The *WeCaTon* - West Carrollton (Ohio) H.S. Alumni News (unofficial)
Monday, November 03, 2014
2014 WCHS Alumni Gathering Wrapup
01 NOVEMBER 2014
Bonnie's Latest, Post WCHS 2014 Alumni Gathering:
Cordial greetings to all. I had no intention of beginning another
bulletin, prior to our weekend, and this one sure won't be sent until
after
it's concluded. However, I've had so many responses to the last one, and
the
e-mails are piling up so quickly, I thought I'd better get them cleared,
as
I await the next onslaught. As always, we have good news and bad news.
Also
as always, we begin with forwarders, who include 1954's FREDA P.
FLETCHER;
1957's ERCELL P. PHILLIPS, DARELL L. TOBIAS; 1958's LANDO F. STEELE,
RONALD
D. "TOM" FEE, BILL R. HOWARD, LORNA D. TROUTMAN; 1959's GARY E. BARNES;
1960
s WM. E. "BUDDY" STOVER, C. SUE MCCLOUD, DOLORES K "DEDE" FAHRNEY, CHAS
V.
CARTER, THOS. L. WOLF, JR., EULA FAYE BAILEY, WM. O. WALK
ER, RICHARD S. HOLT; 1961's GARY R. FRANK, PAUL R. BEARDSLEY, SALLY
L.
GILLETTE; and 1970's THOS. A. DORSEY, INDY JO GRISSOM;
Let's also update the e-mail-lost list. The good news is, we have
returned
1963's DAVID R. FRALEY to the fold, thanks to efforts by 1961's SALLY
L.
GILLETTE and 1963's NORMA ELYN SPEELMAN.
Thanks, girls, and I've already heard from David and he's glad to be
back
among us. But we have now lost 1967's ROBT. E. HALLER and his 1965
spouse,
MARY JO CONDON. Any clues? Also staying among the lost are 1955's BARBARA
J.
THOMAS and her 1953 spouse, ELMER D. MARRIOTT. We've also lost 1960's
BEVERLY J. HAAS, which could be a very bad sign, as she was
catastrophi
-cally ill, just about 2 years ago. Does anyone know anything? Let's
all
work together to see if we can solve these. I also will take this
opportunity to thank 1960's IDA JANE TREON for updating me on her new
e-mail
I'll be able to continue successfully sending her the bulletins. Thanks,
Ida
We're suddenly getting rejects on 1954's VICTOR C. NOEL again, as well
as
one of his classmates, PATRICE G. GAUGH. Do any of you have any
clues?
Freda? Prez JERRY R. GRAHAM? If you've got any info on any of these,
please
let me know. Otherwise, I have to do deletions and you all know how much
I
hate doing that.
My very first response to the last bulletin came from my classmate, WM.
E.
BUDDY" STOVER. He thanked me for my efforts and asked me if I knew
the
whereabouts of three of our classmates. They are RONALD G. PINYON, RICHARD
L
"DICKIE" PHILLIPS, and ROBT. E. "BOBBY" LAMB. Now, over the years, I'd
heard
Ron and Bobby had died. But nothing was substantiated, so I never
believed
that. At one time, Dick was on my readers list, but I've lost him. I'm
sure
he lives in Brookville, and even near to 1962's RICHARD C. CALL. It's
certainly possible Rich may know where he now lives, Buddy, or how to
reach
him. Rich's e-mail is ( lolajcall@yahoo.com ) It's his wife who
answers the
e-mail and her name is Lola Jean. She uses simply Jean. So perhaps that
will
work to get Dick. If you succeed, get his current e-mail for me, so I
can
get him back in the loop.
