Honoring Our Teachers

In this section of our website, we will be posting reminiscences from classmates that honor our teachers, coaches and mentors from HHS that have made lasting positive contributions to our lives.
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My Best Teachers by Andrea Levens Bell Paul

Mrs. Baird and Ms. Weiser rank at the top of my best teachers list.

Mrs. Mildred Baird was my second grade teacher at Oakmont Elementary School. Though I don't remember in detail, I know that she was soooo special to me that we remained in contact with each other for years until she passed away. She was an avid Eagles fan and had season tickets.

Ms. Weiser was an outstanding Haverford Junior High School English teacher with a reputation for strictness. I can recall being nervous when I heard I would be in her class. Though strict, she made sure you knew what she expected of you from the first day and throughout the year. She always told her class that each student would be required to hand in a notebook at the end of the year detailing what they had learned. Mine was titled "My Garden Of English" and I held on to it for many years.

Ms. Weiser excelled at teaching, made you learn and appreciate learning, was fair, beautiful and the Best!
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A Special "Thanks" to a Special Teacher - by Ted Larson

In the Business Math course at HHS, Ben Pierciey went beyond his course objectives to include basic algebra to the delight of some of us who were a bit slow at learning math. Years later, Pierciey's teaching methods allowed me to tackle linear programming before the introduction of desktop computers.

Despite his gruffness, Ben Pierciey was not only a caring teacher, but also an accomplished musician. He spent many late afternoons coaching "Ben Pierciey's Downbeats", a dance band with 12 HHS student musicians. We performed at parties and weddings, won the Pennsylvania state  "Bands of Tomorrow" competition and recorded an "RCA Custom Records" long play album. I still have that cherished album. I only regret that I haven't picked up the tenor sax since college, except to "entertain" my wife and kids.

For those interested, members of the Downbeats at the time of the recording were Margaret Weinert, Ed Davis, Ted Larson, Peggy Pfitzenmaier, Jack Conaway, George Griffin, Kenny Morrison, Jimmy Burke, Jeff Maitland, Alan Buchanan, Charlie Bozza and Peggy Brearley.
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Fun With Chemistry by Jack Conaway

I'll never forget the class.  After he had introduced a particularly tough batch of information,  Joseph Schmuckler said that we had time left for one experiment. First he poured some base solution into a test tube. Then he filled a small glass vial with an acidic solution and carefully inserted it into the tube so that the two fluids did not mix. Finally, putting a cork in the test tube he shook it and fired the cork at the students. The students all jumped to their lab stations, repeating the experiment, and a gigantic cork fight started only to be stopped by the bell for the next class.

Mr. Schmuckler somehow made the difficult and potentially boring subject of chemistry fun to learn. Until I took my first chemistry course at Drexel, I had no idea how much information he had sneaked into our heads. The Drexel course, which was considered to be a terror by most first year students, turned out to be nothing more than a review of what I had been taught by Mr. Schmuckler.

What a great teacher!
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Leading the Way by Joanne Lipson Beck


The teacher that led the way for me was Miss Madge Nickerson, my English teacher in the 11th and 12th grades. She was inspirational through her teaching and her dignified demeanor, and made the subject of English - especially literature and poetry - come alive.
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