“There must be something in the water” is how current Baruchians humorously account for the College’s many vibrant graduates with 90 or more candles on their birthday cake. Their memories remind us of the enduring legacy of a Baruch College education.
“I just celebrated my 95th birthday last October. As I look back, I still can’t believe I got such a wonderful education at Baruch.”
—Sidney Field (’39)
“It makes me happy to connect anything back to my Baruch years; I enjoyed my college experience very much. I was active in the theater group and after graduation became a teacher. I married a 1938 graduate whom I met at school, and our marriage was great.”
—Elsie (Fischer) Wallens (’37)
“I wanted to go to school during the Depression, and my father could not afford to send me to any other school. I told him, ‘I think I can take advantage of the City education system.’ I did just that and am indebted to the school that helped me succeed.”
—A.W. Berthold (’39)
“We were the first class of girls admitted for the day session. I remember being the only girl in the public speaking class. I have always felt that what I obtained at the College helped me in what I did and am currently doing. I’m still here and still working at 93.”
—Bella Bankoff (’40)
“I went to school at night for 8½ years to get my BBA in accounting. Having that degree enabled me to progress from mailboy to VP of finance. I still feel that Baruch offered me an opportunity I would not have had otherwise; I could not have possibly paid for any other school. Without the College, I would not have been as successful as I have been during my life.”
—Robert Hendrickson (’41)
“I was in the 17 Lex building from the time I was 12 years old [when I attended Townsend Harris High School] until I went into the service, a semester from graduation. Baruch was good enough to give me the credits I needed to graduate, so it’s understandable the College means a lot to me. I’m always amazed at what Baruch has been able to do.”
—Seymour Beder (’42)
“Baruch was the only way for me to get an education. It was hard enough to raise the $2.50 or so necessary to go to school. I appreciate the education I got.”
—Leon Hariton (’46)
“I attribute my long-enduring connection with Baruch to the superb and varied education I received, to the superior faculty who gave me the impetus to continue my studies, to the loyal and interesting friends I made and kept at Baruch and in later years, and to the superb man I met at the school who became my husband, Eli Mason, also class of 1940.”
—Claire (Rosen) Mason (’40)
And our oldest respondent, at 102 years old:
“I didn’t have the funds to attend school in the day, so I went to night school. Baruch was a blessing. I was a good student, and I had a very good education.”
—Edward Lewis (’32)
—Collected by Anna Vander Broek (MBA ’12)
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