So now we get to Ron Pinyon. I did some digging for you. I think Ron
lives
in Milton, Florida. There's no phone listed for him, but so many people
have
ended landlines, that's not surprising, and cell phone numbers will
never,
ever be listed. I suspect his address may be 3466 Barkwood Drive, Milton,
Fl
32571. Now, if that's not him, Buddy, or if he no longer lives there,
I've
been able to determine he has two sons, who are Jeffrey S. Pinyon and
William G. Pinyon. I believe William lives at 7340 Stepp Lane in
Pace,
Florida 32571. Again, no phone listed. I further believe his other
son,
Jeffrey, is living at 11 Point View Place, Cocoa, Florida 32926. No,
no
phone listed. But I'm pretty confident of these being his sons, and at
these
addresses. I actually found an e-mail for Ron, tried it, but got
immediate
reject. There is also a Nina Mae Pinyon living in Pensacola, Florida, who
is
connected to both Jeff and Bill, as well as Ron. So this is most
assuredly
his former wife. I've got a hunch, if you drop a note to either of his
two
boys' residential addresses, you're going to get a hit on Ron. I'm glad
to
know all indications are that he's still alive.
So now, we move to your query about ROBT. E. LAMB. I was given to
understand
much earlier in the year or later last year, Bob might live in the
Cincinnati area. This information, I believe, came come 1970's VICKIE
JO
GILBERT. In any case, I did a bit more digging. I did find a Robt. E.
Lamb
in the right age group. He's at 923 Whispering Pine Way, Lebanon, Ohio
45036
There were two phone numbers listed. One was disconnected. The other one
is
513 228-1904. I called it, left a message, and explained for whom I
was
searching. If this was the right one, I hope to get a return call. Again,
I
m so encouraged to know he's probably not dead, either. So let's hope we
get
somewhere with locating all 3 of them.
My special thanks to both 1955's JOHN E. CROY, 1958's DONALD I. MCCOY,
and
1959's MICHAEL L. SWANK, K. JUNE CRUTCHFIELD, and 1960's EDGAR L.
"EDDIE"
KELLY for inviting me to join them on one of the social media sites. But
as
everyone now very well knows, I'm not nearly advanced enough for
those
social media sites. I don't know if I ever will be, but I'm always easy
to
reach on my regular, old, boring e-mail. While I'm at it, I'll advise
everyone I made an error in the last bulletin, re John's e-mail. The
correct
one is deaconcroy at gmail.com
So please correct your records and my
apologies to you, John. (Footnote: As you're all now well aware, the
Facebook went way over the top for me, and I just can't do the social
media
thing. Enough said and end of story. It's just not for me, but thank
you,
one and all.)
All those lovely, little thank-yous arrived from several of you, who
included 1954's Class Prez JERRY R. GRAHAM; 1959's SHIRLEY R. PARKS, NEIL
H.
SIZER; 1960's RONNIE R. WHEELER; 1961's P. LYNNETTE GARRETT, JACK L.
GODBY;
1963's NORMA ELYN SPEELMAN, 1970's INDY JO SUMNER---how I do love
writing
that name!!---, and I thank each and every single one of you for your
appreciation. As I keep writing, I've gotten a lot more out of this,
over
the now-14 years I've done it, than have all of you put together.
On September 25, the horrible news came to me, regarding the previous
day's
death of one of 1959's most well-liked members, HORACE J. CARROLL,
JR.
Junior, as we'd called him all through school, was also one of my
fellow
Miami Shores Kids, as is his widow, 1961's NANCY L. HOHNHORST. The news
of
his passing came to me, over and over, for the next 2-3 days. Everyone
was
very upset by it. He was highly regarded by his classmates and all who
knew
him. What a wonderful tribute to his legacy. During his and Nancy's life
in
California, he'd always used his middle name of Jay. He and Nancy had
been
married 50-plus years. Deepest sympathy and sincerest condolences are
extended
to her and her family, by us all. It will never be an easy task for me
to
report the passing of anyone who attended WC, that's for sure. It was
1959's
GARY E. BARNES, who first notified me, and there were many more,
following
him. There were also exchanges with his cousin, 1954's FREDA P.
FLETCHER
and with Nancy's classmates, P. LYNNETTE GARRETT and SALLY L. GILLETTE.
Many
more made comments, though, all lamenting the loss of WC alumnus, Junior.
He
ll be sorely missed, of that, there is no doubt..
On the following day, though, we got some wonderful news, which I'm
thrilled
to report. The beautiful ANN C. WEIDLE of the 1956 class was remarried
on
June 3 in Foley, Alabama, where she lives. She wed Robt. M. Axetell,
who
lived in the same neighborhood. She says she will retain her name of Ann
C.
