Glen School Circa 1995

In the mid 1990's, my wife Caryn and I decided to - or should I say I decided to - return to Glen School and Caryn graciously went along even taking some of the photos you see here and listening to my excitement when I would point out where I flipped baseball cards or played ball. It was a summer day and while the trees were outrageously huge - nothing really had changed! It was practically as I had left it in 1967! It was perfect! So too is it today with little changed. A lot of great memories were made there. The photos below were taken around 1995. Enjoy!

The Main entrance.

In this photo, the camera was pointed through the glass doors of the main entrance - look closely and you can see the "Cub Scout Pack 33 Meets Here" sign in the reflection next to Mr. McFall's old room!

The k-3rd grade side - this side was the playground for kindergarten and the other side of the hedge was the main playground.

The courtyard in the center of the school - sadly the stone wall has since been removed and the reflecting pool/garden filled in.

That is Caryn! That jungle gym was there since the beginning but was removed some time after this picture was taken - a tree was planted in place of the old sandbox.


The Eastbrook Road side showing the old 6th grade classrooms, music room and gym/auditorium.

Dads Visit Mrs. Cook's 2nd Grade Class!

In second grade (at least Mrs. Cook's class) she asked some of us to ask our fathers if they would come in and talk about there jobs. My dad came in to talk about American Motors (he was a service manager for Kobbe & Flannery). My dad was so psyched to do that. He brought a film on the design, engineering and manufacturing of Ramblers, he also brought pins to give out, brochures, postcards, etc. Jill Neandross' dad (Leif Neandross) - who owned the Four Poster furniture store at the Garden State Plaza - gave us a tour of his store. Katie Knight's dad - a United Airlines pilot - also came in and talked about his career and gave us wings! I remember - being a boy - finding that one to be very interesting. Mr. Perdue - who owned Perdue's Sport Shop in Ridgewood - visited the class and gave everyone a tennis ball. Lisa Faeth - who's dad worked in some way with the space program, gave us all toy space capsules! Karen Eide remembers how excited she was when her dad (he worked for AT&T) came to speak to us and gave us all phone keychains! Does anyone remember other dads that came to talk about their careers?

The Perdue Sport Shop was a staple in town for years. You could always spot Beth's dad around town cause he had this cool woody he drove that also advertised his shop.

Amazingly, my mom had kept these letters my classmates wrote to my dad thanking him for speaking to the class. The letters were written June 18, 1963. I will type most of them here but I have to post a couple of them - Corey Duvall's, Katherine the Knight's, Jennifer Rudy's and Carey Hoff's. You'll get a kick out of these:












Dear Mr. Flannery,

I liked the pictures you gave to us. And I liked the pins you gave to us. I hope you will come in again some time. Your Friend, Richard (Richie Spell)

Your Friend, Richard (Richie Spell)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming. Your talk was good. Thank you for giving us the pin, picture, and papers. I liked the Rambler.

Your Friend, Ken (Merrill)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for the things you gave us. Thank you for coming. I hope you can come again.

Your Friend, Barbara (Durheimer)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming to the class. Your talk was very nice. Selling Ramblers must be nice. The film was nice and long. The things you gave me were nice too. You are a nice man.

Your Friend, Lisa (Faeth)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming. It was very nice of you. Thank you for showing us the movie. Thank you for the things. You are a very nice man.

Your Friend, Ellen


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for everything. I am glad you came. The book is very nice. Thank you for coming.

Your Friend, Penny (Ward)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

I hope you have a happy summer. Thank you for coming. Your work is interesting. I like the Rambler its's a good car. Thank you for showing us the movies.

Your Friend, Susan N (Nunno)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming. I liked the film and the books. I liked the Ramblers very much.

Your Friend, Randy (Sharp)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

I liked the movie you brought us. I liked the picture you gave us. I do not know why you gave us the picture.

Your Friend, Art (Brierley)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming to our class room. I liked the film you had. I hope you will come again. I like Rambler models.

Your Friend, Jan K (Koper)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming in to the class room. It was nice of you. You are a nice man. Thank you for the cards and the xray book and the picture.

Your Friend, Jill Neandross


Dear Mr. Flannery,

I liked the film about the Rambler. The clay that they used, if they don't want it I will!

