Two prized possessions that every student aspired to obtain during our high school days were a monogram jacket and a class ring. Neither of these were gotten without hours of hard work put in by the students.

I still remember the day during the summer of my freshman year that Ms. Libby Bowen called my home to inform me that my letter jacket had arrived. Living behind the high school, I literally ran to the office. There, sitting in the lobby, were four big boxes with the prettiest blue jackets I had ever seen. They had a big white “W” on one side of the chest and our names on the opposite side. The cuffs and neck were blue and white, and the jacket was reversible so that we could wear them in the rain. I think I slept in mine that summer night! I had waited for mine since I was a 5-year-old kid sitting at the football game and seeing my heroes walking around in their letter jackets.

For the first time, I felt as big as my neighborhood heroes, Mickey, Steve, Ted and Billy, who had already graduated. They all played for the Pam Pack and were role models that I wanted to follow. Thanks to William Neil, Frankie and Mac, who were seniors that year and protected my youthful lack of experience. This allowed me to letter in baseball as a freshman. William Neil and Frankie both played on the football team and were already lettermen. Mac Woolard went on to play professional baseball for a few years. They were four years my senior, and I could not have done it without their help.

When we became juniors, we ordered our class rings. That was a big day for we had spent 11 years waiting for that moment. They were all the same color and shape with the exception of the size. Boys got a larger ring than the girls in order to fit their fingers. Each ring had a blue stone set inside of a gold ban. On the side of the ring was a picture of the high school and the date of our graduation. On the other side was our logo and Pam Pack beneath it. The boys ring would cost $16.50, and the girls ring cost $12.50.

They arrived in the spring of our junior year and that was a big day at Washington High School. Our rings were in boxes, and once opened, there was the shiniest gold ring! We could hardly wait to put them on and walk around with our new rings. In that moment, the seniors had nothing on us; we were as big as the building.

These two moments were very special days in our lives and days that will never be forgotten. These are moments that we all shared in different ways but still enjoyed. Growing up, we could not wait for these moments. They finally arrived and were special to us all in different ways. My memory of those days is treasured!

The best of times with the best of friends and in the best of places — Washington, NC!

— Harold Jr.

Harold Robinson Jr. is a native of Washington.