Brown, from her longtime marriage to the late RONALD L. BROWN, who was
1952,
I believe. Both Ann and her new husband had been caregivers to their
first
spouses, both deceased. So I know we all wish many happy and wonderful
years
to Ann and Bob, and we thank classmate, RALPH D. WILSON, for conveying
this
great news.
There is other wedding news, too! Apparently, in either latter September
or
very early October, 1957 class member, ERCELL P. PHILLIPS, was also
remarried. He sent photos, but I wasn't able to find an actual date.
But
neither here nor there, we certainly wish him all the happiness in the
world
it looks as though his second wife's name is Jean and perhaps we'll all
meet
her at an alumni event, by the time you're reading this. Congratulations
and
best wishes to you, Jean and Ercell.
My cousin, JUDITH L. SAMUELS, continues to recover from her many
surgeries.
She sends thanks for the kind words from 1958's RONALD D. "TOM" FEE and
1961
s JACK L. GODBY and SALLY L. GILLETTE.. She appreciates your kindnesses.
In
the 9 months ranging from November of 2013 to August of 2014, she has
endured lung cancer and the total removal of her right lung, 33
consecutive
radiation treatments, concluding sometime in March, then having
cataract
surgery in July, then both a broken hip and carotid artery surgery,
practically back to back, in August. She has so far survived it all and
was
miraculously declared cancer-free on Oct. 27. I don't think I've ever
before
in my life heard of anyone surviving stage 4 lung cancer, not to even
mention all the rest!
It is now Oct. 14 and I shall leave for Ohio tomorrow to attend our
alumni
weekend. I really don't know what to expect this year, but I sure do want
to
see a good turnout. I've got some advance news from a few, and we'll see
how
it goes, when I subsequently complete this one. For instance, from
1959'ss
BETSY R. MURPHY came a report of her and her 1960 spouse, T. BARRY
RUSELLO
not being with us either Thursday or Friday, but do plan to be at the
Saturday night event. So we'll get to see the two of them. Barry just
celebrated a birthday on Oct. 11!
Thanks arrived from 1960's WM. O. WALKER for a birthday greeting I sent
to
him. He and Karen will not be with us, this year, opting to remain at
home
in Alvin, Texas. The same goes for 1961's JACK L. GODBY, and we're
sure
going to miss them all. We'll try for next year.
Also, along came a thank-you from 1958's BILL R. HOWARD for the 44th
anniversary card for him and wife, Lucille M. Howard. Darned if I didn't
get
the year wrong, thinking it was the 45th. However, it was the 44th, but
we
all hope you had a great anniversary, Lucy and Bill. Let's see, it was
Oct.
3, right?
Many, many thanks to you, 1959's SANDRA R. KINNEY, for asking me to join
you
on FaceBook. I'm not yet out of the 20th century, Sandy, and don't yet
even
know how to cut and paste, can you believe that? I'm not a fan of the
social
websites, as outlined in the previous paragraph, and really doubt I
ever
will be. But I do plan to keep my old e-mail forevermore and welcome all
WC
who wish to use it. By now---it's October 27---you're all aware of my
Facebook debacle. I'm so sorry, I just can't abide that Facebook thing.
I
found far more which I disliked, than liked. Miraculously, dozens of
you
sent e-mails in support of my decision, and even said you felt exactly
the
same. Thank you all for understanding. I repeat, I love my e-mail and I
love
my old, landline telephone. Please feel free to use them both, liberally,
if
you wish. There's probably going to be more on that topic, as we go
through
this bulletin. It seems to be an endless topic.
Among you wonderful folks who helped me through my Facebook dilemma
were
1954's FREDA P. FLETCHER; 1957's SHIRLEY A. HILE; 1958's DONALD I.
MCCOY;
1960's MICHAEL S. WEST, DAVID G. OTT; 1961's NANCY J. ERTEL, NANCY A.
HALL,
CAROL A. MUMMA. EDNA L. GRAY, SALLY L. GILLETTE, SANDRA E. BROCK, PAUL
R.
