Welcome...

Greetings everyone!

Summer is behind us and we look forward to the fall and the great holidays the months ahead will bring us. Our September update offers up several fun versions of our "Original Cast Members" along with some visits back to one of our junior highs. A retro view back when our railroad was ground level, a visit from a television personality during our childhood and a classmate profile of yet another very creative and talented friend of ours.

The past month has seen our home state suffer from mother nature and the ten year anniversary of 9-11 comes all too close to home for many of us. Also, since we last visited I am sorry to say we have lost a classmate of ours, William Terefenko, age 58 and our music teacher Mrs. Musacchia passed last week at the age of 95.

Several of you were quite good in guessing Karen Kiraly as our mystery classmate. September also marks the one year anniversary of our 40th reunion. Hard to believe how fast the year has flown by. Pat Navalany is responsible for this month's music selections, thanks Pat.

This past year also has been a complete kick in the pants joy to work on and deliver these monthly blog updates. I'm sorry to share that given a crunch on my time it has been increasingly more difficult to get the blog out to all of you. From the outset our goal was to springboard from the great reunion and keep the WHS enthusiasm going strong. We are proud of the project we created and produced each month and thank the many of you that have taken the time to write with your appreciation for our efforts. At this point I am sorry but the WHS Blog will be sidelined for the foreseeable future. Hopefully down the road time will permit us to re-enter your inbox. Cindy, Diane and Chris are true sweethearts and I can't begin to thank them for everything they have done for your blog. Whenever there is a group organized to tackle the next reunion you would be wise to ask for these three ladies' assistance...they are and have been priceless to me...thank you. Finally...I say thank you to all of you that have agreed to allow us to profile you and your lives, this zany project of ours graced me with so many new friends as a result. Over seven thousand Internet visits to our blog is not bad I'd say! It has been a fun ride and I wish you all nothing but good in your life and I hope the world is kind to all of you.

Once again Cindy, Diane and Chris....thank you.

Ciao

Many of us lived in fear of these...

If these walls could speak...

Many of us attended Barron Avenue Junior High...how many of you recognize the auditorium wall art? (A big thank you to Tina Bedard for sharing her photos with us)

Classmate spotlight...

She is a fabric and color driven artist and her medium is abstract and quilted wall hangings. Color, texture and fiber have been a life long love of hers. Not just textiles but also light, sand, leaves, stones, etc. Her work focuses on the improvisational use of fabrics that she will dye, paint, silkscreen and mono print herself. Her name is Joyce Greenberg Goode.

Some of her works are large singular pieces. The excitement of these pieces to Joyce lies in the process of taking a piece of fabric, seeing what it suggests to her, and then developing it with painting, or printing, other fabrics and stitching. The result is her creative unique expression.

Another part of her artwork is interpretations of traditional quilt patterns. These patterns have been tried and found true for years by many quilters before her. Joyce tries to seek to understand these patterns, then break them apart and reassemble them in a way that makes a new composition. In the end, her personal vision of what is otherwise standard is the hallmark of these pieces.

In her Quilts she uses fabrics that she can dye, silk screen, and mono print. In addition, she will also choose commercially dyed fabrics. All are 100 % cotton. She will then combine these fabrics with an image in mind. Although the work is abstract and improvisational every cut is deliberate and every artistic decision is intentional. Joyce and her husband Mert call the Bay Area home these days. After graduation at RIT Joyce worked in the fashion industry in New York City before life took her to Southern California and then the Northwest before settling in San Francisco. Merton Goode, a highly respected anesthesiologist and seriously gifted golfer on the USGA Amateur circuit met on a blind date and they have been happily married now for the past fourteen years.

Joyce recalls her many friends from WHS, especially the art classes where she remembers the camaraderie and support her fellow classmates gave each other. "I think of so many talented and creative classmates that I knew like Kathi MaGuire and Michele Liss to name just two". Returning for our 40th reunion last year brought back a flood of good memories of good people that I was blessed to share my school experience with.

When asked about the progression of her work over the years Joyce shares: "these quilts are about different stages of my life, realizations I have had, and places I have been. I think any artist will tell you that when they invite you to view their work they are inviting you to see them in a more intimate way. You certainly know me better now because you have seen my work".

Over the past year in discussion Joyce and I discovered that we both consider "Secret O' Life" our favorite James Taylor song with the lyric "The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time" being so true. Joyce, you certainly make the most of the passage of yours and your creative expression and friendship are a gift to all of us. 

Original cast members...

One of our favorite posts over the past year has been our good natured satire of what we believe were the original cast members of some notable shows...here's three for you to enjoy!

