SHARPSBURG HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI MEET REGULARLY FOR NEARLY 70 YEARS !
The lunch group members of the Sharpsburg Class of 1948 include , from left to right , Barbara ( Moore ) Smith , Dorothy ( Kramer ) Monahan , Frank Montemurro , Loretta Montemurro ( Frank ’ s wife ), Ann ( Ierovante ) D ’ Angelo , and Shirley ( Gaghan ) Kotchey . ox Chapel Area FOX CHAPEL AREA SCHOOL NEWS
SHARPSBURG HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI MEET REGULARLY FOR NEARLY 70 YEARS !
There were 54 graduates in the Class of 1948 – one of the larger graduating classes from Sharpsburg High School . Classmates have held reunions for milestone anniversaries at 10 , 25 , and 50 years , but a small group of them started meeting regularly years ago . At first , they met under the Kaufmann ’ s clock in Pittsburgh and went out to dinner together several times a year . Then , more than 25 years ago , Dolly ( Panza ) Kronz , who passed away in 2014 , started a new tradition of monthly lunch reunions . Now , nearly 70 years after graduation , a group of six still meet every month for lunch – weather permitting – to reminisce and celebrate what is going on in each of their lives .
Ann ( Ierovante ) D ’ Angelo , Phyllis ( Turano ) Koch , Shirley ( Gaghan ) Kotchey , and Dorothy ( Kramer ) Monahan were four of the original regular attendees . They said that at one time , as many as 14 former classmates would meet for lunch . Now it ’ s Ann , Shirley , and Dorothy , along with other current regulars including Barbara ( Moore ) Smith and Frank Montemurro , and his wife , Loretta ( the only non‐Sharpsburg regular ). Ann said her daughter calls them “ the lunch bunch .”
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They all walk with canes now , except for Dorothy , “ who led a sheltered life ,” Frank explains with a laugh . He and Dorothy are the only two members who still drive , so Dorothy picks up the other ladies for their meetings .
They go to local restaurants like The Village Inn in Verona , Walnut Grille in the Waterworks , and the Grant Bar in Millvale . According to Shirley , they “ catch up ” at the lunches – “ We gossip ,” she laughs . The gatherings last an hour or two , depending on how much there is to talk about and how much time is left on the parking meter . They talk about their children and grandchildren . The only “ business ” conducted is deciding next month ’ s location and date .
One might imagine that after all of these years , members of the group have lots of stories to tell . And they do .
Frank , the only man attending , said one time he arrived for the monthly reunion and saw the ladies were already seated . He told the hostess that he was with them . “ They work for me ,” he told her .
Three of the reunion group have birthdays in October , November , and December , so one year Dolly took a birthday cake to a fall gathering to celebrate the birthdays . The restaurant made them pay 25 cents each for plates to use for the cake . Needless to say , they did not return to that particular restaurant .
They told about how the Grant Bar has the best coconut cream pie – good liver and onions and turtle soup as well . Loretta says that she and Frank recently went there on a Saturday night and saw that everyone ordered their pie before their meal . They found out that ’ s because longtime patrons know the restaurant may run out of the popular dessert .
Most members continued to live in or around the Fox Chapel area following their high school graduation , except for a stint in the Air Force for Frank . Barbara said that she lived in Apollo for a number
Ann ( Ierovante ) D ’ Angelo provided this photo from her class at the Sharpsburg Linden Avenue School . Barbara ( Moore ) Smith is the first person on the left in the front row , and Ann is beside her . The other elementary school in Sharpsburg was the Main Street School .