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.


HICKSVILLE VIETNAM WAR ERA MEMORIAL - PROJECT UPDATE

Donations of $75 for March have finally been recorded, but there have been none since then. If you are not financially strapped due to the Pandemic, we can still use your help for the Dedication Ceremony (when that becomes possible) and for future Memorial maintenance. As always, details on how to donate are contained in the July Update.

There was still no new progress this month due to the continuance of the Pandemic. We are pleased to tell you that our core action team is safe and in good health. We are thankful for this and hope the same is true for each of our readers and alumni.

While further action is at a stand still, please remember that the Memorial is complete and can be viewed by anyone visiting the Memorial Gardens located on the south side of the Jerusalem Avenue Middle School.

This project will be officially completed once we are able to conduct the Dedication Ceremony at the Memorial.

We trust all readers are staying safe at this difficult time. As always, should you wish to make any comments on the Update, please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

On behalf of the Project Team,
Joe Carfora, HHS 1962


CLASS OF 1980 CLASS REUNION

Note the new date. Everything else stays the same.
August 7, 2021

7:30-11:30 pm
Oak Room at the Heritage Club at Bethpage. 
Cost $125 includes food and drink. 
Payment info will be released soon.
Nearby Hotels include: (Book sooner rather than later)
Hilton Garden Inn Round Swamp Road
Homewood Suites Round Swamp Road
Holiday Inn, Plainview on Sunny Side Blvd
Four Points by Sheraton in Melville, Plainview on South Service Road
Any questions? Contact Sue at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 


The Newsletter


Photo Gallery

These pictures are very interesting and a few might remember if you are old enough.

  • galler3O.J. Simpson running from the police on June 17, 1994
  • galler4American soldiers on ship saying goodbye to their loved ones before leaving for Egypt in 1963
  • galler5Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge, 1934
  • galler6Air hostess and steward serving Scandinavian country style buffet,  SAS Scandinavian Airlines, 1969
  • galler7A Ukrainian-American family celebrates the death of Stalin, 1953
  • galler8A forgotten age of open-air schools in the Netherlands, 1957
  • galler9Women protesting forced Hijab, a few days after the revolution in Iran, 1979
  • galler10German prisoners of war in American camps are shown footage of German concentration camps, 1945
  • galler11Using a traditional Japanese blade, 17-year-old Yamaguchi assassinates socialist politician Asanuma in Tokyo , as it was captured on live television in 1960
  • galler12U.S. President Lyndon Johnson listens to a tape sent by Captain Charles Robb (his son-in-law) from Vietnam, 1968
  • galler13The wives of the astronauts on the Apollo 8 mission, the moment they heard their husbands voices from orbit, 1968
  • galler14The settlement of Deadwood began illegally in the 1870s on land which had been granted to Native Americana. In 1874, Colonel George Armstrong Custer led an expedition into the Black Hills and announced the discovery of gold on French Creek near present-day Custer , South Dakota. This announcement triggered the Black Hills Gold Rush and gave rise to the new and lawless town of Deadwood.
  • galler15U.S. soldiers of 969th Field Artillery Battalion decorate shells they're delivering
    to the front line in Germany, 1944.
  • galler16Boy receiving a new pair of shoes at an orphanage in Austria 1946
  • galler17The headquarters of Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party in Rome, 1934
  • galler18The Great Sphinx of Giza partially excavated, 1860s.
  • galler19December 5th, 1933: The day when nationwide alcohol ban was repealed.
  • galler20The 3245-year-old seal on Tutankhamen's tomb before it was broken in 1922

 


Birthdays & Anniversaries

Birthdays

  • 1: Susan (Voelbel) Dalton; Tom Pilko
  • 2: Lois (Levy) Calame; Bob Ward; Eric Malter
  • 3: Jim Cutropia; Debbie (Fischer) Dowdell
  • 4: Margaret (Wangenheim) Manjarrez
  • 6: Elin (Fischman) Lawrence
  • 5: Lorraine (Miltonberg) Dalaimo; Mike "Mack" Siracusa
  • 7: Bonnie Brigandi
  • 8: Bob DiBartolomeo; David Gaudio; Bill Walden
  • 9: Diane (Scarola) Bayne
  • 10: Karen (Hartig) Shore; Toni (Grundon) Martin
  • 11: Tom Haller; John Sherin; Dennis Listort; Eileen (Ofenloch) Pelcher; Donna Rivera-Downey; Colleen (Shekleton) Sluder
  • 12: Bob Briell; Phil Anselmo; Bob Siegel; Mark Leon
  • 14: John Diers; Richard Adams
  • 15: Roy Rotheim; Bob Jones; Patti (Hickey) Rees; Joan (Claudy); Laura White
  • 17: Roy E. Meier; Anthony Acito; Barbara (Bieniewicz) Dethlefsen; Maryann (Johnston) Dolan
  • 18: Janet D (Stietz) Masi; Alan Nave; Mike Heroy; Jayne M. Trentanove; Torrilee (Christianson) Hill
  • 19: Peter Henneberger; Jeff Feierstein; Maureen (Hanifan) Olsen
  • 20: Glen Olsen; Lisa (Dorais) Wissler; Alice Freeman-Prota
  • 21: Lorraine (Martello) Vito
  • 22: Frank Sprufera; Leslie (Becker) Hecht
  • 23: Ronnie (Gilson) Birk; John Ceravino
  • 24: Dorothy (Kunz) Drago; Michael Endsley
  • 25: Mike Anselmo; Rochell (Heyman) Baron; Frank Smith; Veronica (Gilson) Birk; Eileen (Maldener) Lazarus
  • 26: John D'Antonio
  • 28: Marianne (Sluder) Jones
  • 30: Carolyn (Bartlett) Richman
  • 31: Matthew A. Bruckner

