Beyond the Byline: 1968 was a year of change for sure

June 6, 1968 is a day that I will never forget.

On that day, I and 691 classmates graduated from Wyoming Valley West High School on a sunny Thursday at Spartan Stadium in Kingston.

We were the second class of WVW — the Class of 1967 was first, although they attended three separate high schools — Plymouth Area, Kingston Area and Forty Fort Area.

It was a hectic time for us, having been taken from our comfortable hometown schools and bused to Kingston to attend what is now the WVW Middle School. It has taken decades for us to meet most of the kids we went to high school with, and like I’ve always said, we have had to learn about each other in reverse.

My senior year was a blur — my mom passed away in May, 1968, after battling for years.

Instead of keeping track of classmates after high school, we have had to learn about them and their lives at reunions and other get-togethers.

We will gather again on June 10 to celebrate our 55th anniversary of that day in June, 1968.

And what a year 1968 was. On the very day we graduated, we mourned the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, who was gunned down on June 5, 1968 at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California shortly after claiming victory in that state’s crucial Democratic primary. He died in the early morning hours of June 6, 1968. RFK was 42 years old.

But that year of 1968, our country and the world were undergoing historic changes. The Vietnam War was at its peak. Two great leaders – Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. – were assassinated. Student protests on college campuses were violent.

In the middle of all this unrest, here in Luzerne County, a new school district was forming on the west side of the Susquehanna River — the “monster” Wyoming Valley West.

It took years for many of us from the WVW Class of ’68 to meet and realize we attended high school together. Even though we passed through the high school’s crowded halls as strangers, as adults, we were surprised sometimes to learn we attended high school with someone we know well today, but didn’t know back then.

That first year was an adjustment, to say the least. In a move known as “the jointure,” officials lumped together students from nine West Side municipalities — Kingston, Plymouth, Forty Fort, Swoyersville, Larksville, Courtdale, Pringle, Edwardsville and Luzerne.

Rather than walk to school – and home for lunch – we rode school buses. We had classes with high school teachers we had never seen before. We lost coveted spots on athletic teams – thereby losing our status as “big men” and “big women” on campus.

School spirit – ever-present in high schools of the ’60s – was suddenly lost at WVW. The burgundy-and-gold uniforms just didn’t look right. We could no longer yell, “Shawnee Against the World,” or “Go, Huskies,” or “Sailors,” or “Flyers,” “Eagles,” or “Lions,” The “Green Wave” had ebbed to the sea of jointure.

But we were just kids. Before Valley West was established, we all looked forward to school each September — to renewing friendships that were interrupted by summer vacation. But even while we were out of school, we were in the same town. We still saw each other, hung out and sometimes played on the same summer sports teams.

In 1967-68, it all changed for us.

But let me tell you, growing up in the 1960s was difficult — public attitudes and beliefs were changing at a rapid pace. The music changed for the better, the fashion changed, morals were being challenged, as were authority and family values. The nuclear family was beginning to disappear. Moms were joining dads in the workplace. Two cars were parked out front, and dinner at 5 p.m. with the family was being substituted for take-out and fast-food mania.

All of this and a new school system to cope with — how could we survive?

Well, we did. High school antics and friendships last only a brief time, but their memories endure. As our reunion approaches, it’s always good to hear of a former classmate’s success, learn about his or her new job, their spouse, their children, grandchildren and, in some cases, great-grandchildren.

The WVW Class of 1968 was a diverse group that came together forcibly, but now we really are galvanized forever. Even though we might not have gotten to know each other as well as we would have liked, we do share a common thread.

The Class of 1968 served as the foundation for a school district whose expectations far exceeded its realistic accomplishments. Valley West never became the athletic “monster” that promoters had billed, as evidenced by our 44-0 loss to Allentown Dieruff in our first football game at Spartan Stadium.

But in the decades that have followed, WVW has since won its share of games and titles in all sports. And it has graduated many scholars who attended fine colleges and good jobs.

And many have achieved varying degrees of success. So, I guess in a way, the jointure has worked.

1968 was a turning point in U.S. history, a year of triumphs and tragedies, social and political upheavals, that forever changed our country.

And the Class of 1968.