Clifton Merchant Magazine - July 2014

Clifton Merchant • July 2014 3

July 2014 • Clifton Merchant4

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The ‘new’ Clifton High School in 1964.

Back in 1944, it wasn’t widelytermed World War II. Instead, itwas mainly just “the war” and it

had dragged on already globally

for five incessantly grim, grimy

and bloody years.

Which of course made it a hell of

a time to be in high school. Because

one thing most males in the CHS

Class of 1944 realized back then

was that upon graduation, they were heading right into the

all-encompassing arms of their dear Uncle Sam.

In fact by time of their commencement, guys like

Edmund Chitko, Arthur Secker, John Maier, George

Rachko and others pictured on page 7 were already in

service. Using that as an intro, let us explain more about

our annual Where Are These Mustangs Now issue.

On the next 70 or so pages, you will enjoy some back-

in-the-day and today photos, and read about what some

of these Mustangs are up to today. We have mined the

well of yearbooks, Facebook and classic photos and

added some stories to catch up with ‘kids’ who graduat-

ed in 1944, 1954, 1964, 1974, 1984, 1994 and 2004.

We begin the journey on the next two pages with

photos from the Class of 1944. There you will find

many familiar names and faces. Look at the pictures we

have of ‘44 Mustangs—there’s also a distinct visual

sense of, well, “attitude” in folks like our old friends such

as Lester Herrschaft, Vera Scheidemann, Joseph J.

Menegus, Beverley Starkey and Albert Vreeland.

That “can do” attitude proved prevalent among allyoung Americans from the Class of 1944 and it says a

lot about why the rest of us are even still around to

remember them today.

Despite ‘the war’, in other ways, however, life in

Clifton simply went on. There was a class song for 1944,

(also note that back then, Clifton had a January gradua-

tion and another in June) thanks to the talents of Donald

Fischer and William Hassert. And the football team

made a good showing in the Passaic Valley Conference;

some players even earned All-State nods.

The yearbooks for those two graduations were called,

respectively, Time Was and Curtain Call, and both were

nicely done indeed, the result of much sweat and thought

by editors William Hassert, Joel Purcell, Edward Wolak,

Lillian Wargo and dedicated staffers.


Familair names and faces from seven decades ago: Vincent Graziano, Rose Marie DiDonna, Walt Semon, Vera Scheidemann, Eric Graupe, Marie Salerno, LesterHerrschaft, Joseph J. Menegus, Edward J. Wolak, William Latteri, Beverley Starkey.

‘44‘44

Class of

WHERE ARE THESE MUSTANGS NOW?

A ‘Roll Call’ Of Classes...Ten years on, come the Class of ‘54, we were in the supposedly somnolent

50’s, an era which works of popular culture like Peyton Place and the lizard-

quick rise of rock ‘n roll make very clear wasn’t truly all that snooze-inducing.

Safe, mainly (even the nastiness in Korea was shut down by then), but hardly as

bland as some recall. The switchblades wielded by the feared “juvenile delin-

quents” of the era were blunted, so to speak, but not altogether non-existent.

We were lucky enough, however, to find that many Mustangs from 1954 still

stay connected and find their way to reunions, the most recent staged in June.

Ten more years elapsed, however, to find the class of ‘64 teetering on the very

razored edge of the Age of Aquarius. Some classmates, perhaps, fell over into

that particular pit. Many more simply wore paisley and patchouli for the fun of

it. On pages 16-20, we take a look back at Clifton and find that our community

was diverse as every other town in America. Our two stories for that edition

illustrate the dichotomy. We review the life of the late Stephen “Hoop” Hooper,

who went on to create an offbeat niche in the art world and who many may

remember seeing in his unique cars. Then we tell more about Washington Ave.’s

Dr. Roger Stier, who is among America’s foremost oral hygiene experts.

The CHS 1944Basketball Team


Already in service before graduation, from left: Albert Vreeland, John Hamil, Edmund Chitko, Arthur Secker, Frank

Shewchuk, John Maier and John Mullen. Fighting Mustangs below: Joe Farkas, Willie Guman and Walt Semon.

Our visit with the Class of 1974 is the most complete

as they have a plethora of Mustangs (in honor of the late

Bob Zschack, aka the Voice of the Mustangs) putting

together a reunion. This was also when CHS fielded the

largest graduating class in the nation, 988 Mustangs

strong, and 20 years later trooped somewhat en masseonto TV’s The Phil Donahue Show to remind the US of

that pride-inducing

point.

Our 1984, more or

less the “Reagan era”

of prosperity and the

truly wonderful (as

well as a happenstance

those from ‘44 proba-

bly could never have

envisioned) collapse

of the USSR, rolled in

next. You will meet a

few familiar faces from 1984, young folks who are now

Clifton merchants.

Followed (logically enough) by ‘94. And as you’ll see

later on in this issue, these Mustangs are being corralled

by the plucky Alyse Pashman, so that when it reunites, it

reunites in noticeably good numbers. Finally we look

back a decade to find out what kids have accomplished

since 2004, thanks to Suheyla Tuncer.

But All Still, in Essence, Mustangs...It’s been 70 years since many of Clifton’s own repre-

sentatives of the “greatest generation” graduated CHS.

Time enough to sing the old Grateful Dead Truckin’ line

about “what a long strange trip it’s been,” even if the

Class of ‘64 would likely best get that one.

But as the Beach Boys also sang (and they had an actu-

al hit single with it), BeTrue To Your School.

And that is some-

what the point of high

school reunions and

reminiscences, no?

To recall to each

other how we got

where we are and how

high school may even

have helped us all get

there. And every July,

that’s what we at Clifton Merchant do. We relive the

times and the neighborhoods, recall the era, tell the

Clifton stories.

That, we suspect, is even reason enough to reunite as a

high school class any year. In the end, all the classes

we’re covering this issue were, and remain, Mustangs.

God bless ‘em all. Now if we could also just revive the

Passaic Valley Conference...


George Tuzzolino, Kenneth Hauser, Thomas Leeshock, Barbara Ann Rae, Paul Graupe, Victor Kattak, Robert Van Der Linda.

‘54‘54

Class of


Allen Rutowski, JosephMangino, Judith Menegus,William Friend. Robert Taylor,Richard Hoogstraten, WilliamHansen, Ida Ann Race

60th Reunion 100 Mustangs


When people recall the 1950’s with fond-ness, as a time of calm and peace, they must

have 1954 in mind. Although in the back-

ground, world events were rumbling with

signs of future trouble — the Cold War had

begun, Vietnam had split into North and

South — throughout most of America, life

was good. The McCarthy era had ended and

so had the Korean War.

Televisions were the mobile phones of the

day, with new models and new brands coming

out every year. American car designers

entered their glory days. Popular music filled

the air, even though Elvis Presley was still an

unknown.

General Eisenhower was President and

John F. Kennedy was still a young senator.

There was lots of open space in Clifton, most-

ly farmland, and as Barbara Rae Den Herder,

a key organizer of this year's reunion, recalls,

"there was nothing on Route 46 near Grove

Street except a gas station.”

For the 471 graduates of the Clifton High

School Class of 1954, 239 of them young

women and 232 young men, led by class offi-

cers Allen Rutkowski, president; Joe


WHERE ARE THESE MUSTANGS NOW?‘54‘54

Class of

Mangino, vice-president, Judy Menegus, secretary

and Bill Friend as treasurer, life was constant

motion.

That included volunteer activities, sports, stu-

dent clubs, school dances, after school jobs, not to

mention classes and homework, of course. They

started out together in September 1950 in the

Annex, a small building on Clifton Ave. for high

school freshman. Then for sophomore, junior and

senior years, they went to the original Clifton High

School off Piaget Ave., which is now Christopher

Columbus Middle School.

The first social event of the senior year was the

‘Dungaree Drag’, a great time with many of the

guys wearing ‘white bucks’ and everyone singing

Heart of My Heart. For the seniors, extracurricu-

lar activities including swimming, color guard,

archery, baseball and football.

The majorettes were a big hit and for the third

time in a row, the fighting Mustangs made it to the

Passaic Valley Conference Championship. The

baseball team was ranked 6th in the state after

being invited to play in the Greater Newark

Tournament and the marching band supported their

teams magnificently.

Two class plays, The Wedding and A Day withthe Blakes were a great success, even if it no one

ever made it to Broadway.


Can a Damaged Toenail be

Melanoma?

There are about 12,000

podiatrists in the United

States, according to the

Department of Labor, and

Clifton podiatrist Thomas

Graziano is one of only six

who hold both a Doctor of

Podiatric Medicine

(D.P.M.) and a Doctor of

Medicine (M.D.) degree.Thomas A. Graziano,MD, DPM, FACFAS

This patient had used topical anti fungal medi-

cines but nothing seemed to work.

When she visited Dr. Graziano, his suspicions of

skin cancer (melanoma) were confirmed by the

biopsy he performed right in the office.

“Melanomas obviously occur in areas that don't

receive much sun exposure,” he explained. “The

soles of your feet, palms of your hands and toe or

finger nail beds. Screening is so important as

melanoma can present in many different ways,”

he continued. “The skin of the feet and lower legs

is often overlooked during routine medical exam-

inations, and for this reason, it important that the

feet are checked regularly for abnormalities that

might indicate evolving skin cancer.”

That’s why screenings are so vital.

Fungus Nail?Think Again...

Dr. Thomas Graziano

has treated several cases ofmelanomas on the lower

extremity, as this photo illustrates.



Class of

From the Class of 1954, Joy

Smith and Warren Tunkel had the

Million Dollar Smiles and Ken

Lenert and Marilyn Libak were

Most Athletic.

The Class Dreamers were Ida

Ann Race and Ronald Campbell

and Most Popular, Lynne Ickes

and Bill Botbyl. Jean Minutella,

all agreed, had a great voice and

Burt Mandel, a great Hawaiian

shirt collection.

At graduation, seniors

received one of four diplomas

with 237 students receiving

theirs in General Education - 91

girls and 146 boys, 145 in

College Prep — 60 girls and 85

boys, and as a sign of the times,

52 in Business Training — 51

girls and 1 boy and 37 in Secretarial Training— 37 girls

and not a single guy.

Graduation was on the field of the football stadium. The

Class of 1954 was the largest group of graduates that CHS

had to date. As the name of their yearbook, the Class of

1954 yearbook staff, which was headed by editor Rita

Menegus, chose Signposts in keeping with the motto Thesignposts that have marked our way point onward now, wecannot stay. As one of their signposts, they donned caps

and gowns and bid farewell to teachers and fellow students.

For their 60th reunion on June 1, 100 alumni and spous-

es came from eight states to the Brownstone. The class

holds reunions every five years and dedicated this reunion

to honor Marilyn Van Hassel, a 1954 Class Sponsor and

teacher, who had hoped to join her former students as she

often had for reunions past, but at the last minute could not.

“We saw her in February,” said Den Herder, “she helped

us stuff our invitation envelopes. Ed Gras was supposed to

go and pick her up in Wyckoff to bring her to the

Brownstone, but she fell ill. After the reunion, several of us

went to visit her and brought her the our reunion packet—

she was so thrilled. She was quite young when she became

our advisor, only a few years out of college. I think she was

one of the reasons we had such a great class, one of the rea-

sons we have stuck together for all these years.”

For Robert Braverman, an engineer, his best memory of

CHS is the day he met his wife, Beverly Greaves. She had

just moved with her family from Springfield MA and her

English teacher, Elizabeth Morrell, had asked her to stay

after school to do some work to catch up with the rest of

the class.

“Me, I was in the class after school because I had deten-

tion,” Braverman chuckled, “I thought she was a good

looking girl, so when we walked out together, we started

talking. Sixty years later, we have a lot to be grateful for

and often thank Miss Morrell for brining us together.”

Greaves lived in Allwood and Braverman down Passaic

Avenue at the edge of Clifton near the Nutley border.

“There wasn’t that much between us but farm fields. My

family knew the family that owned the farm where they

built Hoffman-LaRoche.”

CHS, he says “was fabulous and our teachers were won-

derful, very helpful.”

Braverman has kept track of his classmates all these

years, with the help a permanent reunion committee and

noted happily that of the original 471 graduates, 284 are

well and accounted for and many live in Clifton, Wayne or

in towns along the Jersey Shore.

In total, 176 people, or over 62% of the known mem-

bers of the class of 1954, still live in New Jersey, in 91 dif-

ferent towns.

The 1954 CHS Reunion Committee, from left: Ed Gras, Barbara Rae Den Herder,Ruth Kracht, Bill Hansen, Elaine Hayes, Paul Graupe, and sitting left to right IdaAnn Kennedy, Terry Sullivan, Jeannie Dzurillay, George Tuzzolino



Class of

At the most recent reunion, from left, Bob Braverman, Rita Foti, Bill Hansen, Ida Einreinhofer, Vince Giardino, RuthKracht, Barbara Den Herder, Jeannie Dzurillay, Terry Sullivan, George Tuzzolino, Paul Graupe and seated, JudyDeluca, Ed Gras, Barbara Chupik, Ida Ann Kennedy, Carolyn Connerton.