Anniversaries

  • 8/??/1988: Rob and Nancy McCotter, (HX)
  • 8/02/1975: Shari (Stockinger) and Wayne Sternberger (MD)
  • 8/03/1969: Les and Karen (Malter) Coles, (FL)
  • 8/05/1980: Arnie and Ronnie Gould (MA)
  • 8/06/1966: Norm and Ann Marie Hicks (VA)
  • 8/07/1976: Beverly (Fetz) and John White (NC)
  • 8/07/19??: Janet & Gerry Dizinno (TX)
  • 8/07/19??: Arthur and Susan Romeo (L.I.)
  • 8/08/19??: Harold and Karen Buttitta (FL)
  • 8/08/1970: Edward and Mariann Coleman (L.I.)
  • 8/10/1974: Bart and Audrey Savino (FL)
  • 8/12/1967: Steve and Diane (Boseling) Baum (PA)
  • 8/12/1972: Gary and Joanne Nadell (TX)
  • 8/12/1972: Herb and Kathy (McMaugh) Pearce (NC)
  • 8/12/1978: Steve and Lorena Markowski (VA)
  • 8/14/1987: Jane (Deveau) and Larry Kalka (MI)
  • 8/15/1959: Alice (Hertel) and Gerard Florentine (PA)
  • 8/17/1947: Bea (Eisemann) and George Baldwin (FL)
  • 8/18/1979: Kathy (McManus) and Phil Bock (NC)
  • 8/19/1978: Bill and Pat Jakabek (RI)
  • 8/20/1972: Joe and Francine Ratto (WA)
  • 8/21/1987: Victor and Joyce Olsen (FL)
  • 8/22/19??: Bob and Terri Cooperman, (FL)
  • 8/22/1965: Linda (Zuckerman) and Jerry Rausch (L.I./FL)
  • 8/22/1970: Santo and Jeanne Carfora (WI)
  • 8/24/1974: Nancy (Lauro) and Mike Fariello (L.I.)
  • 8/25/1968: Stephan and Diveda Spector (FL)
  • 8/25/1962: Ann (Cassese) and Tommy Costantino (L.I./FL)
  • 8/25/1973: Patrick and Barbara Dunne (FL)
  • 8/25/1979: Danny and Kathy Mangialomini (L.I.)
  • 8/27/1967: Pat (Appelman) and Peter Levitin
  • 8/27/1966: Janet & Joe Starpoli (L.I.)
  • 8/29/19??: David and Betty (Grandis) Kerner (CA)
  • 8/29/1964: Ed and Angel (Anselmo) Giannelli (SC)
  • 8/29/1970: Nancy (Carter) and Jim Bosse, (CO)
  • 8/30/1974: Marianne (Sluder) and Bob Jones (NY)
  • 8/31/1975: Cheryl (Totter) and John Kevin Mulholland (HX)
  • 8/31/1996: Charlie and Charla Henningsen (NY)
  • 8/31/1996: Debbie (Patelis) and Rich Kister (NJ)

Memory Lane

A Fascinating Piece of History

Remarkably interesting. I bet most people didn't know this. I wish that there was an account of who ordered this and who drafted and approved this surrender plan. Who says that Americans do not have a sense of history and culture?

