Freshman Memories from 40 Years Ago

Forty years after I entered high school, I brought my son, Eric, to freshman orientation at Warde High School last Wednesday. The ninth-graders began the year one day early to become acclimated to the high school and their new classmates. The morning session ended with a freshman picnic in the courtyard. 

It was a strange feeling escorting my younger son to the high school which I attended more than a generation ago, especially since my older son graduated from Ludlowe High School this past June.

Forty years ago, in September of 1972, members of the Class of 1976 entered Andrew Warde High School for the first time, too. Tony Procaccini, a regular contributor to this site, thought it would be a good idea to share memories of what it was like for him and his classmates during their first day at Warde. 

Tony Procaccini wrote:

I can vaguely remember what I wore on that first day of high school. Light blue over a purplish pair of pants, not a great match. I was a freshman, after all. It was a warm day, no precipitation. I walked up Cornell Road by myself, along Brooklawn Country Club. Very soon after, I would be walking every day with my great friend and classmate Joe O'Brien, who lived very close to my parents' house.

Things like lockers and a huge gym were new to me, since I went to a Catholic grammar school. I was in the big leagues now! Academically, I kept my nose to the grindstone, and didn't participate in any sports. (That would start in sophomore year).

Some of my freshman teachers were Mr. Robert Anderson (English), Mrs. Krala (Social Studies) and Mr. Duncavage (Introductory Physical Sciences, or IPS). I was also in Concert Band, playing string bass. I still have the case for the bow used for playing bass, which was concocted from a shower curtain, among other materials. I had to explain the bow's case ("What is that?") to dozens of classmates, because I needed to carry it around on days with Band in the schedule.

Most importantly, I started making a lot of new friends who would last all the way to the present day.

Scott Patterson wrote:

Boy, this is really blowing the dust off of my memory, at least what's left of it. I remember that some of my homeroom classmates from FWJHS were in my homeroom in Barlow. I liked having Mr. Buzak as home room teacher. He was a great guy, funny. (He) reminded me of Charles Nelson Reilly. 

Mr. B asked us our birthday month, as he had a cake each month to celebrate our birthdays accordingly. I remember from my seat, you could see the girl's lavatory across the hall, so you could check them out going in and out the door. And (I remember) seeing John Niesyn in a comatose state each morning. I thought that he was a werewolf after a night's long howl. 

Of course, the homeroom was loaded with theatrical stuff, so on occasion, one could do some live improv before classes started. (It) was nice to recall that long ago day, and (I) found myself with a smile. Happy, carefree times.

Mr. Raymond Buzak Featured in Newspaper Article on This Date in 1968

Mr. Raymond Buzak, who passed away December 19, 2010, was a highly-educated teacher of drama and English Speech for 15 years at Central High School in Bridgeport and 16 years at Andrew Warde High School in Fairfield. Buzak, who received his degrees from the University of Connecticut and Fairfield University, was the subject of a feature story in the Bridgeport Sunday Post on this date, August 18, 1968. The following is the text of the article.

What do school teachers do during the Summer? Directing a play with adults is a change of pace for a drama teacher accustomed to working with teenagers during the year. Raymond Buzak, a teacher of drama and speech at Andrew Warde High School, is a talented actor as well as director.

The current production at the Polka Dot Playhouse of Agatha Christie's mystery-melodrama "The Mousetrap" was directed by Mr. Buzak. And, in the special showing of "Oliver!" which opened the season, he played the central role of Fagin in the Lionel Bart musical.

Like many schoolteachers, Mr. Buzak can look back on a variety of Summer experiences. He has sold encyclopedias and worked in a costume shop. He has even worked as a bookkeeper.

Some of his Summers were spent attempting to save historical buildings and items threatened by both redevelopment and progress. Some of the Summers were spent studying. He received his master's degree in supervision at Fairfield University and sixth-year certificate in speech therapy at Southern Connecticut State College.

His educational labors were balanced with European trips and by the excitement of helping to build the Polka Dot Playhouse in Bridgeport. His association with the theatre extends back 11 years.

Mr. Buzak is currently making plans for his work in the Fall with the Andrew Warde High School Thespians, who will be performing either "Can, Can" or "How to Succeed in Business." For next Spring, he is thinking about directing a serious drama, such as "The Lark."

Mr. Buzak is also planning a cross-country trek with his family of three children and his wife Carolyn. He is also thinking of European tours. If Mr. Buzak doesn't wind up in Ethiopia in some educational and cultural endeavor, there is a good possibility that he will be seen at the Polka Dot Playhouse, offstage, backstage, and onstage.

Mr. Raymond Buzak was a charter member of The Polka-Dot Playhouse, and he enjoyed playing many roles. An activist in the city of Bridgeport, he was a member of the Historical Society and had championed the "Save the Wheeler Mansion." During his retirement, Mr. Buzak did extensive volunteer work with the VNA, Geriatric Groups, prison ministries, and the Wednesday Afternoon Music Club, performing at various churches in Southport, Fairfield, Westport, and the Fairfield Recreation Department.

Paul

Classic 1976 Film Re-Mixed for More Features

Special thanks to Darryl O'Donnell of darrylo.com in Fairfield for re-mixing the classic eight-minute video from 1976 onto a new Web site. This makes it easier to start, stop, pause, search the frames, and view full-screen. It can also be exported to Facebook and Twitter. I hope you enjoy it.
  

