August...

Welcome to your updated blog edition. Summer is drawing to a close as many from our Class of '70 look forward to our 45th year reunion on the September 19th. Our blog includes some cool memories provided to us by way of Doug Hart and Charlotte Enik/Klecan. Much of the success this site has enjoyed over the years is due to the many classmates that have contributed to the effort and for that I say thank you!

This month we enjoy a team photo of Fords Junior High football team back in 1966. The El Dorado cover and some pages from the ALL Hi News. Our contest winners are announced that will enjoy the Tommy James concert on September 15th. Finally, two of our classmates and one talented and unselfish musician are profiled. I hope you enjoy the read...sit back, grab your coffee and enjoy the music.

Rich

Classmate highlight...

This gentleman's middle name should be "Director". I’m speaking about our classmate Peter Wright. Peter has left his imprint on New Jersey through his successful and highly respected municipal government career. This positive and friendly classmate is often remembered by his fellow Barrons as the Baron mascot, sharing that duty with fellow alum, Jimmy Petersen.

“Rich, it was fun to be our mascot, especially during our memorable undefeated senior football season. There was no clear guidelines, just show up and help keep the school enthusiasm going strong. I do remember both Jimmy and I climbing the field goal poles after one of the games.”

Today you will find Peter working hard as the Director of Recreation for Mendham Township, NJ.  He plans, implements and directs recreational and leisure activities for a community of 6,000  In addition, he oversees the operation of park development, marketing, and evaluation of services/programs offered.  Last but not least he coordinates efforts of the various civic and conservation groups in the restoration and upkeep of historic trail systems and award winning facilities. Peter graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Science degree and along the way he obtained his Masters in Administration in 2000 from Fairleigh Dickinson University. In addition to his many awards of recognition Peter was awarded the Frederick C. Sutro Memorial Award in 2008. This highly respected award was presented to Peter by the New Jersey Recreation and Park Association recognizing his outstanding lifetime service the parks and recreation profession.

Peter is one of three children having lived in Jersey City til he arrived in Woodbridge his freshman year. During his time at WHS Peter was the captain of the cross country team. As with many others we have profiled, he is in agreement with them that his experience gained from the athletic experience was invaluable in rounding out his WHS education. Some of his best friends in high school were Dave Barnes and Charlotte Enik. On occasion he will run into Bennett Singer today. "Back in school I wish I weren't so damn shy with the girls. I did take Flo Hutchinson to the prom, I hope she is well. It would be nice if she attended the reunion but I am looking forward to seeing everyone. The last one I attended was our 20th so I know this will be a fun evening for me."

Today, Peter is a father of two and his beautiful lady of seven years, Karen, is also a WHS graduate from 1973. This summer they will be touring Tuscany, Austria and Switzerland. During Peter's free time you will find him on the golf links throughout the Garden State. Before kids my game was in the low 70's...once becoming a dad it changed to the 80's. Also Peter officiates at the local little league and soccer games.

Throughout my career I learned that great customer service creates customer loyalty. I have been blessed with my career handling various aspects of the Parks and Rec community. When I retired from Bernard Twp as their Director of Parks, Rec, Community Pool and Golf I touched when they decided to honor my efforts by naming their new water playground "Pete's Puddle". To drive by it almost daily I am still reminded of those wonderful people I had the pleasure of working with for so many years. I am lucky man.

Pete, I happen to think those of your former classmates that get steal a few minutes of you and Karen’s time at the reunion will be the lucky ones.

 

 

Rock out on the 15th...

Recently I asked our alumni if they were interested in winning a pair of free tickets to see Tommy James perform at the PNC Bank Performing Center on September 15, 2015. The question posed to the Class of '70 was who made the best case to be awarded the tickets. The response was more than I ever expected. Both Charlotte Enik/Klecan and Ray Ruiz were deemed the winners and each will be taking a guest to the show on the 15th of September, courtesy of Tommy and his amazingly kind manager, Carol Ross. In addition, Carol has arranged for them to receive an autographed copy of his autobiography, "Me, the Mob and the Music". Last but certainly not least...Tommy has invited Charlotte and Ray back stage to personally meet each other. Congratulations to Charlotte and Ray! All of us from the Class of '70 thank Tommy and Carol.

