*June 7, 2015
As I start this commentary, the Reunion Sunday Brunch will be underway at the Springfield Marriot. This will mark the final event scheduled to celebrate our 50th class reunion. I am sure that many of our class wish to extend a heartfelt thank you to our most capable reunion committee. As this reunion was my first, I can only say that it was ‘pulled off’ with grace and style! The table settings were impeccable; the DJ had his thumb on the pulse of our musical desire; George Podmore’s annotations on our fallen and surviving classmates gave cause for silent reflection; Johnny Bakers brick yard adventure and so much more that was unseen. I was ensured of a wonderful experience because of the hard work and diligence of the Reunion Committee. I Thank You! And a special thank you to Carolyn Canavosio.
I would like to offer my thanks also, to the many classmates who took the time to reach out and say hello, at the ‘children’s table’, as it came to be known, many stopped by to renew old acquaintances and chit-chat. I felt blessed to be remembered and be given an opportunity to make my amends for prior bad acts. A flood of emotions accompanied each greeting. Without the Reunion, this opportunity would not have been available.
So, to those who let me share their ‘children’s table’; thank you, the pleasure was all mine. To the Class of 65, be well and God bless.
Happy Trails to you, until we meet again…
Bob Bliss (rrbliss46@gmail.com)
*6/5/2015
THE BIG WEEKEND HAS ARRIVED! UNFORTUNATELY, EUGENE HODGE IS UNABLE TO ATTEND. HE HAS, HOWEVER, SENT US A VIDEO MESSAGE. YOU CAN VIEW IT HERE
*Did you misplace your yearbook? Don't want to pay Classmates.com for a replacement? John Baker has made copies that can be emailed to you (minus some sports sections that his computer couldn't copy )
Contact us at: tech50threunion@gmail.com and we will forward your request to John - THANKS JOHN!
*Click this link to see an article/photo about Tech's winning hockey team from 50 years ago.
*The following is a poem written by John Baker:
My Tech Yearbook of 1965
A quiet evening yesterday,
I started to read a book,
then my eye caught a binder,
and I gave it a second look.
An old yearbook of days gone by,
of the guys I use to know, and the girls that were oh so shy.
As I opened up the pages that hadn’t seen the light,
on a shelf all by itself and almost out of sight.
There were pictures of old wooden floors, and rooms with windows tall,
and those steel railing stairways and those busy bustling halls.
As I flipped through the pages, the faces and names came back,
of teachers, staff and friendships, and blackboards oh so black.
I remember Mr. Gifford, a tall and handsome man,
and Mr. Lynch and Mr. Jackson, a threesome they did have.
Some teachers I do remember, as I flipped the pages at random,
Miss Murray, Mrs. Pryor, Mrs. Tabackman, Mr. Boylan, and Dr. Candon.
Mr. Hannigan, Miss Donovan, and the men in phys ed who were so burley,
Orcutt, Mason, Burns, Cataldi and then there was Mr. Foley.
In math class I found no hesitation, nor did I linger,
I was taught how to count up to ten – at least, without my toes and fingers.
Thanks to Mr. Sprague, a giant of a man, and Mr. Hewitt, Mr. Cook and Mr. Donovan.
Science was my favorite stuff, things I thought I knew,
only to find my memory short going on day two!
There was one class by Mr. O’Keefe who taught chemistry,
later on, I found out what was really in my coffeeeee!
As I sat back I found two teachers that I really did admire,
Mr. Meyer of the band, and Mr. Murphy of the Concert Choir.
So much talent those men brought,
they inspired and encouraged in addition to what they taught.
I still remember the music and sounds, without missing a beat or stammer,
and the angelic voice of one Mary Ann Allen.
The Tech Tantrums were my favorite memory and the fun that I did have,
Of those crazy rehearsals and when Mr. Meyers would always storm out mad!
Of Butch Acosta who always had a smile,
A dear friend I often miss and think of him once in a while.
And then there were the rallies, in the gym with the band and pretty Majorettes,
the cheerleaders and tigers who always had so much pep!
Ah, but one stands out that I remember that always brought out a smile,
her name was Fawiza, a girl with grace and style.
As I flip through page after page, so many I do remember,
but my memory does fade on others, like slowly darkened embers.
I do remember the girl I always wanted to meet,
for three years I tried, but always got cold feet.
So many have passed on since those days at Tech, I miss,
so many friends and classmates, as I close my eyes and peacefully reminisce.
Life is made of memories, of people near and far,
those days at Tech I still hold dear, like a glowing shiny star.
To you my friends, although we have never met,
We are very special people – we are all part of Tech.
John
AND another poem from Bob Bliss:
*Dear Tech,
The year was 1962, September came up fast.
The endless summer of our youth, was destined not to last.
We gathered in assembly hall, instruction flew like bats.
The Do’s and Don’ts, the cant's and wont's, and later beanie hats!
We were the class of ’65, near seven hundred strong:
And summer's silence in those halls, wouldn’t last for long.
The next three years were ours you see, transitions would be made:
From boys and girls, to young adults, we’d march in life’s parade.
The teaching staff… they tried their best to keep our throng in line,
Their council: wise with boarders: clear… this all proved out in time.
Some died in wars on far off shores, no college book or course.
I went to work for Mother Bell, a family business choice.
Still others marched for freedom’s right with clarity of scheme,
They too, like Dr. MLK, held to his vision: ‘Dream’!
Those days at Tech, like morning fog, obscure and fade away.
But what we learned along the way still rests with us today!
So offer thanks in simple prayer that from those halls we’d roam,
To think; took only fifty years to find our way back home!
Bob Bliss
