Alumni 2012-2013 Newsletter - Haddon Heights High School Alumni

HHHS Connections
HH Alumni Newsletter 2012-2013
The Old Rail Tavern celebrates Heights pride
• Boys Soccer Takes States • Sports & Musical Awards • Where Are They
Now? • Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees • PLUS2013’s Alumnus of the Year...
Contents
Alumnus of the Year ........................... 4
Athletic Hall of Fame ....................... 6
Notes from Graduates ...................... 7
Athletic & Musical
Accomplishments ............................ 8
Where are they Now? ...................... 10
Leonard Jackson (‘68) shows double the Garnet pride in N. Cape May
News & Notes .................................... 14
Stock Market Team Wins ................... 14
Heights Graduate Returns Home ......... 14
Our Oldest Alumnus .......................... 15
New Members of the Heights
Alumni Association ........................ 15
Alumni Officers
President • Paul DeMartini, ‘80
Vice-President • Brian Moore, ‘80
Treasurer • Lorapearl DeMartini, ‘48
Newsletter Editor
Bethany Harshaw Bantle ‘95
Newsletter Design
Marc Pontelandolfo, under direction of
Stephen Cammarota, ‘84
Class of ‘50 Back Row: Dorothy Weatherby Coffey-Trout and Joe Ade;
Front Row: Bob Dilks, Gus Branco, John Connelly
Please check out our
webpage at:
www.haddonheightsalumni.com
This is a great place to
renew your membership
quickly and easily via our
paypal link. Just click the
‘join’ or ‘renew’ tab.
Dislike the internet? Don’t
worry. We still have our
P.O. box!
Class of ‘62 Celebrated their 50th Reunion in 2012
HHHS Alumni Association
PO Box 81
Haddon Heights, NJ 08035
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Alumnus of the Year
Captain Rouh, Congressional Medal of Honor Winner, Named 20
by Nick Gandolfo-Lucia (‘12) (Haverford College)
Captain Carlton R. Rouh, 2013’s Alumnus of the Year
Haddon Heights High School has produced
some fairly illustrious over the years, including the founder of Southwest Airlines. His story, however, is not the story of the hour: one
of Heights’ alumni received the Congressional
Medal of Honor, which is the highest honor
that can be awarded to a member of the armed
forces. Carlton R. Rouh was given the Medal of
Honor after diving on a grenade to save several
men in his squadron. He was one of 28 American men who dove on a grenade in a desperate
attempt to save other soldiers over the course
of the war. Four of those men survived; Captain
Rouh was one of them.
4
Carlton Rouh grew up in Lindenwold, NJ,
and attended Haddon Heights High School in
the 1930s- in that time period, Heights students were not just residents of Lawnside,
Barrington and Haddon Heights, but actually came from many surrounding towns. Rouh
played football for four years at 3HS and was
coached by the legendary George “Cap” Baker. Rouh graduated in 1937 and worked as a
manager at a local hotel, but when the United
States got involved in World War II after the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, he did what most
young American men did: he enlisted. Rouh
joined the Marines and served in the Pacific,
fighting against the Japanese.
In 1944, Rouh’s squadron was in the process of securing an outpost when he was hit
in the back by a sniper shot. While reeling from
the blow (which probably would have incapacitated any normal person), a grenade flew
through the window of the house and the already wounded Rouh, presumably while channeling Captain America, elected to dive on the
explosive in an attempt to save his squad. He
was successful – and not only did Rouh not
die, he remained conscious for the rest of the
battle. Once the Marines had won cover for
the night, they carried Rouh back to the first
aid station. “That was a miserable trip back,”
Rouh commented after the fact.
However, Captain Rouh’s story does not
end there; no, Rouh was not in the clear just
because they brought him back to the beach.
While waiting to board a plane to take him to
sea where he would be moved to Australia for
further medical treatment, Rouh was hit by a
stray mortar. So, in the span of just several
hours, Rouh was afflicted with a sniper shot
HHHSConnections
ed 2013’s Alumnus of the Year
to the back, a grenade to the vast majority of
his physical entity, and a mortar to whatever was left of his physical entity at that point.
Remarkably, Captain Rouh was still not dead,
and was received later that day off shore on
the medical ship.