Clifton has the largest concentration, with 51 alums. It

sure seems like the graduates of the Class of 1954 really,

really love Jersey! In fact, they really, really love Clifton

since 88 live within a 20-mile radius of their old high

school. Other states popular with the Class of 1954 are

New York and Florida.

Besides reunions every five years, the ongoing commit-

tee, which includes Robert Braverman, Barbara Burke

Chupick, Carolyn Sauer Connerton Judith Menegus

DeLuca, Barbara Rae Den Herder, Jean Minutella

Dzurillay, Ida Alacevich Einreinhofer, Rita Menegus Foti,

Vincent Giardino, Edward Gras, Paul Graupe, William

Hansen, Elaine Sanford Hayes, Ida Ann Race Kennedy,

Ruth Pannicke Kracht,Therese Giblin Sullivan, George

Tuzzolino, organized a 75th birthday party for everyone in

the graduating class several years ago.

Although the past few events have been at the

Brownstone, other locales have included Upper Montclair

Country Club and The Mountainside Inn.

“We choose familiar places," said Den Herder with a

laugh, "so that we all know where we are going."

Last time they got together, 40 of the alumni had break-

fast the next day at the Tick Tock Diner, where, said

Braverman, he still expects to see girls in poodle skirts and

guys with duck bill hair cuts and black leather jackets.

The day following the reunion, on June 2, about 25

alumni went to Rutt’s Hut for lunch. While they did not

wear poodle skirts or drive hot rods, Bill Hansen observed

of the landmark: “Sixty years and it looks exactly the

same.” Yes it does Bill, and a ripper is still a ripper and

you can’t get them anywhere else but here in Clifton.

As they were leaving this reunion, Den Herder said that

plans are already being made for a party to celebrate every-

one’s 80th birthday in the next few years. “What can I say?

We had a great class. It was fun and we had a good time.

And we keep coming back. We were very lucky.”

Also at the reunion, Barbara Campbell, Bob VanderLinda, Ida Einreinhofer, Barbara Den Herder.

The 1964 Mustangs began junior yearat the new CHS on Colfax Ave. excit-

ed to be there. Their yearbook was

even titled Rotunda by way of tribute

to the prominent architectural aspect

of the new building, “the circular area

used for cafeteria, instruction and

activity purposes.”

The place was indeed for its time

absolutely state-of-the-art, utilizing the

then ‘latest’ technology. Clifton High

finally shook hands with IBM, so to

speak. “Stuff” like the Teletrainer Ted

Pastula is practicing with in the adjacent

photo gave classmates valuable experi-

ence for the business world. The

The ‘New’ and Modern High SchoolSalvatore Anzaldi, Bertha Connie Van Decker, Martin Bania, Jo Ann Greco, Clyde Sherrow, Barbara Oakley, Robert Amoruso.

‘64‘64

Class of



Not every class has one,though every class should,

1964 happily did. By which

we mean a genuinely world-

class artist.

In what is sometimes dis-

missively termed “vernacu-

lar” or “pop” art, yes, but still,

Stephen Douglas “Hoop”

Hooper, was good. He hung

with the Warhol set and sniffy

sorts like Yoko Ono, was thus

totally “downtown.” So much

so that his personal “down-

town” was always Clifton.

Word in the art world is

that you should find and buy

something by him now. It’s

only going to appreciate since

Hoop, sadly, died of cancer in

2011. And Hoop himself,

who lived modestly on

Charles St., may in fact have

been and by far, the wealthiest

person in town.

Even, mysteriously, as folks always wondered during

his long, showy, flamboyantly dressed career how on

earth he actually ever made ends meet.

You probably saw some of Hoop’s art works yourself.

They were mobile and he drove them around town daily,

were a staple of Montclair’s annual Fourth of July parade.

Hoop “decorated” vehicles, turned them into art projects.

Transformed them into rolling works of art.

Hoop never saw a car he couldn’t carpet over, prettify

via draped furbelows and faux fur, paint in day-glow col-

ors and in general make look like Elijah’s chariot if Elijah

lived in southeast LA.

He is considered by art critics to have been the lead-

ing light of the so-called “art car “ movement, and they

claim Hoop’s long career began sometime during the

80’s when he began adorning a series of BMW’s then

easy-to-find Isettas, which were an early effort at a gen-

uinely compact car.

But Mike Finegan,

himself CHS ‘68 who

grew up on Lakeview

Ave., knew a much

younger version of Hoop.

“It was around ‘64,”

Finegan remembers, “and

there was a retired teacher

who lived in Richfield

Village. She had an old

Henry J (note: a Kaiser,

which they stopped mak-

ing in ‘53) parked near

Clifton Ave. she couldn’t

drive anymore. Hoop

bought it and decorated it.

Really decorated it. It sat

out there by his house and

people stared at it.”

Finegan, apparently the

sole Cliftonite to sign one

of those online “remem-

brance” books when

Hoop died, recalls some-

thing else about Hoop (which he had in common with

Warhol): “He loved his mother. He always took her with

him to all the car shows. They even went down to the

ones at the Whiskey Cafe in Lyndhurst in the parking lot

there and she’d sit beside him and you’d clearly see how

much he actually loved and respected her. And he was

always a just a real nice guy to anybody who talked to

him,” Finegan concludes affectionately.

Hoop was also, as noted above, quite and quietly

wealthy near the end of his allotted years. His friend

Baird Jones died in 2008 and made Hoop his sole heir

and beneficiary, giving Hoop Jones’ first-class collection

of modern art. That, plus Hoop’s own “art cars,” makes

for a mighty estate. Left supposedly, in turn, to a brother

somewhere in PA. All of which is pretty cool for a scrag-

gly-looking guy from ‘64 who just belonged to the Art

Service and History Clubs. And in a real-life “Revenge

of the (semi, anyway) Nerds”-type situation, the guy is

worth this modest tribute of ours, honest.


The AutomobileAccording to ‘Hoop’

By Richard Szathmary

‘64‘64‘64‘64


Teletrainer used was incorporated into both class time and after-

school activities.

Clifton High School’s Class of 1964 was of athletic note, too. For

the second year in a row the varsity cheerleaders won the sportsman-

ship award for their school spirit and sportsmanship. And the

Mustangs football team fought their way to a fifth consecutive Passaic

Valley Conference title.

It was also, as time has since proven, a distinctly, well, “artsy” class.

Ronald Maxwell has gone on to direct several Hollywood movies

(including the impressive hit Gettysburg), Joe Turrin has composed

film scores (including one early film directed by classmate Maxwell),

symphonic music and well-regarded operas, and Debra Biderman

(look for a story on here in next month’s edition) is the long-time sec-

ond violinist with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Plus, in a sort

of class (and maybe world) all by himself, there’s Stephen “Hoop”

Hooper.

But, in the spirit of “they also serve...” (and maybe also with just a

tad of gauzy, doting memory), it still truly seems to us that EVERY-

BODY in the class of ‘64 plugged along, did his and her bits well.

It should also never be forgotten that, horribly, awfully, near incom-

prehensibly, this class was marked by the tragedy of the assassination

of President John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963. Class yearbook edi-

tors, Jeff Siegel, Dawn Dabbakian and Leslie Hair, in fact dedicated

the ‘64 yearbook to the President as posthumous tribute.


Class of

Pictured on this page: John Tauras, Stanley Sendol, Jeffrey Pruiksma,Adele Jezierski, Ellis Berger, Walter Yurcheniuk


In 2001, Dr. Neville Mirza (at left) was the firstneurosurgeon in the area to perform a minimal-ly invasive cervical and Lumbar EndoscopicDiscetomy. Since then, he has performed over1,500 of those procedures—right here onMain Avenue. Along with Pain ManagementSpecialist Dr. Shams Qureshi, their team ofhighly trained physicians and healthcare spe-cialists at Mega Medical have dedicatedthemselves to the diagnosis and minimallyinvasive treatment of the entire spectrum ofneurological and pain disorders.

1084 Main Ave., Downtown Clifton

973-470-8848321 60th St., West New York, NJ

201-295-5003

The human body isn’t designed to absorb the jarring impactof a car accident, even a low-speed collision. Minor back

injury can have a significant impact on your daily life. But

Drs. Mirza and Qureshi and their team of physicians at

the Mega Medical Group on Main Ave. can help

“The spine is a complicated system which myself and

my associates have studied and repaired for decades,”

explained Dr. Qureshi. “When we see a person after an

automobile accident, we are focused on accurately

diagnosing the sources of pain and restoring the health

and function of the person.

“When we first meet with a

patient after an accident,” he

said, explaining how the Mega

Medical Group approaches pain

relief, “we consider every aspect

of the person’s spine, from the

lower part of the skull to the

remanent of the so called tail

bone. Then we consider their

overall health before we plot a

course of action. It is a team

approach with our physicians

and staff along with the patient

and his or her family.”

After a car accident, back

injuries can be diagnosed — and

their severity determined —

through the use of x-rays, CT scans, MRIs, myelograms,

and bone scans.

Once a diagnosis is made, treatment varies according

to the type and severity of the injury sustained. Many

back injuries require only short-term, temporary treat-

ment, such as pain medication, injections for inflamma-

tion, physical therapy and chiropractic care.

Serious back injuries may require the use of surgical

procedures to address the problem. However, in one of

the more popular pain-relieving procedures performed by

Drs. Mirza and Qureshi—the Lumbar EndoscopicDiscectomy—the only incision made

is covered by a small bandage and

the patient can be home in four

hours.

They are supported by a staff of

10 specialized healthcare providers

trained to treat and care for patients

who have undergone surgeries relat-

ed to pain management, spine,

orthopedic and sports medicine.

They will schedule your procedure

so there is no waiting and no driv-

ing... a member of their team will

pick you up from your home and

bring you to and from the state of the

art surgery center in Downtown

Clifton.

Car Accidents, Back Injuries & Pain Relief


Class of

Senior year nonetheless flew by in many ways and life

indeed went on. There was the traditional Christmas-

Alumni Dance, the sports awards dinner in January, and,

as ever, the constant hard work of the Marching Mustangs.

And as graduation neared, the really hard part kicked

in: making plans for the future. Be it college, work, the

armed forces, vocational training, etc., the three preceding

years were, in essence, wonderful. No matter how many

successive years it may have taken us to realize that.

Lastly, while we don’t seem to have been the most

responsive class in terms of reunions and simply keeping

in touch, there is a kind of catch-all page on Facebook

titled “Members Of The Class on 1964 From Clifton, NJ.”

Not enough folks are on it. Yet. But hey, it’s a start.


Aquafresh, the famously three-striped toothpastewhose look (albeit unintentionally) recalls the French tri-

color flag and has been on sale here since 1973, is not a

product one commonly associates with Clifton. (Now, if

it’d been called, say, “Hot Grill toothpaste”...)

But it is in fact originally a Clifton product, and even

better for our purposes via a proud member of the Mustang

Class of 1964, Dr. Roger Stier. He is also, as it happens,

one of America’s foremost oral hygiene experts, the hold-

er of 27 patents and the author of several articles on oral

hygiene in various scientific and medical journals.

In The Year Of The “Moptops”...In 1964, the first full year of LBJ’s Presidency, U.S.

military advisory personnel in South Vietnam numbered a

few thousand. The Beatles’ first American album was

released and actor Nicolas Cage, First Lady Michelle

Obama and famed train wreck Courtney Love were all

born. And Roger Stier was in CHS’s Debating Club.

By 1973, however, while eventually-disgraced

President Nixon was “Vietnamizing” a bloody war indeed,

Stier, after graduating in ‘68 from FDU magna cum laude

with a dual biology-chemistry major, was lucky enough to

serve as the principal scientific formulator of the American

version of Aquafresh.

“The original formulation came from England,” Stier

explained. “But it was too expensive to manufacture and

had too many ingredients unacceptable in the US.” So

Stier (who got his PhD in 2003) and his team tweaked the

formula for then-manufacturer Beecham. (Where he first

worked summers while at FDU.)

He began full-time career at Beecham as a scientist,

then “senior scientist,” then “section head.” The company

name changed too, to Merck. And later to

GlaxoSmithKline.

But Stier stayed in Clifton, residing with his family

right on Washington Avenue. He’s still here with his

spouse, the former Nancy Miller. The couple had three

children are David, Brian and Kathlean. And they’ve com-

bined for four greatly beloved grandchildren.

One Special Teacher, TooThrough it all, however, the memory of one very special

teacher at Clifton High, Gladys Mickelsen, holds upon Dr.

