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The School, The Class of 1965...
Want to explore information on the Pines, just to refresh your memory? Or perhaps you don’t know anything about Pine Forge—well, here’s a short history, some information about The Manor House and some thoughts about the Underground Railway.
If you have documented information on The Manatawny, or Levengood's Drive In, or any of our Dormitories, or such, send it to GENEVA. We'll keep adding new things all the time, so check back often...
Our Beloved Alma Mater:
PINE FORGE (INSTITUTE) ACADEMY
PFA HISTORY
The Seventh-day Adventist boarding academy changed its name from Institute to Academy in 1965.
SEE RELATED ITEMS within this site:
The Underground Railroad.
Pine Forge Manor House.
The School Crest in Burgundy, Black and Gold
Designed by Ed (used to be Eddie) Pearson, this embroidered emblem graced our burgundy blazers. Stylish? You bet. Ed Pearson, the designer of the Crest, speaks of his inspiration below. As his roommate, I can tell you that he spent many a late night getting the design and final artwork just right before submitting the artboards to the company that would make the patches and add them to the blazers. Eddie still has his blazer. Snug, but who cares?
Do you still have YOUR patch? I could not believe I still had mine. Wish I had kept most of the remembrances of those halcyon days, those days of carefree and easy living, those days when our youth was full of spirit and fire. Oh my, where are those days. I want those days back so I can capture the essence of what was.
And now, from Ed Pearson, Class of '65: "The basic design is a heraldic shield. The colors are those representing the graduating class of 1965. The symbols represent the concepts Heart – Mind – Hand.
The lamp symbolizes that all endeavors should be tempered by the heart. Without the light of compassion we are but blind to the truth that lies before us. In all things acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.
The hammer and caliper represent the mind. Be inventive. Seek knowledge and refuse to be limited by common perceptions. (I opted not to use the hammer and sickle because of the Communist implication of the time.)
The sword represents the hand and the struggles we must all overcome. It also forms a cross, meaning that our efforts should be guided by a belief in God and His power to achieve the impossible, available to us all if we but ask. We do not struggle alone."
Little-known academy has much to celebrate
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| Principal Cynthia Poole Gibson looks at the historic manor house that was her dormitory when she was a student at Pine Forge Academy. The African American boarding school will mark its 60-year anniversary next year. |
By Marc Schogol / Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer
Situated amid the rolling terrain on the far edge of suburban Philadelphia is one of only four historically African American boarding schools in the country.
Outside of its extended family of students, faculty and alumni, relatively few people know that Pine Forge Academy even exists. Yet Pine Forge, founded by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1946, has bucked economic and social trends and next year will celebrate its 60th anniversary.
Graduates of the school for grades 9 to 12 include the U.S. Senate's chaplain, Barry C. Black, and its close circle includes Mayor Street, a Seventh-day Adventist who taught history there from 1976 to 1979.
Founded on land that in the 19th century was a stop on the Underground Railroad, the school has endured by virtue of a network of loyal graduates, church support, and the education it offers - a combination of strict academics and traditional values. Despite its religious affiliation, the school accepts students of other faiths.
"What has sustained us over the years is the nature of our offerings, the opportunity students have to build lasting friendships," principal Cynthia Poole-Gibson said.
Its 575-acre site is adjacent to Manatawny Creek in Berks County, near Pottstown and the Montgomery County line.
Thomas Rutter, the original owner of the land deeded to him in the early 1700s by William Penn, built the state's first ironworks, which later produced arms for George Washington's Army when it was camped at nearby Valley Forge, according to the school's history.
The 18th-century mansion built by Rutter, an iron maker and Quaker abolitionist, was once used as a school dormitory and is on the state and federal registers of historic places.
America's black boarding schools blossomed after slavery, during the Jim Crow era, when African Americans were otherwise often forced to accept segregated public schools.
After the 1960s, as schools became desegregated, most of those boarding schools began to close. Pine Forge's religious ties - 169 of this year's 184 students are Seventh-day Adventists, and all students must adhere to the church's creeds - are a major reason why it has survived.
Times may have changed, but the nation still could use more black boarding schools, said Lee Unger, acting president of Piney Woods School near Jackson, Miss., one of the three other members of the Association of Historically African-American Boarding Schools.
"They give students who attend a much more competitive edge in getting into better colleges, and make them more adjusted to the social and psychological aspects of college life," Unger said.
At Pine Forge, where 95 percent of graduates go on to college, students attend daily services and are required to help out with cafeteria and maintenance work.
