Today our class has so much to be thankful for. We are still, after 15 years, The Best Class Ever. Bar none.

When we graduated in 1994 many doubted that we would continue our dominance for this long. They said we were washed up. We were overrated. We were running on empty. Those same people will be eating crow for dinner tonight.

But today is not about them. It is about us.

And how great we are. This week many have called and e-mailed and written class headquarters to let us know how much we mean to them. Below is just a glimpse of the thanks we have been receiving:

“We rule so bad and so much I still wear my Wachusett track jersey to work, on dates and out in public. Every day of my life. I refuse to ever take it off.”

Ray Allen’s 30 point game on Monday night – 28 in the second half – against the Chicago Bulls was truly one for the ages.

With two seconds left he hit the game winning three to tie the series and give the Boston Celtics life in the best of seven series.

For anyone who watched, Ray and his UCONN counterpart, Ben Gordon, went head to head in the second half trading basket after basket in a shooting display reminiscent of the Larry Bird/Dominique Wilkins scoring duel in Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference semifinals.

Yet, immediately following the game the Internet was abuzz, not with talk of Ray Allen’s performance, but of another basketball great – Class of ’94 hardwood legend Mike Senckowski.

Dave Wuth called Ray Allen a poor man’s Mike Senckowski, writing on his Facebook page that “Ray couldn’t carry Mike’s jock strap. Plain and simple.”

Chris Tremblay wrote that Senckowski was the best there was, the best there is and the best there ever will be. “Ray Allen never put up 37 on Milford,” Tremblay said. “Mike Senckowski did. And I was there.”

Brant Harmon placed Senckowski in a class all by himself. “If I was forming a basketball team to win a championship, Senckowski would be the first person I’d pick,” he said. “I wouldn’t even consider Ray Allen.”

With all this controversy we are asking you to decide.

WHO IS THE BEST BASKETBALL PLAYER EVER: MIKE OR RAY?

THIS ARTICLE, WHICH APPEARED IN THE WORCESTER TELEGRAM & GAZETTE EARLIER THIS YEAR, PROVES OUR DOMINANCE IS NO FLUKE!!!

In a stunning series of events, Craig “Cheezer” Paradis slept through Christmas this year.

“I don’t know what happened,” Cheezer said when woken at 8:15 this morning by his roommate Chris Nobile.

Here is what we do know:

At 5:30 PM on Christmas Eve, Cheezer contemplated going to Wong Dynasty before he was alerted in a text a half hour later from Brant Harmon that Wong is no longer open.

He then, from wire reports, made a bacon and cheese omelette for himself before baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies he placed on the counter, along with a glass of two percent milk, for Santa Claus.

After eating the omelette he played shirtless Guitar Hero for the next hour and a half.

Shortly after 9:30, he was tucked into bed by his roommate. “I’ve been a good boy this year,” he told Nobile.

Those were the last words he spoke for nearly a day and a half. He woke up this morning, sleeping nearly 36 hours. That is a class record and one of the top five-marks set by any man, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

As to how he slept that long, Paradis was unsure but attributed it to the following:

1. Nobile didn’t wake him up like he normally does.
2. He was dreaming of sugar plums dancing in his head.
3. He forgot to set his alarm.
4. He was tired.
5. He did it for our class.

The last may be the most important reason, Cheezer admitted. And if need be, he said, he will sleep even longer if it means our class finally getting the respect it deserves.

“I will sleep forever if I have to,” Cheezer said this morning while still in bed. He rubbed his eyes several times before putting his head back on his pillow and taking a quick nap, proving just how much he loves the Class of ’94.

“If you haven’t got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble.” – Bob Hope

We are down to the wire and still need your help in making this year’s drive for the food pantry more successful than the last.

All we are asking is for you to drop off one, or two, cans of unused food that may be in your kitchen cupboard or cabinet between now and Friday.

Should you prefer to make a tax-deductible donation, checks can be made out to the: Wachusett Food Pantry.

You can drop off donations through this Wednesday until 5 PM at Carrie’s Creation at 788 Main Street, Holden MA 01520.

If Wednesday does not work for you then you can still donate through Friday evening by dropping off your donations at the home of Megan (Hehir) Marshall at 27 Tanglewood Road, Sterling, MA 01564. Tanglewood Road is off South Nelson Road which is off of Beaman Road.

Thank you for everyone who has donated so far. We hope if you have time that you will donate just one can or a box of food as residents are in need of the pantry’s services now more than ever.

