The *WeCaTon* - West Carrollton (Ohio) H.S. Alumni News (unofficial)
Thursday, January 22, 2015
LATEST FROM BONNIE: 10 JANUARY 2015
22 JANUARY 2015; BONNIE WRITES:
Sorry this is late (ed.)
---Aaaaannnnnd we're off!!! This one is beginning on December 16, which
just
happens to be the 73rd birthday of 1960's CHAS. V. CARTER. Tomorrow will
be
the 45th birthday of 1987's SHARLENE N. MERKER, who married into the
well-known SIZER family (1957's NEIL H., 1959's GARY L., and 1987's
JEFFREY
A., not to mention yet another member of WC royalty, who married into
that
family, 1959's SHIRLEY R. PARKS, homecoming queen and cheerleader.) So
it's
an eventful week, as I type, and yes, we're going to do forwarders first,
as
always; 1954's FREDA P. FLETCHER. MARILYN CULTER; 1957
's ERCELL P. PHILLIPS; 1958's RONALD D. "TOM" FEE, W. BAILEY HAWKINS,
LORNA
D. TROUT
MAN, BILL R. HOWARD; 1960's WM. O. WALKER, WM. E. "BUDDY" STOVER, RICHARD
S.
HOLT, DAVID A. BLAIR, DELORES K. "DEDE" FAHRNEY; 1961's GARY R.
FRANK,
DALLAS K. MATHIS, CONNIE K. STREETE, SALLY A. GILLETTE; 1962's JACKQUELYN
S.
HAINES; 1968's PAULA J. STRAUB; 1970's INDY JO GRISSOM; 1987's JEFFREY
T.
GILES.
Okay, right here, while this is in my feeble brain, I'm going to insert
this
note of pride about one of our 2014 grads, who's also a member of the
famous
Sizer/Tudor clan. The son of 1987's JEFFREY A, SIZER and 1989's SHARLENE
N.
MERKER is ANDREW W. SIZER. I am told, come March, he'll report to the
U.S.
Navy, where he'll begin his training to become one of those famous,
skilled
Navy SEALs! Isn't that just magnificent? I know we're all bursting
with
pride for Drew, as he's addressed by his family, and we wish him all
good
things in this incredible undertaking.
Next, of course, is our e-mail-lost list and the following readers have
now
had at least 6 rejects and will now be deleted from the readers list,
unless
some of you are able to provide updates on the addresses. They include
1945
s NORMA JEAN BROWN (yes, I know she's deceased, but I was thinking of
her1945
widower, DONALD R. THROCKMORTON who might still want to be receiving
bulletins) 1953's ELMER D. MAR RIOTT; 1954's PATRICE B. GAUGH; 1955's
BARBARA J. THOMAS; 1960's BEVERLY J. HAAS. As it happens, I also got
a
reject on my own classmate, NANCY E. "COOKIE" BOWIE, who just happens to
be
a royal member of my class! But this reject worked out beautifully, as
a
matter of fact. I was so surprised by it, I picked up the phone and
called
her. Just like the reject on 1954's VICTOR C. NOEL, her e-mail address
was
correct, she'd received the bulletin, and all was well. She told me
she's
feeling great, still involved in community projects (not to my
surprise),
and is planning a March trip to Florida to attend the nuptials of her
grand-nephew, who's the grandson of 1957's GARY D MAYS and the late DONNA
M.
BOWIE (her sister, and another of our homecoming queens and
cheerleaders).
Cookie's son, Jesse, lives with her and keeps up the outside maintenance
on
her home, something for which she expressed gratitude, and she's glad
he's
there. So it was great to talk with Cookie. I told her how much we would
all
love to see her at the alumni gatherings, too
Responses flowed rapidly on the last bulletin and I must humbly offer
my
gratitude to so many of you who always send thanks and gracious words
of
praise. I appreciate it so much, especially since it doesn't at all
seem
like work, unless one can label a labor of love as being work. So
special
thanks for the lovely compliments from all of you, who include 1954's
FREDA
P. FLETCHER, JOHN E. CROY, JERRY R. GRAHAM (class president); 1958's
RONALD
D. "TOM" FEE, BILL R. HOWARD; 1959's NORMAN E. SANFORD (drum major for
the
marching band); 1960's EULA FAYE BAILEY, MICHAEL S. WEST, MADELEINE
D.
