2008

The following Poem was written by Donna Hurst Helmuth

who is a 1968 Graduate of Herndon High School.

The Poem is about Herndon, Virginia during the 1950s & 1960s

and can be found in the Herndon High School's 40th Reunion booklet.

Enjoy !

My Hometown

My hometown was a back yard big enough for me to play,

Summers with swim practice every day.

Lifeguards, card games, "Marco Polo" too,

Snaps from a towel, the smell of Prell shampoo.

An operator saying, "Number Please",

A fort in the woods, a climb in the trees.

Choir practice, Christmas plays, another new preacher,

The lessons taught by my favorite teacher.

My grandfather's garden and a whole mess of beans,

Attending my first funeral at J. Berkeley Green's.

A second grade teacher who also taught mom,

Air raid drills and my fear of the bomb.

My hometown was the woods where I was free to go,

Bonfires and Sager's Hill where I'd sled in the snow.

Young's pond and ice-skates, a marshmallow or two,

Playing King of the Mountain 'til I was black and blue.

Chasing lightning bugs and bringing them home in a jar,

Learning to drive my very first car.

My hometown was a piano lesson each week with Ms. Jones,

Tossing a stick to my big old dog Bones.

Vanilla cokes at Sashers (those cute older boys),

Volunteer firemen and trucks making noise.

The Lions Club, the fireworks, the homecoming parade,

Granny's weeping willow and sitting in the shade.

My hometown was the building of Dulles; the flight of a plane,

Stopping at the railroad tracks for the oncoming train.

A picnic at the Falls, the food mom would bring,

Riding the carousel, reaching the ring.

A night at the drive-in, a dinner at Tops,

Running the first traffic light, being caught by the cops.

There's been lots of changes in my old hometown

These changes prevent me from getting around.

But I have something that will always remain,

The richest of memories stored deep in my brain.

My memories like dime dishes I bought from Mr. Rohr,

They too are now worth so very much more.