St. Jude Church/School Nostalgia

[zitro]

Z - were you in the choir all the way through HS - when did our choir officially "disband?"

Yes CFG all the way. This web page gives a chronology of the choir and when it ended.
http://assumptionschola.tripod.com/id3.html

[Eastburn]

Soprano from 3rd to 5th grade and Alto 6th through 8th. Bass in H.S

When I was in the Divine Heart Seminary choir, Fr. VanderPeet told me I was a 2nd bass. I told him I was a better short stop.

[12468_laing]

all this talk about the choir brought back a memory. had to be 69-70 or so. tried out for the choir and at that time, the choir met in a room on the left side of the basement church. didn't make it, but i remember Mr. Schaffer seemed so initimidating - am i right? back then it seemed to be almost a priviledge to be a choirboy. how long after fr. ording passed away was Mr. Schaffer there, or did he leave first?

[kellyroad]

When I was in the Divine Heart Seminary choir, Fr. VanderPeet told me I was a 2nd bass. I told him I was a better short stop.

Perhaps 3rd bass was better suited for you. Better yet, maybe you should have gone home

[kellyroad]

All the choir talk also got me thinking about a few George Schaffer stories:

1.GS was very proactive as I recall in promoting the choir AND getting the school children involved in the musical literature. It was 6th grade when I had the privilege to sing with my some classmates [[boys and girls) during a Christmas season Mass. Still remember the "awe" during the first time entering the choir loft and looking down and over that beautiful church.

2. The cassocks used by both the choir and altar boys were stored in lockers behind the sacristy in the basement church. If one were to take the stairs from the uppper church sacristy down to the basement [[there's a door exiting to the recory/bell tower patio from the stairs). Tradionally, the altar boy cassocks were stored on one side [[east) while the choir's were just behind them. One can imagine during high mass when several servers and a full choir depleted the supply of cassocks. Getting a cassock that either didn't sweep the floor or come up to mid shin was a challenge to say the least. Anyway, the unwritten rule was you didn't "borrow" from the choir. GS kept the choir, at least from this outside perspective, under tight wraps.

3. GS along with Sister Treseta Ann really engaged many of the school children to sing properly during May Crownings. Does anyone remember the practice sessions held in church? "It's Imaculate [[with the emphasis on the short t) Mary not Imaculeeeeet Mary" Sister TA would yell with a beat red face. "Ok Mr. Schaffer [[playing the organ) once again from the top." The Salve Regina and Hail Holy Queen were also practiced to perfection.

I do remember Mr Ech[[sp?) during my early years at SJ. But it was GS [[again, as an outside observer) who continued and promoted the fine SJ choir beyond the SJ choir loft.

[Eastburn]

Perhaps 3rd bass was better suited for you. Better yet, maybe you should have gone home

I did, right after Fr. Superior called me in and said "EB, we think it would be better for you, and for the school, if you were to leave".

[Campfire Girl]

Is it any wonder that we all still have such strong ties to St. Jude with the wonderful memories we have of our days spent there? I loved reading this choir history and had no recollection of the length of time we had the choir. I do remember that the procession down the main aisle seemed endless.

[zitro]

It's funny KR, when you think of the thousands of people that attended that church for so many years that only a few of us knew about those back stairs and the locker room down in the basement. I know that for myself it didn't take me long as a yungun' that if I didn't take my cassock home with me each Sunday there was no chance of me getting one to fit so that became the routine. Then over time when we remolded that back room and built our own closets it wasn't an issue about not having yours' there.

As far as the discipline factor I guess to me it was normal for a kid growing up in the era of being seen and not heard. No matter if it was in the classroom, the ballfield or choir practice the adults ruled and we had to take it or face the rath there and at home.

Laing, my guess is that by the time you tried out for the choir it was already a pretty good sized group which lead to it being a little harder to make it, when I joined in 3rd grade it was just starting and I don't recall there being any tryouts, if there had, I probably wouldn't have made it. It took a few years of yodeling before my singing voice matured

[jcole]

Z, I remember those cassocks being strictly hands off by anybody but the designated wearer. Also, the surplices were made to fit the individual choir member; do you recall coming over to my basement for fittings sometime around 5th grade? We had yards and yards of snowy white material laid out in the basement for weeks along with ironing boards and 'cutters', the Altar Society ladies and their scissors clicking along merrily.
That and the whirr of the sewing machine and my mother yelling at us to keep our grubby paws off the fabric still ring in my memory to this day.

