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Messages - Mike Bergeron

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Hackensack History / Re: Holy Trinity School.......Adios
« on: May 23, 2017, 12:27:22 AM »
Hello to the group,

I lived on Maple Avenue from the fifth grade through my freshman year in high school (Paramus Catholic), having graduated from Holy Trinity in '65. Sister Emily and Sister Maria Agnes were the eighth-grade teachers. The principal was Sister Cecilia de Paul after Sr. Louise's tenure. I can't remember if Sr. Louise had died or retired.

Sister Margaret de Paul (not sure if she was related to Sr. Cecilia) and Mrs. Fiore were the seventh-grade teachers; Sister Margaret Fidelis was my sixth-grade instructor (think Mrs. Frascas was the other sixth-grade teacher). Mrs. Moran and Sister Gerard taught the fifth grades.

Thanks for the previous photos on the board. Brought me back to when Sister Gerard grabbed me by the collar and spun me around a few times in the hallway, my landing supine on the second floor after being caught talking in line on the way back to Mrs. Moran's classroom from lunch. The nun was a small woman to boot.

The boys-room photo stirred a memory of my having a fist fight with a classmate in there during the fifth grade, being broken up by Sister Juliana, who was teaching fourth grade next door at the time. We were sent down to Sister Louise, the aforementioned principal, who smacked us both across the face at once, twice like Moe of the Three Stooges would do to his cohorts, Larry and Curly. 

My main reason for registering with this forum and writing this was to make a comment about the boy on the tricycle, who lived directly across from the playground-parking lot, which was two houses southeast from where I resided. His name was David. I would talk to him whenever he pedaled past me on the sidewalk. Although Dave was unable to speak words, he communicated with grunts and always with a smile, happy to get attention, I suppose. The church organist was not his mother. From being an altar boy, I remember the organist was a handicapped gentleman, crippled, who was carried up the narrow, winding stairs to the choir loft by his wife who sang hymns to his accompaniment. I can't remember their names, unfortunately. If I think hard enough, maybe it will come back to me. I want to say Mr. and Mrs. Donnelly on second thought.

I ran across this forum from looking up on Yahoo about Holy Trinity School, and why it had closed down, reminiscing today about my hometown where I was born. A few years ago, I visited Hackensack, doing a photo-shoot of the N.Y.C. skyline, passing through and hadn't been there in decades. My home is now outside of Philadelphia, in a section of Bensalem Township called "Andalusia." Driving through my old neighborhood, I noticed the school was now a charter school, breaking my heart; but figured the parish couldn't afford upkeep any longer, as has been the case with many Catholic schools of late.

I found a few articles about how Holy Trinity incorporated with St. Francis School on the south side of town in 2009, as they were having financial problems, both being housed in the latter's building, for recent renovations had been performed. Then I read the combo-school, renamed "Padre Pio Academy," had been closed down by the archdiocese four years later (2013) for financial reasons and low enrollment as well. Too bad.

In my Internet search, a listed obituary noted my favorite priest from Holy Trinity, Father Gene Hazewski, had died last May. We'd play basketball with him in the school gym, or stick ball in the parking lot. I loved to serve Mass for him, as he went through the ceremony faster than the rest: Fr. Geila (sp?), Fr. Lang, Msgr. Murphy—who retired before I graduated HTS, and was responsible for building the new school—and Fr. DeDominco (the slowest of the bunch). Fr. Lang had baptized me as well.

On a pleasant note, I found this heartwarming article: http://www.scnj.org/images/sisterstories/Sister%20Emily%20Walsh%20sister%20story.pdf , stating that Sister Emily was still alive as of 2014, hoping now she's still with us.

The follow is a scan of my eighth-grade class' graduation collage. Hopefully the rest on the photo don't mind my posting it here:



After Maple Avenue, my dad and I moved to Elm Avenue in the Fairmount section of the city, living there until I graduated from high school.

Thanks for the memories.

Sincerely,
Mike

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