Images of the month...

Last month we announced that we would feature your submitted images that you would like to share with your fellow alumni. We received three outstanding submissions and hope you will continue to share your creative talents each month with us!

In January of this year Diane Sharrie Gambetta recorded this terrific shot at the Sandy Hook beach.

Robin Chanin and her husband Roger live on five beautiful acres of the Sierra foothills. Robin took this beautiful fiery sky image of those foothills in December of 2010.

Charlotte Enik Klecan, along with her husband Ed, daughter Stephanie and son, Ed enjoyed a 2010 June cruise to Bermuda. Charlotte captured this great sunset shot from the ship.

A step back in time...

On the corner of Coreja Ave. and Oak Tree Road the Iselin spent it's final years as a discount price double feature house but fell into decline with the opening of a couple mall multiplexes in the area. Closed in 1984, the space is now used as retail. The seating capacity was 597 and was the last of the old style "downtown business district" theaters.

Winter in the rearview mirror...

It's spring and that means baseball, I know Kevin Short will agree with me. Welcome to our latest updates where we find ourselves revisiting lower Main Street Woodbridge, realizing also that there was more than one track at our alma mater, a trip to the shore Sewaren style and finally a classmate profile I am sure will leave you impressed...one that wore the ear piece and label pin with pride.

Pretty Chris Boland was our mystery classmate last month and despite several attempts, no one guessed her correctly. Try your hand this month with our new addition.

We invite you to enjoy the updates and turn up the volume, we're visiting the eighties this month.

Enjoy!

Ferris wheel...what ferris wheel?

Yes, our own Sewaren was the precursor to the likes of Asbury Park, Seaside Heights and beyond. Even a full fledge ferris wheel.

Back at the turn of the century the Boynton Family was a wealthy and prominent family in Woodbridge Township. Like a few other industrialists in the area, the Boyntons' made their money from the natural resources that Woodbridge provided.

The Boynton Clay And Fire Brick Company, which was located near Smith's Creek funded most of the money to build up what was once called Boynton Beach in Sewaren. Boynton Beach Park, was named after the Boynton family. People from as far as New York came to Boynton Park to spend their vacations. With the perfect beach landscape of the waterfront, people made use of the bay. Visitors could enjoy swimming, fishing, boating and other water activities. There was even a pavilion that was called Pierces’ Point (now Shell Oil Company property) which was the location for most of Boynton Beach's hotspots. The enormous pavilion provided for a large number of people to watch regattas and swim meets. Other activities included card playing parties and festive get togethers.

Mr. R.O. Acker rented hundreds of boats to water enthusiasts. Ackers Landing provided many fisherman & boaters with rowboats to use all day long. This is the same area where the Ferry Slip was located. It was a central point of The Boynton Beach Resort. Located there were also several bath houses for swimmers.

In 1928 Shell Oil Company bought most of the property where Boynton Beach was and was allowed to move into Sewaren. This was beneficial for many workers especially when The Great Depression began a few years later. With the arrival of the many industries alongside the Arthur Kill, saw the beginning of the end for Boynton Beach. Although the popularity decreased, many of the popular sites still stood to the 1940's - 1950'. Ackers Landing lasted a few more years after Boynton Beach. Another reason for the demise of the popular Boynton Beach and Ackers Landing was just plain lack of interest. As time went on, people started to go to other shore resorts south. Ownership of cars allowed visitors to travel farther away.

There were two elementary schools in Sewaren. Sewaren Avenue School #12 was used by children living on the southern end of Woodbridge Avenue and the waterfront. From there, the kids would be promoted to Woodbridge Middle School. It was sold in the early 1970's to a firm that sold computers. It was abandoned in the late 1980's. In 1995, the First Baptist Church of Woodbridge purchased the facility and moved in 1997. Children living on the northern end of Sewaren and West Avenue went to Saint Anthony's grammar school, formerly located on West Avenue and Milos Way in Port Reading. From there, the kids would be promoted to Fords Middle School. Saint Anthony's Parish re-purchased the school in the 1970's. In 1996, Amerada Hess purchased the property and leveled the school building to make a parking lot for the refinery.

