I wrote to current Fairfield Warde High School headmaster David Ebling about my request to have a stone monument recognizing Andrew Warde High School at the main entrance of the school. Here is his response:
Paul,
Great to hear from you and hope all is well.
The question you raise here has been brought to my attention before and I believe to our previous Headmaster, Mr. Coyne. There is a sign inside the building in our main lobby, but I know there is not one outside the building.
Personally, I am concerned about the practical and aesthetic view of adding yet another stone monument to our front entrance.
I believe a better approach may be designing one sign with the history of the school and the dates. Let me work on that idea, and if we need some fundraising help I will be in touch.
Thanks again for all you do for Warde – and my best to everyone,
David Ebling
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
AWHS Class of 1976 to Hold 40-Year Reunion This Saturday, July 23, at Penfield Pavilion
Andrew Warde High School's Class of 1976 will hold its 40-year reunion this Saturday, July 23, 2016, at Penfield Pavilion in Fairfield. The event will run from 7 until 11 p.m. Please click the image below to access the reunion Web page.
Committee members include Debbie Kamlani, Jerry Vigorito, Joanne Amelung, Leslie Allen, Mark Vida, Debbie Russo, and Donna Palenchar.
Paul
Committee members include Debbie Kamlani, Jerry Vigorito, Joanne Amelung, Leslie Allen, Mark Vida, Debbie Russo, and Donna Palenchar.
Paul
Saturday, July 16, 2016
Happy 60th Anniversary to Warde High School
As we celebrate and commemorate the 40th anniversary of our graduation from Andrew Warde High School, this year is significant for another reason. It was 60 years ago this September that Fairfield opened a second public high school. Andrew Warde High School opened in 1956.
Roger Ludlowe High School, the town's charter secondary school, was originally located in what is now Tomlinson Middle School on Unquowa Road. According to the school's Web site, "In 1952 due to crowded conditions, it was necessary to hold two sessions of school. This arrangement continued until June, 1956. In September of that same year, a second high school, Andrew Warde Senior High, was opened."
Four years later, 1962, marked the last year Roger Ludlowe High School existed as a high school on the old Brown property. Mill Plain School, down the road, was converted to a senior high school, retaining the name of Roger Ludlowe High School. In 1986, the school was closed when the town consolidated both Warde and Ludlowe into Fairfield High School at the Warde site. The RLHS building eventually became Roger Ludlowe Middle School in 1998 when the town opened a third public middle school, but it still had only one public high school at the Warde site.
The first high school in Fairfield became Tomlinson Junior High School, named after Gideon Tomlinson, one of the most prominent residents of Fairfield. He served as a member of Congress, Governor of Connecticut, and a U.S. Senator. He graduated from Yale in 1802 and settled in Greenfield Hill to practice law.
Now, 60 years after opening the town's second public secondary school on Melville Avenue, Warde High School is still going strong. The campus and facilities have undergone renovations, and it looks better than ever. Fellow 1976 alum Jeff Roseman is proud of the school and the work he and others did to design and renovate the campus a decade ago. He wrote the following on our class reunion Web site:
"One of my most rewarding accomplishments has been my work for the Town of Fairfield and the Board of Education. Along with some very talented people, our team helped design and manage the renovation and construction of four schools.
"Obviously, the Warde project was very special to me, and at times it seemed like I spent more time there during its renovation than I did as a student. I hope everyone will have a chance to see the new Fairfield Warde High School. A brand new synthetic playing field, a spectacular music wing, media center and a new look for each house. Take the time and stop by for a visit."
Happy anniversary!
Paul
Roger Ludlowe High School, the town's charter secondary school, was originally located in what is now Tomlinson Middle School on Unquowa Road. According to the school's Web site, "In 1952 due to crowded conditions, it was necessary to hold two sessions of school. This arrangement continued until June, 1956. In September of that same year, a second high school, Andrew Warde Senior High, was opened."
Four years later, 1962, marked the last year Roger Ludlowe High School existed as a high school on the old Brown property. Mill Plain School, down the road, was converted to a senior high school, retaining the name of Roger Ludlowe High School. In 1986, the school was closed when the town consolidated both Warde and Ludlowe into Fairfield High School at the Warde site. The RLHS building eventually became Roger Ludlowe Middle School in 1998 when the town opened a third public middle school, but it still had only one public high school at the Warde site.
The first high school in Fairfield became Tomlinson Junior High School, named after Gideon Tomlinson, one of the most prominent residents of Fairfield. He served as a member of Congress, Governor of Connecticut, and a U.S. Senator. He graduated from Yale in 1802 and settled in Greenfield Hill to practice law.
