Staples 55

Non-Graduates

As I studied the photos of our graduating classes (elementary and junior high—see bottom of page), I was amazed at the number of classmates who did not—for various reasons—wind up graduating with us in June of 1955.

According to the list in the commencement program , there were 161 of us that night belting out “When You Walk Through A Storm”. (Please take a well-deserved bow, John O’Hanion. It was pretty uplifting as I recall.)

After studying these photos I was able to identify over 50 classmates not on the graduation list! Amazing! Plus another 15 from Saugatuck Elementary and another 18 or so from our 9th grade photo whom I could not identify either.

We’re talking 80 or more classmates who went elsewhere before high school graduation—half the size of our graduating class. Amazing!

Now, I am not deliberately ignoring the 800-lb. “Who cares!?” in the middle of the chat room here. I can just hear Don and Vinny now: “Who but the demented cares about such ancient history, Clifford…!? Get a life!”

Yes, indeed. Perhaps I should get a life.

However!

We do have this here website: staples55.com. We do have these photos from our reunions and the yearbook and from classmate memorabilia from way back when. What should be done with them…? Anything?

Well, maybe nothing should be done with them. Maybe they should continue gathering dust in the attic.

On the other hand maybe it’s good to have a kind of online scrapbook of our early school days—including those who moved on before high school graduation. Once upon a time we did go to Bedford, Saugatuck, Greens Farms, Weston and Wilton elementary schools… We did go on (a majority of us) to Weston, Wilton and Bedford junior high schools. And then most of us moved on to Staples.

I’m thinking of a scene from that the movie, Shawshank Redemption, where Brooks—finding himself released from prison after decades behind bars and failing miserably at fitting into his new lifestyle as a free man—makes a final affirmation of his existence by carving his name in an overhead beam in the halfway house room where he’d been consigned:

“Brooks was here!”

And then he hanged himself.

Maybe collecting and displaying this little history of our lives is a way of affirming our existence (without the extreme of the rope around the neck thing…).

We wuz here, too!

(Besides all of which it gives me the opportunity to keep my HTML skills somewhat alive…:o).

Non-graduate list…

---

So here is my list of “non-grads” in the table below in alpha order by last (school) name. Referring to the captions in the class photos on this page, please help me identify those labeled “Who?”. In addition—if you think of any others not in the photos, please send me their names, as well (and photos, if you have any). Note: The “School” column designates the Westport school the classmate last attended.

Non-Graduating Classmates, Class of 1955
Last Name	First Name	School	Remarks
Allen	Charles	BJH	No idea what happened to Charlie.
Aubry	Paul	Bedford El
Boone	Penn Anne	GFarms El
Buddy	Mason	BJH
Buggle	Fintan	Staples
Bullard	Geoffrey	Staples	Went off to private school at Choate.
Buttery	Betty Lou	Bedford El
Carrera	Marilyn	Bedford El
Caselnova	Martin	BJH
Chisholm	Ronald	GFarms El	“Chappie”. Priesthood following school?
Cohn	Arlene	BJH
Colley	Brenda	BJH	Transferred to Darien middle school.
Cummings	John	Staples	Repeated 11th grade.
Dooling	Eugene	Staples	“Beans”. Last we heard, living in Montana.
Duffy	Audrey	GFarms El
Edwards	William	Staples	US Navy?
Feeny	Hubert	Staples	Locally with US Post Office. Now deceased.
Finnegan	Richard	BJH	Theater production company, NYC.
Freeman	Donald	BJH	College, teaching, corporate, now living in western MA.
Giordano	Dorothy	Staples
Garlick	Clifford	Staples
Givitosky	Sergei	Bedford El
Goodsell	Tracy	Staples
Grecula	Ronald	Staples	Bridgeport, engineering, imprisoned on terrorism charge.
Hale	Alan	Staples	A fellow fiddler!
Hansen	John	GFarms El
Hinkelbein	Charles	BJH	Moved to Plattsburg, NY, in 8th grade.
Jennings	Robert	GFarms El
Lawson	Sandra	Staples	Not on commencement list…?
Malkin	Gary	Staples	Not on commencement list…? Married Judy Schacte.
Mann	Roy	GF El
Marquis	Paul (Huron?)	Bedford El
Masiello	Richard	Staples	Trade school?, Army, Masiello Bus Co., Westport.
McKeon	John	GFarms El
Meguire	Terry	Staples	Graduated from Frankurt American School, Germany.
Mills	Richard	Bedford El	Lived briefly on Clinton Ave.
Mumma	Russell	Staples	Not on commencement list…? Music promotion career.
Nazzaro	John	BJH
Norris	Sophia	Bedford El	“Dutchie”. Greenwich private school in 7th grade.
O’Sullivan	Stephen	Staples	Not on commencement list…?
Palmer	Richard	Staples	Not on commencement list…?
Pendergast	Peter	Staples
Perry	Vincent	Staples
Ranholm	Richard	BJH?
Sadtler	Mary Field	Staples	Moved to Fairfield.
Schacte	Judy	Staples	Not on commencement list…? Married Gary Malkin.
Sepper	Duane	GFarms El
Sprague	Frank	Bedford El
Strachan	John	Bedford El
Swanson	“Caddy”	Staples
Taylor	Phyllis	GFarms El
Theleen	Carol	GFarms El	“Nonee”. Moved to Louisville, KY. Teacher.
Willette	Patricia	GFarms El
Yost	William	GFarms El

Graduation photos…

---

Note: Click any image below to enlarge.

These are the best (only) photos I have to date. As soon as anyone identifies those designated “Who?”, I will update the captions. And to date we have no class photos whatsoever of our Weston and Wilton brethren.

Greens Farms Elementary, Class of 1949…

Saugatuck Elementary, Class of 1949…

Bedford Junior High, Class of 1952…