Your Friend, Robbie


Dear Father,

Thank you for the postcards and the pins. I liked the film.

Your Son, Ricky (Flannery)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming to our class. I liked the movie you showed us. And I liked the things you gave us too. The Rambler is a very nice car. Thank you again.

Your Friend, Beth Perdue


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for showing us the movie. The movie was very interesting. Thank you for everything. I hoped you liked the part of the play that you saw.

Your Friend, Bruce (Meneghin)


Dear Mr. Flannery,

Thank you for coming in and talking to us about your job. Your job is very interesting. Thank you for showing us the film. Thank you again.

Your Friend, Karen Eide

Nov 21, 1963 - Seton Hall Radio Show

On November 21, 1963, our 3rd grade class - Miss Beattie - took a trip to Seton Hall to tape a radio program. Each of us that went along recited poems, sang songs and read stories which were all recorded in the studio there. The trip - we believe - was arranged by John Petrik's father but we're unsure about that. After we recorded our show and posed for pictures, we were given a tour of the facilities and learned the secrets of radio communication. We learned how programs were produced and broadcast. Following all of that we visited the physics department where we listened to explanations of the techinal aspects of radio communication. We had lunch in the University dining hall and concluded our trip with a visit to the Seton Hall museum where we viewed an exhibit on prehistoric man.

The Bergen Record came along to photograph some of us. Above l to r: Shawn Stewart, Linda Pursiano (Go Linda!), Lynn Malley and Carol Anne Mastrogiovanni.

The radio station was WSOU-FM. In 2007, I called the station and asked if there was a remote chance they would have a tape of our program but was unsuccessful! We were told the show would be broadcast at 2:05 eastern time on Friday November 22, 1963 - the very next day. I remember we were all pretty excited about the prospect of being on the radio but there weren't a lot of us that had FM radios at the time - so I remember my mom and dad scrambled to find people who had FM. My dad listened at work and my mom listened at a neighbor's. Our class all gathered at our desks and prepared to listen to our show on the PA system.

Above is yours truly at the controls - I was told to "look like you're producing the show!" Smile Rick!

As we sat in anticipation - giggling about who said what - our broadcast was suddenly silenced - John F. Kennedy was assassinated! It was incredible! While many us didn't grasp what was going on immediately - our teachers and principals protected us from it - we were abruptly sent home! I remember walking down the path I always took running into Larry Rogers - older than us - and he said he thought he had heard Jackie Kennedy was shot. Once home though, it was clear what had taken place - it was amazing. My mom was very upset. Beth Daly recalls her mom sitting in front of the black & white tv crying.


It was quite a weekend - 4 days of constant and very sad news. It would be the start to an incredible decade of turbulence that would see more assassinations - Robert F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King and the decade would be capped with the landing on the moon! The amount of things that ocurred and cultural changes that were taking place in such a short time is mind-boggling when one looks at the decade as a whole, but thanks to our great parents, teachers, friends and families, our childhoods still managed to survive and provide many of us with very happy memories.

Satellite Photo Glen School

For fun check out this satellitte photo image of Glen School and the surrounding area as it appears today! Just click the link below!

<http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=eastbrook+rd+ridgewood+nj&sll=40.982336,-74.085842&sspn=0.000958,0.001717&ie=UTF8&ll=40.987187,-74.084351&spn=0.007661,0.013733&t=h&z=16>

Why A Blog About Glen School?

Can you imagine back in 1967 - or even our senior graduating year of 1973 - wanting to do something like this about your elementary school? While it seems surprising that I woud want to do this, I have always been pretty sentimental about things and for me it was an inevitable task. However I have always lived in the present - its not so much a longing for the past as it is an appreciation of it. I do find it fascinating to look back and try to find out what old friends and classmates are up to and try and preserve a special time in an amazing decade. Despite all the things that were going on in the world we still managed a pretty innocent childhood thanks to our folks, our friends and life at Glen School.

I suppose for some it wasn't an altogether nice experience - especially if you moved around a lot. For me though it was 7 years with generally the same kids and it was a blast! I certainly (embarrassingly) wasn't the best student around and had my "nerd" years but I managed, and stayed with my class. Its funny how one can go back to this school (or really anywhere you have memories) and suddenly you're remembering things that you thought you forgot - its like ghosts from the past.


