Mrs. Hamm graduated from Easton High School in 1925 and Ursinus College in 1929 with a B.S. in Mathematics. Shortly thereafter, she obtained her Master's Degree in Education from Columbia University. Mrs. Hamm's pursuit of an education was not typical of her generation when very few women went to college and even fewer obtained a master's degree. While attending Ursinus College, she was a member of the field hockey team, the basketball team and the women's archery team. She was the recipient of the first All Around Award given to a woman at Ursinus College. After she graduated from Ursinus, she started her teaching career in the Bensalem Township High School, Cornwall Heights, PA, where she taught from 1929 to 1942. She stopped teaching to raise her family, but returned to teaching in 1949, when her daughters were in school. It was then that she started her career at Bangor High School, which spanned 23 more years, for a total of 36 years. She taught English and mathematics at Bangor, retiring in 1973. While there she served as the head of the math department, and advisor of the Tri-Hi-Y Club. In the 60's, she volunteered to teach a Saturday class for college prep seniors so they could learn elementary calculus, to further prepare them for college. Mrs. Hamm was a life member of the National Education Association, the Pennsylvania Education Association, the National Association of Pennsylvania State Retirees, and the PTA. She was also a member of the Slate Belt Medical Center Auxiliary of Bangor, the Blue Valley Garden Club, a past president of the Bangor Professional Women's Club, and did volunteer tutoring for the Bangor Elementary School Love Program after she retired. She was a member of St. John's United Church of Christ in Bangor where she was a member of the Consistory, a Sunday School teacher, and a soloist in the church choir. She was also an avid reader and bridge player, a prize-winning knitter, and enjoyed flower gardening. She traveled extensively after retirement. Her zest for life kept her playing tennis in a senior league until the age of 90. Mrs. Hamm was dedicated to her profession and an inspiration to her students, many of which aspired to follow in her footsteps and later became teachers themselves. She was married to Dr. Anson M. Hamm, who was also a teacher in the Bangor School District. They had two daughters, Mary Louise Toth and Margaret Nowosielski, two grandsons and two great grandsons. Both daughters and one grandson, Terry Toth, became math teachers. The other grandson, Tom Toth, is a science teacher at Bangor High School. She also had four great grandchildren.
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Ms. Ruggiero taught 4th, 5th, and 6th grades in the Bangor Area School District from 1958 to 1984. She became the first female administrator in the Bangor Area School District and for eight years she served as principal of Bangor Elementary Center, Washington Elementary, and DeFranco Elementary Schools. After retirement, she also served five years as principal of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Roseto. She obtained her B.S. from ESU in 1958, her M.S. from Temple University in 1967, and her principal's certificate from Lehigh University in 1973. In 1984, she obtained a degree in Library Science from Kutztown University. Ms. Ruggiero has been a member of Our Lady if Mt. Carmel School Board since 1993. She has sung with Our Lady if Mt. Carmel choir since high school. She is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority and received the Sorority Science Scholarship. She has served on the Bangor Public Library Board for ten years, is a charter member and president of Ladies of UNICO, a member of the Bangor Women's Club, and an auditor for the Roseto Borough Council. She coached Girls' Soft Ball for five years and has been an officer for the Roseto Carnival for the past twenty years. She was awarded the Senior Citizen of the Year Award from the Bangor Chamber of Commerce and the Citizen of the Year Award from the Roseto American Legion. She is a lifetime member of the local and national PTA. She is responsible for initiating the Ski Club in the elementary grades at both the Bangor and OLMC elementary schools. Her interests are skiing, art, cooking, knitting, singing, and reading. |