Stier’s memory. “She was very motivating.” Stier recalled

of his mentor. “The way she approached the subject, her

passion, just the way she taught...” And thanks to this

Mustang, tri-striped Aquafresh still holds an 8%+ market

share of the highly competitive US toothpaste market.

Dr. Roger Stier

in AquafreshHe put the stripes


Jeri Fried, Michael Hanrahan, Melody Muller, Gary Burrofato, Faye Norcott, Gregory Lacki, Diane Polise.

‘74

Class of


A 40-year high school reunion is a bittersweet milestone wheremany of life’s dramas have unfolded for classmates— a collec-

tion of full-circle moments and unfinished stories. Careers have

taken root or have been reinvented. Marriages have endured or

ended. Parents have passed away. Children of classmates have

reached college age. Grandchildren have been born. Some class-

mates leave Clifton and travel to far-away ports of call, only to

return to the city years later. Chance, unexpected encounters

reconnect old friendships or spark new romances.

The 1974 Mustang MarchingBand, members of the ChessClub below and All Statewrestler Herb Calvert.

Story by Michael GabrielePhotos by Nicole Sciarra


There is no single, common thread in these stories, but

rather a diverse, multilayered tapestry of experiences that have

been stitched together over four decades.

These life journeys will be celebrated when members of the

CHS Class of 1974 reunite in October. Members of the

reunion committee shared their thoughts on the gathering

along with brief sketches of who they are, where they’ve been,

and why they feel it’s important for classmates to reconnect.

Jeri (Fried) Cohen, who serves as president of the Class of

1974 reunion committee, pointed out that social media is

being used as the primary gateway to connect with

Greg Wichot, Bob BelBruno, Jim Jenkins, Phil Calise

DAVID SANTOSUOSSOCLASS OF 1973DAVID SANTOSUOSSOCLASS OF 1973


classmates, rather than phone calls or regular mail. Cohen,

who works as a financial advisor in the financial services

industry, said she’s tried to instill a business discipline to the

efforts of the committee in order to hit the necessary targets

and create a successful gathering of classmates.

“We have a great group of people on the committee and

we’re all good friends, but we need to have accountability

from everyone in order to get our business done for the

reunion,” Cohen said, noting that the group has met once a

month for the last 10 months. “Everyone on the committee

gets a title for the various responsibilities. We have a good

time together. There is a social aspect to being on the reunion

committee, but we also have to get things done. As president

of the committee, I try to keep us on track.

“Forty years is a big reunion,” she continued. It’s a big

milestone for our class. People accomplish many things in 40

years. We’ve all been through a lot and have many stories to

tell. The reunion will give us a chance to share our experi-

ences.”

Cohen resides in Bedminster and visits Clifton occasional-

ly. A graduate of Rutgers University, she’s been single for the

last two decades and maintains a busy schedule with family

and career. In addition, volunteer work plays a major role in

her life. For the last five years she’s been president of the

Business and Professional Women’s Group of Somerset

County, a networking group.

“I believe in giving back, paying it forward and helping

others,” she said. “I’m in a position where I can help women

who have been widowed or have gone through a divorce.

Many times their husbands handled all of the family financial

matters. Now that they’re single, I can give them support and

help them work things out. Money issues can be very stressful

and complicated. They often don’t know where to start. I can

relate to what they’re going through.”

Time to Get Out of The Cold...Twenty years ago, Kathy Fusco packed up and followed the

advice of 19th century American author and newspaper editor

Horace Greeley: she “went west.” For Fusco, it was all about

escaping New Jersey winters and the opportunity for a fresh

start on life.

“I knew it was time for me to get out of the cold,” Fusco

said with a laugh, recalling the Great Blizzard of 1993. Having

pursued a career in the real estate business, she determined the

best place for her to relocate was sunny Las Vegas. In addition

to being attracted to the desert climate, her daughter, Dawn,

was a student at Arizona State University.

Fusco arrived in Nevada in 1994, just as the region was

entering a high-growth period. Her timing was perfect as the

real estate market in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Valley was

about to explode. People from all around the country—senior

citizens, young families, urban professionals—all were relo-

cating to the Vegas valley. “When I arrived in Vegas, there

were about 600,000 people living in the region,” she said.

“Today there’s over 3 million people. I did very well in the real

estate business. I watched the entire valley grow.”

In addition to the climate and the gaming industry, Fusco

said that for most people, the affordable quality of life was the

deciding factor that made Vegas attractive. “It was the cost of

living,” she said. “People realized they could buy a big four-

bedroom house with a pool and a backyard deck and live quite

comfortably. It was much more affordable compared to the

real estate market in New Jersey. Many senior citizens I spoke

with told me that, once they moved to Vegas, they felt 20 years

younger. Everyone enjoyed the warm weather. But it was

more than just a retirement community. The valley was attrac-

tive for young families. New schools were being built. There

were many organizations dedicated to children. Everyone had

a good social life. There was so much to do—entertain-

WHERE ARE THESE MUSTANGS NOW?‘74

Class of

1974 Class Officers Larry Patire, Linda Sue Terhune,Laurie Costarelli, Georgiana Fecanin, Raffie Basile


ment and good restaurants.” Besides her career in real estate,

Fusco became involved in community affairs and volunteered

at a shelter for disabled veterans.

Life was good. The skies were blue and the sun shined

almost every day. And then came the Great Recession of

2008/2009. Southwestern hubs, like the Las Vegas valley,

came to symbolize the plight of home foreclosures and

“underwater” mortgages. It was a chaotic turn of events that

devastated thousands of families. “No one saw it coming,”

Fusco admitted. “There were other crashes in the Nevada

housing market, like in 1984, but this was much worse.”

Two years ago, due to various personal circumstances,

Fusco, a divorced single mom, decided it was time to return to

Clifton. Though she declined to elaborate on the factors

behind her decision, she did quote the iconic line spoken by

Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz: “There’s no place like home.”

“When I was living in Vegas, I got to know people who

came from all parts of the country,” she said. “But East Coast

people are different. We’re very friendly and very up front. All

I can say is there’s no place like home. I’m very happy to be

back home with my friends and classmates from 40 years ago.

I’m like a lot of people who moved out of New Jersey, but then

decided to come back.”

Fusco is the reunion committee secretary and eagerly

awaits the 40th reunion party. However, she did leave open the

possibility of going back to the Southwest. “Who knows;

maybe one day I’ll return,” she confessed.

Keeper of the Mustang FlameIt’s fair to say Charlie DiGiacomo is extremely passion-

ate when it comes to planning the 40th reunion. It’s also fair

to say he has little patience for those classmates who don’t

share that passion or his sense of urgency. “Come on peo-

ple—think!,” he said, reciting a line he wrote in a recent

email sent to reunion stragglers. “I’ve gotten in touch with

some classmates, and they told me they don’t care about the

reunion. I tell them that you have to care. Keeping in touch

means a lot. It has to mean a lot. People need to reconnect.

Show up and get involved. Think about it.”

He was a Clifton Fire Fighter for 25 years before retir-

ing in 2001, DiGiacomo makes no apologies for being so

brash and when it comes to promoting the 40th reunion.

Most of his fellow reunion committee members cite him as

prime defender of the CHS reunion spirit. For DiGiacomo,

it all comes down to a blunt, existential view of life: “Some

of us won’t be around for the 50th reunion. For some of us,

this game will end real soon.”

Listening to him speak his mind, it’s easy to see why he

places such importance on life milestones, like a 40th high

school reunion. In the late 1980s he lived through opera-

tions to remove six brain tumors. “I survived—that’s what

matters. I don’t live in the past.” He does pay his respects

to those classmates who have died during the last 40 years.

He also freely expresses love for his children: a daughter

who lives on Long Island; a son who is a Marine and sta-

tioned in Florida; and a second son who is a college student

in Philadelphia.

Puppy Tales & Governor Steele?Gary T. Steele, reunion committee treasurer, who ran as

an independent candidate for governor in 2009, said the

CHS Class of 1974 held a noteworthy distinction that

year as the largest high school graduating class in the

nation, with 988 students. It’s a distinction that was

cited 20 years ago, when members of the class were

invited to attend NBC Studios in New York, to be part

of the Phil Donohue Show. The talk show host spoke

with classmates and Steele recalled they were thrilled

when Roberta Flack came on stage to perform her hit

song “Killing Me Softly.”

It all started when Mary Fran (Corrao) Cini fell in

love with a Great Dane puppy while she was working at

the pet store in the Willowbrook Shopping Mall during her

senior year at CHS.

“I love the breed and begged my parents, but I never got

the puppy,” she lamented. She traced her love of animals to

Jerry Zelenka, a biology teacher at CHS. “I was in Mr.

Zelenka’s zoology club for three years and had him

Donald Lotz, Diane Lobosco, George Samra, Barbara Ossi, Frank Scancarella, Carol Verga, David Parry.

Class of



for Advanced Biology in my senior year. I learned so much

from him. He was a great teacher with super integrity. He

taught much more than biology. He had a huge impact on

my appreciation for nature and how to treat people and all

creatures in this world with respect and care.”

Years later, after she was married and her son and

daughter were in elementary school, she did get her first

Great Dane puppy. Her love affair with the dogs continued

and when her children went off to college she began to

adopt Great Dane rescue dogs and enlisted in organizations

such as Northern NJ Great Dane Club and the Mid-Atlantic

Great Dane Rescue League, where she serves as the presi-

dent of the NJ chapter.

Great Dane rescue dogs?

“Yes, you’d be surprised,” she said, explaining that the

rescue league is a non-profit organization with a network

of volunteers in seven states. “Many people abandon them

after a year because they grow to be 150 pounds and they

can’t control them. Unless you know how to train them, the

dogs have no manners.”

Cini met her husband while attending Delaware Valley

College. She earned a nursing degree and, in addition to her

passion for Great Danes, she’s employed at a fertility clin-

ic. Thirty years ago she worked on the CHS Class of 1974’s

10-year reunion committee. She said there was a period

when she drifted away due to her career and family commit-

ments. Though she lives in Montville, her parents reside in

Clifton, so a connection with the city was always in place.

Kismet and FriendshipFrank Klump, a dental insurance consultant, values the

enduring power of friendship. He and his best bud, Dave

Robbins, also a member of the Class of 1974, both live in

Sparta Township, overlooking Lake Mohawk. The two

were born on the same day (Jan. 13, 1956—a Friday) and

have been best friends since kindergarten.

In the years immediately following graduation, their

lives took different paths and they drifted apart. One day in

1992, when Klump happened to be standing in front of his

parent’s Clifton home, Robbins—out of the blue—drove

by, spotted Klump, and the two chums reconnected. Two

years later they were both residents of Sparta.

During the last three years Klump, recently divorced,

took part in the occasional classmate meet-ups held


Class of


Nancy Shook Garretson, President

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Roy B. Garretson, Manager

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Thomas J. Garretson, Director

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Kevin V. White, Director

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Joseph M. Shook, Sr., Founder

1924 - 2008


at the Grande Saloon on Van Houten Ave. He credited these

informal gatherings as kindling his reunion spirit, which

inspired him to join the committee. His responsibility is

getting out email notifications to classmates and monitor-

ing social media networks.

Reunited and It Feels So Good..Once upon a time, in the fall of 1970, Faye Norcott and

Mike Hanrahan were classmates at Christopher Columbus

Middle School. They knew each other but hung out with

different crowds through middle school and high school.

After graduation they went their separate ways.

Separately, they were married, divorced and both became

single parents, each with two sons.

In September 2000 Mike was invited to attend his

cousin’s birthday party and barbecue in Clifton. However,

he had a dilemma—he also had received free tickets to attend

a Yankee game, which was the same day as the party. But fam-

ily loyalty prevailed. He resolved the conflict by giving

away his ticket to attend the party.

Meanwhile, Faye also had received an invitation to

the party. She recalled it was a busy day and she already

had made other plans, but on the spur of the moment she

changed her mind and decided to go to the barbecue.

Mike and Faye met at the party and were married a

year later. Today they live in Clifton—the house previ-

ously owned by Faye’s parents. “These are the kind of

things people talk about at a reunion,” Mike said, refer-

7


Class of

From left, Frank Klump,Gary Steele, Diane ElardoDe Muro, Donna BancroftBetar.


ring to his chance encounter with Faye. “Everyone wants to

catch up on life experiences. The common denominator is we

all started at Clifton High School.” He said that even though

some conversations at reunions deal with memories of high

school days, most of the discussions involve the here and now.

“Everyone has a story to tell,” Faye observed. “Everyone is

proud of their family and kids. Now that it’s the 40th reunion,

some classmates have grandkids. Everyone has pictures.

Everyone wants to talk about what’s been going on in their

lives since high school. When you show your pictures to

your classmates, what you’re really saying is: ‘hey, look what

I did. Look at what I accomplished!’”

Mike and Faye are in charge of maintaining and updating

information on classmates. Faye said that, while it’s nice to

stay in touch with people through online social media, you

also need the physical, in-person connection with friends.

