A Moment Worth Waiting For

1939 A Moment Worth Waiting For

By Jennifer Turner, Editor & Director of Content

he white dresses had been bought, and invitations sent.

Spring in Charleston was on full display, and Ashley Hall’s seniors were ecstatic as they counted down the days until they would walk across Senior Lawn to graduate in front of the Bear Cave. Then, in a moment, it all came crashing down. The outbreak caused the mayor to ban public gatherings, and as students hurriedly left campus, the gates of Ashley Hall swung closed.

This was not 2020, however. The year was 1939.

With the deadly polio virus spreading in the city and a vaccine more than a decade away, the only option was to avoid concentrated gatherings and to physically distance. Ashley Hall’s Class of 1939 had to postpone their rite of passage for half a century.

“We received our diplomas through the mail instead of in front of families and friends,” said Shirley Gardner Eubank ’39 in an April 6, 1989 Post and Courier article. “It was sad because we didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to all of our friends.”

Known as the only class in Ashley Hall’s history to miss Commencement, the Class of 1939 did not return in the intervening years to officially graduate. World War II broke out, and the women went their separate ways to pursue their own goals and dreams. Decades later, an opportunity to regain what was lost finally arrived in 1989: a special graduation ceremony to be held during their fiftieth, or Jubilee, class reunion. While impossible to gather everyone, a number were determined to represent their class and did make the journey back to their alma mater. The Class of 1939 had waited long enough, and despite all the years and life in between, they finally took that momentous walk in white.

It was a moment worth waiting for.

You Make

the Difference

Although the challenges of returning to campus this academic year have been many, the strength of the Ashley Hall community has sustained us every step of the way. Supporting one another has never been more important, and while we face many uncertainties, this remains true: each person has the capability to make a meaningful difference in someone else’s life.

Your gift to the Ashley Hall Loyalty Fund invests in our students and makes a lasting impact. Give online at ashleyhall.org/give