Glen View’s golden anniversary

GILROY
– Happy Birthday, Glen View Elementary School.
The home of the Eagles was at the center of a full-scale 50th
anniversary celebration Wednesday night that included singing,
dancing, memorabilia and birthday cake.
GILROY – Happy Birthday, Glen View Elementary School.

The home of the Eagles was at the center of a full-scale 50th anniversary celebration Wednesday night that included singing, dancing, memorabilia and birthday cake.

In the late afternoon sun, hundreds of parents, current students, alumni and current and former staff crowded into the courtyard between Glen View’s classrooms and playground to mark the golden occasion. They reminisced about years past and reconnected with old friends and colleagues.

Of course, 50 years ago, things looked a little bit different.

“At that time, there were mostly orchards around the school,” said Steve Valencia, who taught at Glen View and served as principal from 1958 to 1962.

Although students didn’t have to worry about noise from street traffic back then, he said, they did have to contend with noise from tractors working the nearby tomato, sugar beet and pea fields.

Construction on the 600 Eighth St. school was completed in 1953, shortly after the school year had started.

“When it came time to move here, there was no one to move us and the district couldn’t afford a mover,” Valencia said.

Mary Abila, who was one of Glen View’s first students, said the students were very excited about the move.

“We walked over here from Jordan School and we were carrying all our books,” she said.

Jordan, an elementary school, was eventually absorbed by Brownell Academy Middle School on Carmel Street.

Abila’s sister, Rachel Lerma, was in first grade when her new school opened. She still has the Jordan beanie cap she wore during the students’ march that November morning and contributed it to the “Glen View Museum” set up for the evening.

Glen View staff collected memorabilia from each of the five decades the school has been open, from scrapbooks and class photos to yearbooks and trophies, and set them on display for those attending the party.

To commemorate the school’s history, current Glen View students took the crowd on a journey from the 1950s until today. Each grade level performed a song or dance and read one former student’s memories from that decade. Santa Cruz band Los High Tops rounded out each decade with a well-known song of the time.

The first-graders performed a dance to “La Bamba” before students Jocelyn Hollman and David Montes read a few of Superintendent Edwin Diaz’s memories of attending Glen View during the 1960s.

“I received a wonderful education at Glen View school. All of the things I learned at Glen View school help me in the job I have today.”

El Roble Principal Mike Nebesnick is a Glen View alum, as well. He attended the school from 1968 to 1974 and said the campus looks largely the same, aside from added classrooms and a new playground.

“I remember things that were going on in society at the time, like Elton John songs,” he said. “I remember playing out here on the blacktop, playing jacks and dodge-ball – just great dodge-ball games.”

Nebesnick learned to ride his bike at the school, and pointed out a drinking fountain on the north end of the playground that for years was missing a chink of plaster from where he crashed into it.

“The principal, Mr. Henry Stein, was wonderful,” Nebesnick said. “He took me in and introduced me to stamp collecting, and now I introduce my (students) to stamp collecting.”

Under the direction of second-grade teacher Colleen Maggiolo, Glen View administration, staff and students have been planning the celebration since October.

Maggiolo, who headed the celebration committee, was surprised at how quickly plans came together this week. She returned from maternity leave in February.

“When I got back to work it just seemed like everything happened at once,” she said. “The staff thought (I) was crazy, but I’m currently finishing up my masters in educational administration and one of the parts of the program was to take on a leadership responsibility or role to practice the skills I’ve learned as part of the program.”

Students kicked off preparations by designing murals for each of Glen View’s five decades. One winning design from each grade level was selected to be painted by parents, community members and local high school students for display at the school.

The five designs were also printed on commemorative T-shirts that students wore Wednesday.

Glen View graduates and siblings Oscar and Yajaira Aispuro were both sporting the T-shirt during the ceremony. They ordered the shirts through their younger brother, who attends the school today.

Yajaira, now a freshman at Gilroy High School, said her fondest memory of Glen View was her fifth-grade teacher, Mrs. Monasterio.

“It was her first year of teaching and I liked the way she taught us,” she said. “She would always be involved with us and she would always help us out with activities.”

Maggiolo was pleased with the way the celebration went.

“I guess our goal for this event was to bring the community together to celebrate our birthday, and I think we’ve accomplished that,” Maggiolo said.