In 1969, Glen Cove Avenue School #28 was built on a playground between Central Ave. and Old Road. This new school accommodated students who previously attended School #12 & St. Anthony's School. In 1988 the school was renamed Mathew Jago Elementry School #28, dedicated to a former principal, Mr. Matthew Jago.

In the first half of the twentieth century, up in to the 1970's, there was several stores in Sewaren, particularly Woodbridge Avenue and West Avenue.

The Superior Diner was on Woodbridge Avenue, across the street from where the Peppermint Tree Nursery School now is, a great place for ice cream. Fanny Firetag and her aunt owned and operated Firetag's Store which was located on the corners of Woodbridge & Sewaren Avenue. Firetag’s was a butcher shop that sold other food as well. Mrs. Kushner ran the Sugar Bowl, located where a dog groomer, "Bark Avenue" now is. The Sugar Bowl was a delicatessen and candy store. Across from Firetag's, next to the Superior Diner was the "Milk Machine", which was a self-serve vending machine that sold dairy products. The milk machine was a popular hangout for kids as they got off the school bus. On Old Road and the corner of Bobby Court, (the red house) was a Deli owned by Mr. Stanley Jankowski . Mr. Jankowski sold meat products, small toys, and penny candy. Carmella Giordano owned and operated Mella's Mop Shop, a hair salon where all of the local mom's went to get their hair styled and share in the local gossip. Mella's was where La Bouna Pizzaria now is.

Who could forget about Spoony's? Spoony the barber was on Woodbridge Avenue, across the street from the Post Office. Spoony was well known for his 10 minute haircuts. We all believe he held the record for giving the fastest haircuts this side of the Arthur Kill.

On the waterfront years back, kids went fishing and swimming in the bay. An old, scruffy fella named "Captain Jack" used to rent row boats to people for 50 cents an hour. His docks were on Cliff Road, next to Jan & Jerry's Marina. A&A Tree Service now owns and operates a marina and boat yard.

Makes one wonder if our WHS predecessors back then skipped school on Senior Hooky Day and hit the beaches of Sewaren?

What's in a name?...

(click on photo to enlarge)

As I designed this mosaic of Woodbridge entities I found myself realizing that they represent something far more than just a collage of names. They were a part of our lives back then, with each of us having a Sisolaks, Jardots, Park Sweet Shoppe or Fedors within walking distance. Walk in and newspapers to the left, candy counter to the right, cigarettes on the wall...greasy cheeseburger in the air. They represent our youth and sadly they are quickly disappearing. Life has evolved that we are conditioned for convenience and most of what we view above is now packaged under the same roof of mega businesses like Walmart and Costco.

We may look back and enjoy the childhood memories that many of these places afforded us but we also appreciate that we lived in a era to experienced them as well.

Woodbridge Park...

Black and White Infrared photo of our very own Woodbridge Park taken just off North Park Drive. Photographer unknown.

A track of a different name...

How many of us knew that the property where our WHS outdoor track and football field sits was once the Woodbridge Speedway? Photo taken in 1933.

A step back in time...

5 Main Street was the address. How many of us spent more than a few Saturdays in the building? Anyone remember the name of the infamous theater manager dressed in full uniform? The State Theater was built in 1927 and was an iconic institution in the Woodbridge downtown for many years. It stayed a mainstay until more modern theaters began to surface like the Menlo Park Cinema.Today a QuickChek lays claim to the Main Street address.

Classmate spotlight...

He grew up on Willry Street just off Amboy Avenue, just a few summer steps away from our favorite Stewart’s hot dog stand. Matt Sautner attended St. James followed by several of the public school grades culminating with graduation in 1970. Rider was his college of choice. After obtaining his degree from Rider he went into law enforcement with the New Jersey State Police for eight years. For most of us that would be a career position, but not for this ambitious individual. His career years that followed were the makings that would make any parent proud, not to mention his fellow WHS alumni.

Matt became a member of the United States federal law enforcement agency that we know as the Secret Service. To listen to this confident yet humble individual, most of the years were mundane. Afford us the courtesy to politely disagree Matt.

We think of the Secret Service as strictly personnel assigned to protecting the President and their families along with national leaders from both home and abroad. The agency was designed having two distinct areas of responsibility...one a treasury role and the other, protective. Today the agency’s primary investigative mission is to safeguard the payment and financial systems of the United States.

