| excerpt from the Legend: Class Secretary Vivian Jupiter was also a proud member of the Legend staff, National Honor Society, and Future Teachers of America. She likes being with people, and she has hopes of being a teacher. |
| In Memoriam Page |
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| 1958 - Kindergarten - Forest Road School |
| 1970-Senior picture-South High School |
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| Want to contribute a rememberance or a photograph of Vivian? Click here, and put it in an email. It will be posted in the next website update. |
| Remembering Vivian Jupiter click here to add your remembrance |
| Remembrance, by Karen Farber:
Vivian died in July of 2000, after a 15 month long battle with colon cancer. It was just about a week after her 48th birthday. Going to our mini-reunion lasat year and anticipating the Forest Road School's 50th Anniversay Celebration, elicited mixed emotions for me. It's great being reacquainted with old friends and some of my favorite elementary school teachers. I'm only sorry that Viv is not here to share these experiences with all of us. When I was asked if I'd like to say a few words today, I was quite touched, and yet hesitant at the same time. Not only was I unsure that I would be able to carry it off, but I was afraid I wouldn't be able to adequately express my feelings for Viv.How does one sum up a friendship that goes back almost 43 years to kindergarten? Little did we know then what life had in store for us. We shared hundreds of wonderful and somtimes zany experiences --boyfriends, a summer together at Potsdam, breeding birds, coleslaw on rye bread sandwiches and numerous excursions in Viv's yellow Volvo. We never lost touch, even when Viv headed off to Northwestern and I went to Cornell. I even set Viv up with David the first summer we were home for vacation. We also shared some very sad times together like the early deaths of first her father, then mine. I still remember after my father died, asking Viv when the hurt would go away. She assured me that it would lessen over time and that things would get better. She was right. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I'd be faced with passing on her words to her own family and friends who loved her. Life is strange in that it gets filled with day to day tasks that sometimes prevent us from doing what we want to do most. Family responsibilities, work, and sheer distance often keep friends and family apart, even if only for brief periods of time. It's ironic that while we never lost touch and continued our strong bond of friendship for 40+ years, Viv's illness "allowed" us the time to spend together that we might never have had otherwise. I looked forward to the drive over the Tappan Zee Bridge and up the Saw Mill to Viv's this past year. Most of the time, we shared long talks, trips to Stew Leaonard's and Costco, and the lunches we used to find very little time for these past few years. Like most mothers, we talked at length about our children-their accomplishments, love lives, fears, etc. I got to know all about Josh and Eric's experiences at Michigan, Abby's baby and Jefferey's business ventures. I even followed Susan's daughter's acting career. But we also talked about bird feeders and perennial gardens and continued to exchange some family recipes. I'll always think of Viv when I make her mother's chicken soup (and I'll hear Viv telling me that I must use a kosher chicken!) just as she probably thought of me when she made my mother's rugelach. If I had to say one thing about Viv that will stay with me forever, I guess it would have to be her sense of humor. I look back on lots of laughs we shared over the years. Viv was even able to make me laugh when we went to buy her a wig last year. She said that there was no way she'd ever find a wig that would remotely resemble her "natural" hair so she might as well try on whatever she liked. We were both laughing when she tried on a wig that made her look like Barbara's twin-I was thinking it but didn't dare say a thing. It was Viv's uncanny timing when she said what was on both our minds that made us laugh. Viv faced her battle with cancer with a strength, courage and determination that we all admired. Viv, I'll miss you dearly. Your death will leave a void in my life-a void made even greater due to all the time we spent together this past year. I'm filled with great sadness now. But, I look forward to the time when my thoughts of you are filled with more smiles and reminiscent laughs, than tears. |
| Remembrance, by Doug Winters: I remember Vivian quite fondly. She actually owned the video rental store in my home town of Pleasantville. I haven't stayed in touch with anyone from South and we both hugged and reminisced when we first saw each other. Vivian was my next door neightboor in Green Acres from birth, Forest Road, straight through South. Actually did anybody ever move in those days?. So many of my memories were about her father Sam. I was always active in the Democratic party, or as active as you can be at 16. Basically, Sam and I would get into these great discusssions about Vietnam, etc. You know, back in the days when there were differences betweeen Democrats and Republicans. I vividly remember putting |
| up posters and signs for Al Lowenstein & Eugene McCarthy and he taking them down and replacing them with Nixonian-type evil doers, only to have me reciprocate. All of this came rushing back in an instant every time I saw Vivian.
I am crushingly moved that she is no longer with us. Steve Cahn called me the other night to tell me about this whole reunion deal and just emailed me about the website. Seeing names like Jeff Zelin among the deceased is beyond my perhaps innocent comprehension. I think of all of us as 17. |
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