Now, 60 years after opening the town's second public secondary school on Melville Avenue, Warde High School is still going strong. The campus and facilities have undergone renovations, and it looks better than ever. Fellow 1976 alum Jeff Roseman is proud of the school and the work he and others did to design and renovate the campus a decade ago. He wrote the following on our class reunion Web site:
"One of my most rewarding accomplishments has been my work for the Town of Fairfield and the Board of Education. Along with some very talented people, our team helped design and manage the renovation and construction of four schools.
"Obviously, the Warde project was very special to me, and at times it seemed like I spent more time there during its renovation than I did as a student. I hope everyone will have a chance to see the new Fairfield Warde High School. A brand new synthetic playing field, a spectacular music wing, media center and a new look for each house. Take the time and stop by for a visit."
Happy anniversary!
Paul
Thursday, July 14, 2016
What Will Our Reunion Be Like?
The following article was published ten years ago, prior to our 30-year reunion. The Andrew Warde High School Class of 1976 will celebrate its 40-year reunion next Saturday, July 23. Let's take a trip back in time and read from an entry 10 years ago:
It seems to be a night for women. Dresses are glitzy. Slacks are tight. The women not only outnumber their male classmates, they have more sparkle. I imagine motel rooms all over town smelling of fingernail polish, rooms with bathroom mirrors designed for Dorian Gray. Mirrors that, regardless of the passage of time, reflect one's image as an 18-year-old. Mirrors that echo how we see ourselves, not how we really are. Never old, never sick, never unhappy. As we break into Sly Stone's "Dance to the Music," women pull men onto the dance floor.
Women not only have more sparkle than men, they also dance much better. These women seem to inhabit rhythm, unconsciously moving easily to the beat, bodies conjuring up old memories of a soft touch, childbirth, love. The men had some difficulty with rhythm, searching for it, counting it out, keeping score, killing spontaneity, gyrating self-consciously into what I call "the catfish," a human version of flopping around in the bottom of a Mississippi River fishing boat.
Not yet 50 years old, most of the dancers look terrific. Only a few of the really sweaty ones look as if portable defibrillators might be in order. One certainly doesn't attend class reunions looking for great truths or answers to anything beyond "I wonder what so-and-so looks like?" If one is looking for depth or serious meaning, a better bet might be church the following morning. Class reunions are small slices out of time, unattached to reality, not dependent on anything but good will, a few grins and perhaps a little alcohol.
The dance floor fills up and I start singing Neil Young's "Harvest Moon." Anne and Kim add angelic harmonies and Dave plays a tasteful rhythm guitar. "Come a little bit closer, hear what I have to say; just like children sleeping, we could dream the night away." Couples snuggle up, swaying without speaking.
Aaron takes over a microphone and dives into Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild." I smile at the notion of that particular song being popular out here in small-town Iowa, towns where crime usually involves smashing mailboxes, writing bad checks or stealing flowers from gravesites. By graduation day in 1976, the U.S. had been officially out of Vietnam for a year. Consequently, these kids were among the first to face a future without their nation being at war with someone. Any anxiety they harbored was probably personal, not global. It would be many years before the U.S. entered another war.
The room warms as dancers come and go, opening doors to the summer furnace outside. Danelle on sax and Felicia on trombone power us through Buddy Miles' "Them Changes," while Curt sings "Well my mind is going through them changes ... everything goin' to be all right." Gotta believe that.The night ends as it began; we reprise "Play that Funky Music." Pat rips into a soaring guitar solo. We all sing full voice, including the dancers, "Lay down that boogie, and play that funky music 'til you die." Couldn't have said it better myself. Sage advice on a hot summer night."
Paul
It seems to be a night for women. Dresses are glitzy. Slacks are tight. The women not only outnumber their male classmates, they have more sparkle. I imagine motel rooms all over town smelling of fingernail polish, rooms with bathroom mirrors designed for Dorian Gray. Mirrors that, regardless of the passage of time, reflect one's image as an 18-year-old. Mirrors that echo how we see ourselves, not how we really are. Never old, never sick, never unhappy. As we break into Sly Stone's "Dance to the Music," women pull men onto the dance floor.
Women not only have more sparkle than men, they also dance much better. These women seem to inhabit rhythm, unconsciously moving easily to the beat, bodies conjuring up old memories of a soft touch, childbirth, love. The men had some difficulty with rhythm, searching for it, counting it out, keeping score, killing spontaneity, gyrating self-consciously into what I call "the catfish," a human version of flopping around in the bottom of a Mississippi River fishing boat.
