Anna Wertheim Catches the Spirit of ‘68

It hasn’t taken Anna Wertheim long to settle into her classes at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio where the Huntington High School Class of 2013 member is studying chemical engineering.

The teenager completed an orientation program and then started classes last Monday. “It was a very enjoyable summer, but I am so happy to be at college,” Ms. Wertheim said. “I am already loving the classes I am taking and the people I am meeting.”

Ms. Wertheim was Huntington’s Class of 2013 recipient of the Spirit of ’68 Award, which is presented by a graduating class that attended high school during one of the most tumultuous periods in America's history.

Huntington’s Class of 1968 endured a breathtaking senior year. The Viet Cong launched the Tet Offensive with a series of surprise attacks throughout South Vietnam in January, swinging the tide of the Vietnam War and igniting a sea change in U.S. public opinion about the conflict.

In February 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson ended his re-election campaign after a poor showing in the New Hampshire primary. On April 4, 1968, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was gunned down in Memphis, Tennessee. In June, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was campaigning for the Democratic Party’s nomination for president at the time, was assassinated in Los Angeles just weeks before Huntington’s 1968 commencement ceremony.

Huntington’s Class of 1968 created the Spirit of ‘68 Award to perpetuate its legacy. They wanted to acknowledge a student whose description would never include the word ‘entitlement;’ a student who takes on responsibilities and challenges willingly.

Huntington High School social studies teacher Debbie Mellon plays an integral role in selecting the Spirit of ’68 Award recipient each year. Ms. Mellon is herself a Huntington alum, graduating with the Class of 1970.

“Ms. Mellon was my teacher for AP United States Government and Politics class,” Ms. Wertheim said. “I was a very active participant in the class. I asked a lot of questions and was not afraid to share opinion. I would often spend my lunch or study hall with Ms. Mellon discussing world and national politics and going more in depth into the course material.”

Ms. Wertheim is a multi-dimensional young woman who possesses many talents in a variety of areas. “Last year when I studied abroad in Israel we had an entire class dedicated to Middle Eastern politics,” the teenager said. “That class and the speakers and experiences that came with it were the highlight of my trip. Ms. Mellon and I would often discuss my experiences as well. She saw me as someone who is passionate about what I believe in and likely to have an impact on the world through politics.”

 The Case Western freshman was busy this past summer, working at a local ice cream shop and teaching a mosaic workshop in the Huntington Arts Council’s summer enrichment program. “I spent a lot of time with my friends from high school trying to savor the little time we had left together before we all parted our ways,” Ms. Wertheim said.