Final thoughts


From left to right: Matthew Wolf, Paul Pomerantz, Marty Tarabar, Jack Ribeiro, Lonnie Horwitz 

Front row: Leslee Scheckman, me (Ruth Lorber Jamnik), Meryl Miller. 



Cliques. Were we a clique? We were micro neighborhoods in a larger community. We were the Paine Avenue kids, we were the Stuyvesant Village kids. We came together on the Union Avenue playground. 

Some were popular. Some overlooked. Some families had everything; some had nothing. Some looked at others with envy, some just wanted to fit in. 

Looking back, things should have been, could have been, different. I'm guilty of it. I was so busy dealing with my own insecurities that I couldn't see anyone else's. Who knew then that one of the most popular girls in school couldn't afford the saddle shoes we were all sporting eighth grade year? Who knew that the girl who was teased about her weight, went home crying most days? Who knew the goody two shoes girl was actually the neighborhood.... I'll just leave it there. 

But back to cliques. Planning this party, I asked members of those cliques to reach out to their friends. 

I have to admit to being disappointed by our turnout. We lost the whole Louie Baldwin gang. We were never gonna get the Michele Bono crowd. Didn't get Eliot Fried and the 'popular' kids. 

What we got was a beautiful group of grown up eighth graders who've put whatever differences we might have had back then behind us and enjoyed a lovely afternoon with old and new friends. We've formed a new clique, the Reunion clique, and when we meet again, we hope you'll join us. 

Follow here for updates on the next couple Union Avenue events. Or follow us on social media. We really want to see you.


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