My senior year was much like any other high school student’s final year of school: I was planning for senior prom, applying to college, and spending my last months with my best friends. However, with the school committee seriously considering closing my high school for good, my last months were bittersweet, knowing my home might not exist for much longer. Towards the end of the school year, the decision was made -- Warwick Veterans Memorial High School would remain open for one more year after I graduated, and then it would be closed and turned into a middle school. In many of my classes, this is all we talked about -- what would happen to the teachers? Our siblings and friends? The traditions that were the fabric of the school for almost sixty years? We knew the answers, of course. Some teachers would be moved to the other high schools and middle schools, while others would be laid off. Underclassmen would be split between the two remaining high schools. As for our traditions, they would only be kept alive in our memories. Now, that I am home for the summer, my alma mater will be open for only a few more weeks, and I look back at my memories from my four years there, knowing a piece of Warwick Vet’s will stay alive in us for many years to come.
1. You went to the homecoming football game, not because it was easy, but because it was tradition.
Oftentimes, it was 20 degrees or below, but you bundled up in as many layers as possible, and cheered on the Hurricanes (the Warwick Vet’s football team) while clutching a hot chocolate from the concession stand. Everyone from your neighborhood was in the stands with you because the entire community came to these games, no matter how cold it was.
2. Pep rallies were terrible and overwhelming as freshmen, but one of the best experiences ever as seniors.
As a freshman, you were booed at by every single upperclassman. You didn’t know what all of the games were, and you didn’t know all of the cheers, so you just screamed along with everyone else. Senior year was the best year for pep rallies. You could gather in the small gym, painted in blue and gold, and run out into the pep rally together, being cheered on by underclassmen and faculty. You felt like rock stars. You were rock stars to everyone.
3. The destruction of Pilgrim Pete by the football team really got you riled up, unless you thought about it too much.
Pilgrim Pete is essentially an effigy made of cardboard and some odd clothing items that the Hurricanes would tackle and rip apart. It got you excited for the Thanksgiving game, but if you thought about it too much, it was a little weird. So you didn’t and just looked forward to winning the game.
4. The lunch ladies were like your school moms and always brightened your day.
Many of the lunch ladies knew you by name, and would often slip you a cookie or two free of charge. They would ask you how you were doing and gave you heartfelt sympathy if you were having a tough day.
5. If one of the vice principals looked at you, you immediately checked your clothes, even if they didn’t violate the dress code.
The vice principals certainly got their thrills from dress coding students, especially if your shoulders were showing. Often, they would embarrass you in front of everyone, so you desperately hoped they didn’t find an infraction any time they glanced in your direction.
6. If you were in choir, it was easily one of the most important things in your life.
Your fellow singers were your family, and even serious arguments wouldn’t last forever. Mrs. Kennedy was, and is, Mamma K, and she was your school mother. You went to her when you were struggling with your part in one of the songs, when you were having problems with friends or at home, or just needed someone around that you knew loved and cared about you.
7. The same was true of band.
8. Being a choir kid meant constantly thinking about the next concert, Choral Festival, and choir drama.
You wanted every song to be perfect and every Choral Festival performance to earn you a Superior. Drama was inevitable, and you always wanted to keep abreast of the gossip.
9. If you were in band, you didn’t understand why the choir kids were so serious about everything.
You saw the choir kids treat every performance like it was the most important performance of their lives, and you didn’t understand why one little mistake felt like heartbreak. Performing was meant to be fun, and it didn’t look fun to you, but they did say they loved it.
10. After hearing Principal Habershaw recite the mission statement every morning, you could probably say it in your sleep.
"Warwick Veterans Memorial High School is a democratic school that maintains a safe, respectful environment. As a learning community, we strive..." Blah, blah, blah, yadda, yadda, yadda. You really didn't need to hear it every morning, but you had it memorized so well that you could say it backwards.
11. You went to Dr. Savery’s department night partially because you needed help with chemistry homework, and partially because you just wanted to sit around, eat snacks, and talk.
Dr. Savery’s department night was always fun, whether or not you needed help with a concept. You’d talk about your future, your current drama, and your families. For you, she was more than a teacher, she was a friend and an advisor.
12. You believed Mr. Lawton had a pet penguin when you were a freshman.
Mr. Lawton convinced a good portion of the freshman class every single year that he had a penguin and would get highly defensive and angry should you ask him for proof. You believed it, and when you became an upperclassmen, you did not dare spill the beans to the freshmen. If you had to go through the entire year believing your English teacher actually had a pet penguin, so would they. It was tradition.
13. You knew Principal Habershaw wanted nothing more than for you to succeed.
Habershaw was friendly to everyone, and treated each student like family. He was your biggest mascot no matter how hard school was and how much you wanted to quit. You felt like you owed it to him, and to every teacher in the building.
To every student, faculty member, administrator, lunch lady, and janitor -- thank you for a wonderful four years; thank you for being my family.
