The meal of tossed salad, dinner rolls, roast beef & gravy, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots and apple crisp was prepared by the staff of the Nutrition Group, under the direction of Manager Shawna Lee. As an innovation this year, the members of the Class of 2015 served the older classes.
The group reconvened in the Nelle Black Westgate Auditorium for the program. President John Shaffer welcomed the alumni and served as Master of Ceremonies in the absence of the toastmaster who was unable to attend.
Deacon Graham gave an Invocation. There was a moment of silence and prayers for the late Bob Grantier '74, who passed away April 25, and prayers for Glen "Bud" Mitstifer, '51, a regular attendee at Alumni banquets for many years, and who underwrites an Alumni Association scholarship. Mr. Mitstifer is recovering from a stroke.
Matt Gordon, Superintendent of Schools, showed a video of many accomplishments of the Senior Class and events at the schools in the past year. Mr. Gordon said, "The Class of 2015 did a great job representing Canton High School." He noted the plunge in enrollment since the last thirty years, falling from about 1,400 in the late 1980s to about 920 now, "Our subsidy has gone down as enrollment has gone down. There are lots of discretionary items that we would like to do." Noting that some Alumni may be considering a donation to the schools, Mr. Gordon suggested some projects in need of financial assistance. These include protective mats for the gymnasium walls; another display case; computer carts; and the primary playground, which is being renovated. Tax deductible donations designated for the Canton Area School District may be made through the Community Foundation of the Twin Tiers.
Next, the Alumni Association conducted a brief business meeting. Officers were elected as follows: Suzanne Holcomb Schrader '60, President; John Shaffer '70, Vice-President; Penny Palmer Wheeler '79, Treasurer; Bonnie Morgan Seeley '89, File Committee; Shelly Robbins Reese '72, Reservations Chairperson.
The financial report was accepted.
Each year the Alumni Association presents a Commencement Award in the name of an honored member of the faculty. This year's award will be resented in the name of Dennis Foust '65, who taught Math at Canton High School from 1969 through 2006.
Members of the classes of 1940, 1960 and 1970 were asked to stand and be recognized.
Centerpieces were presented to Marie Loyd O'Hara, '39, and to Shirley Rockwell Porter-Davies '40, the oldest graduates present; and also to Charles Hewitt '55, as the one who traveled the greatest distance to attend tonight's banquet. He came from California.
Present and former members of the Canton faculty were asked to stand and were greeted with a round of applause. Later, centerpieces were presented to former CHS teachers Nancy Coons Arias '50, and Hope Stehr.
The first class respondent was Jack McNett, who spoke for the class of 1945. Having to adjust the microphone from its position for the tall Mr. Gordon, Mr. McNett assured the audience that he wasn't short but "was standing in a hole." He recalled that his class had the first hard-cover yearbook in school history, and said that he took and developed most of pictures for the yearbook for his last three years in high school, assisted by Herman Hogemeier. Mr. McNett noted that there were several World War II veterans in his class, with Duane Bohlayer, Wilbur Morgan and Al Stull still living, in addition to himself. He named other World War II vets who no longer were alive, including Mr. Jack Livezey a teacher and principal, who saw Mr. McNett enlist and decided to sign up too, even though he was 44 years old and had a family. Mr. Livezey helped soldiers who experienced "shell shock." Mr. McNett also remembered that Mr. Livezey had a gift for names. He fondly recalled the championship basketball team, coached by Bob Batchelor. After listing the women of the class who are living, Mr. McNett offered guidance to the Class of 2015. Dennis Keschl responded for the Class of 1965. Mr. Keschl served as a Republican member of the Maine House of Representative from 2010 to 2014. "I am honored to speak for the Class of 1965, This is the first time I have been back since I graduated. I have more than a little bit of regret for not having returned to visit friends." He recalled the Alumni Banquet in 1965. "I thought of the 1915 class, and what that speaker said in 1965…thoughts of World War I, the Roaring 20's, the Depression, World War II, the Atomic Bomb. Airplanes, moving pictures that talked, electrification, Television, men is space." He continued, "What am I going to say to this year's graduates? The world has gotten smaller and communications faster. I learned to use a slide rule, and we passed notes on paper. It is impossible to convey the effect miniaturization of electronics has had on our lives." "You new graduates look to the future with anxiety and excitement. Today's world is so much faster than 1965. Then, a high school diploma was enough to let anyone have a good job. Not today. We have a globalized economy, and the world will be more complex in the next fifty years than it is today. Some of you may be among the first to live on the moon. Some of you may develop the gene that halts the aging process, and one of you will be the speaker for your class fifty years. Brian Kennedy responded for the Twenty-Five year class, the Class of 1990. He