Carlton Rouh was given the Congressional
Medal of Honor for his “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity,” but personally I subscribe
to the idea that you can’t really describe the
mental toughness and bravery associated with
willingly jumping onto a live grenade. After the
war, Captain Rouh returned to South Jersey,
got married to his high school sweetheart
Phyllis Rowand, raised his daughter (Jacquelyn A. Govan), served as mayor of Lindenwold
and lived a fairly long life (given that it involved
a grenade), dying at the age of 58 in Lawnside.
The story of Carlton Rouh continues to inspire: his tale of heroism has been featured in
several books written about World War II, and
numerous online articles can be found that
detail his exploits. Another alumnus, Joe Ade
(Class of 1950), has made spreading the word
about Captain Rouh something of a personal
mission. Mr. Ade is himself a veteran, having
served in Korea, and is also commander of
the Haddonfield American Legion. I was able
to speak with Mr. Ade in preparation for this
article, and his admiration for Captain Rouh
and his heroic deeds are quite apparent. It has
been Mr. Ade’s hope that Carlton Rouh may
one day be featured in the Haddon Heights
Hall of Fame for illustrious alumni; considering
the honor he received and the remarkable life
he lived, we can think of no better candidate.
Show your Garnet Pride with a Haddon Heights
banner, available for purchase at both John’s
Friendly Market, and the Haddon Heights Library.
Mission Statement
“To insure that Haddon Heights High
School offers the best acdemic and
extracurricular programs to each and
every student. This will be
accomplished by promoting school
spirit and support among the school’s
alumni, as well as the
communities of Haddon Heights,
Barrington and Lawnside.”
2013 • Alumnus of the Year
5
Athletic Hall of Fame
The Haddon Heights High School Athletic Hall
of Fame added four individuals and one team
to its ranks this past spring.
Kelly George (McCarthy) (’95), lettered in
soccer, basketball and track & field. Although
basketball was her primary sport, she was
named 1st Team All-Conference in all three
sports and was named All Group 1 in both basketball and track & field. Kelly went on to play
basketball at Ursinus where she was named to
the All Centennial Team twice. She led her team
in scoring, blocks and free throws her junior and
senior years and led the team in rebounding her
senior year. Kelly now teaches business education at Haddon Heights High School.
Tim Israel (’91), was a four year varsity letter
winner for both football and track & field. Tim
was 1st Team All-Conference in football and in
track & field and was selected All South Jersey
in track & field. He was a state champion in the
400 meters, 4x4 relay and long jump. Tim was
selected to 1st Team Rotary Bowl his senior
year. He attended Temple University on a full
scholarship where he participated in football
and indoor track and field. Tim graduated with
his BA in Criminal Justice.
Joy Stackhouse (Fehlinger) (’81), earned
seven varsity letters in field hockey, basketball and softball. She was selected to 1st Team
All-Conference in both field hockey and softball
and was 2nd Team All South Jersey in softball.
Joy was also selected to play in the Senior All
Star game in field hockey. Joy continued her
field hockey career at the University of Delaware where she started her sophomore, junior
and senior years. She graduated Magna Cum
Laude with a degree in Physical Therapy.
6
Al Teti (’52), was a three sport athlete at Haddon Heights. He played football, basketball and
baseball, but it was basketball where Al shined
the most. Al was a four year varsity starter and
co-captain. He led the Colonial Conference in
scoring his junior and senior years and broke
the high school’s single game scoring record at
that time, with 32 points. The basketball team
was Colonial Conference Champions in ’51 and
’52. He received All South Jersey and 2nd Team
All-State honors during his career. Al attended
Gettysburg College where he played basketball
and baseball. While at Gettysburg, Al set a single game scoring record of 42 points.
2001 State Champion Softball Team, under
the direction of Coach Ted Daily. That year was
a very special year for the softball program as it
won its first state championship. They were also
back to back conference and sectional champions. The team was led by current coach and
2011 Hall of Fame inductee, Michelle Schlichtig.
Kelly George (shown here with husband, Tim) was
named to the Heights Hall of Fame
HHHSConnections
Notes From Graduates
Duke Southard (’58) released a revised edition
of his novel, A Favor Returned, which can be
bought at Amazon and other book sites.
