Michael McDermott:
CLASS OF 1975
Marinette High SchoolClass of 1975
Marinette, WI
Michael's Story
Well, I don't know about authorized biography (too close to War And Peace), but I want to cite this- Most memorable day: Senior Skip Day Party at Kleinke Park on M-35 north of Menominee. For the first time since I had been in school in Marinette (I came to Marinette in early 1972), the members of The Class of 1975 were "connected". I think everybody realized for the first time that we were all about to be in the same boat, and on equal ground- going out into the world for the first time on our own.
There was an almost tangible, touchable bond in the air between us all there that day. I was SO moved by it all partly because it was so totally unexpected. There had been no hint of the "closeness" coming. I pretty much went to the event in the first place because I kind of viewed it as "last chance saloon"- if ever there was going to be any sense of "kindredness" in our class as a whole, it would have to happen on that day. Time was up. And it did. Who knew? (laughing)
Cliques dissolved. Social strata disappeared. Long standing divisiveness of many kinds and forms became benign. What isolationism there had been gave way to a new openness, accessability and welcoming postures. To me, for the first time in my experience at Marinette High, everyone seemed to realize, at that one pla...Expand for more
ce and time, that there were SO many of our peers that we were SO unfamiliar with, and everyone there seemed to be reaching out to as many of those classmates as they could to get to know them at least a little (and wishing we had more time to know them better).
We became aware for the first time, I believe, how distant so many of us all had been from each other for so long... of all the time that we had let pass by and be wasted up until that day... and everyone there seemed to suddenly be VERY aware that this may well be the last time we ever had a chance to actually get to meet and know classmates who really had been total strangers to us up until then. Better late than never... and for that day, it just didn't get any better. < smile >
If the spirit of that day could somehow be recaptured and rekindled in the future, I would certainly be there for every one of THOSE reunions- the kind that really means something and matters, as far as I'm concerned. I like to think we all became "bigger" people that day. I'd also like to believe we can do it again.
To all my classmates that I never got to know (or know not nearly well enough)- I want you to know that is surely a huge regret to me. I hope you're all happy and well. < smile >
Michael
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