And remember whoever donates the most to this year’s drive will receive: (1.) Free admission to our next reunion (2.) An entry on our blog (3.) The respect and admiration of your peers.

Anyone can donate – not just people in our class. We would appreciate it if you forward this to friends and family who might be interested in helping.

We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

• Time: 5 to 9 PM
• Tickets are $20 at the door
• There will be games, raffles and prizes as well as a cash bar

For those that do not know this is a memorial benefit for Katie Hewson who lost her life last February (2007) to a tragic accident in St. John.

Note: This is the first in a two-part series on one of the greatest bags to ever grace the halls of Wachusett – Fred.

This week the Wachusett Alumni Association announced its slate of inductees for the 2008 Wachusett Hall of Fame. Topping that list was Fred, the bag owned by senior class president Mo Cheeks.

As many of you know, Mo Cheeks purchased Fred in the fall of 1991 from the Wachusett book store. “I needed a bag to carry my books in,” Mo Cheeks explained. “Up until that point, I carried my books in my hands and when my hands were full, I used my arms.”

The cost of Fred at the time? $37.23, which in today’s market, adjusting for inflation, would have equaled $58.37. “Whatever the price,” Mo Cheeks said, “it would have been a steal.”

Fred’s legacy is well known to members of the Class of ’94.

He averaged seven books per day at the height of his career, carrying a record 12 on May 28, 1992 during final week. It is a record that stands to this day.

“It’s just so fitting that on the 12th anniversary of that amazing feat that Fred finally gains the recognition he deserves,” Doug Laidlaw said in a phone interview. Laidlaw was one of the lucky few to hold Fred during his time at Wachusett. “I will never forget the moment Mo Cheeks let me carry Fred. I remember it as if it was yesterday. Mo Cheeks had to scratch his head because it was itchy. And he had to put Fred down. Well, as many of you know, Mo Cheeks never put Fred down. He would rather lose his right arm in a wood chipper. So I offered to hold him for a few seconds. It was the greatest moment of my life. I didn’t wash my hands for the rest of the year.”

Pat Tinsley called Fred “the big ticket. He was the real deal. They just don’t make bags like that anymore.”

During his junior and senior years, Fred never missed a day of school. “The most remarkable aspect of that run was the fact that Mo Cheeks never used a locker those two years,” an astonished Amanda Fish said.

In additon to books, Fred held hair gel, a calculator, a ruler, Wachusett track shorts, a contact lens case, knee pads, foot powder, nail clippers, swimming goggles and a mustache trimmer. “He will be the bag by which all other bags will be judged,” economics teacher Mr. Jaquith said.

“A bag like that only comes along once in a lifetime,” valedictorian Diana Carlson said.

But perhaps Fred’s greatest legacy will be a moment few had the chance to witness. Right after Mo Cheeks pulled the trigger and unloaded the dough for Fred, upperclassmen looked at him with envious eyes.

“Fred was the subject of both hostage and death threats,” class historian Adam Porcaro recalled.

Those threats became a reality in February, 1992 in an after-school melee that will never be forgotten. Mo Cheeks was heading to the buses when he was accosted by the bad boy crew of Matt Conley, Brian Bergeron, Steve Dzik, Pat McNamara and Tom Bull. They demanded he turn over Fred. “I had nowhere to go,” Mo Cheeks admitted. “So I ran.”

He led them on a chase that went through the dungeon up the glass staircase to the second floor of the halls of Wachusett High School. Fred never left his side. “Most bags would have given up,” Porcaro said. “But Fred is not most bags.”

Standing in front of the guidance offices above the entrance to the school, Mo Cheeks and Fred nearly met their match. He was surrounded on all sides. He threw Fred down the staircase and then jumped after him. “The whole way down, Fred broke my fall,” Mo Cheeks said. “I nearly hit my head on the staircase several times, but Fred was there to cushion the blow. He saved my life.”

Fred received a Medal of Bravery for his heroics that day. Looking back, Pat McNamara admits that he and his cohorts were out of line. “We never should have been there that day,” he said. “We just wanted a great bag. We thought if we had Fred, our class would be considered the best ever.”

But Fred never let that happen. Thanks to Fred, the Class of ’94 has maintained its standing as the best class ever. “Sometimes you forget just how important he was,” Porcaro said. “But in the final analysis, Fred will always be synonymous with our class and the success we have achieved.”

The second part of this series will ask “what’s next?” in an exclusive interview with Fred who has never spoken publicly before. He will talk about what he’s achieved, what the hall of fame award means to him and where he is going.