Worcester State University - Oak Leaf Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

Page 29 text:

The autumn days went by, and again it was time to elect a delegate to Swamp- scott. This year Alan Nelson was chosen. With the close of school for the Christmas holidays came the frenzied rush for the library to write the eternal term paper which always waits. This one had been waiting since last September. And then back to school to face mid-year exams! Many dances, parties, and basketball games had slipped by when the gusts of March blew strong and we as Sophomores sent Robert Ashe to the New York Conference as our representative. As March faded into April, we were faced with our first major social task, to put on the Sophomore Prom for the benefit of the Seniors. This task of no mean proportion was allotted to a decoration committee headed by John Cooney and Miriam Ivok. Lights burned late in the gym of State Teachers the night before the prom, and there were times when we thought we would never quite accomplish John ' s grandiose design. But thanks to the energy of the workers, Springtime in Paris succeeded in coming to Worcester. We had our Eiffel Tower, sidewalk cafes, and I think if time and space had permitted, we might even have brought over the Champs Elysees. No one seemed to care that it was just a gym that night. After the crowning success we scored, it was hard to get back to normal; but final exams were just around the corner, and that was incentive enough. In June we once again entered upon Commencement Activities, a year older and a year wiser. As the shadows of August lengthened and became September once again, we returned to classes at the college. Our Junior officers elected the previous Spring were the same slate that had directed us through the Sophomore Year. On one of those bright, fall days not unlike the many beautiful days in that season, a hush descended over the noisy chatter of the school. The solemn faces of the class of 1956 as they gathered outside St. Paul ' s Cathedral attested to the cause of this silence. For we had gathered for our first solemn duty, to pay a last farewell to a classmate and friend, Donald Joseph Keenan. We had pleasanter duties that fall too. On the social side of the agenda, Eleanor McKeon succeeded in turning multitudinous leaves and a few wires into an Enchanted Forest. Our Junior Prom could never have been the success it was without such lovely decorations. Our Junior class delegate to Swamp- scott was Robert Dana. Before the last strains of The Night Before Christmas had been lost in the echoes of the Assembly Hall, another Christmas recess had come upon us and another semester had all but vanished. But this vacation was different. Some seventy-five people seemed to have suddenly developed something wrong with their hands. They seemed so heavy! You guessed it. That flash of blue meant that class rings had arrived at last. With mid-years once again behind us and a new semester started, our numbers dwindled. What became of that seventy-five strong Junior Class? One saw only a few secondaries here and there. Imbued with the principles of the unit-plan, teaching the whole child, and providing for individual differences, the elementaries had departed for their practice teaching. When the MAA-WAA sponsored Winter Carnival had come and gone, and the winter months were behind us, once again in March we elected our delegate for New York. The results of the election saw Marie Delaney representing the class at this affair. When June rolled arQund we once again became a complete class for the Senior activities. Another year! Three down and one to go! A familiar laugh echoed down the halls of State Teachers College, and then, lost in its own repercussions, died out and was heard no more. Several days after the dose of classes in our Junior Year the awful messenger of death once again appeared

Page 28 text:

