The Woodward Alumni Hall of Fame Association

Where did you attend grade school and/or junior high school? St. Hedwig Elementary, kindergarten - 6th grade St. Adalbert Elementary, 7th & 8th grade

In what neighborhood did you live while attending Woodward? Please describe it. I lived on Wersell Ave., on the north side of Manhattan Blvd. near the old Toledo Board of Education building. It was a very middle-class area, and considered part of what we all called the Polish neighborhood at the time. Our little enclave consisted of small story-and-a-half cookie cutter houses. Neat as a pin, and filled with friends. We were too close to school to qualify for bus service, so we walked, adding people to our group along the route. For several years, I was the farthest out, so I started the hike alone, picking up the first friend, Colette (Kalisch) Egner, near Elm Street. Those walks were a great time to exchange gossip and questions about homework.

Who were your best friends while attending Woodward? My freshman year, I would say it was probably Judy Lewandowski, Collette Kalisch, Teresa Krall and Marlene (I'm so sorry I don't recall her last name). But this was high school and we could switch cliques and forge new bounds, often before second period. By my senior year, my BFFs also included Becky (Bear) Chesko, Gayle (Morgan) Schaber and my sister Daria (Tomanski) Mikulak. Although guys were seldom considered best friends with girls back then, I would have to add Rick Shock, as well. The list of close theater and Tattler people would take too long to include...and, sad to say, would test my failing memory even further. If I've missed someone who felt we were besties, we probably were. Blame old age, please. 

 

Describe an important and/or humorous thing(s) that happened to you while you were at Woodward. Important? The day student teacher Susan Hoffman wrote "See me" on a composition I wrote in senior English. I figured I'd screwed something up, but instead she told me my short story had touched her and that I should consider writing as a career. I'd always dabbled writing stories--even as a child, but didn't think I had the "write stuff." Her encouragement made me think I might be wrong. 

Humorous? Around the same time, I mentioned her comment to David McMurray, my favorite social studies teacher. Another teacher standing near him (name withheld to preserve his rep) overheard me, and laughingly said, "I'm going to give you a piece of advice that will make you a success: write smut. Smut sells."

I thought it was incredibly funny and joined in their laughter.

But later David McMurray cornered me to apologize. Told me to ignore the jokes, and go for it. "You don't need gimmicks to be a success as an author. Just practice and determination. You've already got the talent." 

Between him and Sue Hoffman, they turned a fantasy notion into a serious goal.

 

Who were your favorite teachers at Woodward? Why? David McMurray for the reason cited above, and so much more. The man treated us as adults, wove interesting facts and humor into his lessons, and tolerated our high school craziness more than professionally required... including catching us TPing his house one night and forcing us to clean it up, or he'd flunk us all our last quarter of Social Studies. I still fondly recall that anytime a Republican was voted into the White House, MacMurray hung a giant headshot of Eisenhower on his classroom wall. 

 

Marvin Traver gets my vote as well. He was a rookie teacher the year I joined the speech team, and I often wonder if he'd anticipated what coaching and herding a group of creative kids with the gift of gab was going to be like, traveling around the city and state to compete in forensic tournaments. If he didn't, he learned on the fly, providing tips, encouragement, and his own occasional zaniness to the mix. The man made my senior year shine, and stoked a fire in my heart for performing that has burned my entire life.

Donald Bahna was probably everyone's favorite teacher during the middle to late sixties. As Latin teacher, he taught me more about how English sentences were constructed than I ever learned in a grammar class. He made Latin relevant, and painted

d images of Ancient Rome that made its history come alive. Best of all, he was the Latin Club advisor. His holiday Saturnalia celebration was an annual hit, and our trip to the Latin Club convention in Columbus was legendary. There was a reason the club had the school's largest membership, and why so many Polar Bears majored in that fine old Dead Language. That reason was Donald Bahna.

Elaine Markopolous was advisor to the Tattler staff, and taught me how to streamline my writing and create interesting feature articles for the paper. I incorporate her teachings in my writing to this day. In fact, I suspect that after I've finished this questionnaire, I will go back and edit out the adverbs. And I will hear her saying in my ear, "Do you really need all those words? Don't tell readers how YOU think they should feel. If you've described things well, they'll figure that out for themselves." 

Did any Woodward staff members have a profound effect on you? Who? In what way did they affect you? Vice principal Richard/Robert/Ronald Geis. (Again, I've forgotten part of a name...but perhaps we never thought of him as anything but Mister.) Forgetting his name is sad, since he always went out of his way to learn ours and use them. He paid attention, too. I recall during my sophomore year that he was the one adult in the building who noticed I was holding my arm in a strange position.

