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Congratulations New Retirees
Congratulations New Retirees
Lynne Aucoin, Northeast, Paraprofessional
Ethel Di Lorenzo, Northeast, Paraprofessional
Debra Sinerate, High School, Food Service
William Callahan / Central / CTE
Debra Martin / Kennedy / Mathematics/Grade 6
Sara Meyers / Kennedy, NE, Fitzgerald / Special Education
Sallie Russ / Waltham High School / English
Merrily Smith / Middle School/High / Office Secretary
Anne Elcock Sullivan / Waltham High School / English & Drama
Remembering Paul Mayberry
Dan Doyle and others (sports and education associates) are organizing a tribute to the memory of Paul Mayberry. Dan is looking for those who knew and loved Paul to add stories or memories of Paul to exhibit at this event. Please send your written tributes to retireescorner@gmail.com. Dan will have a special email we will post as soon as the logistics are finalized.
The event is planned to be held in the Waltham Room of the new Waltham High School in February. If you know how to contact Dan please send him your contributions.
To Cursive or Not to Cursive
If you were a Waltham elementary teacher, who began your career prior to the mid 1970s, you probably still remember the chart that had to be posted in your classroom that displayed your seals and stars, and hopefully they were all gold seals, that designated your students’ handwriting performance as evaluated by the “Rinehart Lady”. I have recently learned that there was also a man who did this work, but he never visited my classroom. I had gone to parochial school and had learned cursive in Grade 1 with Palmer Method, but, even before I was a teacher in Waltham, I have memories of my mother, (Miss White/Mrs. McKenzie) fretting over the upcoming visits from the Rinehart Lady, so when I was a fourth grade teacher, I knew what I was in for – it was a gold seal or failure. I also remember having a workshop during new teacher orientation from the Rinehart Lady, explaining how everything was designed from the /. Obviously, serious stuff back in the day!
While there is nostalgia about learning cursive, I always wondered how much time is really necessary to devote to it today. How many among us who were taught this method still make letters like on the chart? I guess I had an awakening about how times had changed when I was giving a workshop to Grade 3 teachers in the “old” Whittemore School. It must have been in the mid to late 1990s. There must have been some question about handwriting and I said that when I retired I wanted to be the Rinehart Lady and I was met with blank stares by most. It made me realize that something that was part of your professional life was a complete unknown to the next generation. Marie McKenzie
For further reading….enjoy the following articles
A Bridge to the Beautiful Past by Beverly Beckham
www.beverlybeckham.com/columns/2018/12/10/a-bridge-to-the-beautiful-past
Why Cursive Writing and Penmanship Is Important by Jennifer Freedman
https://wordsmarts.com/cursive-penmanship/?lctg=5f2515f1-5fd6-4cc6-9129-d2735920b86f
Who Invented Cursive by Michael Nordine
https://wordsmarts.com/history-cursive-writing/?lctg=5f2515f1-5fd6-4cc6-9129-d2735920b86f
If you love reading cursive, the Smithsonian is always looking for transcribers who can do the volunteer work from home.
We couldn't do it without you!
Whittemore School
Elizabeth Keenan, Nancy Brown, Patricia Chadbourne, Colleen Andrade, Joe McCusker
Throughout my elementary school years and then my career I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with the best of the best! First of all… Mrs. Betty Keenan… she was the secretary at Whittemore School when I was a student in the 50’s and 60’s. She was the first face we saw in the office, gave us our “helper assignments “back in the day when we as students delivered messages to teachers, applied band-aids and knew everything! I particularly remember in the early 70’s she nurtured a group of novice educators, teaching us the ins and outs of the school and was there for us at every turn. That group of teachers relied on her experience and additionally her wisdom in how and when to interact with our principal (guess who?).
Then came Nancy Brown…Nancy loved the Whittemore School and along with that was her love for and involvement with the veterans and veterans groups of Waltham. Back in the day when the upper grades wrote their annual veteran essays, we all worked extra hard to ensure our essays were the best, as we knew Nancy would be reading them and we wanted to make her proud. She was as equally proud of our annual Veterans Day assemblies and was instrumental in contacting the many organizations that she and her husband Brownie were involved with.
