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The Archivist’s Corner
yesterdayBy Kent Manno, Delbarton Archivist Delbarton The Archivist’s Corner
TheBrotherhood Endures
Recently, I spoke with Frank Haynes ’48, and Jules Spada ’48 are the last two surviving members of Delbarton’s first graduating class.
Jules Spada remembers his time at Delbarton like it was yesterday. The Class of 1948 included twelve young men. Born in 1930, Mr. Spada grew up in Whippany, New Jersey where his father owned Whippany Soap Company, a fat and waste rendering plant. Spada was a freshman Delbarton in 1944, 5 years into the life of Delbarton School. When his parents drove him to campus, he was impressed with Old Main and the “peaceful serene environment.” The student body in grades 7 to 10 occupied Old Main, the Brother’s House, and Chapter Hall. Fr. Adrian and Fr. Kenneth coached football which scrimmaged other jay-vee teams in the area. Students attended classes 5 1/2 days a week. Two years later, in 1946 the school had enrolled enough students to field competitive sports teams. Fr. Stephen Findlay hired William O. Regan to head the first football program and oversee construction of regulation football field. Old Main basement was the locker room and the inexperienced team was outfitted in uniforms resembling the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Coach Regan went on to create a 40-year Delbarton football legacy with a 236-83-10 record.
In the 1947 season, all athletes played offense and defense for the whole game. Spada #54, played left end and moved to left halfback in 1948. Frank Haynes #28, served as center and linebacker. Oratory and Mountain Lakes were great Delbarton rivals. Spada says Coach Regan was the “perfect guy.” “Nobody had any animosity or bad words towards him. He was just a good fair person.”
Spada was a 3-sport athlete at Delbarton – football, basketball, baseball while Frank Haynes was a 2-sport athlete – football and basketball. Reagan coached all three sports. Spada’s Delbarton education “gave me a great foundation in life.” Monks and coaches became important mentors who helped shape him into a responsible young man. Delbarton boarders included students from Poland, Cuba and South America, and Spada says, “It was a wonderful experience meeting, conversing, and learning about various cultures.”
As a young man, Jules Spada listened to boxing matches on the radio with his father and took boxing lessons in Morristown during senior year. During college at St. Anselm’s, “They had a gym in Manchester, New Hampshire, I had a buck in my pocket a week and had to split it to pay for training, but I did it.” In 1950, Mr. Spada reached the finals of the Golden Gloves in Manchester with three first-round knock outs. He sustained a cut above his left eye in the finals and the fight was stopped. In 1952, Spada was drafted into the Army did basic training at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA. and was posted as a bodyguard for Major General Bernice McFayden in Trieste, Italy, serving as interpreter each evening. He won the “Command Championship” in Trieste, Italy, then boxed the US Army German champion and won. He also knocked out the Army’s Austrian champ and twice boxed the Army’s British champion. In his final fight, he defended his title against John Kelly, a professional fighter, and knocked him out in the third round.
In 1954, he returned to New Jersey for a job in the family business as salesman and truck driver. In 1956, he started a Master’s in Education at Columbia but combining work and school was a challenge. He continued his boxing training until his trainer urged him to make a choice: boxing or business. Spada chose his day job. In recognition of his boxing career, in 2000 Spada was inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame. He met his future wife, Marjorie, at Dot’s Kitchen in Florham Park. They married in 1959, and have six children and 16 grandchildren including several Delbarton grandsons. Spada is retired and lives in Florham Park, NJ with his wife Marjorie.
Frank Hayes I connected via Zoom with 91-year old Frank Haynes, in Naperville, IL. Haynes and his twin Richard were born in Philadelphia in 1930. Their father was in the wholesale meat business and purchased a farm in Mendham, NJ. One day Frank, Richard, and their father met with Fr. Stephen Findlay at Delbarton who convinced Mr. Haynes that school expansion would be possible if his sons enrolled. Haynes takes pride in enabling Delbarton to add a junior and senior class in 1946 and 1947 to create a true grade 7-12 program. Haynes echoed the same sentiment as Spada regarding the foundation Delbarton provided and says, “Delbarton gave me an interest in serving.” He began his life of service by becoming the first President of the Student Body. After graduating Delbarton, Mr. Haynes attended Catholic University in Washington, D.C. where he majored in economics and graduated in 1952. In 1953, Frank Haynes was drafted into the U.S. Army and, like Spada, did his basic training at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA. “At that time, you were drafted for a period of 24 months. I soon learned that if you became an officer, you only had to serve 18 months from the date you were commissioned,” he says. “Since I would be able to complete
Basic Training and OCS (Officer Candidate School) within a year, I figured the six months was probably worth it. And being an officer would look good on a resume, so I applied for Officer Candidate School.”
In August 1953, Frank graduated from OCS with the rank of second lieutenant. Assigned to Fort Hood, TX, he would serve as an engineer supporting the 1st Armored Division. After training outside of Hiroshima, Japan he was assigned to the Corps of Engineers in Korea, just one mile away from the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) where he was responsible for building and maintaining float bridges in the ICorps area.
Soon after returning from Korea, Frank joined the active Army Reserves. In 1956, he met his future wife, Pat, through his twin brother Richard. Their enduring marriage had produced four daughters, six grandchildren, and six greatgrandchildren. His military career finally ended in 1962 having achieved the rank of Captain.
Frank built a career in computing, where he managed large, mainframe systems that, in those days, took up entire office floors. He started in 1954 with Prudential Insurance in Newark, NJ where he helped manage billing systems, then joined GE in 1962. In 1973, he moved to the Chicago area to set up a baking company computing system, then changed careers after earning his real estate license.
After suffering a stroke in 2014, he officially retired but continued his life of service with St. Thomas Catholic Church, the American Legion, and Judd Kendall VFW Post 3873.
Both men attest that Delbarton fosters an environment of brotherhood that builds character and camaraderie. Their years as
Delbarton students lay the foundation for a lifetime bond, and each acknowledged that the Delbarton brotherhood doesn’t end at graduation. 54 years later, for both Jules Spada and Frank Haynes, Delbarton still holds a special place in their hearts. We thank Jules and Frank for their military service and for their contributions to the history and life of the School.