 

When I told him I'd fallen on a patch of ice on the way to school and thought I'd bruised my elbow, he insisted on calling my parents and asking them to take me to an ER. Turned out I had broken the joint. Five classes had passed without a single teacher asking me about it. Geis did. When I submitted a request for an announcement of a club meeting for the newly formed FDA, he asked what the initials stood for. I told him with a straight face it was the Future Drabs of America. Susan Hoffman had taught us in Senior English that "drabs" in Shakespear's time were loose women or people who consorted with loose women. We'd made up the club, and I'm sure Mr. Geis knew it. But he read the club meeting announcement himself the next day. For those who were around back then, we met in the theater department prop room. Nothing "drab" happened. We just liked hanging out, talking theater.

 

I also have to credit the man with turning a blind eye when he felt it warranted it. Thank you, Mr. Geis, for recognizing us as people, not numbers, and for giving us the opportunity to explore what was important to us.

 

Please share one of your favorite memories of Woodward. The Extravaganza musicals were always a highlight of my life every year. I fondly recall the excitement, camaraderie and effort we all expended to turn out a great show. After a lifetime of performing in community theater productions, I have come to understand that those shows exceeded the typical high school production. What quality and professionalism! All thanks to talented performers, hard working crew members, the creative genius of director Dick Hoffman, and the musical perfectionism of Keith Biler. I had minor roles my sophomore and junior years, but had my heart set on a major role my senior year. To my relief I nabbed the part of the Widow Corney in our production of Oliver. To be honest, I had coveted the lead role of Nancy, but it turned out that the Widow's wicked humor allowed me to chew up the scenery. It was the first time I would experience a standing ovation, and I've never forgotten that moment. But what I truly never forgot were the lights, music, and joy of working with so many  amazing people.

 

Are you married? Please tell us about your family members-- children, grandchildren, etc. I was married in 1980 to a wonderful loving man I met while directing theater productions at Whitmer High School. We had four amazing years together before he died in a horrible accident at our home, two days before Christmas, falling from the roof while changing burnt out Christmas bulbs. I still miss him every day. We had two fabulous kids, who I'm happy to say will stand in his stead at the Hall of Fame awards dinner: Rachel (Meyer) Peterson and James Patrick Meyer, Jr. Our grandchildren also plan on being there: Noel Peterson, age 17, Ariel Peterson, age 15, Rose Peterson, age 11, Lydia Meyer, age 9, and James Steven Meyer, age 8. Considering the theatrical DNA in their backgrounds, it should be no surprise that all of them have performed on stage and/or worked on backstage crews. I couldn't be prouder of my children and grandchildren. 

 

What are your present hobbies? What do you do for fun? It is a sad fact that as we age our bodies don't seem to want to keep up with our enthusiasms. My hearing has degenerated badly and I also now need a cane to get around. For the last five years I have worked around those deficiencies while continuing to perform in community theater. But when I found myself forced to memorize my cast mates lines as well as my own, so I could read their lips and hit my cues, I realized my acting days were probably done. I've continued to write since my early days in high school, and have published four books over the course of those decades. But it wasn't until my late husband whispered in my ear one day that I ought to write the story of our love affair and his untimely death, that I finally wrote the creative nonfiction book that would receive the greatest accolades. Needless to say, I credit him completely with its success. I currently have three other novels in various stages of completion. So I would have to say that finishing them is my major "hobby". I also enjoy reading and spending time with my Minnesota grandkids... and begging my son to bring my Ohio grandkids to town so I can enjoy time with them as well.

 

How did you feel when you were informed of this honor? Flattered. Dumbfounded. Thrilled. And perhaps a small bit guilty. What could I possibly have done in my life and career to receive such an honor? My hearing being what it is (and isn't), I first thought maybe I hadn't heard correctly. Maybe I was just being nominated. Maybe they wanted me to nominate someone else. Maybe they dialed the wrong number. It wasn't until I received the confirmation email that I honestly had to accept that someone out there considered me worthy. I may always feel this way. Becoming an inductee to the Woodward Alumni Hall of Fame has to qualify as the greatest honor of my life. So worthy or not, all I can truly say is thank you. Thank you so very very much.

 

While at Woodward, did you have any nicknames? What were they? What is the story behind them? I laughed when I read this question.  I was one of two seniors who shared a moniker bestowed on us by our speech teacher, Marvin Traver, during our senior year. Becky (Bear) Chesko and I hung out together so often, and probably disrupted his lesson plans so frequently with jokes and nonsense, that we eventually became a two-headed monster in his mind. One day when he tried to call on one of us during class, Denise-and-Becky slurred together into one name. Denecky. It's a nickname that I remember fondly to this day.