“The internet is wonderful, but when you go to a reunion, you

have ‘real’ conversations with people, face to face,” she said.

“I’ve been to all the class reunions. It’s a good thing. My take

is that everyone wants to talk about the story of their life. My

expectation is that everyone will have a great time at the

reunion. They’ll walk away

and be glad that they were

there.”

4From left, MaryFran Cini,Kathy Fusco, Karen PisaniZayatz, Maryann RiottoZacagnini.

The CHS Class of 1974 will hold its40-year reunion on Oct. 11, 6 to 11pm at the Bethwood in Totowa. To

purchase tickets, contact the reunion committee by phone

973-818-7209 or [email protected]’s also a Facebook page

CHS 1974 Alumni Page.Go and register and get more

information and meet classmates.

1974 REUNION, OCT. 11


Starting in January 1967, 10-year-old Dennis Sprickof Barrington Ave. started taking down the weekly

WABC-AM Radio top 20 music survey.

The Monkees’ I’m a Believer sat atop the charts as

the year began, and before 1967 had run its course, the

Monkees had a second No. 1 single, DaydreamBeliever. Other chart-topping singles that year were the

Doors' Light My Fire, the Young Rascals’ Groovin, the

Turtles' Happy Together and Lulu's To Sir With Love,which ended up No. 1 on WABC's year-end top 100

survey released the last week of December 1967. .

1967 was a tumultuous year for the United States.

The Vietnam War continued to rage, there were antiwar

and civil rights protests and urban riots, it was the

Summer of Love and a time for psychedelia and wide-

spread experimentation with drugs.

While Sprick was aware of all that, back in those

carefree days, he was mainly focused on getting top

grades at St. Paul’s School on Main Ave... but then he

also found time for getting together with his friends

after school to play baseball in the spring and football in

the fall at Main Memorial Park.

He recalls bowling in the winter at Bowlero (now

Fette Motors on Route 46) in the Clifton Midget

Bowling League managed by his parents, Fred and

Jeannette. And like most kids back in the days, he spent

hours hurtling through the streets of his hometown on

his bicycle.

But above all these events was the music, and the

great sounds and songs of the era which seemed to

reverberate through the decades. To keep that flame

alive, Sprick will share his love of those songs in a con-

cert titled My Top 40 of 1967. Backed by a keyboardist,

guitarist and drummer, vocalist Sprick will perform at

8 pm on Oct. 10, at School 3 Auditorium, Washington

and Seventh Aves.

The journey from taking down the WABC survey of

songs to performing those songs on a stage has been a

long and unexpected one for Sprick.

He had little music education at St. Paul’s School and

took no music courses at CHS, where he excelled as stu-

dent and runner before graduating in 1974, nor at

Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., where he majored

in journalism, English and drama.


Class of

Dennis SprickFound His Voice

It’s Just Too Good To Be True

Dennis Sprick, shown singing at theDuplex in New York City, performs “MyTop 40 of 1967” at 8 pm Oct. 10 atSchool 3 auditorium, Washington andSeventh Aves. Tickets are $20 at the door,cash only. For info on advance tickets,email [email protected].


His primary music education

was singing along to WABC and,

on at least one occasion, serenad-

ing a very tolerant neighbor, Steve

Stanion, who lived with his wife

and two children across the street

from the Spricks.

Sprick’s performing career

might have been jump-started in

the summer of 1967 if, following

the encouragement of Main

Memorial Park director Mary

Collins, Sprick had sung Frankie

Valli's then-current hit Can’t TakeMy Eyes Off You in the park talent

show.

But the show was taking place

in the middle of the week when Sprick was vacationing

with his family at Ocean Beach, disappointing him

keenly at the time.

After that, his desire to sing lay mostly dormant until

1980. By then, he had switched allegiance to the Great

American Songbook offerings on WNEW-AM and on

the albums by Nat King Cole and Judy Garland he lis-

tened to as he did yoga before his daily runs.

And so, in September 1980, three months after he

started work as a copy editor at the Times Herald-Record newspaper in Middletown, N.Y., he gave him-

self a gift and started taking weekly singing lessons for

more than a decade.

This led to performing in enjoyable yearly recitals,

some church choir work and a bit of

community theater until career events—

first as a Broadway and film critic for

his newspaper from 1986-97, then back

to the copy desk while attending school

to be and then working part time as a

massage therapist—limited his musical

pursuits.

Singing began to take a more domi-

nant role in his life again starting in

2008 with renewed voice lessons, two

summers in the chorus of a small opera

troupe, three years with a community

classical chorus and a church music

team, and frequent karaoke perform-

ances.

In September 2011, seeking new

challenges, Sprick began singing with the Fair Lawn-

based North Jersey Chorus with its repertoire of

Broadway and film and pop songs as directed by his

cousin Marie Harrington.

Then, in January 2012, having moved to Lodi the

month before, Sprick auditioned for and was accepted

into the 200-plus-voice New York City Gay Men's

Chorus. Amid the intensity of learning a multitude of

songs in a short rehearsal period and performing them

off book for three different concerts a year, Sprick

knew—for the shared personal interests and cama-

raderie—that he had finally found a musical home.

And so it led to fulfilling another dream—performing

a solo cabaret show. In January 2013, Sprick began


Class of

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Clifton Harrier Dennis Sprick.


working with pianist Jimmy Horan,

who also sings with the NYCGMC.

Months of hard work slowly

quelled the terror and negative

chatter in Sprick's mind, and at the

Duplex nightclub in NYC on June

6, 2013, initial shakiness gave way

to smiling confidence as Sprick

presented Once You Lose YourHeart: Favorite Female Singers,Favorite Songs.

In doing so, he discovered that,

like his membership in the NYC

Gay Men's Chorus, he had found a

venue to let his late-in-life musical

talents finally take center stage.

One cabaret show completed,

Sprick and Horan immediately

started working on a second show,

Nat and Mel: A Cornucopia of Coleand Torme, which they performed

Nov. 22, 2013, at the Duplex.

A third show, Oscar-winningSongs, followed on Feb 23.

Then came Sprick’s idea for MyTop 40 of 1967, to be performed in

his hometown the night before his

40th high school reunion.

To make the event come full cir-

cle in Sprick’s life, he will be clos-

ing the concert with the song he

never got to perform in 1967 at the

Main Memorial Park talent show—

Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, which

was No. 1 on WABC’s survey for

one week starting June 27, 1967.

Though it took Sprick more than

four decades to let a long-nascent

talent take full bloom, sometimes

savoring its success is, to quote a

line from the Valli song, ...just toogood to be true.

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‘84‘84

Class of


The fighting Mustangs, cheerleader Adele Lazorchak, Marching Mustang Drum Major Kelly Williams.


Ronald Reagan was presidentof the United States. Apple

unveiled its first MacIntosh per-

sonal computer. The price of gas

was just over $1. Van Halen was

THE band to see. The Teenage

Mutant Ninja Turtles made their

debut and the Cosby Show was

one of the most popular comedies

on TV. Movies to see included

The Karate Kid, Ghostbusters and Indiana Jones and the

Temple of Doom.

The Fighting Mustangs had a record of 8-2 and made

it to the state playoffs. The boys soccer team was also

successful with a record of 17-4. The Mustang Band

took a 12-day trip to perform in London, Wales and

Canterbury. And, did you know that this year’s gradua-

tion day, June 26, 2014, is exactly 30 years to the day of

the Class of 1984’s graduation. Now, let’s catch up with

some of the class for some other memories and hear

about what they have been up to for the past 30 years.

Classmates now Merchantson Van Houten Ave.

CHS 1984 classmates Susan

Maloney-Romeo and Laurie

Mocek grew up in different sec-

tions of Clifton, Maloney-Romeo

in Delawanna, and Mocek in

Richfield. They met as teammates

on the CHS softball team and

have been great friends ever

since. “We used to drive to the games together and that’s

how we really got to know each other,” Mocek said.

Today, the two women are successful Clifton busi-

nesswomen, whose shops are not far apart. Maloney-

Romeo is the owner of Kaleidokuts, a salon at 762 Van

Houten Ave., and Mocek runs Wheels Jewelry & Gifts at

1214 Van Houten.

Maloney-Romeo attended School 8 and what was

then Christopher Columbus Jr. High before moving on to

CHS. She remembers high school as a fun and carefree

time of getting together with friends and just

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Reminiscing with The Class of 1984


enjoying life. “I had a big group of gals and guys that I

used to hang around with,” she said. “My house was usu-

ally the place where everyone would gather.”

Among her good friends that she still sees are Denise

Asaro, whom she has known since second grade, and

Veronica Hiel Mijka.

The summer after graduation, Maloney-Romeo took a

trip to Jamaica with classmate Judy Snack before

enrolling in cosmetology school at Artistic Academy.

After completing her program, she took a job as a hair

designer at a salon in Rutherford, where she worked for

two years, and then at another salon in Lyndhurst for

seven years.

“Then I decided it was time to move on,” Maloney-

Romeo said. “I always knew that by the time I was 30 I

wanted to have my own business.”

Maloney-Romeo signed the lease for her salon in

October 1997 at a location that Mocek helped her find.

Aside from running her business, Maloney-Romeo

did a lot of travel over the years, often with Kelly

Williams, another CHS classmate. “We met bartending

at the Rendezvous (formerly on Van Houten Ave.) and

became good friends after high school,” she said. Among

their trips together the two traveled to California, Las

Vegas and the islands.

In 2005, Maloney-Romeo married her husband Chris

Romeo, a member of the CHS Class of 1990, whom she

met through some friends. A year later, their daughter

Allison was born. Now, instead of traveling, Maloney-

Romeo spends most of her non business hours volunteer-

ing at her daughter’s school and doing other things with

her family.

History Major Turned JewelerMocek spent her childhood on Thanksgiving Lane,

where she attended School 2 and Woodrow Wilson Jr.

High before CHS. “They were all within a nice walking

distance of my home,” she said.

Aside from her softball teammates, Mocek had “dif-

ferent bunches of friends,” she said. Among them was

Tina DiPiazza-DiFabio, who was captain of the cheer-

leaders, and Stacey Arnold, who was in the Miss New

Jersey Pageant back then.

“I was in the Journalism Club and I got to know

Stacey when I wrote an article about her for the school

newspaper,” Mocek said. “She lives in Texas now, but

we still stay in contact and get together when she comes

back home.”

Mocek went to St. Vincent’s College in Pennsylvania,

majoring in history. “It was a subject that I liked


Class of

Farmville Lives! And not just as a com-

puter game. Al Schultheis Jr., class of ‘84,

remains a bonafide son of the American

soil. You of course remember the 7-acre

Schultheis Farm on Grove St., about which

the City of Clifton dickered so lengthily

and contentiously a few years back. It was

sold and is now know as City Green.

Well, Al Jr. and the entire clan (that’s he

and his wife and their family to the left)

then took their accumulated “ag expertise”

southwards in this state, to a new and

much larger farm in the Pinelands town of

Tabernacle and its rich black soil.

In other words, the Schultheises still

farm, and you can sample and purchase

their soil’s varied bounty most weekends

at the Paterson Farmers Market.


and always got As in,” she said.

After earning her degree, she land-

ed a job in the Clifton’s

Community Development

Department where she worked for

10 months before deciding that she

wanted to try something else.

She went to work as a mer-

chandiser for Citizen Watches and

later for several other companies

before deciding to open her own business.

Her father owned the building where Troops Subs is

located along with several other businesses and he asked

her if she wanted to have a jewelry store.

“At first, I thought it was crazy,” Mocek said. “But

then I decided, why not. I opened the business in 1991,

so I’ve been doing this for 23 years.”

Mocek got certified in grading diamonds and has

learned a lot over the years. “I enjoy it because it changes

all the time,” she said. “You have different seasons and I

like going into New York for the shows. There’s always

something new.” Mocek, who lives in Woodland Park, is

single again, following a short marriage.

When not at work, she helps

to care for her aging mother and

enjoys spending time with

friends and other family mem-

bers. “I’m a beach girl, so I live

for the summer,” she said.

Although the formal Class of

1984 reunion isn’t until

November, Mocek and

DiPiazza-DiFabio are putting

together a casual pre-reunion for class members and

their families at Jenkinson’s Pavilion at Pt. Pleasant

Beach on Aug. 3, beginning at 2 pm.

“It will be a time for everyone to enjoy a day at the

beach with their families before meeting up with us to

listen to the music of The Flying Mueller Brothers,

while catching up with old classmates,” Mocek said.

Admission to Jenkinson’s is free and the band will

be performing until 6 pm. Eat and drink at your own

expense.

Find out more about the Aug. 3 reunion. Contact

Mocek at: [email protected], or DiPiazzo-

DiFabio at: [email protected].

Laura Mocek in 1984 and today.