began by thanking the members of his lass "who coerced me into speaking tonight." He told the Class of 2015, "The last thing you want to do is listen to an old man…" and he then assumed, in character voice, the role of a sneering, snarling old man: "In MY day, we didn't have Google. We walked fifty-five miles to the library. If the book was checked out, we had to walk fifty-five miles back and then try again the next day. We liked it and we loved it." He kept alternating back to that character, but interspersed it with advice to the class. "You have it within you to make a name for yourself. You should present yourself as an individual, making choices and taking responsibility. It may not be easy. It may be bumpy. The day I graduated from college, I got a rude awakening when a big SUV crashed into my Mercury Lynx from behind." He continued, "The American Dream is alive, but a little off-balance. He related a recent trip to the store to by shoes for his daughter. "I was overwhelmed by the number of choices for a toddler. People in some countries would be pleased with flip-flops, and we have so many choices." He then went into character. "In MY day we didn't have shoes. We wore rough cut boards, with splinters!" In this land of plenty, stuff gets in the way of important things. We focus on stuff that pushes us off-balance." He concluded by telling the audience, "Remember the value of independence, the value of the individual, the value of equal opportunity." He read from the Declaration Of Independence, "…all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness…" | Speaking for the 65th anniversary class of 1950, Eloise Carl Caseman remembered the transition from eight grade to ninth grade was marked by "Freshman Initiation," and the ninth graders were put through all sorts of challenges by the upper classes. Her class had 76 members, of whom 32 are deceased. "We had no doctors or lawyers in our class," she said. "I wish we would have. It might have saved us some money along the way." She remembered that the FFA boys had to help the school janitors and the FHA girls cooked and served the hot lunches in the cafeteria. She said the lunches cost 15¢. She said that her class did not have a reunion until its twentieth anniversary. "Thanks to a classmate who worked for Bell Telephone, we got in touch, and have been meeting every five years ever since, and the class will meet at St. Michael's hall on the day after the Alumni Banquet. She said of the 33 boys in the class, sixteen entered military service, and call came home safe. Two girls in the class also joined the armed forces. She advised the Class of 2015, "Never look down, but look up and see what's up there!" Frank Watson spoke for the class of 1975, and apologized in advance for some laryngitis. "I may have to call an audible." He took out his smartphone and set it on the lectern to be used as a timer. He admitted to the audience that he was not his class's first choice as speaker. "They called me and I asked, 'What the heck are you calling me for? Was I your first choice?' Turns out "The first choice was out of town; the second wouldn't return the calls; the third had passed away; the fourth was in prison. You answered the phone." Mr. Watson told the Class of 2015 about things from his era - "Vietnam - Nixon - Watergate - Bell Bottom Jeans - Disco - If you think I'm going to wax poetically about that, you are mistaken!" He made the Class of 2015 laugh when he said, "Most of you are here under protest; your privileges would be withheld; or you wouldn't get your diploma - don't worry, they would never do that. They don't want you back here!" He said he would gear his talk to the "bottom ninety percent of the class," and reminded them, "even the stupidest person in the world says something smart once." His advice to the class included, "Unless you are properly prepared, you will be left behind. You can make the world whatever you want, but only after you pay your dues." He said that when he received his pilot's license, he was told, "This is your license to go out and learn." "This is the real world, when learning starts." He recommended a few tips for the Class of 2015, including, "surround yourself with dynamic people, surround yourself with winners; read a book - a real book, with pages [this brought a cheer from the audience]; travel, as quickly as possible leave this town, move around, see the world, pick out the good and the bad, and then come back home. Be the best at what you do, no matter what it is. If you are a waitress, be as good at it as you can be, because somebody is watching. Call your parents on the phone [this also brought a loud cheer from the audience] and tell them that you love them and miss them. Randomly call them." He reminded the Class of 2015, "Character is what you do when no one is watching." He continued, "Laugh at yourself, not at others. Never use others' mistakes to make you look smarter. Don't procrastinate; buy a Bruce Springsteen album - you will learn more about life from that…don't drink and drive." Ken Griffin spoke for the class of 1995, and said, "I won't be as entertaining as Frank Watson or some of the others…twenty years [since his graduation] went by in the blink of an eye." He said "desire is the key to motivation," and gave quotes form Mario Andretti, Vince Lombardi, Theodore Roosevelt, Charles Darwin and Mark Twain. "I'm not here to tell you how to live your