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?...

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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!

Happy New Year...

2011 is upon us. We hope the year ahead is kind to you and your loved ones.

We are pleasantly surprised with the great response from so many of you that took the time to write with your appreciation of the new WHS Blog. It's nice to see that so many of our classmates embrace the chance to be better informed of their fellow former classmates. Just a few weeks after the site's debut the stats show over one thousand Internet hits! In the end though, this is really your site, yours to share whatever news or school memorabilia that you feel all of us would enjoy. The three amigos here welcome your suggestions, along with any material that would make for an interesting read. This month a special thank you goes out to Vicki Kalugin, Craig Kalugin and Loretta Keating for their help in making it possible to view some of our mug shots dating back to elementary school.

In addition, we're pleased to present a look back at life in Fords circa 1964, a revisit to our senior play, an outreach to classmates that some of us have lost contact with over the years and last but not least...our student highlight presenting Kathie Maguire Morolda and her amazing creative talents.

Read ahead...and make 2011 a memorable and healthy new year!

Rich, Cindy and Diane

Mr. Newberger's class...

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Fords....1964.

In 1964 many of our Fords classmates played the role of junior historians completing a project on their home town.

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Remember back in the day when we looked forward to Christmas, Valentine's Day, Summer vacation and our once a year class trip? Shown here is a Fords class trip to New York City...we felt like rock stars for the day riding in coach luxury.

She wore white gloves...

How many of you from Fords remember Mrs. Klein as your crossing guard?

Our First Taste of Off-Broadway...

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Can You Help Us Find...

We have heard from many of you with questions concerning the whereabouts of some former classmates. So, with that being said, here is a list of those mentioned and if anyone can shed some light on them. In the future if there is anyone in particular that you wish to locate, let us know and we'll be happy to highlight your request. I'm assuming these inquiries are based on good intentions and not to collect unpaid lunch money from forty years ago...with interest. :)

In Search of...

Susan Hilbig, Judith Kaufman, Larry Cenegy, Stephanie Chulock, Fran Liska, Eddie Mitchell, Stan Oliva, Mark Smith, Michael Clayman, Michael Donato, Joyce Campbell, Beth Conine. Joanne Balsamo, Michelle Coughlin, Janet Fenton, Gail Meszaros, Jimmy Peterson, Maryann Teleposki, Karen Terry, Stuart Homer, Lydia Varga, Richard Janni, Chris Saakes, Neil Winter, Henry Ryan, Mark Mandelberg, Susan Binder, Joyce Beca, Mike Ladjack, Steve Purdue, James Martelli, Gail Curren, Patti Murphy, Joe Rappa, Carrie Sebestyen, Margie Silogy, Robert Springer, Lee Slotkin, Joan Stein, Linda Van Pelt and Elizabeth Webber.

ONGOING FEEDBACK:

* Melodi Willis reports that Denise O'Donoghue and Mark Smith are married with three children and reside in Cranford, NJ.

* Stephanie Chulock is married to Larry Cenegy, have three children and four grandchildren. They reside in the state of Texas and are looking forward to attending our 45th reunion.

* Chris Saakes is well and calls Avenel, NJ home.

* Linda Van Pelt is happily married and calls the Jersey Shore home. Linda is a member of Classmates.

* Michele Coughlin is accessible on Facebook under the listing of Michele Ann Bobik.

* Neil Winter is a member of Facebook.

* Joyce Campbell is accessible on Facebook under the listing of Joyce Henry.

* Joann Balsamo is a member of Facebook listed as Joann Balsamo Epstein.

* Patti Murphy is a proud mom of three and has several grandchildren. She would welcome your friend requests where she can be found on Facebook under her listing of Patti Murphy.

* Lee Slotkin has his dentistry practice in Somerset, NJ.

* Joan Stein is well and lives in Medford, Massachusetts.

* Mike Ladjack is happily married, lives in NJ, avid fisherman and is employed by Verizon. Mike can be found on Facebook.

* Beth Conine is also happily married and living in Perkiomenville, PA. Beth is a member of Facebook listed under the name of Beth C. Keys.