[zitro]

Z, I remember those cassocks being strictly hands off by anybody but the designated wearer. Also, the surplices were made to fit the individual choir member; do you recall coming over to my basement for fittings sometime around 5th grade? We had yards and yards of snowy white material laid out in the basement for weeks along with ironing boards and 'cutters', the Altar Society ladies and their scissors clicking along merrily.
That and the whirr of the sewing machine and my mother yelling at us to keep our grubby paws off the fabric still ring in my memory to this day.

I remember going over someone's house but didn't realize it was yours. Those were very well made garments, I know my mother hated to iron the pleats in those things, it was tricky business

[jcole]

I remember going over someone's house but didn't realize it was yours. Those were very well made garments, I know my mother hated to iron the pleats in those things, it was tricky business

Yes, that was a very heavy, very white and very wrinkle prone cotton and ironing them was a bitch. I had to do my dad's once or twice. And his had about 4 times as much cotton as yours did.
I remember at about that time we had some subject in religion class about priestly vestments, and my mother made my Ken doll an entire wardrobe of Mass vestments. It had cassock, surplice, alb, the colored vestment that went over the whole thing, and the stole and the scarf-like piece.
I used to dress up Ken so he could officiate at Alan and Midge's wedding. I even had a cardboard altar with the altar cloths.
Color me Catholic.

[kellyroad]

I did, right after Fr. Superior called me in and said "EB, we think it would be better for you, and for the school, if you were to leave".

Was there even a play at the plate?

[kellyroad]

It's funny KR, when you think of the thousands of people that attended that church for so many years that only a few of us knew about those back stairs and the locker room down in the basement. I know that for myself it didn't take me long as a yungun' that if I didn't take my cassock home with me each Sunday there was no chance of me getting one to fit so that became the routine. Then over time when we remolded that back room and built our own closets it wasn't an issue about not having yours' there.

As far as the discipline factor I guess to me it was normal for a kid growing up in the era of being seen and not heard. No matter if it was in the classroom, the ballfield or choir practice the adults ruled and we had to take it or face the rath there and at home.

Laing, my guess is that by the time you tried out for the choir it was already a pretty good sized group which lead to it being a little harder to make it, when I joined in 3rd grade it was just starting and I don't recall there being any tryouts, if there had, I probably wouldn't have made it. It took a few years of yodeling before my singing voice matured

Knock, Knock

[zitro]

[/i][/b]
Knock, Knock

Who Der?.....

[kellyroad]

Who Der?.....

Little old lady

[Eastburn]

I'll play along -

Little old lady who?

[kellyroad]

I'll play along -

Little old lady who?

Many of us now know that you and Z can yodel.

[Mkap]

all this talk about the choir brought back a memory. had to be 69-70 or so. tried out for the choir and at that time, the choir met in a room on the left side of the basement church. didn't make it, but i remember Mr. Schaffer seemed so initimidating - am i right? back then it seemed to be almost a priviledge to be a choirboy. how long after fr. ording passed away was Mr. Schaffer there, or did he leave first?

I know what you mean Laing. I was in the choir a total of two weeks. It seemed, probably just to me, that GS singled me out at rehearsals. It was as though he did not have the patience for newcomers. I made it easy on him. I turned in my cassock.

[zitro]

Many of us now know that you and Z can yodel.

Groan.................

[7andkelly]

Yes, that was a very heavy, very white and very wrinkle prone cotton and ironing them was a bitch. I had to do my dad's once or twice. And his had about 4 times as much cotton as yours did.
I remember at about that time we had some subject in religion class about priestly vestments, and my mother made my Ken doll an entire wardrobe of Mass vestments. It had cassock, surplice, alb, the colored vestment that went over the whole thing, and the stole and the scarf-like piece.
I used to dress up Ken so he could officiate at Alan and Midge's wedding. I even had a cardboard altar with the altar cloths.
Color me Catholic.

Ken? I thought you said your Barbie was a GI Joe gal.

[jcole]

Ken? I thought you said your Barbie was a GI Joe gal.

Ken was a priest, as I just posted. Midge married Alan and Barbie and Joe just messed around.

[7andkelly]

Ken was a priest, as I just posted. Midge married Alan and Barbie and Joe just messed around.

I must have been thrown off by the term "officiate" and assumed it was a civil wedding. Of course Barbie did her part to support the war effort.

[jcole]

I must have been thrown off by the term "officiate" and assumed it was a civil wedding. Of course Barbie did her part to support the war effort.

She just couldn't send a lonely G.I. off to Viet Nam. She had to give him beautiful memories with which to nourish himself.

[zitro]

I thought Barbie was a Nazi

[jcole]

Even if she were, G.I Joe had a damned good time breaking that spy