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Class of


Back in CliftonClass of 1984 president John

Amorison, who initiated the more

formal class reunion to be held in

November, is back in town these

days. In 2009, he returned to

Clifton after many years living in

South Jersey, and started a new

law practice.

Amorison, who grew up in

Rosemawr and attended School 9 and Christopher

Columbus Jr. High before CHS, remembers his CHS

days as a time of big hair, tight pants and Astroturf shoes.

“And, if you went to a rock concert, you had to get the

black souvenir tee shirt and be sure to wear it to school

the next day,” he said.

In addition to student council, Amorison played base-

ball for a couple of years in high school as well as threw

shot put on the indoor track team and worked on the

yearbook.

He went on to attend Lehigh University, where he met

his first wife. They both went to law school, her during

the day and him at night. “I was

basically Mr. Mom during the

day, caring for our young daugh-

ter,” he said.

Amorison was divorced in

2005 and he found himself com-

ing up north so much over the

next few years that he decided to

give up his South Jersey law

practice and start from scratch

again back in Clifton. He also remarried.

His office is located at 1050 Clifton Ave. and he spe-

cializes in personal bankruptcy, personal injury, wills,

trusts and estate law.

Amorison says that he keeps up with a fair amount of

former classmates and friends, especially Larry

Schendelman, Bruno Pavelchik and Pinto Naravane.

“Facebook has been a big help,” he said. “It has really

reconnected a lot of people from the past.”

Although he also organized the two prior class

reunions at 10 years and 20 years, Amorison was unable

to attend either one because of personal and business

John Amorison in 1984 and today.


Class of

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commitments, so he is really look-

ing forward to being at the 30 year

reunion.

“We had an informal gathering

at 25 years at Mario’s that I went

to and that was a lot of fun,” he

said.

The 30-year event will be held

on Saturday, Nov. 8 at the

Parsippany Sheraton. Tickets are

$89 per for the buffet dinner, and there’s a cash bar. For

further info and to reserve tickets, go to: reunions-unlim-

ited.com, or check out the CHS Class of 1984 Facebook

page. You can also email john at: johnamorisonlaw.com.

All Creatures Great, Small And ExoticAfter CHS, James J. (his loving, still-in-town-on

Belmont-Drive mom Virginia says he’s “better known as

Jamie”) Hilla went on to Montclair State, graduating

Summa Cum Laude. He played football and ice hockey

and captained the golf team. Then he attended the

University of Tennessee’s College of Veterinary

Medicine in Knoxville, the very

gateway to the Great Smoky

Mountains.There too, he met his

future wife, Gwen, who was

employed there then as a veteri-

nary technician.

Post-graduation (with high

honors, his mom dotingly notes ),

he and Gwen eventually pur-

chased Callahan Drive Animal

Hospital in Knoxville in 2004.

They reside in nearby Andersonville, TN, where they

live on what Dr. Hilla calls “our mini farm.” And their

“children” (as Gwen Hilla terms them) currently include

6 dogs, 8 cats, 4 horses and the redoubtable “Milton

Burro,” a miniature donkey.

Callahan Drive Animal Hospital (www.cdah.net for

anyone in the area requiring top-grade Mustang-style

veterinary care) primarily cares for dogs and cats, also

treats “exotics,” which were basically his special aca-

demic focus while in vet school. And they like to say

that “They love your pet just as you love your pet.”

‘84‘84

Class of

James Hilla in 1984 and today.

Alyse Pashman, Brian P. Murphy, Nina Surich, John Federle, Jamie Hriczov, Dragan Tubonjic, Susan Daubar.

‘94‘94

Class of


Alyse Pashman, with her new look and burgeoningcareer as an event planner, has gone through so many

positive changes since graduating Clifton High School

in 1994, but in many ways the successful business-

woman you see today is still that affable little kid from

West 2nd St.

“I can’t get away from Clifton,” said Pashman, who

for the last couple of years has been spearheading an

effort to bring together her old classmates for a 20-year

reunion. “The town will always be a part of my life in

one way or another. And I’m fine with that; I wouldn’t

have it any other way.” During her two stints in the city

– from 1980 until 1994 and then again from 2009 until a

few months ago – Clifton has made its mark on

Pashman, and she has left her mark on it.

Pashman moved to Clifton, from Garfield, at the age

of 4. She attended School 4 as an elementary school stu-

dent, but her family moved to nearby East 1st St. when

she was in the 2nd grade. From School 4, she went on to

attend School 11.

Party Planner on the Job


Scenes from back in theday, including at leftAlicia Pujat, WendyPavlicek and above,Carolyne Ruffilo, LesterLembryk at Homecoming.

Story by Dom Reda

“When I was in the 6th grade we

moved to Green Meadow Lane right

by the high school,” she recalled. “I

switched from Christopher Columbus

Middle School to Woodrow Wilson

Middle School, so by the time I got to

high school, I felt like I had a pretty

good circle of friends from the four

different schools.”

Pashman’s fondest thoughts go

back to those early years. “My best

memories were of the 5th grade when

I was going to School 11,” Pashman

remembered. “My 5th grade teacher

was Jeannie Routsis. She just recent-

ly retired. She had such a great way of

teaching.”

In high school, Pahsman was a

member of the Madrigals and the

concert choir.

Another great influence on her life was CHS Concert

Choir Director Barbara Novak, who also recently retired.

“She really made it a great experience,” Pashman

recalled. “That year we competed in Williamsburg, Va. I

don’t remember exactly where we finished, but we did

really well. I do remember what a great experience it

was.” Pashman said a trip to Washington, D.C.


‘94‘94

Class of


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At left, CHS 1994 reunion organiz-er Alyse Pashman in a recentphoto. Above from left in 1994-Rachel Dubnoff, Michelle Luques,Dana Edreos. Alyse Pashman AmyBernstein, Steve Garibell.

Steven Pogorelec Jr., Dana Edreos, Bobby Bollettino, Rebecca Rego, Leonard Andrews, Amy Bernstein, Jason Bullard.


Class of

with the safety patrol team was also among her “fondest

memories.”

In high school she also wrote for the school newspa-

per, “The Hub,” and she also made a lot of friends who

also went on to great success after CHS.

“She was wonderful,” recalled Class of ’94 classmate

Brian Murphy, who today is a history professor and a

regular political contributor on MSNBC. Murphy, for-

mer managing editor of politicsnj.com, said Pashman

reached out to him recently about the reunion.

“She is a like a force of nature,” he said. “She is just

a nice, positive person. I met her during high school. It’s

so easy for people in high school to be petty and horri-

ble. She was never like that. She was never judgmental,

even back then.”

Murphy was voted Most Socially Conscious and

Most Dependable, by his classmates. “He is a great guy,”

Pashman said. “He is so smart.” In many ways Pashman

and Murphy epitomize a good number of graduates from

the CHS Class of ’94 - smart, ambitious, hardworking

students from a blue collar background who went on to

become highly successful adults.

After high school Pashman graduated from Montclair

State University with a BS in Recreation Professions in

1998. During her last year at MSU she interned at the

IZOD Center, then known as Continental Airlines Arena,

and for the New York Yankees during their historic 125-

win season which culminated in a world championship.

“That was an amazing experience,” she recalled. “I

got to be in the parade and visit Gracie Mansion.”

After MSU she worked briefly with her father’s

Karaoke store, ran a regular Karaoke show at the Grande

Saloon on Van Houten Ave. “I still do private parties

there for fun,” she said, and sang the National Anthem at

Yogi Berra Stadium at the beginning of New Jersey

Jackals game, “singing has always been a passion of

mine.” Her father, Richard Pashman

also graduated CHS, ’69.

Once she started her career

things really took off for Pashman.

She worked as a meetings and

events coordinator for the Charles

Group, Inc., an independent even

planning firm in Fairfield, for nine

and a half years.

“While at that job I helped plan

large private concerts for VIP

clients,” she said. Those clients

included Kelly Clarskon, Train, the

Beach Boys, Frankie Valli & the

Four Seasons, Michael McDonald

and Natalie Cole.

In 2013, she became a certified

meeting planner and in November

of that year she started working one

of the largest and oldest law firms in

New Jersey, McCarter and

Dave Vasilenko and Jessica Kampo, CHS 1994 sweethearts, were married in2001 and recently had their third child. Jessica, who works for the CliftonRecreation Department, was honored in June by the Clifton Optimist Club.They are pictured with their children Emerson, Madelyn and Reaghan.



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English, LLP, headquartered in Newark, where she

works today.

“I plan internal firm events, run our exhibit booth at

large conferences and also work on our yearly partner

retreat,” she said. “This job has been a great experience

for me so far. It’s been a welcome change of pace for

me.”

Now Pashman, being ever the go-getter, has been

turning her attention to bringing some of her old class-

mates together, something that came about sort of by

accident.

“I’m still close with Class President Danielle Marco,”

Pashman said. “When she bowed out of any type of plan-

ning for the reunion, I got busy and decided to throw

something together. My brother Robert Pashman, who

graduated CHS in ’88, planned the 20-year reunion for

his class.”

So Pashman used all of her skills as an event planner

to organize the upcoming event.

“I started contacting people on Facebook,” she said. “I

contacted some of the popular kids. They gave me their

blessing to let me know they were interested.”

Pashman said many of her old classmates no longer

live in the area, but she is hoping to get at least 100 of

them to commit and so far that goal is looking good.

The reunion is scheduled for November at the

Empire Club in Little Ferry, but in the meantime

Pashman is trying to organize an informal meeting with

some of the classmates at an area bar or restaurant, since

so many of her old friends share her love of Clifton’s

popular hangouts.

“I still go to the Hot Grill,” she said. “And I love the

disco fries at the Tick Tock Diner.”

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One of Pashman’s less than favorite memories hap-

pened after she returned to Clifton in ’09 near her old

school, Woodrow Wilson. “I was walking into Sally’s

Beauty Supplies, near Bruno’s Pizza and I stepped on a

crack in the sidewalk,” she remembered. “I broke my

arm. But I’m okay now.”

Among the many positives in Pashman’s life since

graduation, she has lost over 100 pounds so some of the

people she has not seen in those years can look forward

to her new look. “I also cut my hair since then,” she said.

Pashman said among the former classmates she

reached out to are, Susan Daubar-Loeb who appeared on

“The Katie Couric Show” with her daughter Lindsay

who received a heart transplant a year ago, along with

the donor family; Mike Constantino, who owns the

AMA Fight Club in Wayne; Hani Darwish, CEO at

Extreme Fight Club, Woodland Park; Steve Pororelic,

who worked for Morgan Stanley and during high school

was student council president, played football and track

and was voted by his class Most Versatile, Most

Dependable and Most School Spirit, “he is still a great,

charismatic guy,” Pashman said; Dana Jeanett-Murdoch,

who was voted Most Athletic and now teaches in Clifton;

Dragan Tubonjic, a senior analyst with Bloomberg who is

also an advocate for helping people with disabilities;

Karie Ann Vasilik-Monaco, a pastry chef at Georgian

Court University, who did the same for Starwood Hotels

before moving to Beachwood; Jason Caparaz, who works

for Nickelodeon Network and was on the student council

at CHS, played cross country and was voted Friendliest

by his classmates; Steve Westdyk, on operations manag-

er at Microsoft who now lives in Texas; Jason Rak, a

behavioral healthcare manager at New York Presbyterian,

who now lives in New York City; Wendy Pavlicek, direc-

tor and animal curator at Burlington Science Center who

lives in Massachusetts, Mike Wojick, who has worked

behind the scenes on Broadway for years and is current-

ly a stagehand for “Motown the Musical;” Rebecca

Rego-Barry, an editor at Fine Books & Collections

Magazine who was voted Most Socially Conscious and

Most Likely to Succeed by her classmates.

Other former classmates Pashman reached out to

include Jennifer Surgent-Geiger; Jaime Milovitz, voted

Best Eyes and part of Class Inseparables, and Michelle

Deleon, who was senior class officer and voted Million

Dollar Smile. All three became nurses.

Some ‘94 grads still living in Clifton include Dana

Edreos-Cabral, Rachel Dubnoff-Krawiec and Nina

Surich-Bigg, who went on to become a country prosecu-

tor. High school sweethearts who have since gone on to

marry and start a family, and who are still together today,

are Stephen Huber and Jaime Hricov, as well as Jessica

Kampo and Dave Vasilenko.

For more information on the reunion, search “Clifton

High School Class of 1994” on Facebook or contact

Pashman at [email protected].


‘94‘94Class of

Rachel Dubnoff, Darren Brodie, Kara Oakley, Michael

Constantino, Lou Magliarditi and Danielle Marco

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Class of

‘94‘94

Class of


It all started with the ringing of the telephone on ourVan Cleve Avenue home, shortly after 8:30 pm on

Sunday, December 18, 1983. My mother, Irene

Andruch, was 39 years old when she received that call

from Passaic Beth Israel Hospital in Passaic.