Standing there on the playground at Glen recently with my wife Caryn, my daughter Jennie and my son Ricky was both weird and very cool. The images of all of my classmates were so vivid to me. I find it challenging to try and locate or find out the fates of "us" and that's probably a part of my wanting to do this - the search, the investigating. I did it for my uncle Bill Rhode who was an 8th Air Force gunner in WW II - I located members of his crew and even found out the fates of his B-17 and B-24 bombers. It is work but is so much fun and can be very rewarding. I hope you can share your memories - good or bad - so we can tell the story of life in that wonderful neighborhood of 30 odd streets.

I was thrilled to learn over the past year that I was not alone in this weird craving for memories of Glen School. The Class of 1969 (Margaret Silvers, Doug Terhune, Scott Yates and so many other familiar names) definitely gave me the inspiration. The HoHokus Class of 71 (K-8th grade) actually found out the fates or their custodians, teachers and most of the kids. Even though every one of us was different - together we were quite a group. Even if we did go our separate ways after 1967, the affection I have for everybody - particularly my Class of 1967, has never left. So many of us have had wonderful experiences and great careers and wonderful families but the simplicity of our life at Glen School really rings true. It doesn't matter if its 1967 or 2007, the innocence - if you're lucky to experience it - is priceless. You obviously can't go back - there have been too many other worthy experiences in our lives but its fun to peek at the past - and hopefully it makes you feel good. While I realize some classmates don't want to bother and others don't want to be found I do hope you at least sneak peeks at the blog and remember something that was special.

Glen School Candids!

This is the place for camp photos, field trip photos, neighborhood photos, birthdays, etc. You can always check back for updates!

Here is Greg Rehe, Jim Smethurst & Wayne Bond at Camp Green! Courtesy of Chic Voorhis.



A picture of me when I played baseball for Marsh & Groat (coached by Betsy Kline's dad). This was taken in the Meneghin's backyard.

Here's a picture of Bruce Meneghin when he and I played baseball for the Ridgewood Elks Club. This was taken in my backyard.



John F. Kennedy died when we were in 3rd grade. My class (Miss Beattie) actually performed a variety show (songs, poetry, stories) at Seton Hall and it was broadcast at the exact same time that JFK was shot! The following Spring, Melanie Teasley, me, Bruce Meneghin, Mark Meneghin, Cindy Pomeroy and Marianne Pomeroy held a neighborhood fair to raise money for the JFK library. We raised $5.35! (but everything was 5-10 cents!) I still have the thank you note from Jackie Kennedy (sent to all that donated). The fair was in my front yard. Note the RBA baseball shirt! Also pictured here are my mom, Marianne Pomeroy, Mark Meneghin, Brian Meneghin and Kent Meneghin. Cindy is standing behind Melanie!

Below is the thank you note Jackie Kennedy had sent for the donation we made.

The art of fishing with Bruce Meneghin. I had gone camping with the Meneghin's - I don't recall where it was though. Bruce help me out!

Below is a picture of Greg Rehe on our 3rd grade field trip to the Museum Village. Greg's the one on the left.


Below is a picture of Beth Perdue not to be outdone by Greg Rehe! Beth always had the best smile!

Circus Day! From l to r: Randy Sharp, Kent Meneghin, Jimmy O'Brien, Ricky Flannery and Bruce Meneghin. This was on the Meneghin's front steps just before we left to see the circus.

This was Halloween - possibly 1965. Front Row: Marianne Pomeroy, Cindy Pomeroy, Brian Meneghin. Back Row: Ricky Flannery, Mark Meneghin. In 1963 I couldn't trick or treat cause I had the mumps - Bruce Meneghin took an extra bag around and collected candy for me - trick or treating with Cindy was a treat!

The picture below shows Andy Wright (Glen School Class of 1974) - formerly of Salem Lane when he played in the Tiny Tim division of the Ridgewood Baseball Association. (Salem Lane is the street right behind where we played kickball).