During Matt’s career with the Secret Service his roles covered many of those bases. He was the lead agent for the New York Stock Exchange, not to mention taking on the role of lead protective agent in charge of JFK Jr’s funeral in NYC. Working out of the Washington D.C. Headquarters Matt’s assignment was the Intelligence Division. One of his responsibilities was protective intelligence for Presidential foreign trips. In addition to providing Presidential protection this involved Matt and his team making trips home and abroad in advance of the scheduled Presidential appearances to work with those foreign counterparts to secure the safety of the President and entourage. One particular assignment involved President Reagan’s trip to China. The first trip to that country since Nixon’s historic journey. Matt’s role dictated his involvement in subsequent trips around the world by Presidents’ Bush, Clinton and Bush Jr. Ironically, one assignment in 1995 required Matt to do the advance protective intelligence along with accompanying President Clinton on his visit to our very own Woodbridge High School. For Matt, the added value that day was having his daughter Susan in the audience as a WHS student at the time. When Matt retired from the USSS in 2004 he was assigned to Headquarters, Financial Crimes Division, Assistant to the Special Agent in Charge.

Today Matt and his beautiful wife Mary Lou reside in Scottsdale, AZ where he wears one more federal agency hat...that as an agent for the United States Food & Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations.

He takes a great deal of pride in his two children, Susan and Michael, who both have gone onto impressive careers of their own. In his free time, Matt and Mary Lou travel and always find time to play the great golf courses the Scottsdale area offers up.

From Willry Street to Scottsdale and all in between, Matt, your fellow classmates tip their hat to you and your impressive accomplishments.

An invitation to you...

The three amigos here have decided to include an additional featured post each month that highlights an interesting photo. We would like it to be one of yours!. Submit (email to one of the blog administrators on right side of this page) your favorite landscape, sunset or anything you feel the hardass judges (Cindy and Diane) will decide is worthy of showing.

We graduated with some very talented individuals but with the advent of digital cameras we're all artists and it would be fun to utilize the WHS blog to showcase your work. In those months that we don't have any submitted material we'll select an image we feel all of you might enjoy.

Dig deep into your computer folders and send us your favorites to be considered. Cash prizes of a cup of hot steam and a donut hole will be awarded. :)

March on...

Valentine's day is behind us and we look forward to Spring...stopping along the way for a green beer and collect a few four leaf clovers for good luck.

Our March update features a walk down 1970 memory lane in both our community and the world of advertising. A reminder of a rock star that came home, the realization that Luther Hope didn't have a problem with "Low T", School #1's debut and a step back in time when those carhops wore black slacks, white shirts and an orange paper cap.

Once again, we received many guesses as to our mystery classmate...none successful. If you had only guessed that it was Cindy Hathaway you would have been correct. Try your hand at correctly guessing this month. No clues from me this time around. Compare the kindergarten photo to her senior yearbook picture and they are almost identical, minus the thirteen years and freckles in between.

Enjoy!

Richie got his "way"...

From Smeathers to Sambora...what we knew as Smeathers St., that short little street leading down into the high school, was renamed Richie Sambora Way in honor of the 1977 WHS graduate.

Bon Jovi's guitarist was honored sixteen months ago for his efforts for his hometown. The city honored him for his recent fundraising program “You Can Go Home,” which helped local student Kelly Mahon who suffered from a brain tumor in her senior year.

"The people I met in high school, my classmates, my teammates and coaches, really helped me build a lot of the base for success that we have formed as a band with Bon Jovi. And, if I can do these things to help give back to those kids, and one special kid in Kelly Mahon, it's the least that I can do," said Sambora

At the dedication ceremony, Sambora urged students to use the road "in good health my friends, and win, win, win, win, win." The Bon Jovi guitarist also donated a new weight-lifting room to our alma mater in his late father's name.

"Who Says You Can't Go Home," and do something good?

1970 revisited...

Return for a moment back to 1970 and relive Madison Avenue's advertising style. Here are a few examples of the ads and products we used back then. Take a stab at our 1970 quiz...good luck!

