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Dear
Resident,
Judging
the success of a school district-- how well it performs its job of educating
young people--is a difficult task. It involves problems of definition
concerning the goals of education and the meaning of the phrase, “a
well-educated' citizen.” It also involves the need for compilation and
analysis of many different kinds of data, covering a wide range of
information on our students from kindergarten to Wheatley graduation and even
bevond. Thus the task of evaluation is a never-ending one, which deserves
continuing and constant appraisal.
One
aspect of such appraisal is to be found in the accompanying report, which
highlights a detailed follow-up study of the first three Wheatley graduating
classes, those of 1958, 1959, and 1960. This study, interesting and
informative in itself, lays the groundwork for an annual follow-up of our
high school graduates that will provide a continuing source of highly useful
data for our residents, the professional staff, and the Board of Education.
The
committee of dedicated residents who undertook to initiate and carry through
this detailed survey has performed a most valuable service to the entire
district. It is with a great sense of gratitude for their tireless effort and
an equal sense of appreciation for the significant value of their work that
we present this report to you.
February
28, 1963
Sincerely
Yours,
Alberta
L, Saletan
Mrs.
Leonard Saletan
President,
Board of Education East Williston School District
Writes Karen
Bartscherer - “So
much of my success as a teacher I credit to my incredible luck to have done
my student teaching at Wheatley. Although Betty O’Connor Bradley was my
official mentor, all of the English teachers in the department and many
others throughout the school went out of their way to share their practice,
to welcome me into their classrooms, and to take a sincere interest in me as
a potential future colleague. The following fall, I took a part-time
appointment at Wheatley over two full-time positions offered at good Long
Island districts where I had interviewed! That worked out well.😊”
Writes Ilona Willick
Guzman - “I
was in the School Within a School (“SWS”)! Ted Tchack and Stu Doig were
the greatest. They knew how to relate to kids and treat them as
adults. And Steve Ehre (faculty) lives near me here in Scottsdale, AZ.
He’s become quite the artist! We had lunch together a few years back.
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Steve Ehre and Ilona
Willick Guzman
These
guys, along with so many of the other teachers, did a fantastic job of
teaching us critical thinking skills, which, of course, I didn’t realize
until adulthood, when it became very clear.
My
family and I lived on Bengeyfield Drive, in East Williston, in between the
Nash (Susan, 1966, Laura, 1968, and Charlie, 1973) and the Poulos (John,
1971, and George “Gigi,” 1974) houses. Gary Cervellione (1974) lived on
the other side of the Poulos house. There were so many of us all up and down
Bengeyfield Dr. And so many of my classmates are gone way too soon –
over 30 of us now. So you can imagine how much we’re all looking
forward to our 50th reunion in October!
My
brother Nelson (“Nicky”) was the athlete of the family. He was a track
star and held a Wheatley sprint record for a number of years. He runs
into people at reunions who still remember all the home runs he hit in Little
League! I remember being dragged to those games, but then going to
Hildebrandt’s after them, so that eased the pain!
Dr.
August was another great guy. He took a bunch of us kids in high school
up in the mountains to go rock climbing and camping. I know my brother
Nicky liked him, too. Mr. Stevenson from North Side School, was another
fantastic gym teacher who really knew how to relate to kids.” Art (Engoron,
1967), I can see how Mr. Stevenson (along with Mickey Mantle) was your
childhood hero! What a guy?!”
1958 - Jeffrey
Philipson - Deceased
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Writes Julien
Hennefeld (1958) - “Jeff
Philipson and I used to deliver the Roslyn Rancher together on foot to every
house in the Roslyn Country Club, and we were the starting guards on the
Wheatley basketball team when we were juniors. I deeply regret not staying in
touch with Jeff once I started graduate school; he was a good friend and a
great person.”
Writes Jay Cummings
(1960) - “Art,
sad to hear about Jeffrey Philipson. He was right before me on the varsity
basketball team. Nice guy, played on that team with Larry Nagler (1958), who
won the doubles tennis championship at Forest Hills with Allen Fox and became
a well-know doctor. The innocent good old days. R.I.P., Jeffrey.”
Writes Gyll Gates
Scrochi (1981) - “Hi. I just read
the amazing tribute to my uncle, Jeff Philipson. Although it was not
mentioned, he was the uncle to both myself and Kim Gates Goldstein
(1985). We will cherish the
memories of the times that we had with him and our cousins Glen and Adam. We
are saddened by his passing, but celebrate his life and all that he
accomplished. Thank you for the tribute and all of the Newsletters.”