BEARDSLEY, JACK L. GODBY, FRANCES E. DAYSPRING, JANET L. WALTERS;
1963's
GAYLE E. LESHER, TERRIE A. STOLTZ, SHIRLEY A. RANKIN, NORMA ELYN
SPEELMAN,
SANDRA K. MINIX. I thank you, one and all.
Now, we back up to Oct. 8, when I got a lovely thank-you e-mail from
1961
class president, JOHN W. OBERLIES, JR., who thanked me for his birthday
card
(it's on that day), and told me he's a whole year older than I thought.
Well
don't worry, John, I'll change it and make you a year older. I hope it
was
one, fabulous birthday for you!
On October 9, I received e-mail from 1961's P. LYNNETTE GARRETT, in
which
she expressed her concern for the health status of my cousin, JUDITH
L.
SAMUELS. Of course, I've covered all that in the earlier paragraphs,
Lynn,
so I'm sure you're up to date with Judy's health. I also know she's
happy
you
have asked. Lynn and I had out usual, one-on-one visit, during alumni
weekend, when I visited at her Germantown home. She even took me to
lunch!
Thanks, Lynn.
Lynn also told me she had learned of the death of FRANCIS COLLINS, who
was
the younger sister of 1961's JO ANNE COLLINS and 1957's MARY A. COLLINS.
She
did not know a class year nor did she have the cause of death. Do any of
you
know anything about this or any of the details?
From 1960's DAVID G. OTT came news of an Oct. 22 hip replacement surgery
for
his 1963 spouse, SANDRA K. MINIX. He reported she was doing great,
coming
along well, and would be in rehab for a week or so, and then expected to
be
home. We hope you're doing great by now, Sandy.
Where were you over the recent alumni weekend, 1968's ROGER D. LUCAS?
After
your e-mail of Oct. 9, I thought sure we'd be seeing you at something.
Were
you there? If so, I was unaware. We do hope to see you somewhere, next
year.
We didn't get to see 1960's MICHAEL S. WEST, nor his wife, Sarah L.
"Sally"
West. She has been undergoing a regimen of treatments for breast cancer
and
Mike reported all is going well, saying her chances for complete
recovery
are looking great. How wonderful to be able to report even more good
health
news.
From 1964's THOS. J. HALL came a request for any WC events taking place
in
Florida. Obviously, he had heard of the now-defunct, WC Florida Spring
Fest
as well as the annual WC Florida Holiday Brunch, which happened in
December
I moved in early 2007, Tom, and had diligently hoped those events had
by
then taken on a life of their own and would continue. I thought
someone
would pick up the reins and move forward with those events, but it
didn't
happen. So you'll need to come on up to see everyone in Ohio, come next
Oct.
8, 9, and 10.
As the months moved past, I did some updating on my WC address records,
in
the process tracking down the latest info on 1958's LANDO F. STEELE;
1960's
GERALD A. FULLER, DENNIS A ROSE, and CHAS. A. "BUDDY" LOWMAN. I succeeded
in
all of them, I'm happy to report.
Prior to our alumni weekend, I received e-mail from 1954 class
president,
JERRY R. GRAHAM, for the purpose of promoting their 60th gathering. Why
didn
t I see you all that weekend, Jerry? Where were you? I also missed FREDA
P.
FLETCHER and she told me she didn't even know there were other events!
Freda
you're not reading the bulletins, are you? "Shame-y, shame-y!" One of
these
days, I'm going to have pop quiz! I believe iconic teacher, MURL E.
HUFFMAN
was at the event, and I know he was at the dinner/dance, along with
wife,
Marjorie L. Huffman.
From 1961's RICHARD L. DOLL came a request for info on classmate, MARILYN
J.
WINKLER. I had nothing, but was nevertheless able to find her, using
the
webiste I constantly use and it's always one, terrific souce (www.whitepages
com) The extent of obtainable info on there is amazing and I sent it to
him
Did you talk with her yet, Rich?
Let's back up a bit to Sept. 28, which is when I got the latest update on
a
Fahrney or two. As we all are well aware, that's an iconic surname in
the
annals of WC. So from 1958 class president, RICHARD A. FAHRNEY, came
a
report on his trip to Europe, where he was coaching what is termed,
American Football," while in Germany. Dick was coaching 18-year-olds and
was
permitted to stay 90 days, then had to leave, due to visa limitations,
but
said he'd gotten to bring over 4 grandchildren for a month, so I know he
and
Jan had great fun with that. Dick also sent along a message for you, BILL
R.