Class History A man once gave the following definition of history. It is an inaccurate narration of facts by someone who was not there. I feel that this account is accurate and factual for I was there and saw it happen. I was an eyewitness to the transformation. Let me tell you about it! We were a motley crew that gathered in our auditorium at Worcester State. We freshmen had come from a great variety of backgrounds. We had come here, however, for one main purpose — to emerge from the college as professional men and women, the teachers of tomorrow ' s children. The means of attaining this de- sired end might vary, but always there would be that eventual goal, our degree. We were to go forward together, sometimes in laughter, sometimes in uncertainty, and even sometimes in sadness. Freshmen! What a world of meaning is hidden behind that word! There we were, ' aliens cast on foreign shores, literally thrown together for four years. Disorganiza- tion was the first hurdle to be jumped, and that we did with amazing alacrity. We accomplished this by our election of officers who were to guide us in our class activities. The results were as follows: President pro tempore, Robert Ashe; Vice- President, Evelyn Langton; Secretary, Patricia Sheary; Treasurer, David Tomolonius; and Social Chairman, Lawrence Bettley. Another step toward organization was the selection of our class adviser, Mr. Robert Patterson, and our delegate to the Swamp- scott Conference, Marguerite Shuber. Class Marshals for the four years proved to be Paul Fistori and Ann Sweeney. Time had flown since that first awkward step as Freshmen in September. The Freshman- Sophomore Get Acquainted dance, the flurry of activities for All-College week, and the election of officers had all come and gone. Now in February our first Prom at the college was held. February and Valentine ' s Day set the idea for the theme, Concert of Hearts. Patricia Sheary graced the occasion as queen. Her court consisted of Patricia McGuire, Evelyn Langton, Marilyn Lawrence, and Ann Sweeney. March brought the New York Con- ference, at which we were ably represented by Florine Severance. April, May, June! Strange as it may seem, they slipped through our hands as quickly as that. June meant Commencement week for the Seniors and we as Freshmen did our part. And as quickly as it had begun, it was over. One year at State Teachers gone, vanishing into thin air as if it had never existed except for the memories each one had brought away to keep forever! Sophomores! Here we go again! That was our attitude. Seasoned veterans of one year, we could tackle anything now. Almost immediately upon the renewal of old acquaintances, it was time for us to be the hosts at the traditional Sophomore- Freshman dance. Of course elections were held again, and in a very close contest John Neal edged out Joe Deely for the office of President. The other officers in- cluded: Vice-President, Evelyn Langton; Secretary, Bernadette Morgan; Treasurer, Kenneth Powers; and Co-chairmen of social activities, Miriam Ivok and Paul Fistori. After the excitement of the first few weeks had subsided and we had once again settled into the daily routine of school life, we began to probe our way through the labyrinthine mysteries of Geography and Physics. Even with a year ' s experience be- hind us we were not the seasoned veterans we thought we were.

Page 30 text:

in our midst. And as before, it was our sad duty to pay our respects to another of our classmates and our friend, Robert Francis Ashe. Seniors at last! September 1955 didn ' t sound too different from September 1952. But in between were the experiences that make a class united. Did I say united? Well, we were, after a fashion, for a week. And then summing up the courage of three years of college preparation, many group work projects, unit plans, and one register later, the secondaries, firmly, friendly, and fearlessly headed for the high schools of the area. Class officers remained the same but bear repeating at this time for emphasis and for a pat on the back for a job truly well done. President, John Neal; Vice-President, Evelyn Langton; Secretary, Bernadette Morgan; Treasurer, Ken- neth Powers; Co-chairmen of the social committee, Miriam Ivok and Paul Fistori. With the fall came the beginning of our biggest school project, our yearbook. Elected by the class to guide and direct the work were co-chairmen, Anne Hussey and Robert Dana. October 7, 1955! A processional of dignified seniors, attired for fhe first time in their caps and gowns, marched slowly and of course in step, down the center aisle of the Assembly Hall in borrowed robes. The Kappa Delta Pi assembly in charge of the seniors introduced the members to the entire student body. The officers are: President, John Neal; Vice-President, Florine Severance; Secretary, Miriam Ivok; Treasurer, Andrew Nicholas; Historian Reporter, Ann Matthews; Social Chairman, Edmond Berthiaume. Other members include: M. Carol Marshall, Ann Sweeney, Marguerite Shuber, Sylvia Anderson, Sonya Brunell, Patricia McGuire, Jean Robbins, Dorothy Ogazalek, and Joseph Deeley. Another school group worthy of recognition at this time is the Student Council, which was led capably during our Senior year by Joseph Deeley. The Conference in Swampscott saw Lee Mullin as our representative. In January came the new semester and the class was once again reunited for the re- maining four months. New York, New York, it ' s a wonderful town, as every senior who made that memorable class trip in March smilingly agrees. Our New York delegate was Jean Robbins. April brought more than showers in 1956. It brought a wonderful gift from the Sophomores, our never-to-be-forgotten Prom. Thank you to all of them! And those are our experiences of the past which can live now only in memories to be dusted off every once in a while and laughed over. These are the things we have done. This is our story. To mention names is only a slight testimony of the esteem we feel. The real credit goes to every Senior who helped to make our class what it is today. Ahead lies the wonderfully familiar traditions and activities of Com- mencement Week in June with the leading roles at last played by us, the class of 56. The baccalaureate ceremonies, the Senior dinner dance, the parties, the class outing, class day, and of course, the ultimate, graduation. The years have fled. It is now 1956, our year. Yes, our year for many things. Our year to say good-bye to college, its laughs, its friends, its wonderful experiences, and sometimes even its tears. Our year to say hello, hello world, here we are, the best yet. And in conclusion may I say for the class of ' 56, as Tiny Tim in Dickens ' immortal Christmas Carol so appropriately interjected, God bless us, every one. MARIE E. DELANEY Class of 1 956