In a commercial for this game, one kid exclaims, "You knocked my block off!" Which game were they playing?
Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots. This game was recently referred to in a recent episode of Futurama. In the scene the robot character, Bender is aghast when one robot's head pops up.

In this commercial for sausages, a child calls out, "More ______ Sausages Mom!"
Parks. After hearing from many parents, the commercial was later changed to, "More Parks Sausages Mom... Please?"

Here's an old beer jingle, "They took what nature had to offer, hops, barley, corn and water clear. They brewed natural things into a natural beer, _______ natural beer."
Rheingold. It was the 70's and nature was in. The commercial included photos of fields of wheat, clear streams, etc.

In this commercial one of the kids jumps up and exclaims, "You sank my _______!"
Battleship. I remember a version of this commercial where the kid was playing a man in a Navy uniform who responds by opening his mouth to shout and was drowned out by a foghorn of a boat.

"Once upon a time there was an engineer. Choo Choo Charlie was his name, we hear. He had an engine and he sure had fun." What product did he use to make his train run?
Good n' Plenty. Charlie says, "Love my Good n' Plenty!" Charlie says, "Really rings my bell! Don't know any other candy that I love so well."

"Candy coated popcorn, peanuts and a prize, that's what you get in _______."
Cracker Jack. These commercials have been recently seen in TVLand's Retromercials.

An older Italian woman pokes her head out of her apartment window and calls "Anthony" and then you see small boy who runs home because it's Wednesday and in this area of town Wednesday is _______ Day.
Prince Spaghetti. The famous Anthony commercial was first introduced in 1969.

"Hurry on down to _______ where the burgers are charcoal broiled."
Hardee's. Long before Burger King used a similar slogan, Hardee's had this little jingle. Wetson's was a New York area burger chain from the 1960's - 1970's era. Their icon was a clown named Sonny Wetson long before Ronald came to town.

"You deserve a break today, so get up and get away." Where is this jingle directing you to go?
McDonald's. This jingle was actually written by pop star, Barry Manilow.

We all know that NBC are the initials of a national US television network. But, at one time another well-known US company used the initials in their advertising and on their logo. What company was that?
Nabisco. Nabisco, originally known as the National Biscuit Company and used the initials NBC in their logo.

This commercial asked, "Would you offer a _______ to a lady?" What product are they talking about?
Tipparillo. The tipparillo was sort of a thin cigar with a plastic tip. This was at the beginning of Women's Lib.

In this famous commercial an injured football player is leaving the field and a young fan sees the footbal star struggling in the vacant hallway. He offers the player his drink. At first the player tries to shake the kid off. But then accepts the drink. What drink was it?
Coca-Cola. The football star was Mean Joe Greene and the drink was Coca-Cola. After gulping down the soda, Mean Joe calls out to the kid who was sadly walking away and tosses him his jersey. This commercial later became the basis for a movie.

Complete this list: "Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie and _______."
Chevrolet. It was Chevy's jingle in the years leading up to America's Bicentennial.

Complete this final jingle, "When you've said _____________, you've said it all!"
Budweiser. It was the widely used jingle of the early 70's.

Numero uno...

Construction began on School 1, a centralized school in March of 1876. The location was on School Street In downtown Woodbridge, The same building that now houses the administration was originally 71 X 112 feet, 2 floors, 6 apartments and accomodated 400 students. The cost to build was $25,000. School 1 was dedicated on January 6, 1877. The first graduating class was In 1884, where 13 girls And 1 boy recieved their diplomas.

Many of us started our school experience with kindergarten through third grade in that very building.

What's in a name?...

How many of us growing up thought it was odd to see Hopelawn streets named May, Loretta, Juliette and Clyde to mention a few? Turns out, Hopelawn was the homestead and farm of Luther M. Hope in the 19th century. After its incorporation, the original streets were named after Luther Hope's children (Juliette, Loretta, May, Luther, Lee, Warren, James, Howard, Clyde, John, Ellen, Charles, Herbert, Erin, Emmitt, William)...yes, you're correct; sixteen kids. Originally called Hope's Lawn, it was later shortened to Hopelawn.

(click on the group photo for a larger view)

It's also home to many of our friends and classmates.