Stephen Andruch, her husband of less than ten years

had just lost his battle with melanoma, which he suc-

cumbed to shortly after it spread to his liver. I was

seven years old and my sister Christina had just turned

nine a week before on December 13.

It was a call that changed everything for our family

– a ringing telephone that I still hear in my head once

in a while – only now, it’s an inspirational ring that

motivates and reminds me never to take anything or

anyone for granted.

I have replayed the whole scene in my head many

times and I think about my youth and “what could have

been” when times are tough – a ring that motivates me

to think “if my mother could sacrifice her life for her

children, then anything is possible.”

We all control our destiny.

Shortly after receiving the devastating news, the

Kotys family (then of Kulick St.), Helen, Mila and Ola,

came over to comfort us until we fell asleep.

The next morning, we woke to Sister Dionesia of St.

Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic School ringing our door-

bell with a meal prepared for us at the rectory near the

church that would last us for days.

It was our family (Andruch /Bukalo / Leniw/Shiposh

families), St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church, the

Ukrainian community and the Ukrainian American

Youth Association (UAYA) whom I am, and will forev-

er be indebted to for what they did for my family in our

time of need.

As a Ukrainian living in Clifton, it was a weekly rit-

ual to go to the Ukrainian Center on Hope Ave. in

Passaic on Friday nights or Saturday afternoons after

Ukrainian school. “The Center” was our social scene

when we were younger, and still is such today.

There we would have Ukrainian dancing and

Ukrainian Cultural School taught by volunteers. It

instilled culture and taught me who I am and who I will

always be – a Ukrainian.

I attended the Ukrainian Center weekly from the age

of four until I was 17, when I became a volunteer to

teach children about our culture and history.

Both of our children, Stefan (10) and Isabella (8)

currently attend the UAYA on Friday nights and are

learning about their Ukrainian roots. They also attend

Ukrainian summer camps, just as I did.

IHOR S. ANDRUCH

A Ringing ofCommunity,Church and Family in his Heart & Soul


By Ihor S. Andruch


I currently sit on the board of

directors for the Ukrainian

American Youth Association and

help out where I am needed.

Growing up in the Ukrainian community was

a wonderful experience for me, one that I

wouldn’t change for the world, as it always

reminded me of my roots and where I came

from and most definitely kept me on the straight path to

success.

I attained my elementary education at St. Nicholas

Ukrainian Catholic School in Passaic, where I learned

how to speak English (Ukrainian was our primary lan-

guage at home) and excelled in all subjects.

I had wonderful and caring teachers, whose passion

for education continuously came through and the

school and its educators were always there for our fam-

ily, especially Sister Dionesia and Mrs. Eugenia Junice

(who has since passed away). We also attended St.

Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church every Sunday,

where I served as an alter boy throughout my youth.

After I graduated from elementary school, it was off

to Clifton High School. I attended CHS for four years

and have to be honest; I wasn’t the best student in the

world. I blame my own laziness for not excelling as I

had hoped in high school.

I didn’t horse around the entire four years of CHS

though; I had many wonderful teachers, especially, Mr.

Thomas Mullin – who coincidentally taught my moth-

er how to speak English when she came to the U.S.

from Poland in the early 1970’s. He had a way about

him, always tying in his great sense of humor into the

challenging Russian classes (I-IV) that he taught me

until I graduated in 1994.

The silver lining of attending CHS was that if it

weren’t for CHS, I wouldn’t have met the love of my

life and my future bride, Kristy (Holzli.) Kristy and I

met during senior year in high school when she sat in

front of me in English class.

She was a cutie, beautiful face, permed hair, hazel

eyes and very personable, but didn’t give me the time

of day because she was dating someone else.

It wasn’t a big deal to me because I started “working

on her” then. I once rigged my locker to have working

‘94‘94Class of

Ihor S. Andruch Thank you God, Mom

and Christina. Ukraine lives free. JP and

CK: 20 after. DB: you Pantomime freak

XXX: OOoh, JT: Stop chanting my name.

These four years bring out tears. Thanks -

BP, SS, DB, OB, CR, AJ, TC, MZ.


lights when it opened during Christmas and I

am pretty sure this was the time she started to

fall for me. I used to copy her homework and

give it to the teacher as mine and she was the

one who got in trouble. She wasn’t too fond of

me when I did this. But, she finally said “YES”

when I asked her to be my girlfriend Labor Day

weekend of 1997.

In the fall of 1994, I began attending John Jay

College of Criminal Justice in NYC. I wanted to study

Forensic Psychology, but found that NYC was far too

“busy” for me to get an education.

That winter, I transferred to Bergen Community

College to study Psychology and then transferred a year

later to Montclair State University (MSU), where I

excelled on and off campus. I graduated in 1999.

I wasn’t 100 percent sure what I wanted to study

while at MSU, but I selected Speech Communication,

because there was so much I was interested in and

thought this would give me many opportunities upon

graduation. I befriended a wonderful professor at

MSU, my advisor and colleague, Wayne Bond, Ph.D.

who was the Chair of the Department.

He was always there for me and any other student

that needed him. He too had an incredible fire within –

a fire that made the students want to learn. A southern-

er, he had faith and saw something uniquely special in

each and every student he taught and believed in their

dreams and aspirations, always.

Dr. Bond was truly my mentor at MSU and I can

honestly say that I am the professional I am today

because of him. I also took full advantage of extracur-

ricular offered on campus. I worked as a radio disc

jockey at 90.3 FM MSU radio and was a Legislator and

PR Director in the Student Government Association.

In my senior year, I found myself working and

interning at 92.3 FM K-Rock in New York City, which

was made famous as the home of Howard Stern.

At the same time, to make real money, I did what a

lot of other Ukrainian kids did while in high school and

college— I worked part time as a delivery person for

Colonial Pharmacy and Van Houten Pharmacies, which

is still owned by fellow Ukrainians, Walter Diduch and

Walter Voinov.

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Kristy Holzli Congratulations Class of

94! TK wish you were here. MT Ben and

Jerry AA, KH, BF, FE, MJ you worry too

much MM, KH, BB, FE. Thanks Mom,

Dad and Amy. Love you Ralph! WW, AS,

GA, PP, CD ‘93


I juggled a lot in college to make sure

I would have the best chance to land a

‘real’ job upon graduation. I spent much

of 1999 in and out of NYC interviewing for

PR jobs and marketing. I interviewed with some of the

top PR agencies and received several offers, including

one firm whose softball team played at Shea Stadium

when the Mets were on the road (I am a big Mets fan).

That fall, I accepted a position at CPR

Communications in Teterboro, (now called CPR

Strategic Marketing Communications in Elmwood

Park. I chose the firm because while interviewing with

Joseph Carabello, president and CEO, and his wife,

Laura Carabello, Principal and Chief Creative Officer,

they showed compassion and really seemed to have a

vision for me with their firm.

There was a lot of room for growth and advancement

with the agency and it was conveniently close to home.

I am now enjoying my 15th year at CPR. I have

worked with clients locally, nationally and internation-

ally. I have moved up the ranks from Public Relations

Assistant, and currently serve as Vice

President of Client Services.

Since I started at CPR in 1999, I have

mentored dozens of staff members

(from interns to executive level) –

whom have gone on to be very success-

ful professionals in the public relations

and marketing fields.

Finally, Kristy and I married at St.

Philip the Apostle Church in Clifton on

a glorious day in May of 2002 with a

part Roman Catholic, part Byzantine

Ukrainian Catholic mass.

We have two incredibly beautiful

children and still reside in Clifton. And

yes we still stay involved with our com-

munity on many different levels.

‘94‘94

Class of

Jimmy Sturr& his Orchestra

Passaic’sThirdWardParkcorner of VanHouten andPassaic Aves.

Bring blankets orlawn chairs!

Free Concert Thursday, July 24, 7:30

Sponsors include Polish/Slavic Federal Credit Union, Wawel Bank,

State Senator Paul Sarlo, Assemblyman Gary Schaer, Assemblywoman

Marlene Caride, Assemblyman Thomas P. Giblin, Sheriff Richard

Berdnik, Rosol-Dul American Legion Post #359, Weiner and Mazzei,

PC, and Slovak Catholic Sokol. This project is funded in part by the

Passaic County Cultural and Heritage Council at Passaic County

Community College, through a grant from the New

Jersey State Council on the Arts, Department of the

State, a partner agency of the National Endowment

for the Arts. Park is Handicapped-Accessible.

Call Greg Komeshok for more info: 973- 473 - 5111

I had many wonderful teachers at CHS,especially, Mr. Thomas Mullin – whocoincidentally taught my mother how tospeak English when she came to theU.S. from Poland in the early 1970’s.


8th ANNUAL FE

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Popadiuk

July 2014• Clifton Merchant60

Even though 10 years have passed since we graduat-ed from CHS, it feels like no more than two or three.

Yet, regardless of time, I hope that all of us always

remember the amazing experience we shared.

Honestly, I had a blast the four years I attended CHS!

We had good and bad days but thanks to friends and to

our dedicated, selfless teachers who pushed us to be the

best that we can be, we made some awesome memories.

Our ten-year reunion is coming up on November 28,

2014, and to get us ready, I spoke with some of my fel-

low Mustangs from the Class of 2004.

Regina HemseyMy friend since childhood, Regina went to Caldwell

College where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Political Science with a minor in Business Management,

then went on for a Master of Arts in Counseling

Psychology. She is certified as a Licensed Associate

Counselor (LAC) and National Certified Counselor

(NCC). For two years, Regina has been an Oncology

Counselor at Hackensack UMC Mountainside and with

Gildas Club.

Regina’s work is intense, since she provides individ-

ual and group therapy to patients and families affected

Nicola Di Donna, Christie Lotz, Thomas Garretson, Kristin Reilly, Matthew Malaszuk, Jaclyn Pangilinan, Matthew R. Amelio.

‘04‘04

Class of


By Suheyla Tuncer


by cancer. Back home in Clifton, she volunteers for the

Clifton Cares Troop Packing Night, as well as Wounded

Warrior Project.

“One of my favorite memories from CHS,” said

Regina, “was having the opportunity to go to England as

a freshman with the Mustang Band. Also, some of my

greatest memories were being the manager of the

Varsity Wrestling team and then going down to Atlantic

City to cheer on our state wrestling qualifiers!”

Alberto TiradoHard-working and driven describes Alberto Tirado.

He and I kept in touch through Facebook and texts, the

way most of us now do. Like Regina, he, too, first start-

ed at Caldwell College, then transferred to William

Paterson University where he obtained a degree in

Business Management.

“I started my career doing marketing for businesses

and sales while doing catering and hospitality on the

side for extra income,” said Alberto, “when I realized

that I wanted to further pursue the hospitality industry. I

began at the bottom at local restaurants and worked my

way up to management in front-of-the-house and back -

of-the-house aspects.

“Then I joined the food service company at MetLife

stadium for the Jets and Giants. I managed the all-inclu-

sive clubs for the regular season, as well as concerts, and

major events, such as the Super Bowl.”

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Recently, Alberto transferred to

St. Louis and now work for the

Rams and manages the all-inclusive

club levels and bar departments at

the Edward Jones Dome.

Alberto’s favorite memories of

CHS “are related to sports, and then

after a game or match, just getting

together with team mates to cele-

brate a victory with a good meal.

The bonding that occurred has

forged lifelong friendships, memo-

ries that can never be replaced.”

Jilian FueshkoJilian Fueshko was a phenome-

nal soccer player for the girl’s

Mustang soccer team and a talented

singer for the CHS Concert Choir.

She received a full soccer schol-

arship to St. Peter’s University and

played until senior year, when she

was taken out with a knee injury.

She graduated with a degree in

Marketing Management.

Jilian went on to work for Parisi

Speed School becoming Operations

Manager in Garwood and then to man-

age operations at The Pure Balance

Center in Clifton where she is today.

“The biggest thing I miss about

CHS is playing sports and just

always being involved in school

activities,” said Jilian, “and going to

Florida for softball and choir and

other trips that we took. These trips

were always a good time and gave

us a great experience.

“Definitely one of my favorite

memories was when Suheyla and I

would randomly break out dancing

and just laugh about anything silly.”

Raymond TullingWhenever it came to matters of

math or standardized testing, Ray

Tulling was always there to help.

So it makes perfect sense that

Ray is a personal banker for one of

the largest financial insitutions in

the world, Wells Fargo.

Ray’s job is to analyze the finan-

cial profile of his clients, uncover

any needs or problems they may

have and find a solution through

Wells Fargo products and services.

However, Ray is pursuing anoth-

er goal, that of becoming a police

officer. He is taking weekly study

group classes taught by a retired

police captain and currently is in the

middle of the process for getting a

position with Passaic County alter-

nate route program.

Whatever Ray endeavors to

undertake in life, I’m sure he will be

great at it! After all, this is the guy

whose yearbook quote from Wayne

Gretzky was “You miss 100 percent

of the shots you never take.”

