***I remember my very first day at Germantown High. Coming from a very small private school and suddenly being in the midst of hundreds of students was a culture shock for me. Everything was so vast and overwhelming. I remember there was some sort of gang war going on and police were in the halls and outside. I didn't know what to expect. I was always very shy to the point of appearing aloof. I quickly adjusted with the help of some very nice people who have remained my dearest friends.

***As all of us, I have good friends from every walk of my life, but my closest are from Germantown.

***I remember lunch at Germantown. I usually ate a grilled cheese sandwich made with yellow cheese. Not the greatest! I recall Mr. Criminis patrolling the lunch rooms and hall. He knew everyone. The boys were permitted to go out to lunch, but not the girls.

***Some of my teachers were a bit strange, to say the least. I remember one who was continually tipsy, and one who sat on the desk in a very unladylike position. She could get away with because she was old, by my standards. Then, of course there were some wonderful teachers who made positive marks on my life.

***Sometimes I would cut school. Yes, cut school! That was a difficult venture since my mom's best friend was Marion Wallace, the vice principal. She lived directly across the street from us. I would think that I was getting away with something, and mom would know long before I got home.

***You may or may not know that Marion Wallace was quite an artist. She was a teacher at Gratz School when my dad went there to high school. She did many paintings, woodcuts and pen and ink drawings of her home in Germantown and Maine. I have some in postcard form.

***After Germantown High I went on to The Philadelphia College of Art and Tyler. I majored in fashion illustration, but ended up in graphic arts in a publication house. In 1963 I married and when my second daughter was born I stayed home and freelanced. Eventually I was a stay at home mom involved in school activities along with my own hobbies and interests. I loved photography and developing. I dried my own flowers and made arrangements, painted, loved animals, had many hobbies and continually took classes.

***My husband and I just celebrated our fortieth anniversary. We enjoy our individual and mutual interests. We love antiques, auctions, flea markets, selling on e bay, painting, crafts, classes, animals, golf, all of the arts and our house on the water at the shore. We love to veg out down there and walk the beach with our Golden Retriever. We enjoy precious things such as our grandchildren, family and of course, dear friends. Our grandchildren are the loves of our lives, and our good friends are always there for us. It's a good life.