Anthony Santoro:  

Here is a very brief narrative of some of the things that I have been doing during the past fifty years: Following graduation from WHS, I attended Boston University. I recall that there were five of us from WHS who, in September of 1967, attended BU: Harry Vlachos, Judith Pickering, Ernie Rhodes, Barbara Blakeney and myself. I initially followed a general liberal arts course of study for my first two years and then officially declared as a history major. My unofficial major, however, was rowing. I rowed for the Boston University Crew Team for all four of my undergraduate years (1967-1971). I rowed hundreds of miles on the Charles, ran countless miles in all kinds of weather, ran indoor and stadium stairs and lifted tons of weights in the wintertime. To say that rowing required a full-time commitment would be an understatement; it demanded a level of intensity (and insanity) that I could never have dreamed of in gym class! Four years of rowing did, however, bring about a total and complete physical transformation, and brought me into contact with some truly great teammates, many of whom I still remain in contact with today. After graduating BU, I was selected to attend the U.S. Air Force Officer Training School in San Antonio, Texas, along with one of my BU teammates. We were commissioned 2nd Lieutenants, and entered onto active duty. As 1972 was an Olympic year, I was selected to represent the Air Force at the U.S. Olympic Rowing Trials. At the Trials, I rowed a 2-man shell with another of my former BU teammates. We didn’t win the Trials, so Munich unfortunately was a no-go. (I remained a competitive rower for about ten years following graduation from BU, and I have competed in the Head of the Charles Regatta many times.) After the Trials, I returned to my base in Sacramento, California where I met up with some fellow junior officers in the Officer’s Club bar (of course) who were forming a rugby team. Several had played rugby at the Air Force Academy and knew the game well. They were happy to teach me the fundamentals and we travelled all over the San Francisco Bay area on weekends playing local college and club rugby teams, singing outrageous rugby songs and, of course, drinking beer. In January 1973, I was released early from the Air Force to attend graduate school and I returned to Boston. I somehow managed to link up with a group of guys who were trying to start up the very first rugby...Expand for more