Back in the late fifties then Massachusetts Senator John Kennedy visited Hopelawn's Majestic Lanes. Although the picture quality is poor, I wonder if any of our Hopelawn parents are captured in this photo.

got milk?...

How many of us remember our very early elementary school days when the lunch milk cartons were flat topped as opposed to the later designs using a gable top carton? In addition, many of us grew up with home delivery of our milk...pictured above is some of the bottle caps that sealed the bottles.

Classmate spotlight...

This classmate of ours is no dummy...he designs them, he restores them. In fact he does a whole lot more than that! Alan Semok has enjoyed an amazing career in the entertainment field.

We should have realized that Alan was destined for impressive accomplishments when he handled the lead role in our high school play, The Education of Hyman Kaplan, with ease. Alan’s performing career includes live theatre, film, series television, commercials and promos, standup comedy, and both character and straight voiceover work.

In 2003 Alan lent his internationally recognized expertise in the field of ventriloquism to a variety of film projects, including one entitled DUMMY. In addition to designing and constructing the film's title character, he served as the ventriloquial technical advisor on the project and spent several weeks personally coaching Adrien Brody in the techniques of ventriloquism and puppet manipulation.

Alan (wearing his "other" hat as the internationally known "Dummy Doctor") appeared as a "guest expert" on an episode of the PBS series HISTORY DETECTIVES. The program segment revolves around an interesting search concerning the origins and provenance of a 90 year old ventriloquial dummy, purporting to be directly related to Edgar Bergen's famous "Charlie McCarthy".

Alan's AMERICAN EXPERIENCE episode entitled The Duel, continues to air on PBS stations around the country in frequent repeat showings. (July 2004 marked the 200th anniversary of the famous duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr). The film has also been picked up by many schools around the country and is shown in the classroom as a faithful depiction of events surrounding the infamous duel involving two of our founding fathers. In this film (shot on location in May of 1999), Alan portrays Vice President AARON BURR in re-enactments of the events leading up to the famous duel (as a result of which Hamilton died)

Alan has also recently been on television with three commercials: the first is a commercial for Wendy's restaurants, in which he portrays a corporate C.E.O. with stage fright attempting to give a company report to a group of perplexed employees. Alan has also been featured on television and in movie theatres across the UK and Europe in a commercial spot for M&M's, appearing with the commercial's two stars, RED and YELLOW. Throughout most of 2007, Alan was featured in TV commercials for Levitz furniture The spot was shown in the New York area as well as the Pacific Northwest and California.

In addition to the original vintage puppets, in the early 1990's Alan (at the request of Bob Smith) created several exact replicas of Howdy including (thanks to improved materials and new moulding techniques) a more exact marionette replica than had been produced in the past, as well as a new Photo Doody which Smith used in personal appearances until the time of his death. One of Semok's marionette duplicates appears on a 2005 cover of TV Guide magazine as part of a series recreating classic covers from the magazine's history; the cover featured Howdy with Conan O'Brien standing in for and dressed as Buffalo Bob Smith. Another of the Semok duplicates resides in the International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts, the private museum owned by renowned illusionist David Copperfield.

This very multi-talented classmate of ours is someone we are proud to call "fellow alumni".

Fifty plus...

Two Amboy Avenue institutions throughout most of our lives have been Mauro Motors and Provenzano's Hair Stylists.

Mauro Motors, a family-owned car dealership with a downtown Woodbridge presence since 1951, had been running on fumes since Chrysler dropped its franchise back in June 2009. Last month, the Amboy Avenue property, which had been in the family since 1929, was put up for sale. The lots and showroom are empty and stand as another example of what's happening elsewhere in the country as more and more small dealerships close up shop.

At Mauro, for example, sales of Chryslers had dropped to 45 a month by 2009, down from 50 to 70 cars the dealership once sold monthly before the recession took hold in 2007. Mauro's initial plans to stay in business, first as a used dealership and service station, and then as a seller of Mahindra vehicles from India, were not successful.