lives," but asked, "Do you have a plan? Success takes desire, drive and determination. The coaches in high school taught drive. We had excellent teachers. Never be ashamed of graduating from this high school." He recalled his days doing farm chores, and said, "Farming is tough work. Everyone should work on a farm at least once." He said that he worked while in high school. "I missed out on a lot of fun, but I learned a work ethic and it kept me out of trouble." He said that among the values his parents instilled in him, one of the most important is "Never quit anything until you finish it." He also said, "Having an understanding and supportive wife is a key to success." He told the audience, "Always be pro-active. Never burn a bridge - you never know when you may go back across it." He urged the Class of 2015 to step out of their 'comfort zone.' "If you always do what you always have done you will always get what you've always got…don't be afraid to give more than the minimum requirement. Always learn from everyone around you, and learn something from the bumps in the road, learn from your mistakes and challenge yourselves, and never forget where you came from." | "We are still hale and hearty," said Susan VanDyke, who responded for the Class of 1955. She told the audience that her class was "the first to graduate from this complex. We were very privileged, very excited and very proud," she said. "We got an excellent start which prepared us for the future." She told the Class of 2015, "You had superb mentors - fine teachers, advisors and coaches, assisted by support staff, parents and families. Remember them with gratitude. Canton is a great place to grow up. Love your country - what an honor it is to call it home! Be grateful for the brave men and women who fought and died to keep us safe." She encouraged the audience to support their Hometown Heroes. "We are blessed by the citizens of this community who have made it strong." She advised the group, "Love God. He will never abandon you. He put the care of our community into our hand. He expects us to keep it." She told the class of 2015. "When the time comes up for you to step up, you will." Theron Beck responded for the Class of 1985, and said that his case was very similar to Mr. Watson's, except he was "Number six on the list. No one else was available!" He told the audience, "Anyone who was around here when I was around knows that I don't belong here. I was thrown out of Mrs. Arias's Spanish class. I said "I'll never need it." Now I live in San Antonio, Texas!" Mr. Beck works to assist the disabled with transportation and mobility. He told a story about Larry the Linepainter, who was asked to paint by hands when the linepainting machine was broken. He did eight miles the first day, but the machine was hard to fix so he had to keep doing his job manually. He did six miles the next day, then four, then two, and his boss asked him when he was producing less each day. Larry responded, "My paint can is getting far away." He related this to his own life. "My paint can is my son, who was born with disabilities. My focus is helping people with wheelchairs. Because of my son, I have helped thousands of families." He asked to the Class to "find your paint can." Brittany Holmes Wilson spoke for the Class of 2005, and said her talk would be a little different. "I am going to reflect on the past decade and see how little things have changed. We are still watching Gray's Anatomy; in 2005 Tom Brady led the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl. In 2015, Tom Brady led the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl." She said, "through the evolution of social media, we are able to keep track of our classmates. We can see how far our small corner of the world has stretched. Ten years ago we were not quite as put together as we are now," She remembered going "toilet papering" and added, "I shudder to think how much money we spent on it!" She also remembered the late Rev. David Morris. "How much he touched our lives. We miss him every day." She advised the graduates to "work hard and play harder. Know who the people are who are important in your lives." She said that Mr. Griffin had already used the quote she planned to give, so, using modern technology she looked up one from Marie Beyon Ray on her Smartphone. "We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand... and melting like a snowflake. Let us use it before it is too late" Trevor Route accepted membership into the Alumni Association on behalf of the Class of 2015. A star baseball player, he quoted Hall-of-Famer Bob Feller, "Every day is a new opportunity, there is a new game every day." Mr. Route said, "Since our days here are coming to an end, I'd like to reflect on our successes." He recalled "nap time in Kindergarten, and we wanted it back when were seniors!" He remembers the time spent learning "cursive writing, which we no longer use anyway." He compared the senior year to a baseball lineup, with each position representing a different activity at the school, ending with "The coaches, our teachers, who helped us out of slumps and helped us into the post-season." Thirty-one of the class will be going to college, two on Mission trips and two into the military. He closed by saying, "When it is our time to step up to the plate with two out and the bases loaded, we will give it our all!" The evening closed with the singing of Canton High. |