Classmate Spotlight...

An artist is someone who employs creative talent to produce works of art. The term may be used in connection with any branch of the arts--for example music, literature, and theatre...but more commonly refers to an individual who practices the visual arts or fine arts. Kathie Maguire Morolda is one such artist, starting her business, Cranbury Station Gallery, because of a dream she had from an early age to be able to combine her love of art and her entrepreneurial tendencies into a “living”.

In 1978, her first child, Adam, was turning one, and the second child, Casserly was on the way. Kathie and her husband Nick purchased their home with the intent that some day she would be able to open an Art Gallery in an old black smith building shop on their property.

Eventually, after the birth of their third child, Kathie opened Cranbury Station Gallery in 1983. With her business plan of being politely aggressive and the use of networking with fellow businesses her dream began to blossom.

Over the past 27 years, the business has been fortunate enough to provide fine art and custom framing services to many prestigious companies, from that first assignment with the Heritage Banks, to restoration of historic frames for Princeton University. Clients began to have trust in her to frame their valuable art and possessions. Kathie has also framed artwork for many notable personalties, from Bill Bradley and Toni Morrison to Bebe Neuwirth. Back in 1995, when the movie “IQ” was being filmed in Princeton, her business was selected by Paramount Motion Pictures to frame all of the art in the scenes of Albert Einstein’s home. This was a real accomplishment, because the artwork had to be “authentic” to the era and completed within 24 hrs! Recently Cranbury Station Gallery was hired by the Toy Industry Association to conduct seminars at their four day Toy Fair at Jacob Javits Center in NYC, with Kathie speaking on a variety of business challenges faced by a independent business owner.

Although she is proud of all these accomplishments (and many more), perhaps the accomplishment she is most proud of is building the business while raising her four children. In the beginning while juggling the duties of a business owner and a mom working from home, she was able to advance her skills as an artist, and began to sell her own artwork at the gallery. Shortly after that Kathie was signed by Apple Arts as one of their published artists.

Kathie is very involved in the many business owner associations. She unselfishly devotes much of her time to promote the merchants of Princeton. Her participation was the voice of the independent, smaller businesses in the Princeton area, addressing both their immediate concerns and where they would like to see independent businesses grow in the future. This was a very successful venture. As an active member in the Princeton Chamber of Commerce, Kathie is often asked to represent the independent business owners on many panel discussions. As a result of her exposure on these panels, a new respect has emerged for the smaller businesses.

Part of her vision at the gallery is to mentor aspiring female artists in their business dreams. She encourages her part time employees to gain as much business experience as they can while working at the gallery, by exposing them to both technical and business disciplines. Many have gone on to successful careers as business owners themselves. In addition, Kathie is very active in the Princeton based program, "Not in Our Town", an organization dedicated to eliminating racism in the community.

For many of us that were aware of Kathie's kind spirit during our days at WHS we know it's more than just business advancement for her. Kathie is a prominent member of the "Give Back" program, working to support a shelter for domestic abused victims, collecting food for the Trenton soup kitchens and she gathers clothing to assist a back to work program for women in need to have "interview" clothes.

So, in our decision to highlight Kathie Maguire Morolda this month as a fellow classmate it was not solely based on her amazing creative talents but her unselfish heart as well. The Princeton community is certainly fortunate to have Kathie as one of their team members...when it comes to WHS we have always embraced her as one our own.

Kathie is considered by her creative peers as one the world's best watercolor artists. We applaud the young lady that once rode the school bus from Menlo Park Terrace.. Kathie, you are more than an amazing artist, you are someone that has stayed true to your kind ways...something that Nick and the kids will certainly agree with.

Take a moment to visit Kathie's web site at: www.kmmorolda.com and view additional samples of her terrific work.

(Please double click on her images displayed here for a larger view.)

Over fifty years ago...

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A Step Back in Time...

An iconic institution located on Amboy Ave all these years. As we all know the old church has been replaced but I imagine this image brings back many memories for those that attended school and Catechism classes over the years.

25th Reunion...

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