HOWARD, his classmate. He loved the photos you sent to him, and I guess
his
thanks brought about nostalgia from the 1950s about your incredible speed
as
a track runner and athlete, Bill. Of course, all of us of that era
remember
your remarkable achievements, and I'm betting no one's ever yet broken a
few
of the records you set.
Unfortunately, this year's timing with the Fahrneys didn't coincide with
our
weekend, and we're surely hoping that won't happen too many more years. As
I
type (Oct. 28), Dick probably went to Tuesday breakfast at Holly's in
WC,
then they will return to do some skiing in Breckenridge, after a visit
to
Kalispell, Montana---an area where I've ridden serious,
Harley-Davidson
miles for many years, long ago---to visit son Lance, daughter-in-law
Melissa
and their four grandchildren. Also, many thanks for the kind words,
Dick,
and we sure hope to see you next year.
Toward the end of September, we got e-mail from 1960's THOS. L. WOLF,
JR.,
who advised all the old class photos are hanging where they should be
in
WCHS. He made arrangement to get them to open the school from
10a.m.-2p.m.,
on Oct. 18, for viewing on alumni weekend. Unfortunately, I was in such
a
mad dash, I totally forgot it, but did share dinner with Tom at my
table,
later that evening. He also told me the Mandalay Banquet Center is
located
in the Kettering School District, not WC, as I'd thought. But that's
okay.
Thanks, Tom.
From 1960's EULA FAYE BAILEY came news she wouldn't be with us this
year,
either. She has had a number of health issues, with which she's been
dealing
and just isn't up to the traveling. It's been a year since she broke
her
hip, but has recovered 100% from that, she reported. So that part was
good
news. We all missed you, Eula Faye!
A couple of inquiries came to me for contact information and/or an update
on
1963's FRANCES L. PEFFLY. They came from SHIRLEY A. RANKIN and TERRIE
A.
STOLTZ. Both want to know how to contact Fran and how she's doing. I wish
I
had an answer for you both. I last saw Fran on April 14 of 2012, when I
took
her and her daughter to lunch for Fran's birthday. Since then, I've
heard
nothing, I'm sorry to say, and don't know why. So if anybody out there
knows
how Fran is, let us know. All I can tell you is that I'm not getting
any
rejects on her e-mail address, so I have to assume it's still
working.
From 1957's SHIRLEY A. HILE came a request for the dates for our
weekend,
but I don't recall seeing you anywhere, Shirley. Were you somewhere at
one
of the weekend functions, and I missed seeing you, Shirley?
From 1961's SHARON K. WENDELKEN came a report about a class gathering
for
her 1964 younger brother's class. He is TIMOTHY L. WENDELKEN, and it
looks
like he lives in Gray Court, SC. I was a tad surprised by the timing of
the
event, since our annual alumni weekend is so high-profile, now. But
the
class met on about the last weekend of September and I have to admit
I
wondered why it wasn't coincided with the alumni weekend, which
would've
allowed them to see so many more Pirates. My first thought was perhaps
the
planners were unaware. In any case, Sharon said her brother told her
the
dinner was fabulous and was held at the Presidential Pavilion. In any
case,
it's wonderful the class met for their 50th. Thanks for the report,
Sharon.
From 1961's NANCY J. ERTEL came regrets about not being able to see
the
e-mail address for 1958 class prez, RICHARD A. FAHRNEY. Well, Nancy, we
can
sure fix that in a big hurry. I feel very confident Dick will not mind
a
fellow Pirate having his e-mail address, especially one who showed an
interest in his involvement in European sports. So here's Dick's
e-mail:
fahrney@earthlink.net Okay,
Nancy?
A recent call came from 1960's EDGAR L. "EDDIE: KELLY. He'd lost all
his
contacts due to a crash on his PC. He also told me he hasn't been up to
par
of late, but is making strides. Ed wanted contact info on his high
school
girlfriend, 1961's DIANA J. MILTON, so I hope he was able to contact
you,
her sister, 1958's MARGIE L. MILTON.