Provenzano Hair Stylist on the other hand continues to succeed. The business owned by our former classmate Andy Provenzano has weathered the recession as his clientele has stayed loyal to the business that his older brother, the late Gus Provenzano, started over a half century ago. How many of us guys over the years have sat in the chair where Amboy Avenue meets St. Georges Avenue to have the Provenzanos clean up our act. Andy, your WHS friends wish you and your family the very best along with continued success.

WHS buses circa 1970...

Like a fine wine...

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN GUILTY OF LOOKING AT OTHERS YOUR OWN AGE AND THINKING, SURELY I CAN'T LOOK THAT OLD. WELL . . . YOU'LL LOVE THIS ONE.

MY NAME IS JANE, AND I WAS SITTING IN THE WAITING ROOM FOR MY FIRST APPOINTMENT WITH A NEW DENTIST. I NOTICED HIS DDS DIPLOMA ON THE WALL, WHICH BORE HIS FULL NAME.

SUDDENLY, I REMEMBERED A TALL, HANDSOME, DARK-HAIRED BOY WITH THE SAME NAME HAD BEEN IN MY HIGH SCHOOL CLASS SOME 40-ODD YEARS AGO.

COULD HE BE THE SAME GUY THAT I HAD A SECRET CRUSH ON, WAY BACK THEN?

UPON SEEING HIM, HOWEVER, I QUICKLY DISCARDED ANY SUCH THOUGHT. THIS BALDING, GRAY-HAIRED MAN WITH THE DEEPLY LINED FACE WAS WAY TOO OLD TO HAVE BEEN MY CLASSMATE.

AFTER HE EXAMINED MY TEETH, I ASKED HIM IF HE HAD ATTENDED WOODBRIDGE HIGH SCHOOL . 'YES. YES, I DID. I'M A BARRON,' HE GLEAMED WITH PRIDE.

WHEN DID YOU GRADUATE?' I ASKED. HE ANSWERED, 'IN 1970. WHY DO YOU ASK?' YOU WERE IN MY CLASS!', I EXCLAIMED.

HE LOOKED AT ME CLOSELY.

THEN, THAT UGLY, OLD, BALD, WRINKLED FACED, FAT-ASSED, GRAY-HAIRED, DECREPIT SON-OF-A-BITCH ASKED,

"

"


'WHAT DID YOU TEACH???

A step back in time...

If Little Leaguers of today were afforded the perks of lavish player contracts, one demand would certainly include Stewart's hot dogs and cold root beer after each game. As a kid myself, we always begged our folks to stop at Stewart's after our games. Growing up in Woodbridge we all enjoyed this iconic eatery once located on Amboy Avenue.

The first Stewart's Drive-In was opened by Frank Stewart in 1924 in Mansfield, Ohio. Stewart opened up a small stand to make extra money in the summer to supplement his income as a school teacher. The restaurant was originally a west coast style fast food eatery serving only root beer and popcorn. He added extra salt to his popcorn to boost his root beer sales. He eventually opened up more locations, many of them with carhops.

Our Woodbridge franchise served the community until the mid eighties; demolished and replaced with a Wawa mini mart. Recently, Anna Ladjack shared with me her fond memories of when she was in charge of the kitchen for fourteen years. A period of time that she recalls with great admiration for those that she worked with, calling them all "her kids". "Each and every one of them was polite, respectful and responsible" recalled Anna. Many of them were our fellow WHS classmates that signed up for part time work in the kitchen or as the infamous "carhops".

Back then, on a typical summer day, Stewart's would sell in excess of six hundred hot dogs.

Call it nostalgia, however for me, root beer and a good chili hot dog has never lived up to those we once enjoyed at our own orange drive-in haven called Stewart's.

Welcome February...

Valentine’s day is around the corner...are you ready?

Remember during our elementary days when you had to give valentine cards to the girls in your class? Most of us guys either hated it, or pretended to hate it. Still, it was the perfect opportunity to tell that certain girl in your class how much you liked her. How? Easy. You saved the absolute best valentine in the package just for her. The best one was the one that had the most glitter, color, and hopefully, the least mushy saying on the front. Sayings like "Be My Valentine" was safe; however, anything pertaining to the word "heart" was a bit of a romantic mine field. You had to step carefully when speaking about matters of the heart to a girl in your class.