Why did the US choose a US Navy Iowa-class battleship as the location for Japan 's surrender in World War 2 even though they were in Tokyo Bay and could have used a building on land? Pure symbolism. Nothing says "you're utterly defeated" than having to board the enemy's massive battleship in the waters of your own capital city. A naval vessel is considered sovereign territory for the purposes of accepting a surrender. You just don't get that if you borrow a ceremonial space from the host country. In addition, the Navy originally wanted the USS South Dakota to be the surrender site. It was President Truman who changed it to USS Missouri, Missouri being Truman's home state.
The Japanese delegation had to travel across water to the Missouri , which sat at the center of a huge US fleet. It's a bit like those movie scenes where someone enters a big-wig's office, and the big-wig sits silhouetted at the end of a long room, behind a massive desk. The appellant must walk all the way to that desk along a featureless space, feeling small, exposed, vulnerable and comparatively worthless before the mogul enthroned in dramatic lighting before him. By the time he gets there the great speech he had prepared is reduced to a muttered sentence or two.

In addition, the USS Missouri flew the flag of Commodore Perry's 19th century gun-boat diplomacy mission that opened the closeted Edo-era Japan to the world and forced upon them the Meiji restoration which ended the rule of the samurai class. The symbolism here is clear - "this is how we want you to be and remember what happens to countries that defy us." It was particularly humiliating for a proud country like Japan , and that was entirely the point.

The symbolism of the ceremony was even greater than that. The ship was anchored at the precise latitude/longitude recorded in Perry's log during his 1845 visit, symbolizing the purpose of both visits to open Japan to the West. Perry's original flag was also present, having been flown all the way from the Naval Academy for the ceremony. When the Japanese delegation came aboard, they were forced to use an accommodation way (stairs) situated just forward of turret #1. The freeboard (distance between the ship's deck and the water line) there makes the climb about twice as long as if it had been set up farther aft, where the freeboard of the ship is less.

NOTE: This was even more of an issue for the Japanese surrender party as the senior member, Foreign Affairs Minister Shigemitsu, was crippled by an assassination attempt in 1932, losing his right leg in the process. The #1 and #2 turrets had been traversed about 20 degrees to starboard. The ostensible reason for this was to get the turret overhangs out of the way to create more room for the ceremony on the starboard veranda deck, but in fact this would have only required traversing turret #2 had it been the real reason. In reality, the turret position also put the gun barrels directly over the heads of the Japanese. They were literally standing "under the gun."The honor guard of US sailors (side boys) were all hand-picked to be over six feet tall, a further intimidation of the short-statured Japanese. The surrender documents themselves, one copy for the Allies and one for the Japanese contained identical English-language texts, but the Allied copy was bound in good quality leather, while the Japanese copy was bound with light canvas whose stitching looked like it had been done by a drunken tailor using kite string.


After the signing ceremony, the Japanese delegation was not invited for tea and cookies; they were shuffled off the ship as an Allied air armada of over 400 aircraft flew overhead as a final reminder that American forces still had the ability to continue fighting should the Japanese have second thoughts on surrender.


Casale's Corner

Image may contain: 1 person, sitting, closeup and outdoor

"Yesterday, as (my son) Sean and I traveled to NC for his soccer tourney we pulled off at a small gas station for a drink.

While I paid, I gave Sean the keys so he could head back out to the car.

It took me a little while to checkout and as I exited the store, I noticed Sean's door opened and he was walking away from my car towards a man in a wheelchair.

He was an older African American gentleman, with amputated legs and appeared "homeless".

My first reaction, sadly, was: "Oh crap! He is hitting Sean up for money and has called him over."

But as I walked closer Sean had clearly had a short conversation with the man, turned around and headed back to the car.

So, I did the same. As I entered the car, I asked him what that was all about.

"Nothing Dad. I just was asking if he needed help. He said no thanks, that he was fine but thanked me for asking."

See, at first glance I didn't even notice that the gentleman was attempting to cross a gravel parking lot, full of potholes, in a wheelchair using only his hands.

I didn't notice that my 11yo child was man enough to see this in the mirror of my car, drop his electronics he was playing, get out and offer to help the guy.

As we began to leave Sean asked if we could give the man some money. We pulled up beside him and I asked if he could use a few bucks.

He said: "No thank you, I'm fine. Your son was a real gentleman and gave me all I needed today. God Bless."

We rolled up the window and began to drive off. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Sean wave at him, and he waved back with a huge smile on his face.

Would I have gotten out of the car and done the same?

I don't post this looking for any praise for Sean. I post this to expose a real nastiness we have in our world. We spew such bile and hatred on every news channel, every Facebook post, every tweet.

It's not a right or left thing. We all do it. We have forgotten to look at the world through the eyes of a child.

Sean wasn't looking for praise for what he did. He didn't even know I would see it. He just saw a man that he thought needed help.

If we all just stopped once a day and tried to make one-person smile. One stranger stop and think "hey, that was nice". Could we make real change?

As I said, this was a post that would paint a poor picture of my judgment. But don't many of us have the same reactions many times?

Maybe it's just me. Maybe I'm the one that needs to change. I just pray the world doesn't change this kid."

Credit: Blanton O'Neal

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