Also checking in with an update was Rebecca A. Fuller, spouse of
1960's
GERALD A. FULLER. She said they'll make an effort to be at our class'
55th
anniversary, next year. I sure hope so! Several years ago, Jerry connected
a
few memory dots for me. For years, I'd wondered why and how I could recall
a
connection to Jerry, long before we began school together. It was he who
was
able to recall the fact I used to visit my aunt and uncle on Dayton's
Steele
Avenue, when just a toddler. It was Jerry who was able to tell me his
parents had lived right next door. I recall going to birthday parties
for
Jerry, when we were but 3 and 4 years old. I know we met each other
before
our 3rd birthdays. That means, we have known one another longer than
just
about any other person on earth, but for older, immediate family. I
don't
have anyone living, but I think Jerry still has his two brothers, who
are
older.
Well, 1954's FREDA P. FLETCHER will soon be adding to her vast family.
Her
granddaughter by her son, 1975's Dr. MARK T. SCHROEPPEL, Ph. D., is
currently 3 months pregnant with her second child and the family is
very
excited. Freda already has 11 great-grandchildren and she was an only
child!
I know you're doing your part to re-populate the earth, Freda!
Well, I received a wonderful e-mail from 1961's JANET L. WALTERS, in
which
she tried to convince me she, like me, grew up as a Tomboy. Okay,
Janet,
maybe you did, but you sure don't LOOK like any Tomboy I'VE ever seen,
and
you're invariably one of the most attractive alumni who comes to any of
the
functions. So if you were ever a Tomboy, you've sure done a great job
of
outgrowing it, that's for sure!
From 1969's KAREN L. THROCKMORTON came an e-mail regarding the recent
death
of her mother,
1945's NORMA JEAN BROWN, the spouse of her classmate, DONALD R.
THROCKMORTON
We all sure did hate that one, Karen. I had the pleasure of meeting
your
folks at one or two of the alumni functions, and what nice people. I'm
so
sorry we lost your mother.
While there in WC, I made inroads with our new alumni president,
1978's
LARRY W. HENDERSON, and he will be letting me know, as the year passes,
if
any big changes or corrections are taking place as regards our plans
for
2015. Thanks for stepping up to the plate, Larry, and I know we all
appreciate once again having an alumni president. I understand the
vice-presidency remains open. If that's still the case, are there
any
takers out there? If so, please let Larry know. Keep reading, as
I'm
getting to the recent alumni weekend, and will have some coverage on
that.
None other than 1958's DONALD I. MCCOY and wife, Frances B., are putting
the
finishing touches on a new CD. As most of us are well aware, Don and
Fran
do a lot of entertaining and singing around the area of southern
Ohio. At
our Miami Shores Memories gathering of 2013, in fact, we were treated to
a
free concert with Don, classmate LORNA D. TROUTMAN, and her 1962
sister,
THERESA M. It was great fun.
My dear friend, 1958's BRUCE E. CHENOWETH and his longtime,
significant
other, 1971's PATTY JO WHEELBARGER, came to my house for a
visit. Bruce
averages a visit about 3-5 times, each year, and Patty is normally with
him,
at least once or twice. They also headed southward and visited
1960's
MICHAEL S. WEST and wife Sally in their chosen hometown of
Gatlinburg.
With this edition, we welcome aboard 1959's NORMAN R. SANFORD. He gave
me
his e-mail at our dinner/dance, and sat at the same table, as 1959 and
1960
were seated together. He and his wife live in Pennsylvania. Many of
us
vividly recall Norm, as he was the drum major for the marching band,
just
prior to the years when that slot was occupied by 1961's JACK L.
GODBY.
Welcome to the WC bulletin readers list, Norm, and we hope you will
enjoy.
During our recent weekend, it was the 60th for the class of 1954,
obviously.
One class member was CAROLYN R. GILLETTE, sister of 1961's SALLY L.
GILLETTE, who reported Carolyn asked her to join the 1954 gathering,
which
she did. Carolyn had other family members there, too. I so regret
not
seeing anyone from that class at our dinner/dance. I had really wanted
to
see several of those folks, inparticularly!
