Leonardo High School Alumni Reunion
It may be the 92nd anniversary of the Leonardo High School Alumni Reunion, but there were more than 120 high spirited, youthful acting, enthusiastic and fun-loving graduates throughout those years who gathered at the Shore Casino recently for their annual celebration. The oldest graduate present, a Middletown native, Mary Lepick Silow, graduated in 1945 and has only lived in three different homes in her life, never leaving her native town.
Dick Winters, class of 1946, is the genial and well-organized chair of the Leonardo Alumni Annual event. He has been heading the committee for the last 17 annual luncheons, the last seven of which have been at the Shore Casino.
The reunions were started in 1930 by Alida Chanbelar, a lady who graduated from Leonardo in 1920. Ten years later, she decided to gather together a few of her high school friends for a lunch at her home and about 15 came. She continued to have the event every year and within ten years there were more 100 graduates gathering. The event had long since been moved to the Lincroft Inn, It was held at that historic restaurant for some 40 years with some 200 graduates attending as the word spread.
When Ms. Chanbelar stepped down as chair, her friend Jean Freibott Renrose took over and led the committee for another decade. Then she handed it over to her friend, Dick Lufburrow, a former Army officer graduate who served in World War II. Lufburrow then had the event held at Gibbs Hall at Fort Monmouth and headed the committee until he was in his 90s. That’s when he passed the leadership on to his friend, Dick Winters.
That was 17 years ago. Dick, who is now 94, still heads the committee and has already made the initial preparations for next year’s event, to be held Sept. 27, 2024, the last Friday of September as always. At this year’s event, Dick already secured promises from half a dozen attendees that they would serve on the annual committee.
Dick is a fascinating story in himself. Now widowed, he still lives in the same home he and his wife built on several acres in Lincroft 73 years ago. Now retired from a construction company where he worked his way up from driving a bulldozer to becoming the firm’s executive vice-president, the affable gentleman looks forward to each year’s luncheon event.
The stories, memories, reconnections and friendships at this year’s event at the Shore Casino were all an indication of how important the gathering is to each of those present. Winters said for him, it’s just a great time to see and enjoy old friends, and candidly noted “after all, at our ages, you never know if this is going to be the last one you attend. So why not just go and have a great time and enjoy great friendship?”
Many of the names gathered at the Shore Casino are well-known and highly respected Middletowners, folks who were born and raised there, many only ever living in one or two different houses in their lifetime, and always calling Middletown their home.
Many are second, third and fourth generations of their families, or have generations after them settling here as well. Retired Police Chief Robert Letts is a regular at the gathering, as is retired Police Lt. George Freibott. Freibott’ s sister, Ruth Freibott MacDonald is also an annual attendee and could tell great stories this year of her years working at The Courier in Middletown, the weekly newspaper eagerly sought by many Middletown residents every Thursday.
Ruth also bragged about her six children and nine grandchildren and one great grandchild, all but one still living in Middletown, almost living close to her. “We’re all on the same street,” the genial lady graduate laughed, “it’s like a commune of MacDonalds.”
Ms. Silow, who is a widow and has three children, four grandchildren and five great grandchildren, worked at Lily Tulipe for 20 years, then at Lucent Technology for 20 years and has always worked from her high school days on. “I did all the cleaning,” she laughed, “which isn’t very impressive, but it was necessary.” She conceded that the firms certainly appreciate her work and she knew she was playing a role in the business world.
Mrs. MacDonald and Winter were both from the class of 1946, the only two from their graduating class who attended this year’s event. There were graduates between 19465 and 1965, with the Class of 1950 having the most graduates present, with 15 alumni from the class of 1958.
Funding for the luncheon is always through ticket purchases, but that cost also includes the announcement mailings to all on the Alumni list, This year, the cost let the committee break even on the event, but it maintains a small bank account to cover additional casts.
There’s no doubt there’s scrupulous with the funds and generous as well. If luncheon tickets were paid for, and for some reason the guest did not show up, Winter simply asked the Shore Casino kitchen staff package the dinners so he and his committee could deliver them to Lunch Break. “They’re very appreciative,” he said.
Winter is always seeking other Leonardo High School graduates who would be interested in serving on the committee or being included on the mailing list. He welcomes calls for further information to him at 732-747-0067.
