Here I am again posting for yet another good kid who became a good adult. Damn it!! Chuck and I weren't friends per se outside of that paramilitary organization known as gym class. There we bonded, became brothers part of an elite, somewhat secret club. Gym, for boys at least, was run like boot camp. We'd line up according to height, elbow length apart, stand at attention, no talking and count off-1,2,3,4 repeat. Then we were inspected, Coach Maloney walking down the line with his clipboard looking to see that our gym uniforms were clean, wrinkle free, shirt tucked in. Gym consisted primarily of calisthenics interspersed with the occasional game of Dodgeball. Real Dodgeball, back when men were men and you could get injured playing. We'd finish up with those communal showers, one of the gym teachers observing to make sure you got wet. Out of this certain kids were selected to join Leaders Club. Check it out, picture's in the year book. Notice Chuck and I aren't there. Nope, we were selected for a far more elite organization, The Delta Force of Boys Gym. Turns out that if you didn't wash your uniform, talked during the lineup, goofed off while performing calisthenics and went out early during Dodgeball so you could sit in the bleachers and if you could on occasion avoid getting wet during the communal showers you came to Coach Maloneys attention. It was not reflected in your gym grade, I got a D once. Nope, you were approached by Coach Maloney and asked to meet with him after school. That's where Chuck and I became pals. We met with Coach Maloney on several occasions, were assigned certain tasks to perform and often had to sit at attention for his approval. I know this sounds a lot like detention but Chuck and I felt we had been selected, out of many this elite few, this Band of Brothers. After high school I heard that Chuck had joined a commune in Vt. What!!!! Ah the sixties. Then later on that he was tuning pianos. So,when I think of Chuck, I'm back in gym class for better or for worse, laughing with Chuck after school back in the gym as a member of that elite force.
Chuck and I were good friends at NHS. We were also BESTY friends along with Phyllis at Temple Beth Shalom. We would discuss our "roots" in the Jewish community in Dorchester. We lost touch after graduation but I've been following him for quite some time. He was a dynamite guy and I remember all the good times we had.
Let me add a little to what I wrote to give more color as it were. We had a ton of laughs at Coach Maloney’s expense. On one of our afternoons we were assigned the job of cleaning up the locker area. Eric Nickerson and Carl Watras/or Scott Stover joined us that afternoon. So, we got our stuff out of the janitors closet-mop, bucket, broom, dust pan and brush, proceeded to line up according to height and standing Chain gang style. We then shuffled by Maloney’s office singing Sam Cooke’s, Working On The Chain Gang. Maloney opens his door steps out sees us, breaks out laughing, turns around and closes his office door. As for being a screw up, I think what Chuck would have said, would be to paraphrase Allen Iverson’s famous quote about practice:
“Gym class??? We’re talking about Gym class!!!!”
Kevin Tracey
Hey Cheeko
Here I am again posting for yet another good kid who became a good adult. Damn it!! Chuck and I weren't friends per se outside of that paramilitary organization known as gym class. There we bonded, became brothers part of an elite, somewhat secret club. Gym, for boys at least, was run like boot camp. We'd line up according to height, elbow length apart, stand at attention, no talking and count off-1,2,3,4 repeat. Then we were inspected, Coach Maloney walking down the line with his clipboard looking to see that our gym uniforms were clean, wrinkle free, shirt tucked in. Gym consisted primarily of calisthenics interspersed with the occasional game of Dodgeball. Real Dodgeball, back when men were men and you could get injured playing. We'd finish up with those communal showers, one of the gym teachers observing to make sure you got wet. Out of this certain kids were selected to join Leaders Club. Check it out, picture's in the year book. Notice Chuck and I aren't there. Nope, we were selected for a far more elite organization, The Delta Force of Boys Gym. Turns out that if you didn't wash your uniform, talked during the lineup, goofed off while performing calisthenics and went out early during Dodgeball so you could sit in the bleachers and if you could on occasion avoid getting wet during the communal showers you came to Coach Maloneys attention. It was not reflected in your gym grade, I got a D once. Nope, you were approached by Coach Maloney and asked to meet with him after school. That's where Chuck and I became pals. We met with Coach Maloney on several occasions, were assigned certain tasks to perform and often had to sit at attention for his approval. I know this sounds a lot like detention but Chuck and I felt we had been selected, out of many this elite few, this Band of Brothers. After high school I heard that Chuck had joined a commune in Vt. What!!!! Ah the sixties. Then later on that he was tuning pianos. So,when I think of Chuck, I'm back in gym class for better or for worse, laughing with Chuck after school back in the gym as a member of that elite force.
Howie Appel
Chuck and I were good friends at NHS. We were also BESTY friends along with Phyllis at Temple Beth Shalom. We would discuss our "roots" in the Jewish community in Dorchester. We lost touch after graduation but I've been following him for quite some time. He was a dynamite guy and I remember all the good times we had.
Gunnard Johnston
So, Tracey was essentially a screw-up, although reading his glorified version, you'd never know it.
I didn't know Chuch personally, but he sounds like somebody with dreams of a better world.
Kevin Tracey
Oh My
Let me add a little to what I wrote to give more color as it were. We had a ton of laughs at Coach Maloney’s expense. On one of our afternoons we were assigned the job of cleaning up the locker area. Eric Nickerson and Carl Watras/or Scott Stover joined us that afternoon. So, we got our stuff out of the janitors closet-mop, bucket, broom, dust pan and brush, proceeded to line up according to height and standing Chain gang style. We then shuffled by Maloney’s office singing Sam Cooke’s, Working On The Chain Gang. Maloney opens his door steps out sees us, breaks out laughing, turns around and closes his office door. As for being a screw up, I think what Chuck would have said, would be to paraphrase Allen Iverson’s famous quote about practice:
“Gym class??? We’re talking about Gym class!!!!”