Not to be outdone by Mr. Wright the photo below shows me after practice in the Spring of 1963. That was my first year in Tiny Tim (RBA). That was our batting helmet - can you believe that? Not a lot of protection there!

Couldn't resist this one! Below is a picture of Chic Voorhis and Michelle Miller at RHS circa 1973! Michelle and Chic were later married!

Below is the Class of Glen 1969 1st grade - Mrs. Cook's class. A lot of classic Glen kids here including Kim Vukov, Barbara Demick, Karen Sewart, Charles Nalbantian & Margaret Silvers! I think Doug Terhune can be found too!


Below is Glen School Class of 1969 3rd grade after they made some puppets! Cindy Pomeroy is in the lower right of photo (as you're looking at it)! Barbara Demick in front too?

The above photo shows (from l to r) Katie Knight and Robin Smith with Snooty McGee. Photo is circa 1962-63. Photo is courtesy of Hank Henckler.

The above photo includes Robin Smith's brother "Duffy" (Donald) who was senior class president at RHS in 1968. He is shown turning over the keys to a brand new Volkswagen van that would be used to transport small sports teams - a parting gift from the Class of 1968. Shown with him on the far left is John Bowe (Chris' brother - Chris was my Class of '73). Wow did we give a gift like that? Two great educators are accepting the gift - John McCutcheon (whom I loved!) and William Leach our principal.

The original caption for this photo reads: "The ability to read type backwards helps," regional editor Russell Stewart explains as he shows Mrs James Rudy of the Glen School PTA how a page is made up. (Appeared in newspaper October 4, 1967) Mrs Rudy is Jennifer Rudy's mom!

Above is photo of Penny Ward riding her sister Jackie's horse "Winslow" in Farmington CT.

Above photo shows Penny Ward riding "Belle Acres Fawn" to a championship in 1973 at Farmington CT. Her sister Jackie was no slouch either!

Above is Lorraine Ward with "Belle Acres Star" aka "April" - another Ward champion horse! The Ward's had a great piece of property where we all went swimming and petted the horses. The farm was known as "Tall Pines Farm".

Karen Eide outside the gym with her Clorox bottle pig! We all made them and Katie Knight caught this one on camera one afternoon afterschool! Thanks to Katie for supplying the photo!

Looking For These People!

We had a lot of "kids" at Glen School - some moved away and some moved to other schools. Can you help find some of these people? I'll use maiden names because its more familiar. Please let me know where you might think they are: Jill Neandross, Kara DeGraw, Greg Rehe, Lisa Faeth, Corey Duvall, Karen Eide, Wayne Bond, Ed Nalbatian, Jan Potdevin, John Petrik, Richie Spell, Ken Merrill, Barbara Durheimer, Jan Koper, Frank Fortino, Melanie Teasley, Martin Vaz, Maryann Vaz, Randy Sharp, Paul Attella, Betsy Kline, Corinne Frank, Dave Chandler, Brian Marchese, Bobby Stewart, Lori Abrahamson, Susan Anderson, Irene Williams, Carey Hoff, Susan Andersen, Linda Breitkreuz, Eddie DeLorenzo, Robbie Wittemore. I'm also trying to locate Mark Linden who's father was Arthur Linden. If you can think of anybody I missed - let me know!

The Afternoon Glen School Kindergarten Class 1960-61

Here's Mrs. Janicke's 1960 kindergarten class! I remember a number of things about kindergarten amazingly. I recall that I couldn't wait to knock on Bruce Meneghin's door so we could walk to school together. We would meet up with Melanie Teasley and walk together. I also remember he and I taught Jan Potdevin and Karen Eide how to whistle. We also gave them each one of my sister's rings! The highlight of kindergarten for me was going to Karen Eide's house - that made my kindergarten!

There was also this big attached shed (still there today!) that had a lot of toys inside, but it also had these 2 huge tricycles that we always fought over during recess. They were bright green. Its ridiculous that one remembers stuff like that! I also recall getting poison ivy all over my arm. My mom put it in a sling all slathered with calamine and I remember chasing everybody around the sand box. There were also games of 1-2-3 Red Light between the kindergarten door and the main entrance to school under the canopy (perfect view of this is the main picture at the very top of the page).

