By: Richard L. Smith
"I can't call your names, but when I look at your faces, I know I love you and I hope that you love me,'' -Bert R. Berry
He spoke softly, didn't need to carry a big stick but kept the attention of many Newark West Ward residents who loved, respected, and adored how he led thousands of students through the walls of a brick building that housed and educated "children in the community."
His name was Mr. Bert R. Berry, and he was the first Principal of the 13th Avenue Community School. According to his family, he died Wednesday, October 12, 2022, at 92.
A principal to all who attended the one square block-long school building at 359 13th Avenue but a father to most of us who desired positive male role models during the early 1970s, 80s, and 1990s.
The times that we've spent here,
were filled with memories so dear,
A school where we learned, more than to read and write.. I'll never forget my Green and White
We've learned to share,
we've learned to bare
The times when the sky wasn't so bright... I'll never forget, never forget my Green and White!
Thirteenth Avenue Community School... Thirteenth Avenue Community School.....
As we leave this place,
It will be hard to erase
The goal that this school has brought into sight.
I'll never forget my Green and White.
We've learned to share, we've learned to bear
The times when the Sky wasn't so bright.... I'll never forget, never forget, never forget my Green
and White,
Thirteenth Avenue Community School
Thirteenth Avenue Community School -by W. Oatman Ill
Mr. Berry mirrored positive community so much that it etched into the psyche of teachers, students, and staff who attended the building during his tenure. He was the epitome of community excellence and led 13th Avenue School through times when all -we- had was our community to lean on.
Yes, Mr. Berry was my Principal at 13th Avenue School. I admired what he'd done for my family and others while I attended. Mr. Berry and many teachers at 13th Avenue School became our parents when we left home. They were respected beyond belief. It took a village to raise children, and you better believe Mr. Berry and the 13th Avenue staff were the village.
During the Memorial Day weekend, 2015, at the age of 85 years old, Mr. Berry and the late former Principal of neighboring West Side High School, Mr. Nathaniel Potts, attended a community function that honored the community pride that both educational entities successfully established.
There was a large crowd of 300 people, which included former teachers, students, parents, and administrators. While I did not make it to the event, my brother Mr. Reggie Smith, who graduated a couple of years before I did, said the reunion felt like the entire school community was still together.
"It was very relaxed, and it felt like we were still in class, outside on the playground, or in the auditorium for an assembly.
Students and teachers came from as far away as North Dakota, Florida, and Mississippi and as close as Georgia, the Carolinas, and neighboring Pennsylvania. Former students and teachers at the event walked a little slower, their hair grayed, but 13th Avenue Panther pride was evident in the room", Smith said.
Mr. Berry was given a standing ovation during the event for his excellence in instilling green and white common pride in that part of Newark's lower West Ward.
Today, my childhood alma mater has a written vision statement stating the following: "13th Avenue School is a place where students are eager to attend and receive a quality education, teachers are supported and provided with effective professional development, and parents are excited about the high standard of education and strong home-school connection".
I don't recall Mr. Bert R. Berry posting a mission statement offering validity to the community. We felt it, accepted what we felt, and knew through tests and measures that his work accomplished the right thing.
Community excellence wasn't something that was written on paper for Mr. Berry, but it was action.
He was community. "Well done, good and faithful community servant...". Take your rest, Panther.