CAMPBELL, RONNIE R. WHEELER; 1961's JACK L. GODBY(another drum major for
the
marching band); 1963's NORMA ELYN SPEELMAN; 1964's LINDA S. MAYO;
1970's
INDY JO GRISSOM (yes, she really did, and I'm not just making this up, so
I
can type my favorite name in the world, again!) You are all very kind and
I
sincerely appreciate your readership. It makes it all worthwhile, and I
hope
to remain your humble messenger for a few more years.
My first response came from Elyn Speelman, in fact, and when I think of
the
Speelman name, I do fondly recall the late GEORGE SAMUEL SPEELMAN,
JR.,1959
s class president. You see, Sam lived near to me, right behind the
old
Indian River Fruit Market, as it was called, on South Moraine
Blvd. Who
doesn't remember that place? It was a neighborhood rich in WC folks.
Not
only did Sam live there, but also 1955's late E. EARL JENKINS; 1960's
CHAS.
V. CARTER, GARY L. WARLAUMONT, the late BOYD H. JENKINS, JR.; 1961's JOHN
W.
OBERLIES, JR. (another class president), and many others, whom I'm sorry
to
say, I can't recall, at this moment.
In any case, the whole gang hung out together on S. Moraine Blvd., and
we
all played touch football in the side yard of Sam's house. Elyn and her
4
sisters were almost invariably there, too, but doing other things, as
they
were all much younger. It was a fun time and her e-mail evoked fond
memories
Sam, of course, went on to marry 1961's beautiful SANDRA S.
HOLLINGSWORTH
and I believe they had three children together. Fun memories, Elyn,
thanks!
On the following day, EULA FAYE BAILEY and I had our long-overdue chat.
She
reported she's doing all right, and like most of us, coping with a
health
issue or two, but faring well, overall. Eula Faye may be headed in my
direction in the spring or summer, as she has a beloved grand-aunt,
who
resides in the same city as me. So we'll get to visit, too.
From 1954's FREDA P. FLETCHER came an e-mail in which she recapped a
long
story-telling siege between their class president, JERRY R. GRAHAM, and
our
iconic civics teacher. MURL E. HUFFMAN. This occurrence took place at
their
60th anniversary reunion in October. She also reminded me she and 1955's
C
ELAINE BARKER are practically next-door neighbors in Florida. Yes, Freda,
it
truly is a very small world, isn't it? These days, I'm sorry to say,
it's
also a very scary one! By the way, both Freda and Jerry expressed
their
approval about MEH's success in getting his Ohio drivers license
renewed
until his 99th birthday. I must admit, he may be the only person I've
ever
known who's accomplished that.
Yes, I'm going to write about 1970's INDY JO GRISSOM again, so get over
it.
Ha! She and I had a bit of an exchange about her wonderful name and
she
reminded me of the story she'd told me, some time back, about how she
got
her name. It seems her father became aware of the fact the long-ago
humorist
named Herb Shriner has a daughter with that name. Her dad liked it so
much,
he decided to giver her the same name. Well, Indy Jo found Indy Shriner
on
Facebook and they are in touch as friends, due to the name connection.
I
love that story. Thanks, indy Jo! (Yes, I'll try to resist for the rest
of
this bulletin.)
Around the second week of December, I spoke with 1958's HARRIETTE E.
DOGGETT
In school, I was terribly close to her sister, the late W. SUSAN
DOGGETT,
1960, who was the first wife of my very dear friend, 1958's BRUCE E.
CHENOWETH. Harriette lives in Vilonia, Arkansas, and has been there
many
years. One of her sons stays with her and looks after a few things.
Harriette said to tell everyone hello and to tell all of you she's still,
"a
tough, old broad," and is doing fine. In school, many people were
very
intimidated by Harriette, and probably rightly so. CHAS. A HIGH, JR.,
also
called again. He continues to take care of his ailing wife, in spite of
his
own health woes. As I've said, I've no idea how he does it.
From 1954's JOHN E. CROY came a great report, in which he recapped the
story
of quite an adventure he shared with his classmate, VICTOR C. NOEL. It
seems
John and Vic were in John's father's boat, as they raced up and down
the
Little Miami River (which ran directly in front of the houses where I
loved
for many years, on both sides of the river). They hit the wake of
another
boat and theirs capsized. (As a kid, living on that river so many years,
I
saw that happen, many times.) Anyway, they were both under the water
and
John surfaced first. He didn't see Vic and feared the worst. Just as he
was
getting ready to dive below to try and find him, Vic surfaced. John wrote
of
how fearful and scared he was for Vic's safety, in that situation.
