TWO AND ONE-HALF HOURS

By CNB Sports

GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ (November 25, 2008) – How can two and a half hours have such a profound impact on everyone’s lives? For Lions and Rams fans alike, nothing compares to the Thanksgiving game. This year, unlike many in the past, brings together many local players from both the GCHS and GHS teams for the last time.

Rams players such as Mike Gartland, Mike Rafferty, George Spingler, Ryan Alcott, and Harry Amwake will face off against Lions seniors and lifelong friends Ian Harter, Robert Filer, Kyle Stewart, Brett Darrow, John Alberta, Frank Heitman, and many others. These players are not just teammates but neighbors and friends, coming together for one final match.

In recent years, this game felt more like the Lions competing against out-of-towners in a City Series game. This Thursday morning, most of these boys will wake up as varsity football players for the last time, marking the end of a football journey that began innocently enough at the age of five on Johnson Boulevard.

These boys not only played as Mustangs against other towns but also participated in Little League Baseball and CPBL Basketball together. Throughout grammar school, these players formed bonds in various ways. As they started sports at such a young age, the end of their football careers seemed a distant thought. Parents, too, often failed to recognize the significance of their sons’ final game.

Walking off the home field on Thursday will be a bittersweet experience. GCHS players from out of town cannot truly appreciate the depth of this game. These local friends and former Little League and football All-Stars will never meet again in such an intense battle, yet they will leave as best friends. They will hit each other hard throughout the day, engaging in conversations on the field that won’t be friendly banter. However, each player will feel the end differently.

Along with the desire for victory comes the realization that a career and a way of life have come to an end. Teary-eyed players will meet in the end zone after the game, sharing hugs for the final time. These boys have battled together for their school while providing their parents and friends with something truly special to celebrate.

The moments of innocence and high school life seem to pass so quickly, and as each player walks through the gauntlet of proud parents, witnessing the tears in their moms’ and dads’ eyes, it will be hard to forget their last time leaving the field.

In the end, the score doesn’t really matter; it is the friendships that count. Many parents have become friends because their sons’ sports brought together once-strangers. Boys attended each other’s birthday parties as they grew up.

In the years to come, it will be enjoyable to read about how your school is doing and to return to cheer on the team. Scrapbooks may eventually be set aside, but what will remain with parents and players is that last hug.

It’s remarkable how two and a half hours spent on the field during Thanksgiving can make everyone realize that, regardless of challenges like the economy or gas prices, we have something to be truly thankful for: family and friends.

1993: Renewal of Friendship (introduction)

Note: A series of articles about the history of the Gloucester Catholic vs. Gloucester High football games was published in a booklet released in 1993 entitled “The Renewal of Friendship”. This remarkable history of the series was put together by members of the Gloucester High Alumni Association.

The Lions vs. Rams Thanksgiving Classic Continues

BY Bruce Darrow/CNBNews

Gloucester City, NJ (November 21, 2007)—This Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day game between Gloucester Catholic and Gloucester High will renew an old rivalry that began almost 60 years ago, in 1948, on the field at the Charles Street Stadium. Although that stadium may be gone, the tradition lives on. The game was briefly stopped for a period but was renewed again in 1993.

There is an ongoing debate within the City of Gloucester over whether the Rams recruit players from surrounding areas, which many believe gives them an unfair advantage. However, this year, that advantage doesn’t seem to be as significant.

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News About Our Men & Women in the Military

ARMY NATIONAL GUARD PVT. DAVID W. WALLACE has graduated from basic infantry training at Fort Benning, Columbus, Ga.

During the nine weeks of training, the soldier was schooled in drill and ceremonies, weapons, map reading, tactics, military courtesy, military justice, physical fitness, first aid and Army history, core values and traditions. Additional training included development of basic combat skills and battlefield operations and tactics and experiencing use of various weapons and weapons defenses available to the infantry crewman.

Son of Theodore and Linda Wallace of Swedesboro, Wallace is a 2003 graduate of Kingsway Regional High School.

NAVY LT. CMDR. ASHLEY C. ROSE, son of George J. Rose, III of Swedesboro, recently reported for duty aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk, forward deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

Rose is a 1988 graduate of Kingsway High School and joined the Navy in August 1992.

MIDSHIPMAN CHRISTOPHER GEORGE VOSS of Monroeville recently graduated from the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point with the 213 members of the Class of 2007.

VOSS

At the Academy\’s 71st commencement, Voss received a Third Mate (deck) merchant marine license, presented by Vice Admiral Joseph D. Stewart, the Academy\’s superintendent.

Midshipman Voss was additionally commissioned as a U. S. Naval Reserve ensign and was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Logistics and Intermodal Transportation.

Son of George and Kelly Voss, he was nominated to the academy by Sen. Robert Torricelli.

