SHSAA Winter-Spring 2025 Newsletter

• Four new SHSAA scholarships endowed
• Classroom grants awarded to Salem teachers
• SHSAA Career Day held for SHS sophomores
• Recognition societies & donations from alumni & friends
• In Memoriam - remembering our alumni
• SHSAA Honored Alumnus announcement
• Alumni notes
• Quaker Success podcasts
• Calendar of Events & 2024 SHS reunions & events

The Salem High School Alumni Association Scholarship Award Ceremony will be held on Saturday, April 26, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. in the SHS auditorium.

The alumni association's 144th Annual Meeting will be a part of the evening's program.

The 2025 Honored Alumnus, Frank A. Zamarelli, Jr., will be recognized and the 50-Year SHS Class of 1975 will also be acknowledged.

A reception in the SHS cafeteria with catered refreshments will follow the program.

All SHS alumni, family, and friends are invited to attend the program and Open House reception.

Since 1908, the Salem High School Alumni Association has been providing scholarships to help students pursue their career aspirations through the generosity of alumni and friends. The Salem High School Alumni Association was organized in 1882 and created the first high school alumni scholarship fund in Ohio in 1903.

In 2024 the Salem High School Alumni Association awarded 133 scholarships totaling $415,700 to 77 Salem High School graduating seniors and 35 alumni. Since 1908, more than $9.6 million has been awarded to 2676 students.

Local businessman and community advocate Frank A. Zamarelli Jr. has been chosen as the 2025 Salem High School Alumni Association (SHSAA) Honored Alumnus. The alumni association will recognize Zamarelli during its 144th Annual Meeting and Scholarship Award Ceremony on Saturday, April 26, 6:00 p.m. in the SHS auditorium.

Raised in a family deeply involved in the community, Zamarelli became active in church, school, and local events at an early age. As an adult, he has used his skills and expertise to support numerous organizations, offering leadership in board governance, management, marketing, and technology.

Organizations that have benefited from Zamarelli’s contributions include the Rotary Club of Salem, the Salem Rotary Foundation, the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce, the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the Hope Cemetery Association, the Grandview Cemetery Association, the First Presbyterian Church Pre-School, A.I.D., Salem Community Theater, Salem Renaissance, Salem Community Center, the Salem Italian American Club Education Fund, St. Paul Home and School Association, St. Paul School Foundation, Salem High School Alumni Association, SHS Choir Boosters, and the Kent State – Salem Business Advisory Board.

Zamarelli also works with Salem City Schools as the SHS Auditorium Manager and serves as a sports announcer and scorekeeper for Quaker football, girls and boys basketball, wrestling, and volleyball. He volunteers weekly at St. Paul Church as a member of the video streaming team.

On SHS Alumni Saturday, August 9, SHSAA will again partner with the Downtown Salem Partnership’s Freed Fest celebration in downtown Salem!

Alan Freed, a 1940 SHS alumnus coined the phrase, “Rock and Roll” and there will be bands, duos, trios, and singular acts playing a variety of different types of music throughout the entire town.

An Open House will be held at the SHSAA office from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 9. All are invited to stop in and visit. Light refreshments will be served.

The alumni association will be granting funds to downtown businesses to sponsor musical entertainment. The application is available below.

The Sunday, August 10, evening celebration will be held at Waterworth Memorial Park for the Salem High School Alumni Night Summer Concert beginning at 6:00 p.m.

The popular band Jimmy and The Soul Blazers will be featured, and a “Cars of the Decades” display will be enjoyed.

All alumni are encouraged to bring their friends.

Planning a reunion or gathering of alumni? Let us know what you have planned, and we will post it for others.

To support our mission of fostering student development, the Salem High School Alumni Association is now offering grants in the amount of $100-$500 to eligible K-12 teachers in the Salem City School District.

This past year, SHSAA provided $11,538.79 to 28 classrooms to expand, improve, or provide unique educational insights while enhancing educational opportunities, environment, and the physical and mental growth of students.

Applications for Fall 2025 classroom grants will be accepted until September 30 for grants paid in October.

We are filled with gratitude for the volunteer participation of fifty alumni and friends who took part in the SHS Career Day sponsored by SHSAA and the Rotary Club of Salem Friday, November 22, 2024, at the Kent State-Salem campus.

One hundred and thirty-five Salem High School sophomores listened and learned during a variety of presentations and participated in break-out sessions with the professionals.

Thanks to Salem Regional Medical Center for the sponsorship of refreshments.

Alumni Craig Berger '02, Aaron Berger '05, and Ed Butch '02 are co-hosting a podcast named "Quaker Success: Redefining What It Means to Succeed."

They are partnering with the Salem High School Alumni Association on this initiative and speaking with Quaker alumni about their various journeys since graduation, including discussing personal/professional accomplishments, reflecting on SHS memories, and identifying how growing up in Salem contributed to their success.

To accentuate this focus on "success," they are spending the first season interviewing guests who were voted "Most Likely to Succeed" their senior year.

Quaker Success is available on all major podcast platforms.

They hope you will listen, enjoy, and reflect on what it means to be a Salem Quaker!

We are happy to welcome visitors to the office. Come and explore more than 100 years of Salem High School memories. Visit our newly renovated lobby and a second-floor room featuring the SHS Alumni Art Wall.

Our regular office hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. We are also open on select Second Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Alumni and friends may also call the office at 330-332-1427 for assistance and to request an afternoon or weekend visit.

The SHSAA Mission Statement:
The mission of the Salem High School Alumni Association of Ohio shall be to award scholarships to qualified students, manage assets including memorabilia for future generations, foster student and alumni development, and honor the organization’s past by nurturing friendships and enriching memories.

The Salem High School Alumni Association Societies recognize the generosity of our donors who have made a difference in the lives of Salem High School graduates for more than 100 years.

For more information, please contact us at 330-332-1427.

Our database includes 20,000 alumni from as far back as the first graduation class of 1865.

We also have an extensive collection of Salem High School yearbooks back to 1893 both online and at our office.

We honor our past members and look forward to our future.

The Salem High School Alumni Association has a database of more than 20,000 alumni dating back to the first graduating class of 1865.

Consider a memorial donation which will help fund our scholarships for the benefit of future alumni.

Memorial Society recognition is bestowed on individuals or families who have given or bequeathed funds or for whom memorial donations have been made totaling at least $10,000 but less than $100,000.

Named Scholarships and higher-levels of recognition are bestowed for donations of $100,000 or more.

Salem High School Alumni Association is proud of the rich military experience of our alumni.

We have information on hundreds of alumni who have served in the military.

Feel free to search and admire the distinguished careers and accomplishments of our alumni.

Please encourage other alumni or their families to submit their military information.