Don Reese (‘65) was elected to his second
term as Mayor of New Castle City, Delaware,
in April 2013. He was a member of city council
for 16 years and taught technology education in
the Colonial School District from 1969-2004. As
mayor, he has become known for his New Home
Owners Welcoming Program, which gives out
welcome baskets sponsored by local merchants
to new residents. He has resided in New Castle
for over 44 years and he and his wife, Connie,
have two children and two grandchildren.
Planning Reunions Just Got Easier
You may have seen a different name at the top of
those alumni emails that send out such things as news
of state championships and links to videos of singing
students. Jon Haas (’62), has stepped in to fill a much
needed role as database manager. He has already
assisted four classes this year with their reunions and
emailed invitations.
This alumnus received a BS in Physics at Drexel, followed by an MS in Environmental Science a year later.
Jon worked for Sunoco (as Director of Safety, Industrial Hygiene, Product Safety and Toxicology) and GE
Plastics as manager for occupational health, travelling
globally.
In 1998, Jon followed his wife Jackie to her new job in
Jacksonville, FL, leaving Pittsfield, MA, and its annual
13 feet of snow and five months of golf. He then consulted for twelve years along with developing software
applications for tracking safety program issues and
has a global list of clients including NASA.
Jon was on the golf teams for both Heights and Drexel and still tees it up weekly. His goal this year is to
shoot his age. The alumni association is happy Jon
has decided to devote some of his precious time in
retirement to help us out!
Don Reese was elected to his second term as
New Castle City Mayor
D.S. “Chip” Carroll, Jr (’65), has published a
book, Memoirs of an Impurfect Salesman. The
book, available on Amazon and Barnes & Nobles, gives humorous advice on how to succeed
in business.
John P. DiFiori, MD (’81), was installed as the
20th President of the American Medical Society
for Sports Medicine. This former Heights Alumnus of the Year is a UCLA Professor and a Chief
at the David Geffen School of Medicine. Additionally, he is beginning his twentieth year as a
team physician for UCLA.
Jon Haas poses with our banner at his fiftieth reunion.
2013 • Athletic Hall of Fame
7
2012-13 Athletic & Musical Accomplishments
Boys Soccer won the state championship for the Coast Championships. The marching unit was also
first time since 1974! They also tied the school record voted the ‘Best of South Jersey’ high school band by
for most wins in a season with 19 wins and set the the Courier Post Newspaper.
single season record for least goals allowed with 13.
Choir won numerous awards at their end of the
year competition, Music in the Parks. The Junior
School Chorus received a Superior Rating. The
Men’s Chorus won first place with an Excellent
Rating and Women’s Choir won best overall choir
and received the highest rating of Superior. In addition, Lindsay Narducci won Best Soloist and
Justina Snyder was named Best Accompanist.
Girls Soccer became South Jersey Group 1 Champions and earned the first girls soccer sectional title
in school history. They broke the school record for
most wins in a season with 19 and team shutouts
with 14.
Field Hockey made it to the Central Jersey Group
1 Championship game for the second year in a row,
but unfortunately lost both games.
Choirs of Heights with their awards from
Music in the Parks
Football won the Mayor’s Cup by defeating Haddonfield at the Thanksgiving Day game for the first
time in nine years.
The Marching Unit won the USBands New Jersey
State Championship with their show, ‘The Road Less
Travelled.’ At the USBands National Championship
at Giants Stadium, the marching unit took second
place and the color guard and percussion took first
in the nation for Group 1. High Voltage Color Guard,
Synergy Junior Guard and Short Circuit Elementary
guards each won the USBands Indoor Color Guard
Championship. Synergy also won the TIA Atlantic
8
Lindsay Narducci, Best Soloist, and Justina
Snyder, Best Accompanist, pose with their awards
from Music in the Parks
HHHSConnections
Softball won the Group 1 State Championship after
winning their third straight Conference Championship and second (back to back) South Jersey Championship.
win both a track event and a field event at the Meet of
Champions. The first person to accomplish this feat
was Carl Lewis! Dom also broke the SJ triple jump record. The 4x200 relay team of Dom Irons, Kenny Lewis, Alex Redcross and Kashiff Miller were State ChamBoys Tennis won their first South Jersey Group 1
pions and broke the Group 1 record.
