Kurt Sauer and his Recollections of Memphis School

Hello fellow Memphians... I just received a wonderful story from fellow Memphis classmate, Kurt Sauer, pictured below with his adorable grandkids. Please read Kurt's great story and consider sending in your story of your time at our old elementary school.

Click on any image to enlarge!

Hello Greg,

I'm sure, by this time, the identification of the teachers in the pictures has been answered, but in case not all have been identified, I have a couple to suggest. I'm speaking about the two black and white pics on posted on September 19, 2017.  

In pic 1, I'm certain the woman to the far left is Esther M. Keller, Supervisor of Vocal Music for Cleveland Public Schools.  When my mother was a student at Rhodes, class of '38, Esther was her choir director.  

When I was a student at Memphis (class of '60), Esther may have been in charge of the elementary schools, only.  I'm not sure how many supervisors they had at the time. I was in the first graduating class at Mooney, and Helen Neff Sokolofsky was also a supervisor, I think at the secondary level. At least, she came to observe Mr. Robinson's choir. She may have been an assistant to Esther.  I was only at Mooney for 9th grade because I had gone to William Rainy Harper for 7th and 8th grades. Also, Harper vocal music teacher Phyllis Hothem left the classroom to also become a music supervisor downtown.

  

Anyway, once at Rhodes I was singing with the Cleveland All-City Chorus and Esther was also our director, and remained so until I left for studies at Heidelberg College. I was in the Rhodes January '68 graduating class, but Esther asked me to continue singing with the All-City Chorus even though I wasn't starting at Heidelberg until the fall, which I was happy to do.  

For those interested, there is information concerning the All-City Chorus singing under the direction of Robert Shaw and members of the Cleveland Orchestra a new work by Leonard Bernstein, Chichester Psalms, in 1966 here:  http://issuu.com/shawwebsite/docs/robert_shaw_chichester_psalms_esthe?e=21911481/47870511

and here:  https://issuu.com/shawwebsite/docs/robert_shaw_prepares_bernstein_s_ch?e=21911481/49018122                 

Mr. VanNortwick, then vocal music director at Rhodes, was one of the ensemble's assistant directors and can clearly be seen standing in the picture of this article, behind the ensemble in the rehearsal room at Severance Hall.

For musicians interested in the fact that Robert Shaw was developing the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus for George Szell in Cleveland for about 11 years, there is much history and information to be found here:  http://robertshaw.website/whats-new   It was my pleasure to contribute much to this rather new website. Other All-City members also have posted letters there.

Bear with me a bit more. My first teaching job was in place before I had graduated from Heidelberg. Helen Sokolfsky recruited me to replace a retiring teacher from West Junior High School (W. 65th Street and Franklin Ave.). The building had formerly been West High School, but was then a junior high because the district had recently built Lincoln-West High School. It was already very old and well-worn, in 1972 when I started there on the staff. Fellow Rhodes alums Andy Fedynsky and Stacy Laderer were also on the teaching staff.

Continuing with that first pic, the second person may be music teacher Miss Kalocy (I'm not sure of the spelling) and the third person may be music teacher Miss or Mrs. Covill. Miss Kalocy succeeded the retiring Miss or Mrs. Covill. I may have been in 2nd grade when this happened so I'm not clear on spelling nor on the marriage status of Ms. Covill.

I am aware that district west side/east side music staff meetings sometimes took place at Memphis and this may have been the occasion to celebrate the retirement with that faculty.

In the second picture, I am only guessing, the middle woman is Miss or Mrs. Jellinek or Jelanic. Sorry to have forgotten these spellings. Anyway, my older sister, Marva (deceased) and younger brother, Mark, also attended Memphis. Great Aunt Cynthia Waite, to my wife Rosemary (Werle), had been a faculty member. No current living family members knows what grade or subject she taught, but she was an artist. 

I've enjoyed reading so much of this website and appreciate the contributions from everyone. A few of the standout teachers were Miss Demming, my kindergarten teacher who died during the Kindergarten year. Mrs. Miller, Miss Lang, Miss Cliff, and Mrs. Wurch, who I had met many times years later as her married daughter was a member of the congregation where I directed the church choir.  Mrs. Wurch made science fun and interesting.  Miss Cliff had a finger injury when I was in her third grade class. Maybe she slammed a couple of fingers in her car door, but I remember her always asking us to pray for the recovery of those fingers. Mrs. Volk was the principal, a kindly lady.  Florence Walzak was the art teacher who was very creative and dramatic, who did things with much flare and flourish. She LOVED turquoise and silver jewlery! Bangles and baubles always dangling and clinking around the room. She was very inspirational for my sister who became an art teacher and taught in the Cleveland system at Tremont and Bryant, among other places.

Mrs. Stillman was an excellent math teacher.  I really learned in her class. I had Mrs. Kresse before she married John Kresse, and I think her maiden name was Romanovsky. She was a fine teacher. Senior year at Rhodes, Jeff B., and I were aids for Mr. Sovey and Mr. Kresse. On Fridays, Mr. Sovey would give us the keys to his older Volvo and we'd drive to Benny Shapiro's to buy corned beef sandwiches for them and for us. 

Miss Ethel F. Baker could kill just by looking at you. She was a good teacher, but sometimes cruel in applying discipline. I remember her throwing a chalk-filled eraser at Roger B., and beaning him on the head. Yes, and I remember her silver chalk holders. She was always attending to her nose and which may have been an allergy to chalk dust. I remember when she purchased her Checker.  

Another car story.  I believe it was Miss Kalocy who purchased a white 1957 Ford Starliner, where the power hard-top folded into the trunk. There was a problem when one of the new students to the school took a tube of green paint from the art room and added unwanted pin-striping to her brand new vehicle.

I have other neighborhood memories to share at some point. For instance, I worked at Brookside Pool as "engineer" when I was 16, testing the water and manually chlorinating on the hour, draining, cleaning and filling it weekly.

Enough rambling. I hope these memories may stir other students who happen onto the blog.

Kurt Sauer