Newsletter for the Alumni and Friends of
Hicksville High School Hicksville, New York

The Editors:
Buffalo Bob Casale '61	Linda (Piccerelli) Hayden '60
Pat (Koziuk) Driscoll '56	Bob (Gleason) Wesley '61

Contributing Editors: Bob Gillette & Walter Schmidt

Webmaster: Roger Whitaker

To contact the editors, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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For information on the Class of '63 50th Reunion, please visit 63.hixreunion.com

Here's a Class of '63 Reunion update: We're very excited to let everyone know that we'll be adding 1 or 2 more events to the Class of 1963 50-Year Reunion schedule in the next few weeks and the reunion is turning into a weekend that will be remembered! All 1963 classmates and their guests are encouraged to send in their ticket order as soon as possible so the committee can get a better handle on the total number of gifts, premiums and prizes to order. Also by replying early, we can give our tour "hosts" some idea of the number of participants and we can get additional and better "perks" from the Plainview Holiday Inn.If you received a printed invitation in the mail, an order form and reply envelope was included. Don't wait. Send it back today! In addition to payment by check, payment can be made by credit card or through PayPal. If you received an email, there is a link to a downloadable order form that can be printed. There is also a link on the official reunion web site: http://63.hixreunion.com We would also like to clear up some confusion regarding the dates of our reunion. The "one and only" Class of 1963 50-Year Reunion is happening the weekend of October 11-13, 2013, with the main event scheduled on Saturday evening, October 12th. There are a few people on the social media sites talking about multi-class reunions, rock-n-roll reunions, etc. with dates ranging from June through September. Don't be confused. Our reunion is definitely a "go" and is "on."We look forward to seeing everyone in October!

Your Reunion Committee:

• Elliot Gorlin
• Tommy Sullivan
• Mike Ollins

PO Box 26004
Las Vegas, Nevada 89126
T (702) 375-7089
F (702) 314-8815
www.HHS1963.com

Official Class of 1963 50-Year Reunion T-Shirt Now Available!Commemorate the event in style with this 100% cotton,  6.1 oz Heavyweight T printed in our school colors!

Reserve yours now to be picked up at the registration table when you check in, or we can ship it to you now for a low flat fee. We will only have a limited additional quantity for sale at the reunion.

Sizes S-XL - $10.95 per shirt
Sizes 2XL and 3XL - $12.95 per shirt

Send a check or money order for the cost of the shirt (plus $5.00 shipping, if you would like it sent to you)  to the address below. Please be sure to indicate the size(s) desired.

Make checks payable to:
HHS Class of 1963 Reunion Committee
P.O. Box 26004
Las Vegas, Nevada 89126-0004
We can also accept payment via PayPal. Our PayPal account is: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
Be sure to provide your shipping address in the PayPal Comments box if we are shipping to you.

Hicksville Vietnam War Era Memorial - PROJECT UPDATE

With official site approval for the Memorial gained in June from the Hicksville Public School Board, we are making progress with fundraising plans.  We are forming a not-fo-profit (NFP) named Hicksville Vietnam Era Memorial, LLC, a tax identification number has been obtained and we await IRS approval for NFP status.  Once this is obtained, a bank account will be opened by Bill Walden and fundraising for the Memorial will proceed under Bill's leadership.

In the meantime, By-Laws for the LLC were drafted by Ken Strafer in August and will be circulated soon to the entire Project Team for comment and approval.   

For additional details, please see this month's complete update by clicking on the Honoring Our Veterans tab of this newsletter.  Wishing all of you and your families a Happy and Healthy Labor Day Weekend.

On behalf of the Project Team,
Joe Carfora, HHS '62

The Newsletter

Birthdays & Anniversaries

Casale's Corner

Love This Teacher

Back in September of 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School in Little Rock, Arkansas did something not to be forgotten.

On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all the desks from her classroom. When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks.

'Ms. Cothren, where're our desks?'

She replied, 'You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.'

They thought, 'Well, maybe it's our grades.'

'No,' she said.

'Maybe it's our behavior.'

She told them, 'No, it's not even your behavior.'

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom. By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms. Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room. The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom.

Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he or she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.'

At this point, Ms. Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it. Twenty-seven (27) U.S. Veterans, all in uniform, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Martha said, 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don't ever forget it.'

By the way, this is a true story. And this teacher was awarded Teacher of the Year for the state of Arkansas in 2006.

Please consider passing this along so others won't forget either that the freedoms we have in this great country were earned by U. S. Veterans. Always remember them and the rights they have won for us. Blessings abound in the USA!