Championship since 1974.
Boys Basketball – Brandon Joyner became a 1000
Individual Accomplishments
point scorer - one of nine in school history.
Boys Soccer - Jon Weaver broke the school record Girls Basketball - Junior Nadja Riggs scored her
for most shutouts in a season with 15 and career 1000th career point this year - one of seven in the
shutouts with 41. He was named boys soccer player school’s history.
of the year for the Inquirer and Courier- Post.
Softball – Maddie McCleery, Shayla Sweeney, Taylor
Wrestling – Alex Thompson was a two time District Nichols and Chelsea Thomas all got their 100th career
Champ, Regional Champ and the first State Cham- hits this season.
pion in the school’s history. Alex is one of four in
school history to have 100 career wins with 111 wins. Baseball – Nick Sciortino got his 100th career hit this
( Watch Alex Thompson discuss his win at http:// season.
www.philly.com/philly/video/196791101.html ) Phil Track – Pam Watson and Matt Moore broke school
Azzari was a District and Regional Champ and his records in the javelin. Dom Irons broke the school re105 wins also make him one of four in school history cord in the 200 meters and broke the school record in
with 100 or more career wins. Ian Lynch and Danny the triple jump relay with freshman Nick Smith. Dom
Hovern were also District Champs.
Irons broke the state record in the triple jump with a
jump of 50 feet 6 ¾ inches. That is the longest jump
in NJ history, the fourth ranked jump in the nation for
a high school kid and the 237th in the world for any
human being! He is a State Champion in the 100 meter dash and the triple jump and a Meet of Champion
winner in the triple jump. Dom was voted as the “performer of the year” by the SJ Track Coaches Association.
Heights athletes who received Division 1 scholarships were: Shayla Sweeney (softball - Rutgers),
Alex Thompson (football – University of Delaware),
Nick Sciortino (baseball – Boston College) and Dom
Alex Thompson celebrates his state championship
Irons (track – North Carolina A&T State University).
Indoor Track – Dom Irons won the 55 meter dash Twenty-three total seniors will be going on to play
at the Meet of Champions, becoming the fastest collegiate sports.
person in the state. By doing this, he accomplished
something that very few athletes in NJ have done. We had 32 seniors that were First Team All-ConferWhen you add his 55 meter dash title to his 2011 triple ence All Stars. We had 9 seniors that were Second
Team All-Conference All Stars.
jump title, he becomes the sixth boy in NJ history to
9
2013 • Athletic & Musical Accomplishments
Where are they now? - Theater Edition
do that.” He was cast in his first show, “Hello Dolly,”
for the Reading Civic Theatre (a 1,750 seat Broadway-style theater) and did 20 shows with them over
the next 12 years. Hudson’s devotion was especially
shown in 2003 when he wanted to re-join the cast of
Robert “Denny” Evaul (’61), was involved in plays My Fair Lady after having a heart attack. The director,
all through his school days, but he says the theater unfortunately, wanted him to more fully recover!
bug hit him big when he got a part in Once Upon Dave Carfolite (’72), sent in a very interesting stoa Mattress at Juniata College. He was on stage as ry about one of the old theater seats. “I remember
a knight and dancer but found that his dancing part in High School when Mr.Darby (orchestra and band
kept getting smaller and smaller, which he says was leader) announced to the school board that the audia tribute to his actual talent! Tools had always been torium had to be renovated, or he was going to leave.
one of his passions, and after joining in on various They didn’t, and he did. I spent hours and hours in
aspects of set building, he became one of the first these chairs working on sets for concerts and plays. I
two people (and the only freshman) to get the Juniata think they were part of the original building. But when
Masquer’s pin in their first year involved with theater. the auditorium was finally renovated years later my
After marrying an English teacher involved with a brother, Mike Carfolite, grabbed a symbolic ‘5th row
school drama club, Rosemary Leva, Evaul re-start- center’ - my favorite seat. This chair is heavy. He got
ed an interest in building sets. They both became the pieces to me in Indianapolis.
involved with the International Thespian Society and
I took it from Indianapolis to California where I had
the Queen City Stage Company, a small, profession- it rebuilt, and it has sat in each of my offices from
al Equity company.