Aakash ShahAakash and I worked together on

the Yearbook Committee, produc-

ing the 2004 Rotunda our senior

year. Aakash is both creative and

Anthony Sartor, Suheyla Tuncer, Garrett Blasko, Alexander Berberich, Sean Cooper, Raymond Tulling, Neil Reilly.

‘04‘04

Class of



great with numbers. The years at CHS may have been

the last time Aakash lived in Clifton, but he has not

stopped affectionately calling this town his home.

After high school, Aakash ventured south of the

Mason-Dixon Line to attend George Washington

University in Washington, DC.

Graduating with a double major in Finance and

Marketing, Aakash began his career in mortgage finance

with Fannie Mae. This year, Aakash left Fannie Mae to

pursue an MBA degree at Georgetown University.

While completing his degree, he works at GE Capital

and lives in the Dupont Circle neighborhood, truly just

up the street from the White House. Aakash enjoys

spending his free time playing volleyball, biking, and

telling jokes that only he finds funny.

When I asked him about his favorite memory from,

CHS, without missing hesitation he said, “Beating Mr.

Harding in jeopardy!” Priceless.

Tim Reilly I’ve known Tim and his brother Neil since we were

kids in School #3. No doubt, these two are the coolest

and best looking twins around!

After CHS, Tim moved westward to the University of

Iowa, where he completed a double major in Music (his

yearbook motto was Friedrick Nietzsche’s “Without

music, life would be a mistake”) and Political Science.

Tim met his wife Kelly, a native Iowan while out

there, and in 2008, moved to Des Moines where he

attended Drake University Law School.

For Tim, 2011 was a busy year: he graduated law

school in May, took (and passed) the bar exam in July,

married Kelly in August, and then started a new job two

weeks later. He has been with the Iowa Civil Rights

Commission for nearly three years.

Tim and Kelly live in Des Moines with their, as Tim

says, “incredibly lazy French bulldog, Higgins.” Tim

likes to spend his free time working outdoors in the yard

of their home, going for long bike rides, and during

those long Midwest winers, brewing beer.

Tim’s favorite memory at CHS is of the Boys Tennis

team “the year Neil and I played doubles and won the

county tournament and beat Ridgewood! That year, the

tennis team had one of its best years ever!”

‘04‘04

Class of



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Kevin GreenKevin Green had great school spirit and I

recently caught up with Kevin, who told me

that thanks to Mr. McCunney and the

C.A.S.T. Program at CHS, he actually began

preparing for his career during sophomore

year. After graduating William Paterson

University, he started as an assistant for a tal-

ent management agency and in 2011, began

to freelance as a production assistant on

shows such as The Cake Boss and the

Rachael Ray Show, where he was offered a staff posi-

tion in 2012.

“The Rachel Ray Show has given me amazing oppor-

tunities,” said Kevin, “attending the MTV VMA

Awards, meeting President Obama and the First Lady

and the Daytime Emmy awards in California since we

were nominated for five awards.” This past season

Kevin was promoted to Segment Coordinator, and his

goal is to become a television producer at a late night

talk show in the LA area. “Ultimately my goal is to be

the executive producer of my own show,” said Kevin.

Bogdan TarnowskiHey Mr.DJ! Let’s get this party started! And

now, no surprise, Bogdan is part owner in a pro-

duction company. He began to DJ at an early

age. While going to Teen Night at 14, he real-

ized he loved the DJ style of spinning music.

While away at college, he decided studying

political science was not the route that he

wanted to take.

He chose to return to pursue his passions of

making music and cooking. He began to DJ in

Rhode Island. After moving back to New Jersey in

2006, he took a job at the Prudential Center as catering

manager, while keeping up his passion for music.

Bogdan was on the ground floor of the opening of a new

restaurant, 12 West, in Montclair, and by helping open

the restaurant, he was able to turn one of his dreams into

a reality.

In 2007, Bogdan met his now DJ partner Rico Suave

(Bogdan’s DJ name is B-Love) at his Sigma Pi fraterni-

ty chapter at NJIT. This year they launched their compa-

ny, Image.in Productions, hosting and producing

‘04‘04

Class of



premier events in the New

York/New Jersey metro area.

B-Love will be the DJ at our

ten-year reunion. You’ve got to

come and hear his sound!

Tom Garretson At CHS, Tom Garretson was

always one of the nicest guys, a

great student, and loyal friend.

Tom attended Villanova

University, where he received

degrees in accounting and business administration, with

a concentration in Management Information Systems

(MIS). He began his career as an auditor with

Ernst&Young, in their New York real estate group,

where he got his CPA.

After two years of corporate life, Tom decided to join

the family business. His grandfather Joseph Shook

established the Shook Funeral Home on Van Houten

Ave. in 1955 and over the years, expanded the business

to include several others. Tom is now the third genera-

tion to join in the management of the business his

grandfather began.

Tom married Annelise Newton on New Year’s Eve

2012 and joining them in their home in Clifton is their

four-legged friend Molly.

Tom remembers that he, as class vice president and

Matt Amelio, as president, were voted “Most Joined at

the Hip” by their classmates and really had great times

at CHS.

One of his favorite memories is from senior year,

when he and Matt were always goofing, was “class with

Cassie Craig every day. Amelio and

I sat next to each other and Mrs.

Craig referred to us as the knuckle-

heads. She was such a great teacher

that really tried to instill her posi-

tive philosophy on life in her stu-

dents.”

Matt AmelioMatt Amelio and I have known

each other since CCMS. Growing

up, a lot of the ladies had a crush on

Matt, charismatic and handsome.

Matt always had this “presidential vibe” about him,

so it makes sense he was our class president all four

years of CHS.

After CHS and Monmouth University, Matt became

a financial advisor with New York Life, where he helps

people with retirement planning, issues of long-term

care, insurance protection.

Matt and Tom not only remained best friends, but

work helping families deal with issues of life planning.

“I work hand and hand with my ‘class inseparable’

and best friend,” said Matt, “to help people plan for their

lifes and to also take care of their families when they are

no longer with us. Nothing beats working with people

you love and trust and when it comes to Tom and Shook

Funeral Home there is no one better!”

Matt still plays baseball (Clifton Slates) with a bunch

of former Mustangs and recently, he purchased a home

in Clifton down the street from bud Tom. He also

remembers speed notes class with Cassie Craig and the

craziness of boys floor hockey in gym class.

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[email protected]

‘04‘04

Class of



Regan Van BlarcomMy good friend Regan Van

Blarcom told me that during those

years at CHS, we all thought we

knew everything and knew what’s

best for us, but quickly we realized

after graduating that we still had a

lot to learn.

Back then, all we had to worry

about was going to class, meeting up

with friends, lunch, gym, what’s

going on for the weekend.

Football games, pep rallies,

homecoming, school plays, cheering

on our teams during their seasons

and proms, of course, were the

highlights for most of us during

these years.

Regan is sure everyone will agree

that the drivers ed class, especially with Mr. Capp were

good times, as well as getting behind the wheel with

Mr. Randazzo to get our licenses. “Too many memories

to mention and the ones that each of us made with one

another will forever be cherished. Senior week was a

great week. Everyone put their differences aside and we

enjoyed this time all together as friends.

“From walking in as freshmen and not knowing

what was ahead of us, to walking on that field on

Graduation Day. It’s amazing how fast four years go.

Those buildings and classrooms have many memories

that no one will ever forget. I’m sure some people wish

they could go back to those years and relive those care-

free days as young teenagers.”

Regan summed it up perfectly.

Even though we will lose contact and may not see

one another often, we all have one thing in common:

we will always and forever belong to the Clifton High

School Class of 2004.

Mustang Pride - all day, every day, but especially on

Friday, November 28, 2014 at the Brownstone for our

10 year class reunion! See you there!

‘04‘04

Class of


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Many remember Paul VI Regional High School, a

Catholic high school on Valley Rd. run by the Diocese of

Paterson, which opened in 1967 and closed in 1990.

Despite its brief existence, and with no alumni associ-

ation to mark class milestones or publicize life accom-

plishments, its self-sufficient graduates of the Class of

1974 had no choice but to create do-it-yourself class

reunions instead.

Planning for the 40th began in early March

after one class member, Lisa Geider of Clifton,

posted at a Paul VI Facebook page that she was

looking for fellow ’74 grads to help organize a

reunion. It didn’t take long before a group of vol-

unteers held their first Reunion Committee meet-

ing. Members include Michele Acocella, Lisa

Geider, Bill Grau, Linda Ricciardi McNerney,

Mark Murray, Linda White Rando, Anne Liddell

Redeka, Kathy Ricciardi Tahan, and Marie Puzio

Zangara.

Geider then launched the “Paul VI Class of

1974 Alumni” Facebook page. “The Facebook

page has been an invaluable tool for reestablish-

ing camaraderie, reflecting on our high school

years, and building awareness of the reunion,”

Geider said. “Every Thursday is ‘Throwback

Thursday,’ which has generated fun conversations

and unearthed some great photos.”

Of course, one of the Committee’s first tasks

was to locate and contact as many members of the

Class of ’74 as possible to let us know about the

planned reunion (and the Facebook page). Members took

advantage of a variety of Internet-based tools to help

them accomplish this.

“It’s definitely easier than ever to track down people

through Facebook, LinkedIn and Google,” said Bill Grau,

now of North Caldwell, whose parents, Jim and Dorothy,

still reside in Clifton. “For example, we found a photo of

[classmate] David Marthouse standing in front of a build-

By Fran Fleischer Hopkins

PAUL VI REGIONAL HS CLASS OF 1974 REUNION‘74Class of

In 1974, from left: Bob Piersall, Jim Padula, Ed Edwards. Sitting:Cathy Stefanchik, Norm Tahan, Debbie Russo, Kevin Tarrant.


ing that had the call letters of a radio station on it and used

that information to contact him.”

Committee members found another former classmate,

Shaun Brown, when they discovered, in an article written

by Brown, that he’s a chaplain in the US Navy.

And fellow ’74 grad Donald Robb emailed Geider to

let her know that he’d just joined

Facebook primarily to join in the

fun at the Class’s Facebook page.

The Class of ‘74 Facebook

page has even led to a spinoff

page. Ron Furmanek, a classmate

of many Paul VI students who

graduated from St. Philip’s School

in 1970, launched a Facebook

page for his St. Philip’s class after

seeing what his Paul VI friends

had done.

And what is it about these

Facebook pages? They are magic.

They glow with photos of smiling,

carefree young people who look

like they’re having so much fun.

But the good feelings are

mixed with an inescapable tinge of sadness. We were 18-

year-old kids who couldn’t even imagine 40 years back

then; and yet they’ve skipped by, and here we are. We

miss the days when life was just beginning to unfold in

front of us, full of possibilities and time. They’re gone.

And while so much has changed in 40 years, not

everything has. Those that call Clifton home include

Maryanne Bay, Todd Juengling, Joyce Kipikasha, Fran

LaBarbara, Mark Mikolajczyk, Bill Mitchell, Joe

Pearson, Bill Szymanski, Kathy Ricciardi Tahan, Norm

Tahan, John Tauber, and Joe Woznak.

Several sets of high school sweethearts formed last-

ing marriages. One of these couples is Dr. Bob and

Marian Abate Gorman, pictured at

Island Beach State Park on a class trip

in 1974 and today. The others are Mark

and Linda Ricciardi McNerney and Bob

and Linda White Rando (sadly, Bob passed

away in 2010). The reality that life has already ended for

some. At least half a dozen of

those kids have passed. Some of

us battle life-threatening illnesses

or endure chronic ones, and most

have felt the heartbreak of losing

one or both of our parents.

Many have been hit hard by

unemployment in this tough

economy. Married, divorced,

widowed, or single, in the 40

years since high school, we’ve all

attended life’s “pain and

heartache school”. Yet we’ve

also been deeply blessed. We’ve

known the sweetest joys life can

offer, the priceless gifts of love,

faith, family, and friendship. So

with 40 years of perspective

under our belts, it’s unlikely that anyone’s holding any

grudges over the minor hurts of our teenage years.

We’ve been fortunate and we thank God for that. And

we’re still looking forward to so many things. One of

them, our much-anticipated 40th reunion on Oct. 11, is

already underway on Facebook, where we’re getting

reacquainted—with our 18-year-old selves.

The reunion is at Calandra’s Mediterranean Grill in

Fairfield. The cost is $65 and there is a cash bar. Send

checks or money orders payable to Paul VI 1974 Alumni

Committee, to: Mark Murray, c/o SST Corporation, 635

Brighton Rd., Clifton, NJ 07012.

For more info: [email protected].

‘74

Class of

Pat Bizzaro, Marie Puzio, Joyce Kipikasha.

They toss sabres, spin flags and fliprifles. Others bang drums, blow

bugles, dance and march across a

football field—they are the members

of the Hawthorne Caballeros Drum

and Bugle Corps.