Student uniforms - blazer, shirt and tie for boys and plaid skirt and white shirt for girls - reflect the values instilled at Pine Forge. A poster in the lobby of the main classroom building urges students to "Make the Right Choice" and then lists a number of options: "Jesus, veggies, water, work, joy, abstinence, food, study, exercise, honesty, health, sleep, teamwork, friends... ."
"I want to have a bright future and provide for my family," said student government president Rashad Burden, 17, a senior from Cleveland whose father is a Seventh-day Adventist pastor.
Graduates almost invariably credit successes in their lives to the school, said Debra Anderson, president of the very active alumni association.
"People wonder when they talk to us, "It's just your high school. Why are you committed to your high school?' " said Anderson, 47, communications director for U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah (D., Philadelphia).
"It's because when you're growing up, the relationships you form are so important." And at Pine Forge, "students help to raise other students. It's really a unique experience."
Despite having good relations with nearby residents, the school was not immune to the nation's racial strife.
For a time in the '80s, some whites would drive through the campus "calling children names," Poole-Gibson said.
In 1977, students and chaperones on a trip to Boston were attacked by a group of whites. The four people charged in the case were acquitted of assault.
This year, attention is on the school's 60th anniversary next year. Special events will include a fund-raising effort to preserve the historic mansion. That will feature its student choir, which has performed at the White House and Philadelphia sporting events.
Anderson recalled that when she and her twin sister first went to Pine Forge, their mother had reservations about sending her sheltered daughters to a boarding school far from their Pittsburgh home.
But when her mother visited a month later, "we had emerged into these well-spoken, confident young women she didn't recognize," Anderson said. "We had blossomed into what she always hoped we'd be - in a month's time."
WELCOME TO THE MIGHTY CLASS OF '65
The Mighty Class of 1965 gave new meaning to the concept of spirit when it came to Pine Forge Institute, renamed the year of our graduation to "Pine Forge Academy." And yes, to answer your unasked or asked question, many of our classmates and friends still prefer the Institute tag. We constantly sought to separate ourselves from the rest of the boarding academy crowd, and the name Pine Forge "Institute" certainly did that. In addition, we liked it. That, coupled with an amazing energy that has yet to be duplicated (in our humble opinions - smile), made the Class of 1965 a unique group of powerful individuals working together to innovate and invigorate the campus of our beloved alma mater. Our range was nothing short of impressive. We were the very, very best of a group of very good college-prep students. We excelled; we blazed. Our choir tour was of epic impact, Pine Forge won the national oratorical contest on our watch, our basketball team really left its mark, we had the most beautiful women, we had the best looking men, we were the brightest, and we were the funniest. Of course, we assume every class feels that way. We won't dispute their right to say so. We took it one step further, however. We built our own website. Not to compete with our dear alma mater, Pine Forge, who has a very nifty web presence. Oh no... We seek to "enhance" our academy home by bringing back our own personal brand of spirit and tradition. So, join us as we explore what we were, lo those many years ago. Reminisce and remember: 1965, the year of our graduation, and many of the years prior. Take a look at what we were then. Take a look at what we are today. Laugh at our humor, cheer at our triumphs, and shed a tear for those who have gone on. Above all, applaud the Spirit of the Mighty Class of 65. A Pine Forge legend? You be the judge... Oh, by the way, leave your own mark by signing our Guest Book.
Remember Commencement 1965
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| Click the story link to review all pages of our Commencement Program. Memories. |
Do you remember graduation weekend at the Pines in ’65? Here’s a definite "blast from the past"! Actually, it’s "off the hizzle, for shizzle"! (Translation: "It’s off the hook, for sure!" And further translation: "It’s cool!") Check out the 1965 graduation weekend program, right here on PFA65.com. SEE ALL THE PAGES Please note that a new window will open. When you're finished, just close that window and you'll still be inside PFA65.COM (The close up view of the pages are very large; give them time to load, then scroll left, right and down to view all the detail. Remember when?)
Pine Forge CLASS OF 1965 OFFICERS
Eldridge Edgecombe, President Allan Johnston, Vice President Gloria Thomas, Secretary Brenda Reaves, Assistant Secretary Albert Reynolds, Treasurer Lucy Hurt, Chaplain David Cato, Parliamentarian Robert L. Booker, Sponsor
1048 N. East Avenue
Oak Park, IL 60302
708.386.2377
Cleveland, OH 44103
216.421.0025
Chester, PA 19013
610.494.2360
Cleveland, OH 44128
216.752.4486
Phildadelphia, PA 19143
Telephone
Powder Springs, GA 30127
678.567.2832
Pine Forge, PA 19548
610.367.8429
THE PINES
Class of 1965
© 2003 All Rights Reserved
The Soul of 65