jobs twice in California, Little Rock, Memphis, Myrtle
The Evauls have a 20’x30’ two story costume barn Beach and now in Greenville SC.
in their back yard, full of costumes and props that
It was those years in a chair like this that gave me a
they lend out for free.
love for lighting and production and eventually led me
When some of their high school students went to into a career in television - always behind the scenes.
college locally, they got involved backstage with the- What started with a summer acting class with W.T.
ater at Marist College. After Evaul’s wife became a Lavelle led to me picking up the chair yesterday,
founding member of the New York State Theater Ed- walking across the hall and placing it in the studio for
ucation Association, they ran the first NYSTEA con- this shot. It has been quite a ride.”
ference.
Upon retirement from IBM in 1996, Denny became
a full time technical advisor for The Masque and
Mime Society of Roy C. Ketcham Hign School, helping them to produce numerous musicals.
Heights has a proud history of outstanding theater
programs. Did you ever wonder what happened to
some of your favorite high school stage stars? We
set out to find alumni who are still involved in the
theater and here’s what we found out.
Dwayne Hudson (’66), says he only cared about
sports throughout high school up until the age of
almost 50. While watching his wife and oldest son
perform for various organizations (he never missed
a performance), he thought to himself, “Hell, I can
10
Dave Carfolite’s well-traveled Heights auditorium chair
HHHSConnections
Lynne Grundlock Brinkley (’74), remembers
the amazing talents of Mr. Lavelle and especially
his outstanding improvisational abilities. She now
brings the theatrical arts to her community as the
owner and sole tap teacher at The Tap Academy
LLC in Frankfort, Indiana. She and her daughter,
Audrey, teach various styles of dance at the 19year old studio to 100 students. Brinkley is currently writing tap choreography for a professional
theatre company in Indianapolis.
Lynne Grundlock Brinkley owns
The Tap Academy in Indiana
Kim Bantle-Taylor (’75), continued as a leading
lady at such places as Bucks County Playhouse,
Falmouth Playhouse in Cape Cod, Pocono Playhouse and numerous piano bars and dinner theaters. Kim formed From the Heart Productions, a
Broadway revue quartet. She has been a director
for over 20 years for high schools and community
theaters such as Temple Sinai (where she currently
directs).
Glenn Ford (’79), earned his theater degree at
Glassboro State College while working full weeks
as a stage hand for Harrahs Casino. He is the Regional Special Projects Manager for Caesars Entertainment and has been with the company for
32 years. His department is responsible for decorating any number of VIP events, promotions and
parade floats.
Ken Carter (’93), graduated from Westminster
Choir College (where he met his wife, Amy, who is
an elementary school vocal music teacher) in 1997.
He earned master’s and doctoral degrees in Music Composition and Theory from Rutgers (Ph.D. in
2001) and taught there (Mason Gross) for several
years. He was a faculty member at Westminster in
the early 00’s, and also taught at the American Boychoir School, in addition to having a large studio of
private piano students.
Carter taught at a performing arts high school in
Newark (Arts HS) for eight years before becoming Choral Director at West Windsor-Plainsboro HS
North. At North, he has two choirs, three a cappella
groups, and musically directs the spring musicals,
which (like the 3HS shows were) are truly outstanding,
and a lot of fun. He says that working on the shows
brings back great memories of shows at Heights,
such as “Pippin” and “Oklahoma.” “They were my
favorite part of high school, for sure,” says Carter.
Some graduates of the ‘90s may remember Carter composing music that the Heights Choir got to
perform. He does still compose and occasionally
pursues publication, usually of pieces for children’s
choirs. He has pieces published by Alliance Music
Publications and Santa Barbara Music Publishing.
Ken Carter
is a choral director
and a composer
Kim Bantle-Taylor formed From the Heart Productions
2013 • Where Are They Now?
11
Where are they now? - Cont’d
Jenny Pilong (‘93) has been performing continuously since leaving HHHS. She went to school in
NYC at the American Musical & Dramatic Academy
(where she shared a scene with Jesse Tyler Fergson).