Who
wouldn't be? By the way, John and Vic, did you two get connected yet? If
not
make it a priority, and do it now! We aren't getting any younger. John
also
wrote he's completed his memoirs and is searching for a publisher. Good
luck
with that, John. He was also terribly pleased to hear of the inclusion
of
MEH in the sports hall of fame. (Footnote: Thanks to 1959's GARY E.
BARNES
by the way, for catching my typo on MEH's 95th birthday. Yes, it was
Dec.
29th, not the 19th. Hopefully, you all received my immediate correction
on
that, at the time. Also responding to the correction was the lovely LORNA
D.
TROUTMAN, 1958. She reported she's doing well. She also just celebrated
a
birthday in the month of December). By the way, Gary, 1958's BILL R.
HOWARD
was simply awestruck by the fact you recalled that detail from a news
story
of 10 years ago!
From 1960's MICHAEL S. WEST came several reminiscences about MEH, too.
He'd
recently spoken with him, as I had, and mused his call may very well
have
come from the same, mall parking lot, to which I'd previously alluded in
the
last bulletin. Anyway, Mike remembered MEH had approached WC's
then-top-dog,
HARRY A. RUSSELL, presenting the idea of a golf team. Mr. R., quite
rapidly
sounded a loud negative on the notion. However, MEH persisted and
finagled
and harrangued, as I'm sure only he can do, and Mr. Russell finally
caved.
Some students also requested to have a golf team. So the story goes it
had
to be done with no cost to the school and no interference with school
scheduling. Obviously, it did come off with great success and
longevity.
At this juncture, everyone is very certain, who's aware of this, much of
any
applicable costs of the early golf program (if not all) was very
likely
subsidized by MEH. Who knows for how long? In any case, he's finally
received his just due and will be enshrined in the WC sports hall of
fame.
Mike also recalled the fact Mr. Russell quietly and knowingly allowed him
to
complete his senior year at WC, although he then lived in Centerville.
Yes,
I did the same thing, Mike, during my own senior year.
Also relative to JOHN E. CROY was the request for contact info on his
sister
1961'ssJUDY K. CROY, by her class-mate, NANCY J. ERTEL. John came
through
with flying colors, said he'd sent Judy an e-mail (as did I), and I'm
hoping
you've by now sent one, too, Nancy. In fact, I'm hoping you and Judy
are
doing lots of chattering and getting current by now. I've asked Judy
to
allow me to add her name to our WC readers list, but no response at
this
writing, just yet. Thanks, John.
From my classmate, MADELEINE D. CAMPBELL, came some news I didn't want
to
hear. Madeleine and I go clear back to day one, and not only that, we
went
through Lutheran Catechism together, when we were kids, and were
confirmed
together into the old, original, Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Moraine
City, under the stern auspices of the late Pastor Chas. L. Mullen (no,
there
s no s at the end.) So we date back about 67 years. Madeleine reported
she
has chronic liver disorder, can no longer live on her own, and has had
to
move to an assisted living facility. We're all deeply sorry to hear of
your
illness, Madeleine, and wish you only the best. I hope there will be
improvement. Please do keep us posted. She wrote there was no other
option
but, on the plus side, she's near to her children and grand
-children. Of course, I took the opportunity to update her contact
information. You all know how I hate losing any of our readers due to
lack
of current info (or any other reason, for that matter).
From another classmate, 1960's RONNIE R. WHEELER, came the news he and
his
wife (Ginger, isn't it?) have now twice been great-grandparents. I
don't
know details, genders, or ages, but it sounds as if they settled very
comfortably into the great-grandparenting roles. Somehow, I just
can't
fathom the fact the people with whom I attended school are
great-grandparents. However, I know many of us are. So enjoy that new
station in life, Ron.
Remember the last bulletin, in which I printed the death of ALICE P.
SIMPSON
then looked through the mid-1930s books, seeing if I could find her
maiden
name? Well, I was fairly sure (about 95%) I'd been able to succeed with
that
and I reported it was ALICE P. GRAY, Class of 1937. I'm happy to report
my
findings have now been elevated to 100%, as it was substantiated and
researched by 1959's NORMAN E. SANFORD, who sent me the results.
Thanks,
Norm. I always like to be 100% correct on names.
While we're at it, I'll get this sad note written. We received notice
from
1964's LINDA S. MAYO, of the death of another 1964 classmate, JOHN E.
HAMMOND, who died December 15. He was but 69 years old, retired from GM, a
U
S. Air Force Veteran, and since mention was made of hospice, I'd
assume
his cause of death was relative to cancer or some other catastrophic
illness
We extend condolences to his family and friends. Thanks, Linda.