NAVY LT. J. G. DAVID W. CAVANAUGH whose wife, Jill, is the daughter of Kathleen and Edward Crockett of Sicklerville, recently reported for duty aboard the Precommissioning Unit George H. W. Bush, based at Newport News, Va.

ARMY PVT. OPAL D. MADDRED has graduated from the Automated Logistical Specialist Advanced Individual Training (AIT) course at the U.S. Army Quartermaster Center and School, Fort Lee, Petersburg, Va.

The course is designed to train soldiers to establish and maintain stock records and other documents such as inventory, materiel control, accounting and support reports, automated and manual accounting records and perform prescribed loads and shop stock lists in manual and automated supply
applications.

Daughter of Robert L. Maddred of Williamstown and Diane R. Hall-Wilson of Lindenwold, the private graduated in 2000 from Sterling High School, Somerdale.

ARMY NATIONAL GUARD PFC. DIANA L. DIPALMA has graduated from the Automated Logistical Specialist Advanced Individual Training (AIT) course at the U.S. Army Quartermaster Center and School, Fort Lee, Petersburg, Va.

Daughter of Diane DiPalma of Pitman, DiPalma is a 2003 graduate of Pitman High School.

ARMY NATIONAL GUARD PVT. GUY C. BECKETT JR. has graduated from Basic Combat training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla.

During the nine weeks of training, the soldier studied the Army mission and received instruction and training exercises in drill and ceremonies, Army history, core values and traditions, military courtesy, military justice, physical fitness, first aid, rifle marksmanship, weapons use, map reading and land navigation, foot marches, armed and unarmed combat and field maneuvers and tactics.

Beckett is the son of Deborah Reed of Paulsboro.

NAVY AIRMAN MATTHEW C. LACOVARA, son of Diana L. LaCovara of Blackwood and Edward N. LaCovara of Erial and his fellow shipmates are currently on a four-month humanitarian assistance deployment while assigned to the Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort, homeported in Norfolk, Va.

After caring for nearly 25,000 patients in Belize and Guatemala, LaCovara\’s unit arrived in Panama to continue the mission for the Partnership for the Americas. The purpose of this mission is to provide the people of Latin America and the Caribbean with primary care, dental care, optometry and other no-cost health care services.

LaCovara\’s unit is also scheduled to visit Columbia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Haiti, Nicaragua, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago.

USNS Comfort has a joint forces crew which includes personnel from the U.S. Armed Forces, Canadian Forces and Project HOPE.

LaCovara is a 2005 graduate of Timber Creek Regional High School of Sicklerville and joined the Navy in June 2006.

This post was imported from a legacy archive. Please excuse any formatting inconsistencies.

Brooklawn Says Some Flooding Caused by Inadequate CCMUA System

Legacy article from 2007

By Sara Martino, News Correspondent

Due to the high amount of rainfall recently, a backup occurred in the Camden County Municipal Utility Authority (CCMUA), which then caused a backup in the sewer system in Brooklawn.

During the Monday, April 16 meeting of borough council, Donna Domico, Public Works Manager, said the CCMUA system was not capable of keeping up with the flow relative to the five inch rainfall. The meeting was opened and conducted by Councilman James Nolan, Jr., in the absence of Mayor John Soubasis.

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Dooley’s Bar Comes Tumbling Down; Cost to the taxpayer $34,400, Demolition; $425,000 to Purchase It

(JANUARY 31, 2007)The empty tavern/restaurant, owned by Gerald F. Dooley Inc., at the corner of Broadway and Cumberland Street , City, has been demolished. Hired to do the work was Franchi Demolition & Excavating, Inc., from Camden, the low bidder, at a cost of $34,400. The city purchased the building in October for $425,000. The intricate details of the purchase were never released to the public.

Supposedly, it is to be the future home of Reel Fish Seafood, now located in Bellmawr.

Newly elected Mayor William James was asked today if he knows anything about the transaction. He said that, as of yet, he hasn’t looked at the arrangements made by former Mayor Kilcourse. And added there have been so many issues that this (Dooley transaction) wasn’t at the top of the list.

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CLEARY’S NOTEBOOK NEWS SPORTS

Turkey Day Football: Gloucester City High School vs Gloucester Catholic High School

NOTE: For decades, the annual Turkey Day football games between Gloucester Catholic and Gloucester High drew thousands of enthusiastic fans, filling the stands with cheers and excitement in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. In those early days, the thrilling clashes unfolded at the Charles Street stadium. With the construction of a new high school in the 1960s, the spirited rivalry shifted to that location.

What made these games such a spectacular event was the local pride displayed by the players from both schools. Fast forward to today, and that local flavor has faded, as the Gloucester Catholic team now boasts an array of players predominantly from outside the city. Although the game still gives the winner bragging rights, it doesn’t draw the number of fans that it once did. The following articles capture the history and spirit of this iconic event, as published in the Gloucester City News and Cleary’s Notebook News on the specified dates.

