March 2021 Update
As we continue the journey through Covid-19, please stay safe and well and follow guidelines set out by your local health authorities. Thinking of everyone!
Reunion News -
After receiving the comments from
classmates, John Dolan and I are looking at the idea of holding
some kind of reunion, possibly an informal gathering. Due to
Covid, we are still not firming up any plans at this point and
will revisit the possibilities in a month or two. We welcome comments and suggestions from those
who didn't respond previously so that more classmates'
opinions will be taken into consideration.
You are welcome to
contact us by email at mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com to let
us know your feelings regarding a reunion.
We will keep
everyone advised. Please stay tuned for further information by
email and via the class group on FB. In these uncertain times we
want to be safe, first and foremost. Thanks!
*****
From Lynn Savino~
Dear Classmates,
Kevin Mariani passed away peacefully on January 29 with family by his
side. He will be deeply missed by his sisters Gerri and Ricia and his
brothers Marty, Ron, Tommy, John, James, Anthony and Michael and his
many adoring nieces and nephews. Kevin had many
friends who he considered family. A celebration of life will be held at
a later date. If anyone is interested, please feel free to contact me.
Love, Lynn
(If you would like to connect with Lynn, email Sue at the address at the end of the blog and it will be forwarded to Lynn.)
Thank you to Joe Fagan for this photo memory.
Kevin, (front, in blue shirt) joined The Fagans - Ann, Shane, Colleen, Jack and Joe.
Thanks to Lynn Savino for sharing this photo of
Kevin from our yearbook.
*****
TJ Wilks and Debbie Demeduk are expecting grandchild #3 in mid June!
Here are their grandkids who are anxious for a new sibling. Aren't they sweet?
*****
From Debbi Karpowich O'Connor comes this submission:
Greetings from Rockaway, New Jersey! There is really no new news to report from this past year. As with the rest of the world, we have been living through covid with a healthy dose of fear, disbelief, and renewed thankfulness for blessings previously taken for granted. My husband, Brian (class of 1974, Waldwick High School) retired in September so we are both on the other-side of full-time jobs. We've managed to keep healthy and sane during this year, and have gotten our Pfizer vaccines. Having lost a cousin and an uncle to this killer, we were ECSTATIC to receive our shots and happily exchanged a sore arm, a day of tiredness, and a headache for peace of mind. During the pandemic, I continued to work part-time in our cute little Rockaway Borough Public Library. The library is housed in a historic house on Main Street in Rockaway, so, considering the size, we have been open to patrons by appointment only. I've been using my past teaching skills to help create take-home craft bags that can be picked up curbside. This job totally fits my life as a retired teacher, since I love books and I always enjoyed creating what I thought were cool science lessons for my middle school students.
At home, Brian and I are missing our two grown children terribly. Melissa is doing well in Brooklyn, working from her apartment since the start of the pandemic. Luckily her boyfriend lives two miles from her apartment, so they have kept each other sane. We haven't seen her for six months; she is waiting for her shot before we visit. My son Kyle is finishing up his third year at Moody Air Force Base. We haven't seen him for 15 months. To be honest and emotional about this, my heart hurts from how much I miss hugging my kids and physically seeing them. Kyle has had his Moderna vaccine, so we are hoping that we will be able to see him in the near future.
I hope and pray that all reading this are in good health and safe. I am looking forward to the time when we can all share smiles and laughter again. Until then, everyone stay well!
Congratulations to the Dooley Family!
Proud Grandpa Mike Dooley is pleased to welcome a new granddaughter. Sloane Mila Upham was born on February 24, 2021. Sloane is the first child of their daughter Morgan and her husband and they reside in Nashville.
Congratulations!
*****
Some exciting news from Cathy Swickle Johnson - I am so excited to be a grandparent as of November 25, 2020...our brightest spot in a very weird year! My granddaughter, Raegan Allen Basch, was born to my son and his wife, Jacob and Ariel Basch and they have been asking me, even before she was born, what I would like to be called...never really thought about it and my first reply was, "whatever comes out of her mouth!" Looks like we have settled on Mimi...but who knows...that could change! She is, of course, the cutest thing ever (!!!) and it's rather surreal...and wonderful.
One of my favorite pictures of Raegan...on the phone...just like me at work...every day! She is already, by default, an Eagles fan and we are also introducing her to the Flyers!!!
Congratulations to the Johnson, Swickle and Basch Families! *****
From Joe Cuhaj -
I wanted to share
some exciting news about my granddaughter, Cora, who just turned 13.
You may not know, but she was born with a rare disease called
Syngap1, an intellectual disability and neurological disorder. She is
one happy kid, even has her Gramps bad sense of humor. She dances
with the local special needs dance troupe here in Daphne, Alabama,
and loves to sing, especially Broadway show tunes. Her favorite show
right now is Hamilton and can rip off one of the tunes at a moment’s
notice.
Alabama is extremely
fortunate to have a program that was patterned after the national
Make-a-Wish program. It’s called Magic Moments, a program that
grants wishes to children in the state with chronically
life-threatening medical conditions. My daughter sent Cora’s wish
in.
