1985 v. 2015: Things Only People Who Went to Wilton High School Can Understand

This article was written and compiled by Stephanie Scamuffo, a GOOD Morning Wilton senior intern who graduates tomorrow as a member of the WHS Class of 2015. 

Both Wilton High School and Wilton are one in a million. The unparalleled opportunities for students, the love from teachers, and the closeness of the community are things we treasure. It is difficult to explain the journey that is Wilton High School to non-WHS students, because everything is just so “warrior-like.”

But we’ll give it a try, with our “Things that Only (former and present) WHS students Can Understand,” to try and explain the thrilling roller-coaster that is Wilton High School. (Thanks to several WHS alums from the ’80s for helping out with suggestions.)

8 Things Only People Who Went to Wilton High School in the 1980’s Will Understand:

1. Hanging out at “the courts”
2. Mr. Z smoking cigars in the field house while athletes ran around the track
3. INXS “Never Tear Us Apart” as the theme for homecoming…or was it prom?
4. Painting “the rock”
5. Learning to type on typewriters and then using them to fill out college applications
6. Driving with friends to get chicken sandwiches at Burger King (which is now the drive-thru Starbucks)
7. Working after school at Boyd’s gift shop
8. Going to Orem’s during free period was HUGE!

9 Things Only People Who Went to Wilton High School in 2015 Will Understand:

1. You become a master at drawing the warrior logo:  Whether it be on the windows of your car during Spirit Week or on all your papers, you finally figured out how to draw the spear perfectly through the ‘W’.
2. Ridgefield will always be your biggest enemy even if they don’t take Wilton seriously at all. No matter what sport you may play, chances are your desire to beat Ridgefield is a massive incentive to play well. It has been twenty-some odd years since the Warriors beat the Tigers in a football game, and that feud has transcended into all other sports.
3. You’ve experienced the World Language and Arts Festival:  No other high school that I know of dedicates a week of the year to enhancing students’ understanding of culture and art. The performances and presentations are some of the most memorable parts of the WHS experience.
4. You’ve driven over the bumps by the junior parking lot…on purpose:  You cannot miss these bumps. The junior parking lot is near Tom Fujitani Field, across from the town tennis courts. There are speed bumps that will destroy your car’s tires and make your heart skip a beat. But sometimes you like to drive over the bumps….just for fun.
5. You’ve suffered the frustration of trying to park in the junior lot:  Speaking of the junior lot, the parking spaces are almost as memorable as the bumps. The slanted lines and way-too-narrow parking spaces are but only some of the annoyances. Since most of the people parking there are new and inexperienced drivers, many times one car will occupy two (or more spots). Granted the lines make it almost impossible for anyone to park well, but juniors feel it mostly. Especially in the cold, snowy, winter months when you want to park as near to the school as possible and all the close spots are taken.
6. There’s no better feeling then when the clock reads 2:50 p.m..
7. You have a teacher-like relationship with at least one custodian, cafeteria worker, or campus supervisor:  One does not need to have a teaching degree to educate the students of WHS and give them knowledge they will carry for a lifetime. Whether it be with the famous ‘JB the Hall Monitor’ or the adorable ‘Dolly the Lunch Lady,’ you form bonds with these WHS staffers that is similar to that of a student and a teacher. They have wisdom they love to share with the students who walk the halls or buy their lunch, and have the same care and desire for the students to succeed as any teaching professional. WHS hires only the best of the best for every position.
8. Cookie Friday:  Absolutely legendary. It is how most students get through the week. In Culinary Class, students bake a variety of foods, from brownies to pasta to the best of them all–cookies. Every Friday all the culinary classes bake cookies, much to the students’ and faculty’s pleasure. The line will be out the door when the aroma of fresh cookies wafts throughout the school and those who miss out when the first batch runs out after only six minutes will gladly wait for the next batch to finish baking. Culinary sells cookies for $.25 apiece and chances are it still earns more than Chartwells.
9. Sitting by the Lockers:  As the year progresses, the administration cracks down on students who sit by the lockers during classroom hours. However, for the 15-20 minutes before the morning bell, walk through any of the hallways to see them flooded with the legs of students who sit with their backs against their lockers. It’s unknown what year this tradition began, but every incoming freshman class always learns that in the morning, the lockers are where it’s at.