Following that, she starred in many plays at the Ritz
Theatre in Oaklyn, NJ, performed on the Spirit of Philadelphia and got her Actor’s Equity Card working at
the Media Theatre in PA. She wrote (and performed
in) the book for a holiday show performed in South
Jersey and New York and wrote the book for (and
performed) Katya Stanislavskya’s musical, Fruitflies,
which was part of Philly Fringe. She directed the
same play for The Philadelphia Gay & Lesbian Theatre Fest. Soon after she took a theatre hiatus to write
a full length play called Ripples, that had a staged
reading at the Walnut Street Theatre in Philly.
Jenny started the a cappella group Hotsy Totsy
(which began as an Andrews Sisters tribute trio and
turned into a seven month gig at theTropicana in Atlantic City) in 2001. Twelve years later, they are still
booking jobs through hotsytotsygals.com.
Jenny & Me, a band, was formed 2003-ish. They
recorded their first album, Neon Halos in 2011 and
are working on a full length album this fall. Jenny’s
band can be found at venues such as The Hard Rock
Cafe, Tin Angel, North Star Bar, Lickety Split and Studio LuLoo and online at www.jennyand.me
Jenny Pilong founded and stars in
Hotsy Totsy and Jenny & Me
Dan Phillips (’99) performs with the Ambassadors of Harmony, the St. Louis area’s premier men’s
a cappella chorus of more than 130 voices known
for powerful and musically masterful performances.
The chorus has won three gold medals in the Barbershop Harmony Society’s international contest, most
recently in 2012 in Portland, Oregon. Dan is also an
alumnus of the Georgetown Chimes, Georgetown
University’s oldest all-male a cappella group.
Andrew Betz (‘06) graduated from Otterbein University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical
Theatre. Since then, he’s performed with a number
12
Dan Phillips of the Ambassadors of Harmony
HHHSConnections
of companies, including the Quintessence Theatre
Group in Mt. Airy Philadelphia and the Princeton
Festival in Princeton, NJ. One of his favorite experiences has been performing with the North American
Tour of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast in 2012, which
performed at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia.
“It was a great honor and thrill to perform for family
and friends in a theatre where I saw numerous shows
growing up.” He will be presenting a Cabaret at the
Ritz Theatre in Oaklyn, NJ this Black Friday with his
siblings, Laura (Class of 2008) and Tommy (Class of
2012). “I always welcome a friend request on the ol’
Facebook! Garnet Pride!”
Andrew Betz
performed
with the North
American Tour
of Disney’s
Beauty and
the Beast
Laura Betz (’08) is an actor based in Philadelphia,
where she has most recently performed in The Two
Noble Kinsmen at Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre. She graduated from Muhlenberg College in
2012, where she obtained a B.A. in Acting. Although
this young actor has been busy building her professional career in Philadelphia and New York, she still
makes time to reconnect with Haddon Heights to
see the high school musical each spring. Within the
next year and half, she’ll be moving to New York to
pursue stage, tv and film opportunities.
Laura Betz
performs in
Two Noble
Kinsmen in
Philly
A three-Betz Cabaret
featuring a performance
from the 2014 3HS Musical
Admission is $10 cash at the door
(Benefiting the 3HS Theatre Guild).
Light refreshments after!
Ritz Theatre
915 White Horse Pike Oaklyn, NJ
November 29, 2013 7:30-8:30
2013 • Where are they Now?
13
Stock Market Team Wins
Theodore Davis, adviser Mr. Scott Ponzetti and James
Ignaczewski won first place for the SIFMA Foundation
for Investor Education Stock Market Game.
Heights Graduate Home with Family
After Teaching in Kabul, Afghanistan
By Ken Roberts (previously published in The Retrospect)
Terry Drew is home for a three-month visit so that
he and his wife can introduce the home folks to their
two young children, ages 2 and 1, and vice versa.
The 1977 graduate of Haddon Heights High School
will then return to Tajikistan, a country directly north
of Afganistan and Pakistan, to teach Economics.
His wife, Hamroz, is a native of Tajikistan. Terry is
literate and conversationally fluent in Tajik and Dari,
the two languages spoken there.
Drew has had quite a convoluted and interesting life since leaving the halls of Haddon Heights
High. He grew up three doors from Mark Swanson, Retrospect editor, who remembers him for his
cross-country exploits.
“Terry’s father died when he was just an infant in
diapers,” Swanson said. Terry’s mother, Flora Drew,
worked at Tavistock Country Club for many years.