Well, a few weeks
ago, a van pulls up in front of my daughter’s house and out pops a
group of girls dressed to be on Broadway with a surprise – her wish
was granted! Cora, my daughter Kellie, son-in-law Michael, and
grandson Stevie, have an all expense paid trip to NYC! They will see
all the sights – the museums, the Empire State Building, Yankees’
game, the usual touristy things and then have front row seats to see
Hamilton in person! They “may” even have a meet-and-greet with
Lin-Manuel Miranda. That’s under negotiation, or so they tell me.
This is such a great
gift for Cora. I can’t wait for them to go and hear all about it.
In the attached photo, Cora is the tall girl standing to the left of
the girl with the Statue of Liberty crown.
As for me, I have
quite a few books that will be released in the coming months and in
the works. I have two new outdoor recreation guides coming out –
Paddling Alabama 2nd Edition in April
(no, it’s not about corporal punishment!) and Hiking Waterfalls
Alabama in June. A third outdoor guide, Hiking Alabama 5th
Edition, will be released early next year. The first edition was
released 20 years ago! Apparently, somebody liked it.
So, if you ever come
to Alabama and want to hike or kayak, look me up. I know a guy. One
day I’ll write “60 Hikes of New Jersey”.
And I am really
thrilled to have a new historical non-fiction book coming out next
spring for Prometheus Books titled, Space Oddities: Forgotten
Tales of Mankind’s Exploration of Space. I have been a space
geek since I was a kid (used to fly model rockets with the Mahwah
Model Rocket Club at Ramapo College) so this book is a real treat for
me. There are some incredible stories I’m uncovering. Be on the
lookout for it.
A blast from the past...I was looking for some interesting "old news" and thought this would bring back some memories.
Here is some football news from Bergen Passaic Football website ~
1975 (8-2/8-1, 248pf, 49pa)
Midland Park \ W \ 26-0
Bergen Tech \ W \ 44-6
at Elmwood Park \ W \ 13-9
Hawthorne \ L \ 9-13
at Manchester \ W \ 24-0
Glen Rock \ W \ 42-0
at Passaic Tech \ W \ 35-6
Waldwick \ W \ 42-0
*Rutherford \ W \ 7-12 \ Playoffs
at Ramsey \ W \ 6-3
1975 \ 1st Team All-County \ Ron Kort \ T \
1975 \ 1st Team All-County \ Walt Michaels \ LB-K \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Joe Fagan \ LB \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Brett Hardman \ G \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Frank Longo \ DB \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Kevin Mariani \ DL \
1975 \ 1st Team BPSL \ Terry Porter \ DB \
1975 \ Honorable BPSL \ Dick Bjurstrom \
Sadly Dick and Kevin are no longer with us but the memories remain.
Donner Tevis is happy to share these photos:
Hard at work - Here is Donner on the last big gather off High Country.
Then they herded them in a snowstorm in December down the highway.
Here is her new Appy horse.
Now it's vacation time!
Donner and her husband Morrill in Puerto Vallarta in February.
On their trip they enjoyed a private whale watching boat where they spent 1/2 a day.
There were lots of humpback moms and calves playing in the ocean.
Male whales breach to show off for females.
A wonderful trip was had by all!
*****
Celebrating her February birthday, here's Debbie Demeduk.
Thanks to her hubby TJ Wilks for the photo!
News from Joe and Ann Fagan regarding their son Shane -
"So happy for Shane. He has been accepted to the USNA Economics Honors Program for his senior (Firstie year). Participating in the Honors program gives midshipmen the chance to work with a faculty mentor on a research project of their choice. This opportunity allows in-depth research, outside of the traditional classroom structure. At the end of the project, midshipmen present their research findings to the faculty. These experiences can be very valuable in the scholarly and professional development of participating midshipmen. Upon successful completion, he will be awarded a Bachelor's of Science in Quantitative Economics with Honors."
Classmate Joe Cuhaj also shared this blast from the past for our enjoyment:
I also found a partial newspaper clipping I’ve attached from the old Home and Store News the day after our graduation. It was in a box of old stuff I was rummaging through. My mom had clipped it out and saved it. She started underlining the names of our classmates she knew. Glad she underlined my name!! LOL! Wish I had the other half to see who else she knew. During the last reunion, I was shocked to find out how many of our classmate’s moms she knew that I didn’t know about.
Thank you for reading this edition of the blog. And big thanks to those who submitted pictures and news and allow it to be shared with our classmates.
If you have any questions or comments, send them to mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com If you would like to connect with Lynn Savino, please email me and I will get that set up.
Please keep us up-to-date with your contact information so we can keep you in the loop about news and events. If you know of anyone in the class who hasn't received any info, please have them email mahwahhighschool1976@yahoo.com so we can add their information to the database so they receive the mass emails and such.
Reminder, we have a class group on Facebook - if you aren't a member yet but are on FB, let me know and I will add you or put in a request to join the group. Here is the group link - https://www.facebook.com/groups/47889678341
There is also a group - You Know You're From Mahwah If and there are posts about the town, old memories and current news and events. You can find it here - https://www.facebook.com/groups/46650173906 You can request to join.
The next edition of the blog is in October; should there be any news of importance before that I will send out a mass email to the class.
Thanks again. Happy Spring! Be safe and stay well!
Sue
Some exciting news from Cathy Swickle Johnson - 
