Evening star., 1945-01-31
Jefferson Junior High School to Pay Tribute
To Is Heroic Dead at Graduation Tonight
School Honor Roll
Will Be Recited;
Letter to Be Read
BY GEORGE KENNEDY.

Letter to Be Read
BY GEORGE KENNEDY.
The principal got out the report
cards Of the gold star pupils. In
the corners of each were pasted
little class-book photographs. They
showed the slicked hair and the
just-washed glow Of chubby cheeks.
It was in preparation for q rite
that is becoming familiar across
the Nation. Tonight the winter
graduating class of Jefferson Junior
High School in Southwest Washing
ton will put up the gold stars for
the boys who have died In uniform.
To date they number 13.
Alice Bedrosian will step out from
the class OF so assembled on the
stage and read:
"Jefferson's roll Of honor: George
E. Meeks, Merle A. Patti, Bliss
Evans, Larry Prosise, Thomas E.
Lynn, Stanley Downs, Eldon Ward,
Charles McCutcheon, Henry Dodd,
Ralph Johnson, Frank Aquilino,
John Mancini and Joseph Levin"
Letter From Grave.
She then will read a letter:
Dear Mr.. Smith:
II know that you will be both sur
prised and glad to hear from me
when I explain who I am, also
why I wrote. Many years have
passed since I last saw you and !
do hope that you remember me.
My name Is Joseph Levin and I was
a student at the old Jefferson Junior
High School. I am now a sergeant
in the Army Air Forces. My job is
a crew chief of two ships. 1t con-
sists of properly inspecting and serv-
icing the ships so they may be
flown without any doubt Of the pilot
or myself.
II can truthfully say that my sue
cess Is due to the fact that you
taught me to always work hard and
be honest. I have worked hard
and honestly since the first day I
became part of the Army"
Joseph Levin went down in the
Mediterranean when submarine
torpedoed the troopship carrying
his air unit to Italy.
Message Not Surprising.
That Hugh Stuart Smith, prin-
cipal of jefferson, should get a letter
from young man IL years out of
the school who had never been back
or had seen him in the meantime
surprises no one. Mr.. Smith is
sort of Mr.. Chips, who has shown
that the old school tie need not
depend on a background of economic
security, stable population or even
homogeneity of race.
After the rehearsal yesterday the
older teachers gathered in Mr..
Smiths office and looked over the
cards.
IT remember Joseph Levin" said
Miss Alicia Harmon, the music
teacher. His father had second
hand store in old Four and Half
street. Joseph was a fat little Jew
ish boy-very cute. He was the hit
of our first minstrel show. He sang,
I Faw Down Go Boom!' and he
and everybody else liked it."
Larry Fell in Love.
81 remember Larry Prosise." said
Mrs. Mildred Richards. "He was
here only four years ago. He was
quite serious boy and worked hard.
You see. he finished with all As and
Bs-a very good report card.
"He fell in love with little girl
in the school. He used to show me
presents he had bought for her and
ask me if she would like them-a
| little gold heart locket with some
thing endearing engraved within, a
friendship ring of three gold wires"
Larry Prosise, a tall strapping
marine, was killed on Saipan, but
not before learning some Of the Bit
terness life can hold. The little
girl broke his heart.
Larry's brother Dan was in the
student body attending the re-
hearsal, as were Carmella and Mary
Mancini, sisters of John Mancini,
another of the honored dead. One
of the graduating class girls on the
platform lost control of herself
during the recital and began to cry.
Father to Attend Service.
Giovanni Mancini, a huckster
now working for produce firm on
the market, does not speak or un-
derstand English very well, but he
will be there tonight to see his son
John honored by the school. There
were II Mancini children. The
three remaining sons are all in uni
form. Mrs. Mancini died when
three of the children were under 10.
But they all continued to show up
at school on time, spick-and-span.
It seemed certain that Mancini
would go to New York in the Golden
Glove boxing finals. John was
matched with one of his brothers
in the elimination bout here. John
won. But Pearl Harbor intervened
and John went into the Army. He
was killed in France last August.
His widow, Arlene, and his g.
year-old son Danny will be there
tonight also.
"I remember John," said Mrs
Helen Springman, English teacher
"He was naughty and I tweaked his
ear coed and hard. It was then ]
learned he was a little deaf. I sal
him in front and he got along ali
right after that"
Bridge Named for Aquilino.
Giuseppi Aquilino, a plasterer, Il
| i'll and will not be there tonight
to hear Frank Aquilino's name read
Frank was killed on New Georgia
when s.he exposed himself without
hesitation to recover wounded COM
rades," according to the citation o,
his posthumous Silver Star. A mill.
tary bridge on that distant South
Pacific island Is named the Franl
Aquilino Bridge in his honor.
Merle Patti, ,son of a druggist
died of wounds in France Septem.