With nearly each bulletin, 1960's RONNIE R. WHEELER and I, seem to
exchange
opinions on matters of pith and moment, so to speak. This time, we
both
lamented the loss of the moral pulchritude with which we 1950s kids
were
raised and how our own children never got to experience that. How true,
how
true, Ronnie, and yes, how tragic. I've never been sure about modern
being
necessarily better.
From 1958's RONALD D. "TOM" FEE came a proud report of the work of
his
grandson, Kyle, who's getting launched into the film-making
business. In
fact, he's just signed a contract to do commercials for none other
than
Starbucks Coffee. His other grandson, Ryan, is headed to Los Angeles
to
play in the Handicapped World Soccer Cup. While Ryan is not
handicapped,
the rules call for each team to have two non-handicapped players, and
Ryan
is one of them. Is it any wonder Tom and Sandi are so proud of these
two
guys?
So now, we get to our weekend, as I continue typing on this Halloween
night,
which is gray and very overcast for our little beggars. I had a safe
and
uneventful trip to the home of my host and hostess, who are always
1960's
CHAS. V. CARTER and wife, Pamela J., who reside in Miamisburg. That was
on
Wednesday, Oct. 15, and I spent that evening visiting my
brother-in-law,
Ralph J. Osterman, and my sister-in-law, 1956's ANITA R. MASON, his wife
of
5 years. Then it was next door for a visit to my friend, Susie
McLaughlin,
caregiver, singer, and roommate to the late, great Betty C. Greenwood,
who
died April 12, and whose eulogy I delivered to a packed house. I think
of
her often and fondly. Susie was kind enough to make a gift to me of a
beautiful piece of Betty's jewelry, which I'll always cherish.
Then came Thursday and I went to the usual gathering at Ron's Pizza
in
Miamisburg. I was firs to get there and, while waiting in my van,
1959's
GARY E. BARNES also arrived. He and I shared supper together, as we've
been
doing for a number of years, The turnout was fairly light, probably
around
35-40 people. But it was nevertheless fun and pleasant and lots of
memories
and nostalgia. I especially enjoyed seeing the wonderful, old antique
car,
driven right to the front door by 1962's RUSSELL L. "RUSTY" ELLIOTT and
wife
MARY ANN DUNCAN. Everyone milled around and talked to everyone, as
always
seems to be the case. I had a great visit with classmate, DAVID A. BLAIR
and
his wife, Marlene.
Friday brought a repeat performance with additional people, and many of
the
same ones, as we all gathered at Frisch's. Even GARY L. WARLAUMONT put in
an
appearance, and so did our class vice-president, THOS. D. YOUNG and his
wife
my dear friend, Sandi. Daughter Jennifer was also there with her
spouse,
Larry M. Hamblin, and the great-grandson, Connor Benjamin Gill. What a
cutie
and a real scene-stealer.
Suddenly, there was a tap on my shoulder and I turned to find 1958's
star
football jock and hunk, none other than 1950s A-lister, LANDO F.
STEELE. We
had a great visit and went all around the place, as we did table-hopping
and
I told everyone who he was. He said he wanted to talk to everyone and
that
was just what we did. There were lots of 1960 people there, it seemed,
and
I was glad of that. Among those I saw, besides Gary and Tom, were DAVID
A.
BLAIR, SHIRLEY J. TUDOR, CHAS A. "BUD" LOWMAN III, JO ANN K. STEMLEY,
CHAS.
V. CARTER, C. SUE MCCLOUD, and I know others will come to mind, as I do
more
bulletins.
We lost the Miami Shores Memories Picnic, due to rescheduling of the
weekend
after the room had already been set for the prior week, the death of
1957's
BETTY LEE CARROLL, who served as our Moraine City liaison, and the
confusion
of alumni officer resignations. I loved that event and have big hopes
of
someone taking the reins and resurrecting that event for next year.
We'll
see how it goes.
Of course, the almost-canceled-this-year dinner/dance was the
following
night. Now, due to all those aformentioned-and-unforeseen stumbling
blocks,
we did have a light turnout, maybe a hundred, but let me tell you, if
you
weren't there, you missed the very best one we've ever had, and I'm
not
kidding! The facility was Mandalay Banquet Center on East River Road,
an
extremely nice facility with all amenities and I'm so glad we're going to
be
staying there in future years.