 

www.tommyjames.com

El Dorado...

All Hi band...

 

(Click on photo to enlarge)

Tommy James...

Tommy James is an American pop-rock musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, widely known as leader of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells. His music was widely known and enjoyed by many of us during our WHS years. Tommy sat down with us recently to share his story of musical success. First question to Tommy was "Why would you agree to take time out of your schedule to contribute to our high school blog?" "Actually Rich I took a moment to view your site and was sincerely impressed that you and your class have gone to the extent that all of you have in order to stay close with each other. I was flattered to think that you felt our music was a part of your high school days and I am happy to lend any effort to support your class along with my appreciation for their support throughout the years. I say this because have attended some of my high school reunions and in fact, I have a few tight buddies from high school that we speak weekly.

Successfully combining the bubblegum with the psychedelic Tommy James and the Shondells held a huge presence with their music of the late sixties. Offering up the right blend of  rock ‘n’ roll and pop Tommy sold more singles than any other artist during that period. We’re talking about 14 top 40 hits between 1967 and 1969, many of which, 45 years later, are still played on the radio. Hits like Mony Mony, Crimson and Clover, I Think We're Alone Now, Crystal Blue Persuasion and Hanky Panky are just a few to mention. All of these songs, which epitomize great pop music of the late 1960s, are now widely used in television and film and have been covered by a diverse group of artists from Billy Idol to Tiffany to R.E.M. Just as compelling as the music itself is the life Tommy James lived while making it.

His life and career is chronicled in the new book; Me, the Mob and the Music. James announced that deals are in hand to turn the story into both a film and a Broadway play. Martin Scorsese approached James about making a movie of the book shortly after its publication with Barbara De Fina producing the film. It was evident when James first met Morris Levy, the head of Roulette Records, that he was willing to strong arm others when necessary. Those signed to Roulette were there to produce money for the company, having their needs met only when it pleased Levy. Asking to be paid meant intimidation; to survive, those under contract to Roulette needed to find a means of generating income that did not involve the record company, such as personally booked tours. While a Roulette artist had great creative control when recording for the company, the lack of payment for those efforts was difficult to take. Tommy estimates the company owed him $30–40 million in royalties he never received. Roulette was a front for organized crime, also functioning as a money laundering operation. In the early 1970s, Levy was at the wrong end of a mob war. Tommy had to leave New York for a while to avoid a mob hit, which explained why he recorded an album in Nashville in 1972. He did not feel comfortable writing his book until all those deeply involved with the record company had died. It was only after Roulette Records and Levy's Big Seven Music publishing company were sold (the record company to an EMI and Rhino Records partnership, the music publishing company to Windswept Pacific Music which was later sold to EMI) that James began to receive the appropriate royalty checks from sales of his records.

In speaking with Tommy I asked if we could address some of the less publicized notes of interest along the way and he welcomed my request. Some insight that some may not be aware of is Crystal Blue Persuasion was inspired by not a psychedelic trip one evening but rather by a poem handed to Tommy by a young fan in Atlanta. It was a Christian poem inspired by the Book of Revelation and contained the phrase "crystal blue persuasion." I knew I wanted to use the it somehow in a song and Eddie Gray came up with the opening riff and it was exactly what I wanted, airy and ethereal with a Latin feel. Crystal Blue was the hardest record we ever made and one I am most proud of.