For 68 summers, some 60 brass

players, along with 36 percussionists

and 32 colorguard, wearing satin

shirts, bell bottomed pants and som-

breros, have performed Latin-themed

routines that fuse art and athletics.

The Caballeros is a community

band of members who range in age

from 15 to 50-something. Founded in

1946 at Hawthorne American Legion

Post #199, the ‘Cabs’ compete in a

circuit sponsored by Drum Corps

Associates. They perform their com-

petitive, themed routines on football

fields throughout the US and make

stadiums quake and crowds roar.

The 2014 theme is Entrapment,which... “will take you on a journeyof seduction and pursuit fueled bythe character and hypnotic energy ofthe award winning CaballeroColorguard.”


Hawthorne Cabs

Art, Athletics & Tradition

by 128 Musicians & Dancers

50th Annual Grand Prix

on July 12, now in Wayne

in 68TH SEASON


The program is staged to an orig-

inal score by Key Poulan and Rob

Ferguson, visually brought to life by

drill writer Drew Farmer and col-

orguard designers Bobbey Biddle

and Matthew Hurley. Program coor-

dinator is Cliff Bialkin.

See the Cabs in competition

against eight other travelling corps,

some from as far as Atlanta, at 6 pm

on July 12 in their 50th Annual

Grand Prix at Passaic County

Technical Institute in Wayne.

Tickets are $24. For more info,

go to www.crowntickets.com or

call 888-547-6478.

The Hawthorne Caballeros are an international performing arts group with musicians and dancers coming from Brazil,Japan, Canada and eight American states to tour and perform with the Passaic County based Drum & Bugle Corps.

While in competition, or on a parade route, art, athletics and tradition come alive. Below, at Parade Rest, Mike Ryanwalks his grandchild who he expects will be the fourth generation of his family to perform with the Hawthorne Cabs.


Before we start: Yes, there are as usualfive students of this month. And they’re

all outstanding kids. It’s just that three of

them we already cited in our June 2014

Graduation issue for their accomplish-

ments. So we’re not going to recap those

accomplishments here.

So here we’ll just give this month’s

space to two more outstanding underclass-

men who are not in fact graduating sen-

iors. And to check out those three graduat-

ing seniors again, simply check last

month’s issue. (You did all retain your

copies of last month’s issue, right?)

Here, too again, because as we might have men-

tioned above they’re outstanding kids, are their names:

Heather Atamian, Richard Bandurski and Aulla

Hamdeh. Good luck to all three in the cold cruel world

outside CHS, and continued success at CHS to the fol-

lowing two “other” Students of the Month.

Nicole Rodriguez-Rowe, South Wing, Grade 11Keeps It In The Family.

Nicole’s fave class this just-concluded year was

“AP US History with Mr. Henry. History class this year

just helped me realize the importance and significance

of the history of this country from a more open per-

spective. The only way people in the present age can

understand who we are as a country and how we got to

exceptionally ambitious be that way is by studying the

past.” The course covered the Gilded Age, the Roaring

Twenties, the Great Depression, World Wars I and II

and the Civil Rights movement. “Although class was

rigorous at times, I am happy to say that I pushed

through,” Nicole notes.

Her best friend? Simply put, “That’s my younger

sister, Daniella. I couldn’t ask for a better friend in my

life; she is selfless, genuine, dependable and truly wish-

es the best for me. She has always wanted me to reach

my full potential and has stood by me through thick and

thin.”

As for those extra-currics which so impress college

admissions counselors? “I’ve been volunteering in the

ER at St. Mary’s Hospital for almost a year now, and

it’s been a rewarding experience. My involvement at

St. Mary’s has taught me a lot about the medical field

and proper protocol when dealing with patients. It’s not

just trying to fill up your resume or college application,

but for the good of others.”

Nicole is also secretary of the National Art Honors

Society at CHS. “I love art. We were able to take a field

trip to the Museum of Modern Art in New York City,

which was interesting and fun.”

As for the future, she thinks she’d like to combine

the nautical with the medical. “I’d like to go to a uni-

versity with a Naval ROTC program and serve in the

Navy upon graduation as a Health Care officer of some

kind,” she says. Perhaps even as an MD at a Naval

Hospital such as Bethesda or on a hospital ship.

And the lady actually likes going to school. “Being

able to receive the great public education that is avail-

able to me every day is great,” she says. (So no some-

what typical teen sulkiness for her.)

“It’s sort of an unusual answer,” she admits, “but

people my age living in other countries often times are

not granted the opportunity to get an education. Others

are never able to make it past their elementary years

and are forced to stop attending.”

Nicole RodriguezSantiago Moscoso

Santiago Moscoso-Gomez, Annex Grade 9, Really Gets Into School

“I was not exactly looking forward to going to high

school,” Santiago freely owns.

“I believed it would be very hard, not fun at all. But

this first year has been filled with great memories and

experiences. I’ve enjoyed every moment I spent in the

Annex. But my favorite class has to be World History

with Mr. Scott Orlovsky,” he continues.

“History has always been one of my favorite subjects

but this year he’s really made it fun, too,” Santiago’s

quick to add. My best friends,

Jocelyn Soriano and Anthony

Sanchez, have also made freshmen

year fun. They make me laugh, lis-

ten to problems I may have, give

me advice on different situations I

may come across. And they always

know how to make me smile.”

As for extra-currics, Santiago is

a committed member of the Key

Club. But he also volunteers in

town, including working as a serv-

er at community meals.

“I’m still not sure what exactly I want to do in the

future,” he says. But he does point himself towards

“college to continue my studies. Maybe something in

the criminal justice field.”

As to what he most likes about school, “My friends

and teachers. They constantly give me support and

motivate me to give a 100% in everything I do.”

I think I was chosen as student of the month for the

Annex because of my good grades and for working

hard,” Santiago sums up.

“I take school and my studies seriously.”

From left, Richard Bandurski, Heather Atamian, Aulla Hamdeh.



Events & Briefs

Tangibly Positive ReinforcementThere’s a new incentive program at

CHS that rewards frosh with actual

prizes (substantial ones) for posi-

tive actions.

It’s called “Positive Behavior

Support in Schools” (PBSIS for

short). Students are rewarded with

“keys” which accumulate and

launch students into random draw-

ings for prizes, including gift cards

to these sponsors: Uno Chicago

Grill, Chevy’s, Cups Frozen Yogurt

and Mr. Cupcakes.

Then at school year’s end the top

four earners of those keys receive a

rather substantial prize of Google

Chromebooks. This year’s inaugu-

ral winners were Yousef Gabr,

Carlos Polanco and Daniel and

Michael McLaughlin.

Doug Kelly, Vice Principal of

the East Wing at CHS, is the inno-

vator of this program. To find our

more, call him at 973-591-6829.

He also noted that the CHS

Freshman Orientation, which is

called the Mustang Academy, is on

Aug. 4 to 7, from 8 am to noon.

Annie’s Angels is named for AnnDaGiau, pictured with her husbandVal. Since her death from breast cancer

on Christmas Day, 2002, her family has

raised over $765,000 to help families

struggling financially through a life

threatening disease, illness or disability

connecting neighbor to neighbor, friend

to friend and business to business in a

caring fundraising network.

Headed up by Ann and Val’s son

Bill, they established a 501(c) (3) charity in 2007, the

former Clifton resident is a long distance cyclist. On

Aug. 3, he will be cycling with Clifton’s Brian Cisneros

and Stacey Hayes from Clifton to

Hampton, NH. This 500 mile event will

take seven days and will raise money for

Tomorrow’s Children’s Fund at HUMC,

Boston Children’s Hospital and Annie’s

Angels.

The night before, on Aug. 2, there will

be a kickoff beefsteak fundraiser at the

Italian American Family Association in

Botany Village. Tickets are $50 and can

be purchased by calling 973-754-8855.

Get the latest event details at www.anniesangels.net or

on Facebook at Annie’s Angels Memorial Fund.

Any questions, email [email protected].

The Theater League of Clifton awarded scholarships to CHS Seniors MattBodnar, Katie Scorziello, Sarah Fusco and Walter Santiago Geschleider III.At center is TLC President Mark Peterson. To find out more about TLC andits Fall show, go to theaterleagueofclifton.com.

These Mustangs got caught... doing nice things... From left: MichaelMcLaughlin, Yousef Gabr, Carlos Polanco and Daniel McLaughlin.

Support Annie’s Angels at August 2 Beefsteak


Mustang Pride gathered nearly60 volunteers at its third annual

Volunteer Appreciation dinner, at

Mario’s Restaurant on June 16.

These volunteers (above) helped to

run the Clifton Family Carnival by

manning games across the five

days of the event on Memorial Day

weekend. Raising about $20,000,

the money goes to help to provide

programs, activities and supplies

for Clifton school kids.

“Tonight was all about thanking

our volunteers and showing appre-

ciation for the time and effort they

all put into making the Carnival a

success,” said Mustang Pride

President AnnMarie Genneken.

Go to cliftonmustangpride.com

or follow them on Facebook at

CliftonMustangPride.

Passaic County Clerk Kristin M.Corrado and Veterans Service

Officer John Harris will be at

Clifton City Hall on July 24 from

11 am to 2 pm to process Passport

applications, issue Notary Oaths

and Veteran Photo ID cards.

Kristin M. Corrado and her staff

will provide outreach services in

Clifton on the fourth Thursday of

each month through the end of the

year from 11 am to 2 pm. For

details on fees, call 973-225-3690

or go to passaiccountynj.org.

Tell us of your favorite Cliftondining establishment or about a

restaurant owned by a Cliftonite in a

nearby town. Send a note by July 11

to [email protected].

Ed Kurbansade of Spencer Savbings on Piaget Ave. with Dennis Mikula ofMikula Contracting. The bank marked it 75th anniversary on June 20 with areception for customers in its 19 branches. More at www.SpencerSavings.com.


Happy 5th to Nicholas Calvo on July 11th. Marie Angello celebrates on July 3. Walter Pruiksmaturns 91 on July 26. Julia E. Cannarozzi, will be 6 on July 8th. Skip Kazer celebrates on July 5th.

Birthdays & Celebrations - July 2014

Birthdays & Celebrations

Amanda Di Angelo............. 7/3Ray Merced ....................... 7/3Chris Torrao ....................... 7/4Skip Kazer ......................... 7/5Robyn Sue Lord .................. 7/5Frank Rando....................... 7/5Lori Lill ............................... 7/6Susan Rego ........................ 7/6Ron Curtiss ......................... 7/7Angelo Grippo ................... 7/7

Edward Sepulveda.............. 7/7Jenna De Liberto ................. 7/8Joyce Sunshine ................... 7/8Cynthia Kester .................... 7/9Jesse Hasting.................... 7/10Kristi Schopfer .................. 7/10Anthony Zaccone.............. 7/13Alyssa Marie Misyak......... 7/14Ann Schamble.................. 7/15Derek Dobol..................... 7/16

Jessica Dobol.................... 7/16Joanne Gursky.................. 7/17Carrie Szluka ................... 7/18Alexander Razvmov .......... 7/19Ryan Saccoman................ 7/19Cocoa Saccoman ............. 7/19Ashley Jacobus ................. 7/19Linda Portaro.................... 7/20Megan Suaifan................. 7/20Kaitlin Vinciguerra ............ 7/22Harry Quagliana.............. 7/23George Shamar................ 7/23Kayla Lord........................ 7/24

Niece Emily Hawrylkoand Kyle Crawford weremarried on June 28.

Send dates & [email protected]


Anna Schubert ................ 7/24Eva Gasporowska........... 7/25Kathy Valdes................... 7/25Joseph Lopez .................. 7/27Ornella Ganoza ............. 7/27Gina Oliva ..................... 7/28Amanda Fabiano............ 7/29Lee-Ann Varga ................ 7/29Stephen Camp Sr........... 7/30Joe Prebish ..................... 7/30Frances Greco ................ 7/31

Kenneth and Donna Chipuraon July 11 will celebrate their 43rd wedding anniversary.

Belated Birthday Greetings tothe Lakeview Bakery girls,Silvana on June 14, and Sue Helen on June 25.

Dan Leonard andSarah Mango will celebrate

their 1st weddinganniversary on July 12.


June 26, 2014, IZOD CenterSome 714 Mustangs of the CHS Class of 2014took the stage as high schoolers for the last time on

June 26, moving on as graduates. Photos here are

from that Commencement exercise at IZOD Center.

Off to colleges, the military, area jobs and local

business, they enter the next stage of life. Ten

years from now, we will be reaching out to them to

determine Where are These Mustangs Now?

Photos by Nicole Sciarra. See more at

facebook.com/photographybynicolesciarra

Tomahawk Promotions

1288 main avenue

Clifton, NJ 07011

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Clifton Merchant Magazine - July 2014

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Transcript of Clifton Merchant Magazine - July 2014