain the better equipped you will be to do your part in the future. To you older folks, it is your job to carry on the work started by those who are absent. Ycu also have to keep the younger boys and girls from taking harsh and unwise steps. Teach them and guide them, for they are willing and eager to learn the democratic way of life. In our own hearts we can see our personal challenge of today clear¬ ly outlined. We know we are going to accept this challenge because we sincerely want to do all in our power to make this country and the whole world a better and happier place in which to dwell in future years. We must, however, beware of the danger of too much regulation. Free enterprise is what has made America grow. Those boys who come marching back to us in a few months or years from now want to find the