Hello. The 2020 NJCL convention is very special. Instead of meeting in person at the University of Richmond, we are meeting virtually from our homes. It is special to me for another reason. I am Dennis Webb, and 50 years ago—that’s right, half a century ago—I presided as president at NJCL’s 17th annual convention at the University of Ohio.
Back then, we were excited to be able to see black and white TV from the moon. We would never have imagined in 50 years we would be meeting via color video and sound between the homes of 1,100 members of JCL.
Our current President, Jocelyn Robertson, selected a passage from Gaius Sallustius Crispus as our theme for this year. It is:
It befits all to strive with greatest effort, lest they pass their lives in silence.
I realize how appropriately this relates to my life and my ties to JCL.
I have learned a lesson about the value of education by looking back at my ancestors. My grandfather was born in Louisiana in 1880. He was poor and only had a 5th-grade education. As a teenager, he found a section of land which he homesteaded. He and my grandmother worked very hard and wanted to provide better lives and education for their nine children.
Financial necessities during World War II forced my father to quit school after 10th grade to help support his family.
My mother and father wanted to see me not only finish high school but attend college. They knew how important education was.
My mother had grown up in a small, rural town in Arkansas. Her school did not offer Latin, but her home economics teacher had told her taking Latin was a wonderful way to improve one’s education. So, when I started high school, my mother told me I really should take Latin.
I did, and I had a wonderful teacher named Isabel Houchin. At the time, I thought she was ancient, even though she was much younger than I am now. Despite her age, she had the spirit and vitality of a teenager. One time she jumped on top of her desk and did a cheer for JCL. Mrs. Houchin convinced me to join JCL and made studying Latin more interesting. She encouraged me to study harder and told me I could always improve myself. As a Louisiana JCL state officer, she encouraged me to run for NJCL president in 1967. I lost. The next year I was elected Louisiana JCL president. A year after that, I ran a second time and was elected NJCL president.
In college, I took 19 hours of Latin and was elected NSCL Parliamentarian and Treasurer. I did not intend to become a teacher. At that point, my parents told me if I was not going to become a Latin teacher, it was time I quit attending conventions and get a job to help pay for college.
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Fall 2020 · Torch: U.S. · MR. DENNIS WEBB'S CONVENTION ADDRESS
Dennis Webb
1969-1970 NJCL President
Mr. Dennis Webb, NJCL President 1969-1970
Miss Jocelyn Robertson, NJCL President 2019-2020
Mr. Bruce Taylor, NJCL President 1968-1969
at the 2019 NJCL Convention