On December 15, we welcomed aboard a new reader, 1969's WM. M. COMBS.
Bill
is the brother of my 1962 reader, JOHN A. COMBS, who has long been on
the
readers list. He was lured into the WC list by his classmate, MICHAEL
J.
LOTSPAIH, he wrote. Thanks so much, Mike. Bill currently lives in
Castro
Valley, California. I have noted his contact info, of course. I've
also
invited him to our annual weekend. He would welcome contact with any
WC
folks who know him. Bill's e-mail ( william.m.combs@att.net ) We're
all
happy to have you in the gang, Bill. Be sure to send us your news and
any
tidbits about your life. We're all pleased to try to keep pace with
one
another. I thank you for signing onto the list.
Wow, I just have to tell you all, I'm nothing short of amazed by the
fact,
now going on 15 years of writing these, I'm still getting new people. I
just
can't believe it! What a thrill to think there's that much interest
out there in this accidental, little rag I first began to write, way back
in
October of 2000, to just 4 WC people (all female members of the class
of
1961). I remain humbly amazed. Thank you all so very, very much.
Yep, we've crossed into another calendar year on this one and it's now
Jan.
10. Of course, I observed my standard moment of silence on Jan. 8, in
honor
of the 80th birthday of Elvis Presley. (By the way, it's also the
birthday
of the youngest of my 4 grandsons, so how ironic is that?) Anyway, as
all
longtime WC bulletin-readers are well aware, there are but 3
guidelines
which one must acknowledge, for becoming a houseguest at my abode, and
that
s especially true if you are in my, "Elvis Presley/Harley-Davidson,"
bedroom
The guidelines are as follows: 1.) Elvis was never fat. 2.) Elvis
never
abused drugs 3.) Elvis was completely faithful to Priscilla,
throughout
their marriage. Got it? Okay, then come for a visit!
Okay, here's a special request from 1958's BILL R. HOWARD, for a
couple
recipes from The Holy Grail, (at least for we WC folks) the
now-razed-but-still-loved Woody's Supermarket. Bill wants to know if any
of
us has the recipe for his potato rolls and also the one for Woody's
Special
Double Decker Sandwich.
We both agree on the fact a WC with no Woody's Supermarket is tantamount
to
a day with no sunshine. I still bemoan the fact the city (WC) failed to
buy
and preserve that historic building as a city facility. I'm also
still
ticked as to why WC has erected no monument sign to the collective memory
of
him and first wife, Addie Louise (nee Shank) Bowman, (who was my
beloved
step-mother for 9 years) in front of the bakery which now occupies that
site
It's a travesty! They did incredible things for WC and, in fact, put
it
on the map for many years by having, "the largest supermarket in Ohio,"
not
to even mention the yummy Woody's Arctic Bar, totally run and managed
by
Louise.
Thank God, at least The Little Farm is still there, and I must tell you,
I
have my own, little monument to her and him, as you may recall, in the
form
of my custom-built mailbox base, constructed entirely of authentic
Woody's
bricks and the glass inserts. They were collected for me, during the
razing,
by 1959's GARY E. BARNES, 1960's SHIRLEY J. TUDOR, and 1958's BRUCE
E.
CHENOWETH, who also brought them to me in his custom trailer, at
great
expense. I also had my own memorial signs made and attached to my
mailbox
base. So let's see if someone out there can come up with those recipes
for
Bill, okay? In the meantime, stop by whenever you want, to see my
Woody's
memorial.
From 1958's LORNA D. TROUTMAN came a few memories about Ohio's winters
and
how hard it was to stay warm while wearing those crinoline-filled,
poodle
skirts. Geez, I can't even imagine going to all that trouble anymore,
just
to make a skirt flair larger, in order for one to see the entire
poodle.
But oh, how fun it was to wear them, way back then! She also alluded
to
smudge pots for warmth. Well, Lorna, I know the poodle skirts have
long
since bitten the dust, but I'm sure smudge pots are still alive and
well.
She and husband Chico took a vacation to Grand Falls, Arizona, at the end
of
the year.
Okay, let's cover those with whom I've recently spoken. There's always
my
dear friend, 1958's BRUCE E. CHENOWETH. I know he and longtime
companion,
1971's PATTY JO WHEELBARGER, will be on the way to Florida around the end
of
this month. I had hoped they'd be taking the scenic route through this
side
of Tennessee, as I've got a couple furniture items I want taken down
there.
