For Waite High class of '44, reunion occurs every month

Joyce Dennison holds a scrapbook as she joins class of 1944 members Kleo Boyles, left, Madelyn Botek, Bob Nusbaum, and JoAnn McCloskey at their most recent luncheon. THE BLADE/AMY E. VOIGT Enlarge | Photo Reprints

Many high school classes wait five or more years before having a reunion.

Waite High School's class of 1944 reunites every month.

After their 50-year reunion nearly two decades ago, Pat Allen of Toledo and others decided it would be a good idea to get together for lunch once a month. Some classmates who live out of state try to attend when they are in the Toledo area; others in Ohio and Michigan attend regularly.

"We thought, 'We're getting up there in years,' and we didn't want to wait," recalled Nola Brown of Toledo of the group now in their mid-80s.

Growing up during the Depression and World War II brought classmates at the East Toledo school close, said Donna Wunderley of Monclova Township.

"We didn't have much, and we didn't even know it," Mrs. Wunderley said. "We had each other."

Said Mrs. Allen: "It's a good group -- we all seemed to get along together."

Last week, about a dozen classmates and spouses met at the Hungry I in Sylvania Township. The venue changes every month.

Joyce Dennison of Temperance brought a scrapbook of newspaper clippings and other mementos dating back to 1940 and continuing into the decade with tidbits her mother sent the young newlywed.

Among the military photos in the book was one of Robert "Noodle" Nusbaum. He spent 2 1/2 years in the Army during World War II, including helping in the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp near Munich, a mission that left him sickened for days.

"Oh, man -- who's that young dude?" quipped Mr. Nusbaum, who was in the class of 1943. His late wife, Donna, was a member of the class of 1944, and he continues to go to their gatherings.

Waite's class of 1944 had about 450 graduates, but many classmates joined the military to fight in World War II before finishing the year, Mrs. Allen said.

Their senior prom was held in January instead of June so the guys who hadn't yet left could attend, she said.

"A lot of them were already gone," Mrs. Wunderley recalled.

Classmates came from different ethnic and socioeconomic groups in East Toledo, as well as different elementary schools, Mrs. Allen said. But they seemed to gel, she said.

"It really was a fun group," she said. "We still are fun."

All have stories about their experiences since graduating from Waite.

For example, JoAnn McCloskey of Toledo spent 25 years in Venezuela, Libya, and Indonesia while her late husband worked in the oil industry, starting with Gulf Oil, where they both had been employed.

The ranks of classmates and spouses are dwindling because of illnesses and deaths.

"When we first started, we had 40 to 50 people. But we're down to -- you can see what we're down to," Mrs. Wunderley said while motioning to the table set for 12.

But that hasn't stopped those who are left from reminiscing and joking around, especially about their advancing age.

Kleo Boyles of Toledo last week remembered being in grade school at Franklin School with Mrs. Dennison.

"She was a very good whistler -- she still is," Mrs. Boyles said.

Replied Mrs. Dennison while pointing to her pursed lips: "I've got the wrinkles to prove it too."