8th Grade Graduation Party--1958

Members of the eighth grade graduating class from Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School gathered at the home of Steve Koepper in 1958. They would be the last graduating class from the Arsenal Street location as the congregation built a new school on East 16th Street.  Four of the graduates in these photographs went on to Thomas Carr Howe High School in Irvington. While the kids laughed and ate snacks in the dining room, the adult chaperones gathered around a card table in the living room and sipped on some coffee. Everyone is dressed up as they had just come from the formal graduation ceremony. Like many teens in the U.S., they likely kept up with popular culture.  The number one song on the radio on June 6, 1958, was "The Purple People Eater." by Sheb Wooley. If they had gone to a movie that year at the Irving Theater then some of these kids might have watched "South Pacific," the top grossing film for the year.  As more Irvington families added television sets into their living rooms, some of these teens might have spent some time watching "Leave it to Beaver," "I Love Lucy," "Candid Camera," or the "Ed Sullivan Show."  The baseball fans in that dining room likely enjoyed the start of the new Major League Baseball season as they followed favorite players like Willie Mays, Mickey Mantel, and Ted Williams.  If they were Yankees fans then they were in for a treat later in the year.

On the cusp of high school, the kids enjoyed a few light moments together in the Koepper family bungalow at 5263 East Tenth Street.  They were about to separate and leave their insular world of their smaller school for much larger institutions; however, on this lovely spring day they just had fun.

Treats in the Dining Room:  Graduates from the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School gathered at the home of classmate, Steve Koepper, at 5263 East Tenth Street one final time in 1958 before moving on to various high schools. Pictured: Cheryl Ann Kubiak (standing), Grant Bernard Jacobson (drinking), Rose Anna Baumgart, Daniel Mark Edwards,  Sandra Lenore Griffin, Stephen Lee Koepper (sitting in foreground), Douglas James Felten (waving), Steven Ralph Deal (eating a sandwich)  

Rosa Anna Baumgart and Grant Bernard Jacobson had fun at their eighth grade graduation party at the Koepper home at 5263 East Tenth Street in 1958.  Cheryl Ann Kubiak stood behind the couple.  You can also see the cage for Pete the Parakeet behind young Grant.  Pete had free reign in the house and he particularly like to perch atop the eyeglasses of various family members!  

Chaperones Monitor Behavior from the Living Room:  Norman and Lora Meyer Koepper (couple on left) agreed to host a reception for the graduates of eighth grade class from Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School on June 6, 1958 in their home at 5263 East Tenth Street.  The Feltens joined them.  Henry Felten (foreground) was the principal and their teacher in the school. His wife, Erna, can be seen behind and to the right of him.  Their son was also a graduate and in the next room.  

Birthday Party in Ellenberger Park in 1954

Ellenberger Park served as the perfect spot for local families to host reunions, receptions celebrations, and birthday parties.  When Steve Koepper turned ten years old on April 11, 1954, he invited his Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School friends to Ellenberger Park to celebrate.  Mr. Koepper, the son of Norman and Lora Meyer Koepper, grew up in a bungalow located at 5263 East Tenth Street.  Ellenberger Park became an important place for the young man as he took swimming lessons from the Red Cross in the park's pool in 1951.  He would later join the Ellenberger Park Swim Team under Coach Dave Hines.  You may see a photo of the 1960 swim team by clicking on the "Ellenberger Park" link below.

Birthday Party Gathering:  Steve Koepper and his Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School friends posed for this photograph in the spring of 1954 in Ellenberger Park.  Left to right:  Steven Deal, Fred Von Spreckelsen, Jeff Boerger, Steve Koepper, Lanny Simpson, Irvin Coffer, Danny Edwards, Ron Yeskie, Bill Hoff, and Tom Holtman

All of the young men in the photo above attended the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School at 26 North Arsenal Avenue. They were the last class to graduate from this building in 1958 before the institution moved to its current location at 8540 East 16th Street.  Many of the students who attended this school had German heritage.  (photo: Damien Center) 

The historic image and information for this post are courtesy of Steve Koepper.