1967 - Judy Berkan and
Alane Spielberger Fagin - On Judy’s balcony in Puerto Rico
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L-R
- Judy, Alane
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L-R - Alane, Judy
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Front
row, taking the selfie, is Victor Rafael Merced-Reyes, Judy’s husband. The
guy in the rear with the orange shirt is Jim Fagin, Alane’s husband.
1967 + 2021 - Richard
Friedman (1967), Art Engoron (1967), and Aarushi Jain (2021).
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Palling
around.
1967 - Ilene Kornblath
Rosenbaum - Memories
Writes Jane Smerling
Garnett (1967) - “Ilene Kornblath
was my neighbor, and we waited for the bus together for years and shared many
conversations, sleepovers and outings. The entire Kornblath family, Leo,
Renie and Richie, opened their home to me after my family’s house fire on
11-4-1961. I lived with them, ate with them, and even wore Ilene’s clothes to
school. After a few weeks my parents found a house to rent, and I moved out.
I have been filled with gratitude for over 60 years for their warmth and generosity
in sharing their home and their life with me.
1967 + 1973 - Art
Engoron, Dan Engoron, Sara Weiss Danzi Engoron
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L-R
- Sara, Art, Dan - February 25, 2024
1974 - David Lebowitz
- Deceased
Writes Joel Harris
(1972) - “I am so sorry to hear
about the passing of David Lebowitz. His brother Bruce Lebowitz (1972) and I graduated together, and Bruce was an usher at my
wedding. While David and I were not close friends, I certainly knew him
and remember all the time we spent together during the 'Wheatley Years.'
R.I.P. David. ‘May your memory always be a blessing.’”
1972 and 1974 - Glenn
Monk and Elyse Rame Beyer
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L-R
- Elyse’s husband Mark Goldberg, Elyse, Glenn’s wife Sue, Glenn
1960 (Renee Gershen
Nadel) - “Hi Art, Thanks for all
the wonderful messages and memories. I appreciate how long you’ve been doing
this.”
1964 (Elvira “Vivi”
Cilmi Kunz) -
“Hi Art, Thanks for allowing me to share about and celebrate Peter Witt.”
1965 (Laurie Woods) “Thanks, Art.”
1967 (Jill Simon
Forte) - “The
Newsletters are alway fun to read. I appreciated the mention by classmate Leslie Buckner Strauss. I still have a hanger from her parents’ store,
Buckner’s. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law purchased many, many things
from there…..a great store.
1967 (Alane
Spielberger Fagin) - “Thanks
for curating, editing, and publishing the Wheatley Alumni Newsletter.”
1969 (Gerry Gersh) - “Another good job, Art! 👏👏👏”
1970 (Andrea Carlin) - “The Newsletter connects and reminds us of how
fortunate we were to have been afforded THE WHEATLEY SCHOOL start in life, which was the springboard that prepared
so many of us for further education and impressive contributions to society.”
1972 (Jeffrey Asquith)
- “Thanks, Art,
for all you do! 🤗”
1974 (Elyse Rame
Beyer) - “Thank
you so much for all you do to keep our Wheatley community in touch.”
1976 (James Joachim) - “Thank you for keeping us all connected and
well-informed. Our teachers and friends are very special.”
1979 (Brian Napack) - “Thanks for driving the Wildcat Newsletter.”
1988 (Pete Mamais) - “Hello Art, Every one of your newsletters is better
than the last. Thank you for keeping the Wheatley community connected. Your
newsletters are very thoughtful, compassionate and informative, a breath of
fresh air nowadays. All the best and continued health, happiness, and success
to you, my friend. Best regard!”
1989 (Joseph Apicella)
- “Thanks for a
great read, always.”
2009 (Amanda Hartman
Ryan) - “Great
edition, Art! Meryl Kivowitz (1974) sounds
like she was a wonderful person.”
Unknown (Max) - “My name is Max. I am raising my kids in Roslyn. Came
across your newsletter today. It's really nice that you take the time to
put this together. I wish someone from my High School would do the same.”
A Friend - “Congratulations on Newsletter #137. I especially
enjoyed hearing Robert Hecht's report from Ushering at the Usher Super Bowl
(terrific pun). Who would have ever thought that Martha Stewart would emerge
as a show-stopping superstar/supermodel in 2024. And it was refreshing to
read a story from the Super Bowl that did not reference Taylor
Swift! Your hitchhiking and getting a ride with Ilene Kornblath (1967) story is great. Truth really can be stranger than
fiction!”
That’s it for The
Wheatley School Alumni Association Newsletter # 138. Please send me
your autobiography before someone else sends me your obituary.
Art
Arthur Fredericks Engoron, Class of 1967
