Woodrow Wilson High School Alumni "Class of 1948½"

Here we are in the Wilson High School auditorium; we're eagerly waiting for Mr. Padden to start the movie, for they tell us it has special significance for us. Here we go~the title appears, ~~The Best Years of Your Lives"~sounds a Tittle familiar, doesn't it?

Who's that funny little boy we see~it can't be, but l guess it is I~eroy Hartung~was he ever that tiny? A rat!! No, an SB, the first of the group. We look woefully lost, but we are having fun. Just look at the girls' skirts! Can you actually remember their being so short?

It's still 1945 on that movie screen, and we see the flag of the school flying at half-mast. Yes, it's a solemn occasion that many of us feel keenly, for our President Roosevelt has passed away.

A whole year has elapsed on that reel, and we see a very strange and heart-rending sight. Remember all the jokes we used to crack about setting the school on fire? That awful looking view can't be the old chemistry lab!

This new scenery is a far cry from the old school house, but it certainly has become familiar to us. That old bell out in front of the building recalls some memorable occasions. Tsn't that '~Jonesey" getting out of the pick-up truck? He was a swell person, wasn't be? Plop! goes the bench, and there sits Speedy Kirk on the floor. See how round shouldered we were getting from six periods at those chow tables?

We're home again now! Those desks are so shiny that you can see your face in them. Gee, but it's great to be back!

Bill Stern ought to be here to comment on these next pictures. Wasn't that a glorious football season? Remember that Hampton game? There goes one of our rooters on the field to kiss Billy Farris for kicking that extra point. And do you see those pretty new white sweaters all the team is wearing? They're the symbol of our first state ebampionship in 20 years.

It's spring again, and we're out at the stadium cheering for our sluggers as they, also, follow suit and annex a state title.

Now we're all dressed up, and we feel so proud of ourselves, for it's our first JuniorSenior. Doesn't Charlotte Wright look lovely? We feel thrilled at the sight of the colorful decorations which were arranged by our own class members along with Miss Polly Arthurs.

Now it's September again~can you believe that we're really buying a Literature and Life, Book Four? See Ralph Cowan and Jean Keesee coming down the hall? They're the presidents of our two classes. There's "Tot" Swain struggling through a Trig problem, and here comes Bobby Green hustling off to a Student Council meeting.

Who are those lovely belles in dresses from an earlier century? Why surely, they're Barbara Post and Connie Hawks, who starred so beautifully in Pride and Prejudice.

We're back now after a delightful, though extremely short, Christmas vacation. Notice all the girls who've become left-handed? Santa Claus left a lot of diamonds this year, didn't he?

Can you believe that January is nearly over? Strange as it seems, we're watching Ann MeNair, Jack Benzie, Frank Madigan, Allen Scott, and Jean Keesee run through one of the scenes in Speed, their class play. Then we see Mr. Sweeney hand Gary Sears his diploma, and we look around to be sure we re in the right auditorium.

In the next pictures we see every variety of doll baby, water gun, scooter, and lollipop. It's Baby Day, and we're having a wonderful time! Doesn't Jean Davis look adorable in her pinafore and bonnet, and isn't Jimmy Traynham the most overgrown baby you ever saw?

We have to hold on to our seats now, for it seems so incredible. There we are, bedecked in our caps and gowns, facing our friends, teachers, and parents as we sing our "Alma Mater." There's a strange mistiness about our eyes, and there's an unexplainable lump in our throats.

What was the name of that picture? Oh, yes, l recall now: "The Best Years of Your Liyes." How right you were, Mr. Padden!