Waltham's Connection To White House Chief Of Staff

WALTHAM, MA — After President Donald Trump named a new White House chief of staff there was brief mention that he was from Boston. Cheryl Duddy Schoenfeld remembers thinking right away of the contingent of "boys" who used to travel to her high school in Waltham from the Brighton, Oak Square area.

One of them was a tall, quiet boy named John Kelly. And he was ahead of her, class of '68.

"I thought, oh no, it couldn't be him," she said.

There were three guys who traveled from Brighton to go to St. Mary's. It was a small school and so even though the boys and girls had their own ends of the school separated by an invisible line, she remembers cheer leading at track and basketball games and everyone hanging around at dances. And she remembers the girls coming to watch the Brighton boys arrive.

(For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Waltham Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

"Those Brighton boys. We all liked them: It was Hugh McCusker, Bill Galvin and John Kelly. Us girls always thought they were so handsome," she said. "Those three guys I always remember for some reason. When I heard [the White House chief of staff] was from the area I said 'it can't be the same person.'"

But then her husband who was reading the paper this morning told her she'd been right. There was mention of him going to school in Waltham. It was the very same Kelly she remembered.

Gen. John Kelly, new the White House Chief of Staff, is a 1968 graduate of her high school alma mater St. Mary's in Waltham.

"I remember he was always a nice, well mannered person. And I think he liked golf," said Schoenfeld.

In fact the note under his yearbook photo mentions that he was well mannered and liked golf was involved in intramural sports and was a class officer.

She remembers Kelly as tall, quiet and well liked. But more than anything she feels proud that a St. Mary's graduate has gone on to do great things.

"It was just surprising to see," she said. "I'm thrilled... It's an extremely small school, so you celebrate when people have nice things that happen to them... It's a small family. For a small school they've produced some pretty good people."

She said since then she's been in touch with classmates who all say the same thing, "Everyone is extremely proud."

As for the decision to appoint him as chief of staff at the White House?

"I tell you, finally Trump did something that makes sense," she said. "This is a good move for Trump, especially if he listens to Gen. Kelly."

One of the Brighton boys who went to school in Waltham.

Images courtesy Cheryl Duddy Schoenfeld and Rita Brown, both graduates of St. Mary's.