But alas, they'll be going right down I-75, so I guess I'll have to
freight
them, after all.
A call came recently from my birthday twin, 1960's DEVONA S. TAYLOR, and
we
always have long and windy chats. She's in pretty good health and doing
well
at her home in Mt.Vernon, Ky. Several weeks ago, I spoke with
another
classmate again, EULA FAYE BAILEY, who's been coping with a few
health
issues, as earlier mentioned, but still doing well. I also had a long
chat
with Pamela J. Carter, longtime spouse of CHAS V. CARTER, also 1960, who
may
have by now headed to Florida for a few weeks with his 1959 uncle, JERRY
L
WEBB, but I don't know for sure.
My sister-in-law, 1956's ANITA R. MASON, (now wed to the widower of my
1956
late sister, JUDY ANN RISNER) is coping with the multiple effects of
repeated strokes. She suffered the first one in November of 2009, and
has
had several since then. But she's in such good hands, as my
brother-in-law
(Ralph J. Osterman) is the ultimate caregiver. He wonderfully looked
after
my sister when she was ill. Anita will have another birthday on Jan.
28.
There was also another conversation with my longtime, close friend, CHAS.
A
HIGH, JR., who continues to just amaze me, due to his own poor
health. But
he is determined to care for his wheelchair-bound wife, even though he's
had
about 22-23 heart procedures (of various degrees and types) himself, as
well
as a few other health woes. Still, he continues his mantra, when I ask
how
he's doing, invariably responding with, "Hey, it's a good day! I'm
this
side of dirt!" Absolutely amazing, but he's sure right.
There was also a recent long and windy conversation with WC's ultimate
jock
of the 1950s, football hero and movie-star handsome, LANDO F. STEELE,
of
1958. He's doing well, feeling well, and enjoying his new digs, right on
the
edge of WC. I get a kick out of knowing so many who were gone from the
area
for so long, then returned, and are enjoying the warm and fuzzy feeling
of
home territory. Not only do they include Lando, but there's also
1956's
ROSETTA PRUETT, who returned after many years in Arizona. I also
heard
another 1950's football jock, the famous FLOYD R. "BUBBLES" WILLIAMS,
just
might come back to WC. Who doesn't fondly remember his great feats on
the
football field, in coordination with not just Lando, but also with VINCENT
A
BRODBECK, RICHARD A. FAHRNEY (1958 class president), and ROBT. W.
"SMITTY"
SMITH, all classmates together. What a team they were!
As I told Lando while we talked, "Thomas Wolfe was wrong!" Remember
that
great quote from one of his writings, "You can never go home
again"? Well,
there are lots of WC folks who've turned that quote totally
upside-down. A
few of us do it in the opposite direction, too, as was just recently done
by
1958's VINCENT A. BRODBECK.. He has moved from the home he had in WC
since
1969, to what might be termed, "a more user-friendly," type of quarters
at
this stage of life, and is now in a one-story apartment. He wrote me
a
letter, updating me on his new information. Thank you, Vince.
From our fashionistas, 1960's T. BARRY RUSSELLO and his 1959 spouse, BETSY
R
MURPHY, came their annual newsletter and they're still involved in
their
real estate ventures, but letting go just a bit, at this stage of
life.
Their two grandsons are pursuing educational credentials and all is well
on
the family front. Betsy and Barry be spending some time very soon (if
not
already) in Florida for a few weeks this winter, leaving their real
estate
business in the hands of a business colleague. I'll swear, I'll bet the
two
of them look fashionable, even in swimsuits. They're amazing. Have a
great
Florida vacation, Betsy and Barry!
On that great note, I'm going to close this installment. Yes, this is
quite
a record for me to get one to you in just 27 days. But I warn you,
don't
expect this kind of service all the time. I'm still doing animal
rescue
every Thursday, still putting out a weekly column for the local paper,
still
doing a bit of collection work on the side for my friend who owns a
local
roofing company, taking care of my dog and 3 cats, and trying to maintain
a
house which is the size of small hotel. That, in and of itself, is
becoming
a greater challenge with each passing month. So don't be misled by
my
accidental efficiency on this one, okay?
With the dawning of a whole, new calendar year, I hope it's a great one for
us all. I extend gratitude to all of you for your continuing readership. That's
what makes it all worthwhile. In closing, I leave you with my usual wish for
glowing health, personal safety, great happiness, spiritual harmony, peaceful
serenity, and boundless prosperity. Ciao!