Next came the problem of your guy friends. Yeah, that's right, you had to give one to them too. It was that whole blasted "sharing concept" that we were being taught. Guys in the class got the dumbest cards.

We received a baker’s dozen correct guesses when identifying Shelley Robinson McKerren as our “Can You Guess Who I Am” classmate from last month. This time around, take a shot at guessing our new face. Hint: She’s shy and very introverted, attended our most recent reunion and for those in attendance would describe her as a wall flower....enough help, you’re on your own. Good luck!

Much of our February update centers around relationships, some as you will read, led to a walk down the aisle for many. We revisit our twentieth reunion held in 1990, reflect on those that have passed before us, reminisce time spent at the former retail mecca located off of Florida Grove Road, a cap and gown moment, a fish tale of two angler buddies void of embellishment and finally some new Motown.

Enjoy!

WHS ='s Match.com...

Here's a picnic basket full of familiar names: Larry Cenegy & Stephanie Chulock, Pat Dillon & Charlie Zullo, Gloria Hollenback & Bob Moscarelli, Mark Smith & Denise O'Donahue, Georgeann Warrick & Bob Wardlow and Pat Navalany & Chuck Launhardt.

Were these WHS graduates a team that produced the El Dorado, no...finished in the top fifteen of our graduating class, no...they are in fact, in this month of cupid, our WHS classmates that discovered a love that eventually led to successful and happy marriages.

Proof that not all of us had our minds focused 24/7 on class instruction.

Where's the "A&P" couple?...

Remember those yearbook booster listings? A yearbook message containing fifty characters or less displayed at the back of our yearbooks. Cost a dollar and we were asked to sell a multitude of each to help defray the yearbook costs. Most messages recorded in this time capsule were of a family congratulatory nature, sports bragging, pleas of peace in the world and a chance to remind the world of a couple's never ending love for each other.

Of the thousands listed though, one stands out to us as the quirkiest... "We Met at the A&P"...ooooooookay. anyone willing to lay claim to this one? We, along with TMZ, would love to know how that relationship has blossomed over the years.

One thing is for certain, we're betting that there is Eight O'Clock joe brewing each morning. :)

Can you find yourself?...

(Click on the image for a larger view)

A thought...

We ran around this town of ours like two partners-in-crime. Senior hooky day, hitting the Staten Island bars (always with the assurance that Steve would cover my butt when my wise ass demeanor would invite trouble), attending many Rangers/Flyers hockey games and last but not least, countless late nights at the Reo Diner counter discussing all the attributes of the good looking WHS babes...my buddy being the late Steve Kondrk from Hopelawn. Without a doubt, one of the best friends I could ever ask for.

When I look back on my time spent at WHS my close friends come to mind first. Sadly Steve is one now listed in our "In Memoriam" below. However, I count my blessings for those years of his friendship afforded me. Steve's friendship is no exception though. I am certain that my story is not much different than many of you that have lost at least one of your WHS friends.

So with that said, I will simply suggest that this new site of ours be dedicated in spirit not only to Steve but to all of our WHS friends that have gone before us. They were an integral part of our school experience back then and today they still have a presence. They serve as a reminder to us all to appreciate the time we are afforded, especially the opportunity to continue our many other WHS friendships once established oh so many years ago.

With respect to all,

Rich

Hard to believe...

Cost of Living 1970

Yearly Inflation Rate USA 5.84%

Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 838

Average Cost of New House $23,450

Average Income Per Year $9,400

Average Monthly Rent $140

Cost of a Gallon of Gas 36 cents

Shaefer Pen $9.95

United States Postage Stamp 6 cents

Sports Illustrated 15 cents

Man's Westclox Watch $18

AMC Gremlin $1,879

20th Reunion...

(Click on image for a larger view)

Remember these?...

Classmate spotlight...

The friendship began over a half century ago. To this day, it is as strong and valued as much as it was back in first grade for these two fellow WHS classmates; Mike Ladjack and Mark Panzera. True friendship is in many ways a definition of a success story. We chose to highlight two buddies this month that built a simple success story anchored all these years by their friendship and mutual passion for fishing.

