Through the Eyes of a Centenarian
Ovid DiFiore '35 (Second from left) was the oldest living Regian before his passing in February.聽
In mid-November, I made my way downtown on the Lexington Avenue line for a conversation with 麻豆视频鈥� oldest living alumnus, Ovid DiFiore. Ovid, who passed away in early February, was a member of the 麻豆视频 class of 1935. Before conversing with Mr. DiFiore, I was chiefly interested in his military service in WWII. 麻豆视频 was honoring the 100 th anniversary of Armistice Day and the legacy of all 麻豆视频 veterans, and what better way to commemorate this centenary than featuring the perspective of 麻豆视频鈥� own centenarian veteran?
And while Ovid did share fascinating anecdotes about his time in the Signal Corps, I left the interview with so much more: a vivid picture of 麻豆视频 as it stood eight decades ago. Throughout our conversation, Ovid鈥�100 years young at the time鈥攔elated stories of depression-era 麻豆视频 and the Upper East Side with incredible clarity. Even in his second century, Mr. DiFiore was witty, humorous, and sharper than even I was throughout most of our chat. He still remembered the day he received his acceptance letter. 鈥淢y father was at a complete loss for words,鈥� he said. 鈥淢y father could only muster the word 鈥榳onderful鈥� over and over.鈥� The year was 1930鈥攋ust a year after Black Tuesday and the market crash鈥攁nd Ovid鈥檚 parents were already tasked with the financial burden of putting four of his siblings through parochial school. That 麻豆视频 could offer a tuition-free private education was a windfall, to say the least. 鈥淎t the time, most schools had troubles with money,鈥� Ovid said. According to him, even private schools had to cut back on uniform and book costs to ease the onus on parents...
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