The next in line was Pat Chadbourne… again, she knew the school in and out. She was a Whittemore parent, PTO President and then school secretary. She organized the office and kept us afloat even in the worst of times. Pat instinctively knew how to keep bumblebees out of her office and in mine! The students and staff could depend on her for a kind word, a smile and a laugh, an understanding heart and maybe even a cookie! Following Pat was Colleen Andrade… of the four she was the most quiet and unassuming, yet she was organized, skilled and so very essential when we packed up and moved Whittemore during the renovations. She unpacked us and organized the office at “South” all the while making it seem like an easy task. We seamlessly relocated and thanks to Colleen the staff and students were as comfortable as they could be under the circumstances.
I often think of my decades with these amazing women and know they played a vital role in my career and in the successful operation of Whittemore School.
As for our custodians, all of them, as far back as Sam Collura, were a vital part of our Whittemore family. They made the building run smoothly and were often the unsung heroes. I have to give a special shout out to the Whittemore team under the direction of Joe McCusker. We could not have packed, cleaned, moved, unpacked and organized our temporary location without them. They efficiently carried out their normal daily responsibilities at Whittemore and then went over to South to prepare the school for us. It was amazing to watch the transformation under their direction.
Secretaries and custodial staff… we all know a school cannot efficiently operate without them and I was honored to have worked with the best!
Patricia Vasquezi
(We have reached out to retired building administrators and hope to have additional tributes in future newsletters.)
Graduates in the News
Richard Ballo, WHS ’72, spoke this past August at the Charles River Museum of Industry. Not only does he speak nationally but he is the author of many nonfiction books, mostly focusing on death, grief, bereavement and healing. Six of his books have won awards. For more information and book titles, refer to his website, richardballo.com
Keisha Gilles, WHS ’08, has appeared on Broadway in Aladdin and The Book of Mormon. She was in the national tour of Dreamgirls. She is well known as Ms. Keisha on the very popular, Ms. Rachel, a Netflix show for toddlers.
Ivy Watts, WHS ’11, was the recipient of the Distinguished Student Scholar Athlete Award twice while a student and track star at the University of New Haven as well as one of the top finalists for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award. Subsequently she received a MPH from Boston University. She has authored a blog, Beautifully Simply You and is a motivational speaker with an emphasis on self-care and mental health. For more information, refer to youtube.com@ivywattsSpeaks/videos.
A spotlight article in the July 3 Cape Cod Chronicle featured artist Dave Rosolko, WHS ‘74. He earned a bachelor of fine arts in illustration from Mass College of Art. He retired to Harwich, MA after a career as a graphic artist for Raytheon and Honeywell. He contributed to the Chatham Arts in the Park this year. (He had a pop-up art show in Chatham in July so I, Marie McKenzie, was able to pop in and chat about when he graduated from WHS. He said that he grew up around Bike Park, so that would mean he would have gone to Banks and Central but I never asked when he moved to Waltham! He did say that he had tried to contact his former teacher, Julie Blanchard, so she could come to his show and was saddened to learn she had passed but he also said that he was glad he had run into her on the Cape several years ago and “caught up” so she knew he had made a living with art! )
2025 Athletic Hall of Fame
New members of the WHS Athletic Hall of Fame were inducted during a ceremony on Friday, October 17 at the Sons of Italy
The annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony was held on Friday, October 17 at the Sons of Italy Hall on Cedar Street in Waltham. Congratulations to this year’s inductees.
Tricia Auld ’03 / soccer
Ryan Scanlon ’03 / football
Danielle Scanlon ‘96 / skiing
Kristen Tracey ‘96 / soccer, basketball, track athlete / School Resource Office
Pat Watson ’02 / hockey
1988 Boys Hockey Team
Coaches: Joe Salvo
Criteria for nomination
Congrats to all!
Another Retirees Social
The Retirees Committee is in the beginning stages of planning another social.
We had one at the Bright School, during which Jack Cox gave in overview of growth of education and schools and key players in Waltham.
We had another so that retirees could get a guided tour of the new High School.
Our third one will (hopefully) be held in May at the old Waltham High School. It will revolve around a chance to see again Paul Shea’s paintings of Waltham schools, most of which no longer exist! Those paintings used to hang in those schools. The paintings of the schools are now displayed in the Superintendent’s Conference area, a very skinny room. We have also learned that there are a few more somewhere in storage.
Some of you may also have one of his paintings. Might you let us know if you would be willing to bring it and we will put that on display as well? Please contact retireescorner@gmail.com .
