Darlene Farkas (Sprowls)

Darlene Farkas (Sprowls)

Hello everyone,

I hope that you are enjoying the reunion website.  

You can make changes to your profile, if you like, or you can let me know and I can do it for you.

The reunion is less than one year from now.  I am very excited about ALL of you!

But for now, I hope you are enjoying the fall and some football.  My favorite is college football and I have several teams that I support.  But I enjoy watching a good football game.

So, who are your favorite teams?   Mine are Penn State,  (of course), Clemson,  and Georgia Tech.  (I live in the south :)

We are ....... Penn State!      Go Tigers in Death Valley and sting'em, Yellowjackets!

OK .......your turn .....Go!

Darlene Farkas Sprowls

Jennifer Esmour (Swierczewski)

Darlene,

     You did a wonderful job on the website.  It's wonderful that we can all communicate with each other now.  Hope to see you at the reunion.

                                                    Jennifer(Esmour)Swierczewski

Cheryl Yough (Weir)

Thanks for all your hard work.  You did an excellent job creating the website.  It is appreciated.  :>}

Cheryl Yough Weir

Donna Antonacci (Knarr)

Darlene, This website is great.  I am really enjoying reading the profiles.     Thanks for doing this.  Donna Antonacci (Knarr).

Yvonne Pelino (Pelino)

That's not fair Bob! Look forward to seeing you.

Dennis Sobecki

Great job on the website. I know it took alot of hard work to put this together but well worth the effort. Much appreciated. Thanks again.

Dennis

Sylvia Rodites (Georgeadis)

Darlene,

Just posted my Profile today and am so excited.  What a great website.  Have just started reading some of the Profiles and School stories and they're bringing back such warm memories.  You did a wonderful job, and I'm hoping to see everyone in September!  

Sylvia (Rodites) Georgeadis

Marsha Knull (Dasch)

What a great job that has been done to get us together after 50 yrs. If you need any help please call me.  Thank all the commitee for the hard work they have done.  We are all greatful.  See all soon.

Robert Engle

Has the committee located our valedictorian, Leslie Foster?  Can we get her to attend?  Would love to see her again. 

Wayne Schuricht

Hi everyone.  I hope ya'll, ( or should I say younz) are planing on attending our 50th reunion on Sept 13-14.  It will be a great time!!!!!! .  Golf on Friday, informal gathering on Friday night,  tennis on Sat morning and then our more refined dinner on Sat. night.  Those of us who have attended previous reunions are always amazed how much fun we had just sharing our lives with one another.  So do yourself a big favor and don't miss this one!!!  Hope to see everyone there!!!  Wayne Schuricht 

Robert Engle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRGLjzFHa40

I thought we had found Joe Manzo.  Was looking forward to seeing him.  I've got my plane ticket and I'll be there.  --Bob Engle

Robert Engle

Not sure when I wrote this: sometime back, but I found it in my Word documents.

WHO WERE WE …. REALLY?

New Kensington, PA, circa 1963. 

SOCIAL:  Henry's.  Tarena.  Birdville.  White Front.  Hillcrest Country Club.  Melody Inn.  Fifth Avenue.  Downtown Pittsburgh.  Syrian Picnic.  Greek Picnic.  Kennywood.  Family reunions.  High school fraternities and sororities.  Debutant balls.  Parking.  Going steady.  Fights after school.  Dances after football games.  Girl scouts.  Church youth groups.  Driving around and around Eat 'N Park in Natrona Heights.  Yearbooks for $3.50 and the prom for $8. 

RELIGION.  Judeo-Christian.  Ethnic churches (Syrian, Greek, Ukranian, black).  Youth for Christ club.  Parochial schools.  The first Catholic President. 

POLITICS.  Was my family the only Republican family in town?   Bobby Kennedy visits New Kensington.  Were we aware of anything beyond Presidential elections?  The new city hall in Valley Heights.  The new Tarentum Bridge.  Ken High opens a new high school in 1957.  First class to go through Ridge Avenue Junior High as a junior high.  The 56 bypass.  The attempts to merge New Ken, Arnold, and Lower Burrell. 

SPORTS.  Pop Warner.  Little League.  Church leagues.  The Pirates National Championship 1960.  Country club and YMCA swimming teams.  Water-skiing on the Allegheny River.  Swimming at Braeburn "Beach," and Ford City.  Melwood Swimming and Roller Skating.  Silver Springs swimming pool.  The Y.  Cheswick Roller Rink.  Ice skating at Memorial Park.  Bowling: duck pins or ten pins?  High school rivalries (especially Har-Brack).  Football camp.  No girls sports.  How were cheerleaders chosen anyway?  Boxing. 

MUSIC.  Motown.  Pittsburgh hits.  KQV or WAMO?  Soul music.  Ken Hi's band and choirs.  Exchange assemblies.  Honor choir/band/orchestra.  Community concert series at the high school.  The Duquesne University Tamburizans.  Ken Hi choir seniors annual New York trip.  Ken Hi Band marches in Washington DC Cherry Blossom Festival (JFK was President).  Jazz was big.  Those terrific spring choir concerts.  Ken High band presents Steelers half-time show in the snow.  Ken High band at every football game; home and away.  Band camp.  Elvis. 

DIALECT.  The words we used.  Tuff.  Cool.  Wop.  Mickey.  Greaser.  Hunky.  Camel jockeys.  BMOC. 

ETHNICITY.  IAES hall. Exchange students at the high school.  So many last names ending in --ski. 

EDUCATION.  Penn State Center.  Only one high school.  The kids from Upper and Lower Burrell.  Arnold had a high school, which had an entrance test.  Ken Hi had students that got 800s on their SATs, and I remember students going to the military academies and Harvard from NKHS. You needed a 93% to get an A, 86 for a B, 80 for a C, and 73 to pass.  An  A was a 1.00, not a 4.00. The vocational school.   Girls became teachers,  nurses, or wives.  PE for six years.  Boys take drafting and woodshop, girls take cooking and sewing.  Four foreign languages offered.   Some kids went off to Shadyside Academy in Pittsburgh or St. Joseph High School in Natrona.  Only about a third of the class even started college.  Community college was not an option. 

ENTERTAINMENT.  Frankie Avalon and Annette movies.  American Bandstand.