By LEA KOROS

Special to CNBNews

GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ (November 2006) – With just a week to go until the highly anticipated Lions/Rams game, excitement is building! The “ELECTION” has wrapped up, and our incredible community of residents and alumni is diving into the cherished tradition that only those connected to GHS or GCHS can truly understand. There’s a buzz in the air meant for locals—it’s not the kind of chatter you’d hear on a bus from Deptford or Washington Township. No, this energy is alive at the Memorial A.A. church. I’ve sat in on those lively sermons, including one I recall about mixed marriages. Recently, the discussion turned to the question that ignites spirited debate: How can a Lion possibly marry a Ram? And how could they dare to send their kids to that school on Cumberland St.?

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The History of the Gloucester City Memorial Athletic Association

By Bart Rettew

THE BEGINNING – 1946

**(August 24, 2006) GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ–**The year was 1946, and World War II was over. Many veterans were now returning home to resume their lives that were interrupted by the War. A group of young, local former high school athletes got together and started what was known as, and still is, the Gloucester City Memorial Athletic Association.

The club was formally organized on Tuesday, June 18, 1946, at the Dixie Hotel at Burlington and Ridgeway streets in Gloucester, as reported by Bill Flynn, the meeting chairman. The club was named in honor of the 42 local boys who gave their lives in WWII. Since most of them were athletes or had a strong interest in athletics, it would be a living tribute to them. The Charter was presented to club president, Ralph Bracken, on October 9, 1946, by State Senator Morrisey.

The primary purpose of the club was to promote and encourage sports, and to reward the city’s best athletes in various sports. Initial membership by August of 1946 numbered 260. An emblem was adopted featuring the letter “G” bearing a “Mustang” which became the club’s nickname. The club’s initial major project was to work with the city and the Board of Education to recondition the Charles Street Stadium to provide a field for local schools and independent teams.

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1957: RAMS OVER LIONS, GCHS WINS CITY TITLE AGAIN; BEAT GLOUCESTER HIGH 12-7

Note: A series of articles about the history of the Gloucester Catholic vs. Gloucester High football games was published in a booklet released in 1993 entitled “The Renewal of Friendship”. This incredible history of the series was put together by members of the Gloucester High Alumni Association.

In 1957, in what was the most thrilling game of their 10-game series, Gloucester Catholic High captured its fifth straight city championship. By doing so, they evened the series at five wins apiece.

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GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ–(November 1957)An estimated 3500 spectators witnessed the game at the Charles Street Stadium, which, when the final whistle blew, saw the Rams victorious by a 12-7 score.

The determined Public High eleven looked good even in defeat and were pressing until the end.

Catholic scored in both the second and third quarters and had to beat back a fourth-period rally by the Blue and Gold, who, having scored in the third period, went all out to try to upset the ultimate victors.

Richie Shields and Ray McCann produced the touchdowns for the Rams, while bothTerry Reiss and Ozark Underwood failed in the P.A.T.

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GLOUCESTER’S GAME

BY G.J. FERGUSON

Gloucester City, NJ (1993)–It has been nearly three decades since the last City-Series game was played in 1965. At times, it feels like it was only yesterday, but sadly, it was not. With the final whistle on that sunny autumn day, the City-Series faded into memory—memories that have endured over the years, living in the hearts and minds of those who remember the series and hold it dear.

It is with those memories in mind that the idea for this program began. What started as a history of the series has transformed into more of a memoir. While a true history would require a book of several hundred pages, this program aims to evoke nostalgia. As you read the game stories and look at old photographs, I hope it brings back not just memories of the games themselves, but also of old friends, teammates, and a different time.

In the old industrial city on the Delaware, the year 1948 marked the beginning of annual football games between Gloucester High and Gloucester Catholic. This was a time when semi-pro and town teams still thrived and attracted sizable crowds. However, the largest and most loyal following was for high school football. Across the country, in rural towns and cities large and small, thousands filled the bleachers to cheer for their local teams.

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1950: Lions Swamp Rams Score 56-7

**Note:** A series of articles about the history of the Gloucester Catholic vs. Gloucester High football games was published in a booklet released in 1993, entitled “The Renewal of Friendship.” This comprehensive history of the series was compiled by members of the Gloucester High Alumni Association.

**Gloucester City, NJ (November 1950)** – If any Gloucester Catholic players had nightmares after last night’s city series battle in Gloucester, they may have envisioned a mythical figure bearing the number 66 leaping over the edge of the bed.

Before more than 3,500 chilly fans, the hard-running halfback scored five touchdowns, leading his team to a stunning 56-7 victory. This triumph allowed Coach Carlos Paisley’s team to set a new school scoring record, surpassing the previous high of 49 points, achieved in 1930 against Clayton.