I was in the first group of Metco students that came to Needham high school in 1967. It was a little scary because I was one of nine black students out of 2000 white students in the school. I wasn't sure how it was going to work. Within my first couple of days, I met and made friends with three guys that all shared some form of the same first name. Robert Thorpe, Robert Stark & Robbie Ftorek. I developed varying degrees of relationship with each one, but each one of them helped me to settle in to Needham high school that first year. Robert Thorpe was a large part of my making the school my home away from home. Sometimes we don't know how much a small kindness means to a person because we can't see anything with the naked eye. Some things have to be viewed with the heart. Thanks Robert for being you.
Diane Dinneen
Bob passed away on September 8, 1992Robert Gray
I was in the first group of Metco students that came to Needham high school in 1967. It was a little scary because I was one of nine black students out of 2000 white students in the school. I wasn't sure how it was going to work. Within my first couple of days, I met and made friends with three guys that all shared some form of the same first name. Robert Thorpe, Robert Stark & Robbie Ftorek. I developed varying degrees of relationship with each one, but each one of them helped me to settle in to Needham high school that first year. Robert Thorpe was a large part of my making the school my home away from home. Sometimes we don't know how much a small kindness means to a person because we can't see anything with the naked eye. Some things have to be viewed with the heart. Thanks Robert for being you.
Robert "Bob" Gray
Lynn Thorpe
Thanks Bob - that was really nice to read. Our Bob was a pretty special guy who had a way of making everyone feel important and did it effortlessly.