At the age of six Mike and Mark first became friends when their footprints were still fresh in the hallways of St. James. They began fishing together at what most of us considered the forbidden swimming hole, Rafty’s on upper Main Street. Throughout the years, despite several family moves and career changes, stints in the armed services, the friendship always remained strong. What started at Rafty’s led them to Roosevelt Park, Rahway Park and eventually to numerous states around the country and even Canada to fish.

With Mark and his family now living in Connecticut, Mike in Jersey, they look forward each summer to their annual getaway reunion. A week of fishing with families sharing a good time on a lake together. During the day, it’s all about being on the water with the pure joy of fishing surrounded by the silence of nature. Catch and release are the rules of the game, along with no live bait. In between the annual family reunion the guys get together year round and wet the lines in numerous lakes throughout the northeast. The results are amazing. Although it’s fun to be able to land impressive catches, if asked, both would honestly say that the real payoff is the time shared with each other, time that each has wisely invested in over the years.

When we fish, sure we catch stuff and learn much, but ultimately we are making memories, and the most important people in our lives are the ones with which we share these memories. When I was younger I used to fish with both Mark and Mike and the days kind of run together in my mind. However, the jokes, excitements and moments shared with them stand apart - as some of the most treasured moments in my life.

Mark and Mike...you two learned the secret of success...in a friendship of over fifty years and you’re wise enough to have held on to it while realizing the joy of time well spent.

A Step Back in Time...

The pot of gold at the end of our Florida Grove Road rainbow.Two Guys discount store chain was founded in Harrison, New Jersey by a pair of brothers, Herbert and Sidney Hubschman, with a single 600 square foot store in 1946. The brothers soon established a reputation for selling radios, televisions and household appliances at razor-thin margins, much to the consternation of their competitors, one of whom dubbed them “Those two b@5#@rds from Harrison”.

Choosing to wear the putdown as a badge of honor, the Hubschmans adopted a sanitized version of it as their company name. The company was legally known, in fact, as “Two Guys From Harrison, Inc.” until 1959 when they acquired O.A. Sutton Corporation, a manufacturer of electric fans, air conditioners and heaters, who would become a major supplier to Two Guys and eventually to other chains as well. Sutton’s fan product line had the flashy-sounding name of “Vornado”, which became the name of the combined entity. The store moniker had been shortened by this time to “Two Guys”.
Through the 1950’s into the early sixties, the company built ever larger stores, averaging between 135,000 and 190,000 square feet by 1964. The stores initially had leased soft goods departments in addition to the core appliance and electronics offerings, along with a large supermarket area. By the mid-60’s, Vornado had taken over most of the leased departments and ran them as in-house operations. The company was early to join the trend towards building near controlled-access highways, standard practice for those that followed, right up to today’s Wal-Mart Super Centers.
In 1964, Vornado told a New York Times reporter that they would no longer include supermarket departments in new Two Guys stores (though in actuality they did on several more), citing poor profitability in food operations. Two Guys’ arch-competitor E.J.Korvette was plagued with a similar problem, and would ultimately decide to dump food stores altogether. Ironically, Vornado would purchase a supermarket chain on the West Coast, Food Giant, in 1967.

Sadly, by the end of 1964, both Hubschman brothers were no longer part of the “Two Guys” organization. Sidney resigned from the company in November, 1963, and Herbert, company chairman at the time, passed away in September of the following year.
Little did we realize back then when we were buying new school clothes, groceries, school supplies or hanging out in the sporting goods department that we were witnessing the precursor to "Walmartland".

Classmates blackboard...

You have some old exercise equipment, perhaps a used microwave only strong enough to make popcorn you want to post for sale...no.

However, if you wish to share a message or thought within your WHS community you can! We have set up a "Message Center" that will appear on the right side of our page that will contain messages or requests that you wish to share with your WHS compadres.

Want to ask if there are any fellow classmates that live nearby, announce some exciting family/work related news or even ask an old WHS flame to marry you...here's the place! Simply drop an email to one of us under the "Contact Us" box with your words and we will be happy post your comments or message. Realizing that not everyone is a member of Facebook and that informational sharing entity this is one way to be sure to communicate within your exclusive WHS world if you wish. Each entry will be posted upon receipt and remain visible for a minimal of sixty days thereafter.

Remember, please, no microwaves! :)

Enjoy!