The One Thing Only People Who Went to Wilton High School Will Understand:

10. Being a Warrior:  It’s a very special title that only a select few will hold. It is something no one can understand unless they have lived it. Having so many adults and peers care about you, want the best for you, and always be there for you comes but once in a lifetime. The intensity of the workload, the anxiety of applying to college, the feeling you need to impress others with some accomplishment. Eating lunch by the preschool playground, sitting in the chairs looking outside the windows of the library onto Rte. 7, packing into the Clune Center for an assembly. They are all things, whether good or bad, that are unique to Wilton High School. It’s a feeling anyone who did not attend WHS will never understand, and no one who has attended will ever be able to explain. There are no adequate words or language to express what it’s like besides just “being a warrior.”

1985 vs. 2015

Pop Culture 1980’s:                                                                                                Pop Culture 2015:

Most Popular Video Games:                                                           Most Popular Video Games: 

1.) Super Mario Bros                                                                                                                          1.) Titanfall

2.) Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back                                              2.) Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

 3.) The Rocky Horror Show                                                                                          3.) Madden NFL 2015

 Athletes With The Most Twitter Followers:                      Athletes With The Most Twitter Followers:

1.) Lebron James (16.6 million)

2.) Shaquille O’Neal (9 million)

3.) John Cena (6.6 million)

4.) Kobe Bryant (5.8 million)

5.) Carmelo Anthony (5.7 million)

Most Popular Songs:                                                                                        Most Popular Songs:

1.) “Careless Whisper” Wham!                                                                             1.) “Happy” Pharrell Williams

2.) “Like A Virgin” Madonna                                                                                    2.) “All of Me” John Legend

3.) “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” Wham!                                                  3.) “Stay With Me” Sam Smith

4.) “I Want to Know What Love Is” Foreigner                4.) “Turn Down For What” DJ Snake and Lil Jon

5.) “I Feel For You” Chakah Khan                                                                            5.) “Let it Go” Idina Menzel

  Best Selling Sports Jersey:

1.) Lebron James-NBA (Cleveland/Miami)

2.) Russell Wilson-NFL (Seattle)

3.) David Ortiz-MLB (Boston)

4.) Sidney Crosby-NHL (Pittsburgh)

5.) Kevin Duran-NBA (Oklahoma City)

Top Box Office Movies:                                                                               Top Box Office Movies:

1.) Back to the Future                                                                                             1.) Guardians of the Galaxy

2.) Rambo:  First Blood Part II                                             2.) The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay, Part 1

3.) Rocky IV                                                                                     3.) Captain America:  The Winter Solider

4.) The Color Purple                                                                                                             4.) The LEGO Movie

5.) Out of Africa                                                                      5.) The Hobbit:  The Battle of the Five Armies

Best Selling Iphone Apps:

1.) Candy Crush Saga

2.) Clash of Clans

3.) Game of War:  Fire Age

4.) Farm Heroes Saga

5.) Pet Rescue Saga

Author’s note:  It took me a long time to write this piece because every time I would start to describe an experience, tears would come to my eyes and I would need to stop for a minute to regain composure. I consider myself one of the luckiest people alive to have attended Wilton High School and to have received all the opportunities the staff and students have to offer. Now that my time as an “active warrior” is coming to a close, I feel excitement for the future but have a very heavy heart. Besides the fear and anxiety of leaving home and the change that every high school senior who plans to attend college feels, I will genuinely miss all the people back in Wilton, especially in WHS. It is a tight-knit community within a tight-knit community. But I know in my soul and in every fiber of my being, that I, and everyone else, will (as the Class of 2015 likes to say) a1way5 and forever be a Wilton Warrior.