By Anne Marie Allocca
Michael Bush, an alumnus, came up with the idea to recognize the occasion so he put an ad in a newspaper looking for fellow alumni. Maryanne Caggiano-Hoesel, class of 1965, saw the ad and responded bringing along her friend Laureann Caporusso-Candreva, class of 1974, and currently a Math teacher at Valley Stream's Central High School.
"We have an alumni book from the high school, but it has all four elementary schools in it. So we've each taken our own classes and we're going to do a mailing," said Hoesel. "We've also put up signs in stores and taken out ads."
Rounding out the hard-working committee are Rob Paskoff, Sean Strife and Nancy Chiafetelli, all alumni of Marion Street School.
Former teachers will also be invited. Candreva says reaching the teachers would be great. In fact, she and her ten-year-old daughter, Alexei, have an educator in common.
"My daughter's third grade teacher, Merrie Fisher, retired two years ago. We were almost like bookends, because I had Mrs. Fisher in her second year of teaching and Alexei had her in her last year of teaching.," said Candreva. "She taught for more than 30 years."
No doubt many students will want to see Mrs. Andracht who is retiring this year after almost 40 years at Marion Street. Adds Hoesel, "Miss Brown is coming. She was there for 37 years. She started in '63."
Hoesel admitted she has a special place in her heart for her alma mater. "You walk in there all these years later and it's still the same. It's just got that nice, safe feeling. You feel good there."
And now her own daughter Amanda, who also attended Marion Street, is experiencing that same feeling while at Adelphi earning her teaching degree.
"She is doing her observing at Marion Street," said Hoesel. "She loves it and is hoping to get a job there at some point. So it's come full circle."
Candreva agreed.
"When you go to pick your kids up you see a lot of familiar faces. It's not just the school, it's the community," she said. "Two others on the committee also have children in the school now." For Candreva, whose photo, in her twirling outfit are on the walls of the school, it couldn't get any homer. Her son Frankie attends second grade and little sister Elise will be joining him in a few years.
The free anniversary celebration will include tours of the school conducted by its students and musical performances by students, who will sing the alma mater as well as a song especially composed for the anniversary. There will be hamburgers, hotdogs and other treats for sale, from noon until 4 p.m. There will also be a display of school memorabilia and attendees are invited to bring along their own keepsakes. The committee really wants to make sure the Marion Street School is always remembered, so they are selling 75th anniversary tee-shirts, lettered in school colors of blue and gold. There is also a pen and ink rendering of the school, drawn by Hoesel, printed on ivy-colored parchment paper and matted in black. Patrons may also purchase a donor brick for $40, which will be placed around the flag pole and peace pole in front of the school. The masonry work will be done by alumni, as well, and the brick can be engraved with up to three lines.
The money raised from the anniversary items will be used to start an ongoing scholarship at the high school level which will be given to a Marion Street School alumnus.
All of the items can be purchased by sending a check made payable to Marion Street 75th Anniversary Fund to Maryanne Hoesel, 21 Marion Street, Lynbrook, NY 11563.
Help the committee make this event a success. Tell any Marion Street School alumni you know about the celebration. You can contact Hoesel at 516-599-6461, Candreva at 516-593-0658 or receive email updates at Marionstreet75@aol.com . ar