Paul Shea was part of the Waltham Public Schools for 34 years and was the art director for many of those years. He passed away in 2009 at the age of 83. (Back in the day, he would visit elementary classroom around Christmas and Easter and the students, and teachers, would be transfixed as he drew a Santa and a bunny, respectively, on the chalkboard)
Do you know any of these retirees?
Can you reach out to them for an email address?
Thanks
Patricia Adolph Marion Anthony Lynne Arico
Joseph Arsenault Marie Arsenault Patricia Aucoin
Djalai Babazadeh Cecile Babineau Eileen Benoit
Marcia Benson Linda Bergantino Robert Biddy
Linda Bontempo Barbara Bourque Bernadette Bourque
Margaret Boyajian Charlotte Brown Glenn Brown
Nancy Brown Frank Buczel Janet Buczel
Doreen Burke Mary Burke Donna Butler
Zita Callahan Marie Caloggero Marion Campbell
Margaret Cannon Michael Carrafiello Mary Carson
Clifford Chase Robert Chiasson Stephanie Childs
Helen Clancy David Class Ron Colachico
Ann Coleman Erin Collings Anne Combs
Bernadette Concetti Joseph Connolly Joseph Corbett
Jerry Cormier Lois Crandell Donna D’Allesandro
Joseph D’Amico Joseph Dayton Ann DeAngelis
Joseph Defillippo Peter Delaney James Dempsey
Beverly Di Vaio Amy Doherty Michelle Dolitka
Stephen Duffy Diane Dupuis James Dempsey
Carol Ehwa Lawrence Enos Kathleen Ferro
Helen Finn James Finney Michael Gledhill
Mark Good Debbie Grimes Joyce Guelli
David Hachey Louise Hague E.Hamalainen
Barbara Hantman Lois Hecht M. Hoagland
Donna Holdman Alan Jacobson Regina Jacobson
Joanne Jeffries Dorothy Jensen Sven Johnson
Gail Kearns Fran Kelly Bob Kennen
Brian Keough Margaret Kipp Carol Klatt
Jeanne Kunze Steve LaForest Mary Langdon
Dan LaRose Helen Leavitt Gilda LeBlanc
John Lennon Gerardo Leone Mark Letson
Tom Leverone Madeline Litopoulos Jeffrey Lord
Robert Lucente Faye Madden Richard Madden
Diane Mahoney Paul Maiorano Charles Malloch
Patricia McCaffrey Joe McCusker Dianne McDermott
James McDonnell Marsha McDonough Mary McGagh
Patricia McLaughlin Ann McNamara Britta McNemar
Christine Mirabito Elaine Mitchell R Moody
Wendy Moore Anthony Mrugala Lisa Mula
Linda Murfitt Marianne Murkidjanian Neil Murphy
Miguel Negron Perez Vincent Nocolarra Daniella Noel
Fignole Noel Mary O’Brien James O’Connor
Virginia Page Marian Parrella Deborah Peros-Finnell
Maria Pimental Sheila Ponte Kevin Pratt
Donald Prohovich Alexandra Quinn Stephen Rando
Anthony Ratta Maryann Rayne Carolyn Ream
Debra Riggott Marie Rivera Kelly Robbins
Annette Roberts Robert Rooney Emile Rosenberg
Gail Santiago Robert Schubert Wayne Schubert
Michael Shaps Joseph Silva Debra Sinerate
Elizabeth Singer Nina Skavinski Mary Smith
Sandra Snow Violet St.Cyr Stanley Straub
Woody Streeter Nancy Taranto Margaret Tramantozzi
Paula Truax Candace Vanderkruik Arlene Velleman
Mary Vigneau Richard Wall Barbara Walsh
Amy Whiting Leanne Wilcinski Dorothy Walazek
Alexander Wyeth Linda Yerardi Richard Yerardi
Peter Yetten Arlene Young Rosanne Zottola
As always, “Would you like to join our newsletter committee? We meet about 3-4 times a year.”
We Need You!
We Need You!
A new initiative of Retirees’ Corner is to reach out to recent and not-so-recent retirees to see if they might be willing to share a profile that we can add to subsequent newsletters. If you want to be part of this, below is a sample of the kind of information you could forward to us at retireescorner@gmail.com.
NAME
SUBJECT/SCHOOL
YEARS OF SERVICE
What did you enjoy most about your time in the WPS?
Who helped you the most in your career and why? (We may contact you to provide a longer article on your mentor.)
What are your plans for retirement or what has been most rewarding or unexpected about retirement?
Best Wishes for a Wonderful Holiday Season!
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