Health & Fitness
Malden High alumni mark historic milestones this fall
Malden High School alumni celebrate several historic events this fall, including 125th Malden-Medford Thanksgiving Day football game.
This fall historic for MHS alumni
By David D. Haskell
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Malden High School alumni have several milestone events to celebrate this fall, and more.
Most notable will be the 125th annual Thanksgiving Day football classic between Malden and neighboring rival Medford.
Find out what's happening in Maldenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Adopting “Touchdown” as its theme to commemorate that historic event, the MHS Alumni Association holds its 5th annual Homecoming brunch at the school on Oct. 14.
And the Golden Tornado Club, deeply involved in planning social events for the big game, is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its founding in 1952.
“The goal is to make it a fun event for all,” said Richard Bransfield, Class of 1978, principal at the Linden School and president of the Golden Tornado Club.
Bransfield said there will be various events leading up to the game, including special gatherings at John Brewers Restaurant and Pub on Highland Avenue and at the Fizz Ed restaurant on Pleasant Street in Malden Square.
There will also be joint banquets for both Malden and Medford football squads.
According to Dick Vaughn, Class of ’53, the Golden Tornado Club originated as a “Booster Club” for the football team. The prime movers were MHS legends Coach Ed Melanson, Coach Arthur Boyle and Roy Finn.
This year’s game is a “very special occasion,” Vaughn said in an email to Bransfield explaining how the club came to be.
“So many men and women have worked tirelessly to keep it alive,” Vaughn wrote, adding that “if Roy, Eddie or Arthur were alive today they would be astonished at what they started and how well it has survived.”
A special club banquet follows on Nov. 17, when new members are inducted into the MHS Sports Hall of Fame.
The Homecoming brunch, costing $25 per person, will be in the cafeteria at MHS where alumni will enjoy food catered by Anthony’s of Malden while reminiscing about their days in school.
Homecoming reservation forms can be downloaded from www.maldenhighalumni.com or from Homecoming chair Patty Kelly, Class of ’80, at pkelly6385@aol.com, or 781-665-2543.
More information on the Golden Tornado Club and the Sports Hall of Fame dinner, at $35 per person, can be found at www.goldentornadoclub.org or from Bransfield at rbransfi@malden.mec.edu.
How significant is this year’s Thanksgiving Day game? Here’s an historical perspective: Coach Matthew Washington Bullock, the first black football coach (1905-06) at Malden High, said this about the rivalry prior to the 1906 contest:
“The season does not begin until Thanksgiving Day, and should we lose that game my work for the season will be a rank failure.”