Realizing that I am a photographer Tommy said "I have a story that you could appreciate. We just finished our second album (It's Only Love) and our manager told us he had scheduled a studio photo shoot for us with a young lady just starting out and we would be her first subjects in a studio setting. He cautioned us to be patient with her and he was doing it as a favor for a mutual friend. The young lady, Linda Eastman, did a fine job and we used her work as planned. Little did I know that some fifty years later I would be speaking with her former husband and sharing that story with him for the first time. As it turns out, last month I opened the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction show with Joan Jett. During the reception afterwards I met with him and shared the tale...you see, her husband just happened to be Sir Paul McCartney and the late Linda Eastman eventually married Sir Paul and we all know the rest of the story.

One more story involved his appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. Touring with the Beach Boys at the time Tommy sat with several of them one Sunday evening a week before Tommy's first appearance with Ed. The Beach Boys having preformed on his show many times were invaluable in sharing insight to Tommy on what to expect...what they were not prepared for was as they watched together at the end of the telecast Ed promoted the next week's headliner and said, And next week on our show, for all you youngsters...Tony Jones and the Spondells. We hit the fall laughing but internally I was scared to death not knowing what the coming week would bring. Ed had his routine and that consisted of sitting off stage throughout the show with a small B&W monitor and a glass of scotch that was continually refilled. Eventually we performed our new hit "Crimson and Clover" without a hitch. We took a deep breath and realized we had reached a major milestone by appearing on that iconic show.

Tommy still tours and will be at the PNC Performing Center September 15th. "Rich, I look forward to meeting some of your classmates after the performance as my guests." I asked him what music does he listen to today..."that's easy, jazz. My beautiful wife Lynda and I enjoy living in Cedar Grove so I can relate to your Jersey roots. I am familiar with Woodbridge and I can understand the continued pride you and your classmates share having shared that school experience during those memorable years back then.” 
I’d like us to be remembered for being experimenters. We connected with the fans. Fans and the good Lord have allowed my career to go into four-plus decades. This is an industry that maybe gives you two or three years. I look out at a concert crowd now, and I see three generations of people. I’m very proud of the Shondells and what they did, and what we were able to do together to make music that has lasted all this time.

In closing, Tommy shared with me that his white leather boots and Nehru jacket is on display at Cleveland's Rock n Roll Hall of Fame but the membership list does not include Tommy and the Shondells. The more we learn of this gentleman and his body of work we have to believe it's just a matter of time before he is inducted into the Hall. Tommy, we thank you for your music and your time shared with us.

Fords Junior High School...

9th Grade Football Team (1966)

 

 

(Click on Photo to Enlarge)

 

Classmate highlight...

She has all the DNA of a "Jersey Girl". Brash, opinionated, honest and best of all...a kind heart. Cindy Hathaway/Prokop is her name and although she resides in Utah she will always consider Fords as home. This hard shelled, soft centered friend of mine allowed me to profile her as our last alumni to be featured on our final WHS blog update.

Cindy and her husband Jerry,of forty four years, moved to Utah twenty five years ago due to his employment with Chevron. Today she is extremely happy to have her two daughters, Sandi and Lisa, living nearby along with their five grandchildren. When asked, Cindy replied. "Rich, my life is purposely centered around family and being a grandma. Experiencing the love from grandchildren is the absolute best thing in life. In fact, I can't wait til October when I become a great grandmother. Life is good, actually, I have been blessed with my family all along this journey."

Today Mr. and Mrs. Prokop can finally set aside time for themselves. Jerry can be found on the golf course while Cindy enjoys her bicycle riding and daily exercise routines. Both of them can always be counted on to be on the sidelines cheering on their grand kids at their games. In addition, Cindy is an avid reader...no Kindle for this "old school" girl.