Not yet 50 years old, most of the dancers look terrific. Only a few of the really sweaty ones look as if portable defibrillators might be in order. One certainly doesn't attend class reunions looking for great truths or answers to anything beyond "I wonder what so-and-so looks like?" If one is looking for depth or serious meaning, a better bet might be church the following morning. Class reunions are small slices out of time, unattached to reality, not dependent on anything but good will, a few grins and perhaps a little alcohol.
The dance floor fills up and I start singing Neil Young's "Harvest Moon." Anne and Kim add angelic harmonies and Dave plays a tasteful rhythm guitar. "Come a little bit closer, hear what I have to say; just like children sleeping, we could dream the night away." Couples snuggle up, swaying without speaking.
Aaron takes over a microphone and dives into Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild." I smile at the notion of that particular song being popular out here in small-town Iowa, towns where crime usually involves smashing mailboxes, writing bad checks or stealing flowers from gravesites. By graduation day in 1976, the U.S. had been officially out of Vietnam for a year. Consequently, these kids were among the first to face a future without their nation being at war with someone. Any anxiety they harbored was probably personal, not global. It would be many years before the U.S. entered another war.
The room warms as dancers come and go, opening doors to the summer furnace outside. Danelle on sax and Felicia on trombone power us through Buddy Miles' "Them Changes," while Curt sings "Well my mind is going through them changes ... everything goin' to be all right." Gotta believe that.The night ends as it began; we reprise "Play that Funky Music." Pat rips into a soaring guitar solo. We all sing full voice, including the dancers, "Lay down that boogie, and play that funky music 'til you die." Couldn't have said it better myself. Sage advice on a hot summer night."
Paul
Sunday, July 03, 2016
Warde & Ludlowe Benefit Swim Marathon Held 45 Years Ago This Weekend
Swim team members and alumni from Andrew Warde and Roger Ludlowe high schools swam for their proverbial lives in a 30-hour marathon 45 years ago this weekend. The marathon, which raised $4,000 to help keep the swim teams at both schools afloat for the 1971-72 school year, set a national record of 100 miles.
The event, which was held at the Olympic-size Fairfield YMCA pool on Old Post Road, began at noon on Saturday, July 3, 1971, and ended Sunday evening, July 4, at 6 p.m., according to a front-page story which appeared in The Bridgeport Telegram, Monday, July 5, 1971 (see below).
Found on Newspapers.com
More than 60 swimmers participated, completing the 100 miles in 28 hours and one minute. Encouraged by financial backing from townsfolk who pledged one dollar for every completed lap, the participants continued after setting the record to log 30 hours of uninterrupted swimming.
George Ford, a parent of one of the swim team members, announced at the conclusion of the event that $4,000 had been raised. However, he emphaszied that another $4,000 was needed to support the activities for the swim teams at both high schools.
"If the Board of Education approves a request for a $2,000 allocation for the program, the swim teams will be able to continue their activities in the new school year," Ford stated. As a result of sharp budget cuts, the Board of Education eliminated funds previously provided for the swim team programs.
Rather than let the program die, members of the swim teams at both high schools started the ball rolling for a fund-raising event. The marathon was the first endeavor, and other plans for raising the needed funds were in the works.
The marathon was supervised by Edward Quinn, the Ludlowe swim coach, his assistant, William Babcock, and George Reed of Warde. Mike Tierney and Bob Wilk, Ludlowe's co-captains, and Dan Ford and Mike Cardone of Warde helped organize the marathon.
Paul
The event, which was held at the Olympic-size Fairfield YMCA pool on Old Post Road, began at noon on Saturday, July 3, 1971, and ended Sunday evening, July 4, at 6 p.m., according to a front-page story which appeared in The Bridgeport Telegram, Monday, July 5, 1971 (see below).
Found on Newspapers.com
More than 60 swimmers participated, completing the 100 miles in 28 hours and one minute. Encouraged by financial backing from townsfolk who pledged one dollar for every completed lap, the participants continued after setting the record to log 30 hours of uninterrupted swimming.
George Ford, a parent of one of the swim team members, announced at the conclusion of the event that $4,000 had been raised. However, he emphaszied that another $4,000 was needed to support the activities for the swim teams at both high schools.
"If the Board of Education approves a request for a $2,000 allocation for the program, the swim teams will be able to continue their activities in the new school year," Ford stated. As a result of sharp budget cuts, the Board of Education eliminated funds previously provided for the swim team programs.
Rather than let the program die, members of the swim teams at both high schools started the ball rolling for a fund-raising event. The marathon was the first endeavor, and other plans for raising the needed funds were in the works.
The marathon was supervised by Edward Quinn, the Ludlowe swim coach, his assistant, William Babcock, and George Reed of Warde. Mike Tierney and Bob Wilk, Ludlowe's co-captains, and Dan Ford and Mike Cardone of Warde helped organize the marathon.
Paul