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"When I'm 64"
Class members of 1965 and 1969 come home to Sacred Heart
Tom Czarnik, Class of 1965
MOSAIC, Winter 2006
Reunion members celebrated a special bond of being "children of the 60s."
If you passed by the Bishop Gallagher Room on the evening of October 1, you might have heard Paul McCartney singing, "When I'm 64." Paul's almost sixty-four years old now, but many of us remember when the Beatles first sang that song in the 1960s.
Paul was in his twenties then and so were we, the Sacred Heart Seminary Class of 1965. On October 1, we celebrated our fortieth high school (thirty-sixth college) reunion with music, poetry, great food and great conversation.
The evening began in the seminary chapel with a Eucharistic Celebration concelebrated by Frs. Patrick Halfpenny and Ed Scheuerman, Msgrs. Edward Baldwin, Ricardo Bass and William Sherzer, and Deacon Tim Pilon. Tom Rzonka, Rory Bolger and Dennis Suszynski provided music for the service. Monsignor Bass delivered an inspiring homily on the theme "Children of the 60s." Helene Rottenberg's classical guitar interlude during the Offertory was especially beautiful.
Mass was followed by a reception. Among the sixty-two alumni in attendance were nine faculty and twenty-nine students. Former professors present (but not previously mentioned) included Harry Carson, Peter Warner, Paul Guenther, Robert Peckham, Arnold Rzepecki and Art Schafran. A table was set up to display photos, yearbooks and other memorabilia.
Each guest received 3-D glasses and a special anaglyphic memento card produced by alumnus Tom Czarnik. The card had the SHS logo and the year 1965 with relevant sayings on one side and seminary scenes in 3-D on the other. Tom provided a poetic explanation of the memento card and various reunion themes, including Mitakuye Oyasin (Lakota prayer: "We are all related") and Volatus atque non Volatus Deus erit ("Whether called or not called upon, God will be present").
Father Halfpenny (soon to be Monsignor along with Fr. Don Hanchon) was the entertaining emcee. An open mike allowed alumni and faculty to reminisce about the days of flower power and bell-bottom pants. The finale came when the Class of 65/69 Folk Ensemble arrived. Tom Rzonka, Tim Pilon, Tony Campbell, Paul Wilhelm and Dennis Suszynski played various folk songs and a moving rendition of "Prayer at Parting" with the appropriate refrain: "May your journey be pleasant, may your spirit stand strong, May your sorrows be a moment, and your joy forever long."
Many thanks to everyone who made our fortieth class reunion a success. Outstanding desserts were flown in from Montana by alumnus Mark Johannes, who was unable to attend. One benefit of the reunion planning was the establishment of an SHS Class of 65/69 website, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shs65-69/. Alumni and faculty are encouraged to join our virtual group and submit emails, auto-bios, photos, creative writing and other interesting materials.
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