Bea Davis, Nancy Chomko, Sharon Melvin and Charlotte Enik

                                     Karen Kimberlin, Larry Cenegy, Kathi Jedrusiak and Dick Janni

Tony Russomanno, Patricia Koebel, Janet Monaco, Bob McKee, Elizabeth Weber and Mike Handerhan

Class of 1971's 40th reunion...

Here's the latest update on Class of 71's 40th Reunion Weekend Sept 23-25:

 

Hotel: Embassy Suites-Piscataway, 121 Centennial Ave, Piscataway, NJ.

 

Fri Sept 23 events: 7 pm football at Piscataway High; 9 pm live rock 'n roll at Tim Kerwins Tavern, Bound Brook (www.timkerwinstavern.com).

 

Sat Sept 24 events: 11 am WHS tour (meet in gym lobby); 8 pm reunion dinner at Embassy Suites (www.reunions-unlimited.com for ticket info).

 

Sun Sept 25: Brunch, Embassy Suites.

 

All alums, family, friends and faculty welcome! Check Classmates.com, WHS Alumni Site, or Facebook for details.

 

Class of 71 thanks Class of 70 for your reunion weekend ideas and guidance!

 

Thanks ...Barb Hastings

Who Knows Best?...

His official cast name was James but we knew him as Bud. Bud Anderson to be exact. Our formative Jersey years growing up we found that TV played a large role in many of our lives. Father Knows Best was a staple on the weekly schedule. How many of us would sit down to watch the show with our family? The show ran from 1954 to 1960 and Billy Gray who played the role of the son, Bud was very kind to sit down with us to discuss life then...and now. Billy was impressed with our Blog and thanked us for asking him to share a conversation.

Billy started in movies, playing in a couple of films as the younger brother to Doris Day, followed by a significant role in the classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still". In 1954 he landed the role on FKB. He shared with me his admiration for the professionalism and the direction he learned from Robert Young. Billy was very candid though in telling me that even at that young age he had serious reservations about the "message" that the show would project each episode. He viewed it as very chauvinistic and misleading and disrespectful to women. In the end, he felt that "you" should know best, not only did "father". This started when the TV show was born from a radio show of the same name and theme...well, almost the same name. See, back then sponsors carried much leverage and Kent cigarettes demanded that their lead actor on the show, Robert Young, be a very assertive and unquestioned role model for their product. Because of that they insisted on the dropping of the radio show's question mark that followed the "Father Knows Best?". When asked about the obvious lack of minorities on the show he said that he too was bothered by that but during that era of social change the affiliates in the South still threatened the production company that if they showcased minorities they would drop them from their schedule.

Back then it took nine, twelve hour days to film each episode. For his return, Billy made $250 per show, amazing isn't it? He stays in touch with the only two surviving cast members, Elinor Donahue and Lauren Chapin. Did you know that Lauren who played the youngest sister is actually the cousin to the late Harry Chapin, "The Cat's in the Cradle"?

Billy took his craft seriously and when asked what was it like to be a teenager viewing himself on TV he said that it was always a learning process whereby he was able to critique his lines and how he handled his role. Soon after the series ended in 1960 Billy was arrested on a charge of marijuana possession. He served 45 days and his acting career came to an end as a result of that arrest. He focused his attention on his love of racing motorcycles. For  many years he raced Class A motorcycles on Southern California tracks. His creative talents have rewarded him by his design of his F-1 Ergonomic Guitar Pick, a music industry standard now. Today, he is retired and living in Topanga, CA.

Billy asked how often we get together as a class and I shared our last reunion was a year ago. He wished us both good health and fellowship amongst our class. We thank him for a very candid and honest conversation for the blog.

Sealed with a handshake...

Last month we asked that you share with everyone those that you have had an opportunity to shake one's hand with over the years. The responses were very interesting and we thank those that wrote us.

Ken Kertesz: Paul Anka and Barack Obama.
Doug Diem: Roger Penske, Johnny Carson, and Dale Earnhardt.
Pat Navalany: Dr. Will Kirby (CBS's Big Brother).
Joyce Greenberg: Eleanor Roosevelt and Bill Murray.
Pat Dillon: John McCain, Sarah Palin and Doc Severinsen.
Judi Schlesinger: Jack Nicholson, Mohammad Ali and Sly Stallone.

A step back in time...

Well before our time, back in 1930, this photo shows the Green Street railroad crossing before the train tracks were raised in 1940.

Photo of the Month...

Pat Linde Neidermeyer captured this image recently at Holgate Beach on the southern tip of Long Beach Island, NJ. Pat and I first picked up a camera in our 1969 WHS Art class taught by RJ Phillips. Pat, nice to see your creative eye once again.