While there, I spent time with 1960's T. BARRY RUSSELLO and 1959
spouse,
BETSY R. MURPHY. I can assure you, they're both still keeping the
fashion
bar high. Barry had just stepped off the pages of GQ, as always, and
Betsy
continues to defy age, looking about 55 (with a hard push) and
fashionable
beyond description. Yep, she's the Vogue girl! Also present was
1958's
football icon, FLOYD R. "BUBBLES" WILLIAMS, whose face broke into a
wide
smile when his football buddy, also a 1958-er, LANDO F. STEELE, entered
the
room. I also spent some time talking with their other football
buddy,
VINCENT A. BRODBECK and his delightful, longtime companion, Brenda K.
Heiser
as well as 1962 class member, JACKQUELYN S. HAINES and her 1958 spouse,
W.
BAILEY HAWKINS. There were also BILL R. HOWARD and his wife, Lucille
M. Two
days earlier, I coincidentally ran smack into Bill and DAVID L. HOWARD,
at
the WC McDonald's, when I stopped for coffee, breakfast, and a
paper. We
had a nice visit, too. Also at my table was CHAS. V. CARTER, who drove
me
there and back. I was happy about that, as it was a rainy
night. Also
there was SHIRLEY J. TUDOR, who was lookin' good, and THOS. L. WOLF,
JR. It
was a great evening.
Now, as much as I hate to say it (but I've already said it, many times),
in
ALL past years, I thought the food was absolutely hog swill. I said
nothing
as I wasn't there for the food, anyway. But many others echoed my
opinion,
very quietly. Well, all I can say is, "Hog swill days are
finished!" The
food at the Mandalay Banquet Center was absolutely delicious, every
single
item. Everyone, with whom I spoke, agreed with me.
Then came the entertainment. Yes, we had entertainment and in all
previous
years, I didn't enjoy it, at all. This year was exceptional! There was
a
group there, who call themselves (I think) the Dell Sonics.
They sang many songs from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Somehow, some
way,
they managed to sound just like the original recording, on each and
every
song. I was amazed, as were many. By the way, the wait staff at this
facility were all Johnny-on-the-spot, keeping coffee and tea all
filled,
bringing any requested items to the table, and making sure everyone
was
accommodated. This was a 100%, enjoyable-all-the-way function and I'll
bet
it will be repeated, and even better, come next year.
It is my understanding from the current alumni president, 1978's LARRY
W.
HENDERSON, we will be doing a repeat performance of all aspects of the
2014
event. I, for one, am thrilled about that. Larry was assisted this year
by
a little presentation from former president, THOS. A. DORSEY. So if
you
didn't make this year's event, as so many didn't, make darned sure you
put
it on your calendar for 2015. Hats off to all who had a hand in
planning
this year's exceptional event. We'll also be returning to our regular
time
slot of the second Saturday in October. So our WC weekend will be held
on
Oct. 8, 9, and 10, come next year. BE THERE!!! Don't keep putting this
off
because we're losing more and more people every year. I especially want
to
see a predominance of my own class, 1960, as it will be our 55th. Not to
be
excluded from importance is the class of 1965, who will be the
spotlight,
50th class, and it will be the 60th for 1955. So bearing all that in
mind,
make your plans and block off that weekend. Let nothing prevent you
from
being there. Don't shove this to the side for other events. If you
can
make just one of the events, make sure it's the dinner/dance, as that's
the
only official event. If someone wants you to do something on that
weekend,
you need to tell them you have already made commitments!
So guess what? This concludes this installment of the WC
bulletins. The
last one was sent Sept. 24, so I'm pretty proud of myself. On this
Halloween
Eve, you'll have lots of reading to do, so I hope you'll all enjoy. If
I've
overlooked anything, please let me know. I'll get it in the next one.
In
the meantime, I'll close with my usual wish for glowing health,
personal
safety, great happiness, spiritual harmony, peaceful serenity, and
boundless
prosperity. Ciao!