The highlight of kindergarten was getting selected by Mrs. Janicke to go outside and get the milk for the class. Another classmate was selected to get the graham crackers. I read the book "My Mother the Car" to my classmates. Mrs. Janicke was great about getting us to read.

I need help identifying some of the kids so please feel free to help me out. Thanks Rick Marsh for adding some names!

Top Row: Leonard Van de Wagen, Bruce Meneghin, Danny Wagner, Gary Vukov, Arthur Brierley, unidentified, Greg Rehe, Paul Vaccari, Rick Flannery

3rd Row: Betsy Kline, Doug Brown, Cindy Hartman, Carl Vrabel, Jan Potdevin, Ricky Marsh, Pam Bennett, Corey Duvall, Karen Eide, Mrs. Jeanette Janicke

2nd Row: Ellen Haggerty, Lisa Faeth, Jill Neandross, Melanie Teasley, Kara DeGraw, Cara Worthington, Carey Hoff.

Front Row: Richie Spell, Bruce Cunneen

Sorry if I can't identify you! If you can identify some of the kids please let me know! Morning kindergarten class - please send a class photo!

Below is our kindergarten classroom as it appears today! Get out the graham crackers and the blankets! Who's getting the milk from the milk box? (Photo is from the collection of Doug Terhune)

(This photo taken 12/28/08) The large milk box was kept to the left of the door (the right looking at photo) - one layer of cartons for morning and one for the afternoon classes!


HOT SONGS OF 1960:

The Twist................................................Chubby Checker

Save the Last Dance for Me..................The Drifters

Will You Love Me Tomorrow...............The Shirelles

Shop Around...........................................The Miracles

Cathy's Clown.........................................Everly Brothers

HOT TV SHOWS OF 1960:

Gunsmoke

Wagon Train

Rifleman

Father Know's Best

77 Sunset Strip

Dennis the Menace

The Flinstones

POPULAR MOVIES OF 1960:

Ben Hur

The Apartment

Psycho

The Swiss Family Robinson

Ocean's 11

NATIONAL CURRENT EVENTS 1960:

January 26 - Willie Mays signs with the SF Giants for $85,000

January 31st - John F. Kennedy announces he will run for President of the United States

February 13 - France tests its first atomic "device"

February 23 - Ebbets Field - former home of the Brooklyn Dodgers - is demolished

March 16 - First car with solar-charged battery goes on display in NY

April 1960 - Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz divorce

April 5 - Ben Hur wins record 10 Oscars

May 9 - First birth control pill is approved by the FDA

June 18 - Arnold Palmer wins the US Open golf championship in Denver

July 2 - Neale Fraser & Maria Bueno win Wimbledon

July 4 - 50 star flag makes its debut in Philadelphia

August 18 - Beatles who are virtual unknowns make their first public performance in Hamburg Germany

Sept 12 - Hurricane Donna hits the east coast

Sept 26 - JFK & Nixon meet in the first of 4 televised debates

October 12 - Russian leader Nikita Kruschev bangs his shoe on his desk at UN in protest of the Phillipines diplomat and the Secretary General

October 18 - the NY Yankees lose in 7 games to the Pirates in World Series

November 9 - JFK is elected President

November 16 - Clark Gable dies

December 26 - Philadelphia Eagles beat the Green Bay Packers for NFL title

Please check back for local notable local events of 1960!

Glen's Favorite - Mr. McFall!

Above is Mr. McFall's old office (wood door to the left) - this was taken in Dec/2008.

Remember Mr. McFall? His first name was George and he was our school custodian and one of the most memorable people at Glen School. He was a pleasure to know - I remember him like it was yesterday! Seeing George when you got to school completed your day! The Class of 1969 was fortunate enough to have a reunion in 2000 that included Bill Montick (6th grade teacher) and Mr. McFall. The pictures included here are from that reunion and are courtesy of Margaret Silvers. Maybe you'll recognize some of the other names.

Margaret Silvers-Myatt recalls through Mr. Montick that when Mr. McFall received his paychecks, he always changed into non-custodial clothes to go to the bank. He was an extremely proud man - a man of great class.

As Bill Montick says, George McFall treated Glen School like it was his own. He took great pride in raising and lowering the flag outside the front of the building. Bill also recalls that on some lunch hours, Bill and Paul Harrison (the other 6th grade teacher) would race to Mr. McFall's office and play pinochle with him!