She had daughters and another son to take care of,
in addition to Terry.
Terry expended his energy running cross-country.
“The team would have, say, a race in Cherry Hill,”
Swanson related. “All the other kids would pile into
a bus to return to Haddon Heights. Not Terry. He ran
back.”
“I did those things,” Drew laughed. “I actually
was training for longer runs, which to me were marathons. I competed in many marathons when I was
a younger man.”
He made his first trip to a college in Iowa, but left
before he got a degree to join the Navy. He studied
nuclear engineering, nuclear mechanics, chemistry
and radiation control and served aboard a nuclear
submarine. He served eight years as a supervisor
14
of a mechanical watch section operating a nuclear
power plant aboard those subs.
Drew then studied a year to earn an advanced
rating at the Spanish Language Institute, then lived
in Costa Rica to study for four years at the Universidad Latina de Costa Rica. He earned a bachelor’s
degree in economics, became fluent in Spanish as
a professional translator, and took additional courses to earn a degree from Thomas Edison State College, New Jersey’s online university.
Back in this area, he taught at bilingual schools in
Philadelphia and Camden, where fluency in Spanish was a great asset teaching the many Hispanic
students in those cities.
Teaching those inner-city children led to working with the Refuge in Christ Drug Recovery Center, where Drew worked with clients to help young
people deal with the root problems that cause drug
addiction. He became president of the Refuge in
Christ Board of Directors and also youth director
and Spanish translation director.
He continued to attend college to improve his skills
in bilingual/bicultural education by getting a mas-
HHHSConnections
ter’s degree from Drexel University and a master of
arts from LaSalle University, the latter providing certification in the program.
In 2005, he applied to become a teacher in the
OASIS Schools, the international school in Kabul, Afghanistan. “All the courses were taught in English,
but of course it was a great asset to be able to converse with the students in their native language,” said
Drew.
“There is no direct correlation between Spanish
and the two languages, Tajik and Dari, that are spoken by the Afghani and Tajikistan peoples,” he explained. “But the manner in which I learned Tajik and
Dari were the same. My background as a translator
really helped me.”
He met his wife, Hamroz, at the school in Kabul.
They have now been married for almost six years.
They have a daughter, Anna Mojeza, who is now 2,
and a son, John Sherjahon, this past year.
“We both have a very strong Christian background,”
said Drew. “In Tajikistan, there are registered Christian churches, whereas they are not welcome in Afghanistan. We feel we can raise our children and not
have to practice undercover, as was required in Afghanistan.”
In high school, he developed a 15-mile running
course from Haddon Heights Park to the Cooper
River Park and back via other county parks. “Over
the years, I still run that route whenever I am in this
area,” he said.
Terry may still be that Haddon Heights boy who ran
many miles, but now he can do it and speak Spanish
and Tajik on his travels.
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Our Oldest Alumnus Turns 103
Rosemary Morello (’27) turned 103 July 24,
2013 and lives in Wilmington, NC. Looking fantastic and in good health, her family writes that she is
2013 • News & Notes
able to hold many interesting and wonderful conversations. She enjoys sharing stories of growing
up in Barrington and has a remarkable memory.
Blessed with a long and productive life, we believe her to be our oldest living graduate.
Rosemary Morello on her 103rd birthday
New Members of the
Heights Alumni Association
Aubrey Andrews - 2013
Michael Barney - 1974
Judith “Judy” Shields Berge - 1958
Ryley Bushey - 2013
Vinny Calla - 2013
Donald S. Carroll, Jr. - 1965
Tyler Christy - 2013
Valerie Semola Ehly - 1968
Jonathan M. Haas - 1962
Christopher Iacono - 2013
Leonard Jackson - 1968
Ryan Janda - 2013
Kyra Lyman - 2013
F. Joseph Merlino - 1970
Barbara Feeley Oakland - 1972
Emma Rittman - 2013
Max Robinson - 2013
Brianna Russell – 2013
Robert “Bob” Saulin - 1968
Joy A. Fehlinger Stackhouse - 1981
Lori Ashfield Valerio - 1982
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HHHS Alumni Association
PO Box 81
Haddon Heights, NJ 08035