Remember Haddonfield's St. Mary Academy for Girls?

It was the summer of 1972. Richard Nixon was president, Don McLean's "American Pie," and Sly & the Family Stone's "Family Affair" were on the Top 40 chart.

It was also the last year of a small institution in Haddonfield, Saint Mary of the Angels Academy.

It was on Kings Highway, where Kingsway Learning Center is now located. It was four years after Pat Zinsser graduated from Saint Mary and one of the last times she saw some of her close friends at the school that was located in a three-story mansion and basement on Kings Highway.

Zinsser, who now lives in Princeton, is trying to organize a 45th reunion for Saint Mary's class of 1968 at the home of a former classmate in Lumberton.

She submitted this note about what is was like to go there in 1960s:

"This was a former Victorian mansion that the Sisters of Allegheny, NY purchased to start an academy in the late 1940s for young girls (grades 9-12).

"This is the same order of nuns that staffed Christ the King School in Haddonfield and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Camden. Msgr. Joseph B. McIntyre, the founder and first pastor of Christ the King Church, was also instrumental in its opening. However, SMAA was a private, independent school (not part of the Diocese of Camden or a parish) and tuition was rather steep (1968, $400 a year, plus fees for books, activities, uniforms, lunch.)

"Only academic courses were offered and 98 percent of our class attended college. The girls in our class came from Haddonfield and surrounding towns as well as Cinnaminson, Willingboro, Berlin and one rode the train from Ventnor daily.

"The mansion had four floors that were turned into a school: the basement was a lunchroom and lockers; first floor was the principal's office and the original library with a fireplace, a classroom in the dining room had a fireplace, and a huge kitchen and butler's pantry. There was the main stairway and a servants' stairs off of the kitchen.

"Second floor: two bathrooms (with claw footed tubs); three bedrooms were used for classrooms and servants stairs led to the third floor which was originally for servants, but now was used for two classrooms.

"The mansion and the two outer buildings (additional classrooms and all-purpose building for assemblies and phys ed.) were torn down in 1966 to build the "new" school (the current Kingsway Learning Center). Our new building (opened 1967) was beautiful, complete with a cafeteria, full gym and a stage, a lovely chapel, and state-of-the art classrooms.

"I thought I died and went to heaven. (Interestingly, many on the SMAA Facebook page preferred the old building.) Unfortunately, the academy closed its doors in June 1972. The adjacent convent was recently turned into high-end condos. 

"Academy girls wore a navy wool blazer with the school crest on left breast pocket, a navy wool pleated skirt, and a white starched blouse along with navy oxfords (shoes). Freshman year we had a school trip to the 1964 New York World's Fair at Flushing Meadows in Queens, NY. The Unisphere was the iconic symbol and the theme was 'Peace Through Understanding.'

"The most memorable exhibit was seeing the actual Michelangelo's Pieta that was on loan from the Vatican. We were the first class to have a Presentation Ball in November of our senior year. A SMAA mother got the idea and I don't know if it was a fundraiser or she just liked the idea and the nuns went along with it. We all wore white gowns, and held a bouquet of red and white flowers and walked one by one as we held our father's arm and were presented to Bishop Celestine J. Damiano, the Bishop of Camden. Our dads bowed and we made a deep courtesy. The event was held in the ballroom of the Cherry Hill Inn. It was quite a grand occasion with dinner and dancing. One might call it a faux-debutante ball because none of us were high society.

"There were 38 girls in the Class of 1968. We only had one reunion, our 10th. Then life got in the way and many of us lost contact. With no school, alumnae office, contact list and no married names many of us lost touch.

"It was last May when my only remaining SMAA friend suggested that I plan a 45th SMAA reunion. I was in the midst of working on my college reunion so she thought I could transfer the skills, I suppose.

"One night, just for fun, I got on Facebook and located four classmates. My friend knew three classmates, they knew others and then things snowballed. I had the task of finding the MIAs and was able to locate several by using the patron list in the back of our yearbooks to search parents' obituaries which listed married names of daughters. Then I used the white pages online. Also, Google searches were very helpful, too. It was a complicated, tedious process but within six weeks of working for many, many hours the list of names and contact information grew to 29.

"Sadly, three are deceased. There are six alums that have common names that we have been unable to find. Many whom I contacted out of the blue were shocked. Most have been hoping for a reunion but never thought it was possible.

"Some have sisters in others classes that have kept in touch and have had regular reunions. But since the Class of '68 held its only reunion in 1978 they never thought we would be together again.

"Our reunion will be held at a private home of our classmate in Lumberton. It begins at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 1 and will include lunch and dinner. It will end when the last 'Acadette' leaves. FYI: There is also a Facebook page for SMAA started by an alum from another class that has member from all classes.

"The Class of 1968 of St. Mary of the Angels Academy (Haddonfield, NJ) will hold a 45th Reunion on Saturday, June 1, 2013. We are searching for the following missing alumnae: Susan P. Burke, Carol Ann Dages, Mary Ellen Dougherty, Mary C. Flaherty, Mary Katherine McBride, and Carol Lynn Schreiber. To contact or for more information email: st.maryoftheangels1968@gmail.com"