Paul

Andrew Warde High School's Class of 1982 Had a Successful 30-Year Reunion Last Saturday

Andrew Warde High School's Class of 1982 recently held its 30-year reunion at the Trumbull Marriott, last Saturday, August 4. The approximately 60 guests enjoyed scrumptious, hand-passed appetizers as well as carving and pasta stations set up around the Grand Ballroom.

Music was provided by BlackJack Entertainment, and the DJ had the members of the Class of 82 on the dance floor the entire evening.

Keith Anderson, who served as the reunion coordinator, said, "Although our numbers were down from the past reunions, the people who came had a fantastic time and kept the party going until the wee hours of the morning."

He added, "We are looking to do our next reunion at the new Penfield Pavilion and hope to bring out even more of our classmates." Click the banner above to link to the class Web site.

Paul

Ben Guerra Belongs Among "Legendary" Educators

A recent article in this corner mentioned the first group of legendary educators honored at Andrew Warde High School. Fern Tetreau, the late Charles Abraham, and the late Jack Strauss were the initial recipients of the prestigious honor at the June 21st ceremony in the school's gymnasium. There were many educators whose influence on their students remains indelibly etched many years later. One of those teachers, I believe, who belongs among the "legendary" at Warde is the late Ben Guerra.

Mr. Guerra taught at Andrew Warde High School from 1958 until 1979, deciding to retire before Warde consolidated with Roger Ludlowe High School to form Fairfield High School at the Melville Avenue campus. "Oh, they were the best years of my life," he once told me. "I loved it. I always liked to work with kids and teenagers."

I thought about Mr. Guerra's inclusion on this list while searching through August newspaper archives for articles about Andrew Warde High School. According to an article which appeared in The Bridgeport Post dated Monday, August 29, 1966, "Andrew Warde has chosen Benjamin J. Guerra as the school's new director of student activities. Mr. Guerra plans to set up his office in the student activities office in order to make it easy for the students to contact him. He will be there after school and during the periods in which he isn't teaching."

According to the article, Mr. Guerra said, "The work of a teacher goes far beyond the walls of a classroom. It involves working with the students beyond the duties of academic work and fulfilling one's responsibilities in the community." Mr. Guerra was the adviser to the Andrew Warde chapter of the Future Teachers of America and the adviser of the Warde social committee. The 1963 Flame yearbook was dedicated to Mr. Guerra in recognition of his interest and participation in student activities.

"Academic work is not enough to develop the character of the student," he once said. "The activity program helps develop personality, social life, humanistic characteristics, and helps develop the student's ability to cooperate with each other. The success of the activity program partly depends on the development of the student's pride in his school." 

Mr. Guerra, who was born in New York but moved with his mother to Cuba at the age of two, returned to the United States when he was 27. Originally, he was a teacher in the Bridgeport school system, working with special education students at Longfellow School. He later moved to Harding High School before arriving at Warde. He began teaching at Andrew Warde shortly after the school opened in 1956, and it quickly became a second home for him for the next 21 years. 

Mr. Guerra met his wife while they both taught on Staten Island in New York. Later, they taught together in Madison, Connecticut. Margaret became a teacher at Oldfield School in Fairfield while Ben taught at Andrew Warde. Mr. Guerra was past president of the Council for Exceptional Children, a member of the Gaelic American Club, and a longtime parishioner of St. Pius X Parish in Fairfield, where he served on the Lay Advisory Board.

Ben Guerra was one of the most well-respected, dignified, and honorable gentleman this typist has ever met. We used to exchange handshakes and good wishes each Sunday at church. I will always admire Ben Guerra for the outstanding educator and wonderful person he was. He passed away December 6, 2010, in St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport. He will always be a "legendary" educator in my book.. 

Paul

Warde's Legendary Football Coach Saved Man From Drowning at Mouth of Ash Creek 44 Years Ago Today

Andrew Warde High School's Hall of Fame football coach came to the rescue of a man who appeared to be drowning in the strong current at the mouth of Ash Creek in Fairfield 44 years ago today, Tuesday, July 30, 1968.

The man, who was about 30 years of age, was saved by Fern Tetreau, the coach of the Warde Eagles' gridders, who happened to be attending a cookout nearby, according to a front-page story in The Bridgeport Telegram. Tetreau, Warde's first football coach, led the team to an undefeated 9-0 campaign in 1959, just three years after the school opened.

Attracted by shouts for help off the jetty at the end of Jennings Beach and opposite St. Mary's by the Sea, Tetreau outraced three fellow physical education instructors in the Fairfield school system and swam to the aid of the man, who was being held by a woman companion. Both the man and woman were about to be swept away by the current toward Long Island Sound.

A short time later, a boat from the Ash Creek boat basin picked up the man while the woman companion swam back to St. Mary's. After being taken to the boat basin, the woman friend drove the man home.

The man told Tetreau he was wading at St. Mary's when he was swept into the water by the strong current. His woman companion managed to keep him afloat until Mr. Tetreau arrived on the scene.

Tetreau was attending a cookout at a cottage at the east end of Jennings Beach as a guest of Robert Seirup, a physical education instructor who conducted swimming classes there in the Summer.

Also present were Emil Taft, the Roger Ludlowe High School football coach, and Bob Jackson, director of physical education in the Fairfield school system.

Paul