Alumni Spotlight – Update
He’s the Oldest Known Alumnus of America’s Oldest Public High School
Meet Arthur “Harold” Green, now 107, from the Class of 1934 profiled in our September 2023, Newsletter. He had another birthday in December so we decided it was time for an update.
English Alumnus Harold Green, shown here in Washington DC between two Marines, participated in an October, 2023 Veterans Honor Flight event.
The year 1917 saw the start of the Russian Revolution and a worldwide flu epidemic. World War I had been raging for three years and the U. S. declared war on Germany. You could mail a letter for two cents. And Arthur ‘Harold’ Green was born!
Harold Green, right, and daughter Myra at the World War II memorial in Washington DC.
Arthur Green was born in Savannah, Georgia, and the family moved to Baltimore when he was four amidst The Great Depression. At high school age, he was sent to Boston to live with his godfather where the schools were better and there was less racism, according to his only child, Myra, a news writer at ABC News in Baltimore.
She says the family chose English High School because of its reputation: an excellent teaching staff and sports opportunities including baseball, football and diving.
Arthur worked as a mailman until he was drafted. He served with distinction during WW II and the Korean War. Later he returned to his job at the USPS until he retired in 1972. Then he launched two side gigs, as a real estate owner and as a wedding photographer.
We asked Myra if her dad’s birthday cake had 107 candles. “You know,” she chuckled, “He’s had so many birthdays, I can’t keep track of what we did to celebrate each one!”
Last year, the Baltimore Orioles honored Arthur, one of their oldest fans, by inviting him to throw out the first pitch at an Orioles – Colorado Rockies baseball game, a dream since he turned 100. He wore uniform number 106, of course. He loves to reminisce about how incredible it was to watch in person legendary players like Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson and Lou Gehrig.
Harold Green, left, with fellow veterans during the Veteran’s Honor Flight activities near the Korean War Memorial on the National Mall in Washington DC.
During the 2023 baseball season, Arthur was featured on Good Morning America as the ‘Play of the Day’ when he threw out the first pitch. Last October he participated in ‘Veterans Honor Flight’ in Washington honoring service members who perished. Highlights included visits to war memorials and monuments and laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