Margaret Silvers-Myatt remembers that in 1st grade someone had locked her bicycle to the bike rack - Mr. McFall as always saved the day by hack-sawing the lock off. Margaret also got herself into a spitting fight one time with Doug Terhune, Scott Yates and Bryan Kreuger - all 4 were sent to the office but when Mr. McFall saw them he said: "Three boys against one girl?" and Mr. Linden (our principal) let Margaret off!

Andy Wright - Glen Class of 1974 - recalls like so many of us do - climbing to the roof of the gym looking for baseballs, frisbees and kicking pebbles around - Mr. McFall would come and chase him down and Andy would make his way back to the low part near the courtyard and slide down one of the poles "like Batman"! Mr. McFall also chased Andy when he shot off packs of firecrackers too!

Cynthia Wagner-Boseski remembers Mr. McFall bringing his entire family to our concerts in the auditorium.

Mr. McFall will always be remembered as an amazingly unselfish man who cared for Barbara Demick's father Gene when he took ill.

Chic Voorhis told me recently that during Miss Beattie's 3rd grade class Chic had upset her so that she not only sent him out to the hall but slammed the door so hard that it got stuck! Before long Miss Beattie was pleading with Chic to go get Mr. McFall to unjam the door!

Beth Daly recently told me that when Mr. McFall passed away on May 10, 2006, she attended his wake at Van Emburgh Funeral Home in Ridgewood. She recalls that his family approached her, curious to find out who she was. Once she told how it was that she knew George McFall, she relayed to them how kind-hearted he was and how his bow tie was always straight and his uniform perfectly pressed and how he truly cared for the kids as much as the school.

She also told his family how just his presence alone commanded respect. Beth added the memory of George McFall raising and lowering the flag every school day and the help he gave us kids with stuck zippers, getting sick & helping us look for lost items.

We'll never forget Mr. McFall and what he meant to all of us!

Pictured above with Mr. McFall is Margaret Silvers who along with members of her Class of 1969 spearheaded the reunion.


Pictured top row: John Leyden, Mr. Montick, Walter Fennie. Front row: John Brevoort, Margaret Silvers, Mr. McFall and Ken Li.


Pictured above is Sue Crowe (Wilson) with Mr. McFall.


Pictured above from left to right: Sue Crowe (Wilson), Trisha Daly & Mr. Montick.

Glen School Opens 1960!

The Glen Class of 1966 was the first full class of K-6 at Glen School. Dedications and Open House ceremonies were held on January 31, 1960 for both Ridge and Glen School. The Open House at Glen was held at 3:00 pm that Sunday. The dedication program is below.

Star Spangled Banner &

Salute To Flag.............................................Glen School Girl Scout Troop 216

Invocation.................................................................Rev William Babinsky (Paramus Reformed Church)

Selection..................................................................Glen School Choir

Welcome & Introductions.............................Arthur W. Littlefield Board of Ed

Presentation of Building..............................Lester W. Smith (Architects)

Acceptance of Building.............................................Mr. Littlefield, Dr. Lloyd W. Ashby (Superintendent), John Biggi (Pres. Home & School Association)

Invitation To Open House...............................Arthur V. Linden, Jr (Principal)

Benediction................................................................Rev Charles A. Platt (First Presbyterian Church)

Special bonds were sold to raise the money to build Glen And Ridge schools. The total cost of the site, construction & equipment for Glen School was $542,000!

The first phase of the school was made up of the kindergarten, 8 additional classrooms, music room and library.

The special areas included the auditorium/gym, offices, health room, faculty room, storage rooms and a playground that featured a permanent sandbox and huge checkerboard.

The original staff was made up of the principal, 8 teachers, head custodian, librarian, nurse and secretary.

As of January 4, 1960 the enrollment for Glen School was at 184 kids with a capacity for 240.

The above photo shows a crossing guard crossing the kids that lived across Route 17. There 17 kids that had to cross the busy highway at the time and then E Saddle River Road. The overpass there was not built until 1967. Bus service later solved the problem. Photo appeared in the Ridgewood News January 21, 1959.