I asked Cindy if there was any experience from high school that her classmates may not know about her and she laughed. "Rich, I guess at this point in time I can share the "Art of the Deal". Cindy went on to explain... "I had one class and instructor that I sincerely despised, Mr. Koury. I made a point of being disruptive on a daily basis. I tested his patience with my constant joking around and annoyance. It was no secret to my fellow classmates that I thought he was the meanest instructors to walk the hallways of WHS. One day in the middle of the class he stopped his instruction and called out "Hathaway, come with me". He took me out to the hallway and I was petrified. I stood there with my back to the lockers when to my total shock he began to speak to me softly. He said to me. I want to make a deal with you. I just spoke with Mrs. Barney (steno/typing instructor) and she told me that you are without a doubt the best typist in the building. Here's the deal that can NOT be repeated to anyone. I am applying for another position and need my resume to be typed. If you agree to handle that, not tell a soul along with turning in your homework AND shut up in class I will assure you of a passing grade for the rest of the year. A deal?...a deal!" Cindy will tell you that she not only handled her end of the deal but she grew to respect him, changed her ways in his class and graduated considering him to be one of her favorite instructors along the way.

When asked about her WHS girlfriends she mentioned several and added one or two descriptive words for each. Pat Navalany: fun and trustworthy, Patsy Ann Korbel: quiet and kind, Pat Dillon: neighbor and dear friend, Marie Zelinak: funny, outgoing and one very strong woman.

Not having a desire to attend college Cindy concentrated on the WHS business courses. "Mrs. Barney was instrumental in shaping my career direction." In her sophomore year Cindy was handling part time secretarial duties for a law firm with fellow classmate, Sally Lund. Eventually that law environment helped lead Cindy to become a paralegal in 1990 and a legal secretary for the Legal Aid Society in Salt Lake City. Her love of research began with the legal aid society and continues today with her tireless research involving our WHS alumni data base.

Looking back Cindy has very few WHS regrets. She wishes she was more involved in the school events. This girl from Fords loved her summer beach time at Seaside Park. Her return in September to the Garden State will center around time with her sister, the reunion and of course, Seaside Park. "I'm looking forward to asking our reunion DJ if he'll be able to work in my laundry list of song choices by Billy Joel. Music in my world begins and ends with Billy Joel. Anyone that has a problem with that please take it up with my fellow Joel fan, Dougie Diem". We spoke of her first car being a 1962 Chevy, first school crush was Kevin Short in 8th grade followed by her first kiss in 8th grade with Mark Mandelberg. When asked to share her first "romantic heartbreak" her reply was "never experienced one".

Having gotten to know Cindy by working together on the blog I am honestly impressed with how unselfish this girl is with her time. She is heavily involved with the Utah Food Bank. She best describes her time with the Food Bank as a humbling experience that would keep anyone grounded when you realize you play a small role in helping those less fortunate. In addition, she and Jerry volunteer for MDS's yearly fundraiser at the local Boy Scout camp by painting cabins and tree trimming. Last but not least, you can find her morning and afternoon's serving as a school crossing guard.

For those of you that know Cindy through Facebook we see the direct side of her when it comes to Washington politics, especially her disdain for Mitt Romney. In closing, let me share with you the soft centered side of this girl that makes her special. After gathering material for her blog profile I said, let me ask you a personal question: "Why do you put this extra effort into family and volunteering for others?" Cindy explained to me that she came to a point in her life that she needed to step back and view how she was spending her God given life. "I don't often speak about this Rich but years ago I lost my brother...he was murdered and to this day it's still an unsolved homicide. I had a choice to go forward being bitter and angry. I refused to allow that to steal from my life and the happiness I was afforded by my loved ones and friends. For me, I draw happiness from digging in my heels and simply helping out others whenever possible. Trust me Rich...it's not one sided, I too draw from it as well."

In a few weeks many of you will gather at our reunion. This bigger than life young lady will be front row center in the mix...do yourself a favor, grab a hug from her. In fact, please do me a favor...give her one from me as well, she's good people.

Closing thoughts...

It has been a sincere joy to have created and worked on this WHS site of ours. It has afforded me the chance to both reconnect and make new friends over the past five years. I can only hope all of you have enjoyed this shared journey half as much as I have. I thank all of you that have contributed along the way. What started out five years ago with an email list of a few dozen we can now smile knowing that nearly fifty thousand people have taken the time to visit our WHS blog. We have much to be proud of since our days spent together back in 1970...I wish all of you nothing but the very best going forward! 

 

Rich