I think it was only last Friday (August 26, 2005) that I sent out emails to the Classes of 1960, 1963, and 1968 to let them know that newsletter subscription envelopes were in the mail (and that I had managed to leave out the amount due).
As a courtesy (I HATE to get emails that begin with a giant header of email addresses) I check the "hide email addresses" box on my mass emailings. I forgot to do this on the 1968 emailing -- and look what happened! Ann Germeraad, acting as if she'd come upon a pot of gold, pressed "reply to all" and created something special.
I have edited some of your responses and deleted deleterious references to former teachers. As an ex-teacher, I hope I never stumble upon negative references to me. It was bad enough getting them written in my own yearbooks.
I'm wondering how many of the folks who get my weekly emails actually venture over to the web page. In all modesty, there's some pretty neat stuff there -- John Fry.
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"Stop me before I email again!"
Oh my goodness! Seeing your familiar names on John’s email was such a heart tug. If you remember me, I’d love to hear from you. In high school my name was Ann Germeraad. Steve Epstein called me “Ann-G” ... I loved it. Wow. It’s been - yikes - over 30 years! I’m 55 now, so it’s been a while. My update: I was married 27 years, have three awesome daughters now ages 26, 25, and 23. I lost my husband 7 years ago. I’ve been teaching in Seattle the past 13+ years but this year I’m in Washington, D.C. on a 12-month fellowship serving at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The fellowship is called Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator. S-o-o-o fun and inspirational, exciting, and totally challenging! Well, hugs to all of you, and I hope this email finds you well and happy. I think of you and our Crawford days with fondness and much love.
Warm regards,
O.K. folks, since Ann-G started this snowball rolling, I will add my update. I graduated from SDSU after Crawford and went into the Air Force as a Space Systems Operations Officer. I picked up a Masters in Science along the way from the University of Houston while working as a Space Shuttle Flight Controller. I married very late in my Air Force career after traveling around the country and overseas twice.
I have two children – ages 8 and 11. Yes, I am 55 and I am crazy to have kids at my age, but they are keeping me young each and every day. I retired out of the Air Force as a Colonel which surprised the hell out of my father, who thought I would always be a surf bum!
I am a consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton in Colorado and loving every minute of living in the mountains, but I do miss the beach and the old surf days from time to time.
I understand Crawford is now a 9th-12th grade “institution”. Wow, four years to get through high school. I feel sorry for the kids now. I enjoyed looking through my yearbook and matching names with graduation photos. For me it seems like those Crawford days were only a few years ago — until you look at those hair styles!.
Enough already down this memory lane. Stay well everyone and enjoy life to its fullest.
It was fun pulling out my yearbook and looking at all the faces of people from the past. I retired from Von’s/Safeway in 2002 and recently have gone back to college to get my degree. When I quit college, I told my parents that I was only taking a little time off, and that I would eventually go back. Little did I realize, that it would be 35 years later.
I’m married to a wonderful man named Don and have two children, a daughter who just turned 21 and a son who is 19. They are both in college also, so my husband is working to put all three of us through school. :-) I’m getting my degree in Business and am learning accounting. I’m 55 now and don’t know if I’ll go back into the work force or not.
I’d love to hear from anyone who remembers the days at Crawford. I was looking at the website and it brought back a lot of fun memories. I remember sitting in the lunchroom with Steve Epstein and Stan Kimmel while they played Hearts. (At least I think that’s who played) I was good friends with Martha McGowan and we were in the bowling club and also G. A. A.
Take care,
Classmates Of 1968:
It’s been great hearing from many of you. Here’s my own rambling update:
After graduating from Crawford, I received a scholarship to Cal Western University in Point Loma; during this time, I worked at the San Diego Zoo as a groundskeeper. Two years later, I switched to Cal State Fullerton in Orange County. (Oddly, I dropped out halfway into my senior year there, completely fed up with the academic life.) I moved back to San Diego, working as a freelance cartoonist while holding down a series of jobs at local bookstores and libraries. I was also one of the small group of comic fans that started what is now known as Comic-Con International, the nation’s largest gathering of pros and fans (and San Diego’s single largest annual influx of tourist dollars; this year’s attendance was around 105,000 people over four days!)
A few years later, I married my first wife, Shelley Woodruff (of Hoover High’s class of &Mac246;68); In 1979, we were divorced. In 1975, we moved to the Los Angeles area, where I pursued a full-time career as a cartoonist, writing and drawing many so-called "underground comix" for a counter-cultural audience. After managing a Studio City comic book store for a few months, I began working for Hanna-Barbera, writing and drawing comic books starring the Flintstones, Yogi Bear and other childhood favorites of mine. Before long, I found myself on H-B's staff, working in the studio’s layout department on such TV shows as The Godzilla Power Hour, The New Fred And Barney Show, Richie Rich and The Smurfs, among others.
In the early 1980’s, I took time off to co-create a series for DC Comics, a funny-animal comic called Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew!; it lasted a few years and is still popular among collectors. Returning to animation, I worked at Marvel Productions, where I received four Emmy Awards for my work as a writer, story director and character designer on Jim Henson’s Muppet Babies series. During this period, I met my current wife, Judith Courtney, an entertainment executive assistant (we celebrated our 19th anniversary last May) with whom I bought a home in Sherman Oaks, which we promptly filled with my ridiculously extensive collection of comic books, artwork, vintage toys and other collectible pop culture items. (Yes, Judy’s incredibly understanding!) Moving back to Hanna-Barbera, I produced and directed The Completely Mental Misadventures Of Ed Grimley, starring Martin Short, for NBC. Continuing my SCTV connection, I then produced and directed DIC's Camp Candy, starring the late, great John Candy, also for NBC. (Years later, I worked with Dave Thomas on a MacKenzie Brothers cartoon, too!) When that gig ended, I began work on Garfield and Friends and other shows at Film Roman. During all of this time I continued to work freelance on various comic book and commercial projects. It’s also when, in 1991, Judith gave birth to our wonderful son, Kirby Garlin Shaw (named after one of my cartoonist mentors, Jack Kirby and my father.)
Soon after that, accepted a job offer at the L.A. advertising firm of Ogilvy & Mather ú for which I’d been freelancing for many years -- where I became Senior Art Director, writing, designing and co-directing hundreds of TV commercials for Post Fruity Pebbles, Cocoa Pebbles and Alpha-Bits cereals. (I worked with Crawford Louie Schwartzberg ú now a noted live-action director -- on at least one of these!) I also designed and illustrated the cereal boxes for these products; if you see a box of Pebbles with the Flintstones on it, chances are I drew it. After nearly ten years at O&M, the agency downsized by 90% and my job was eliminated.
Therefore, I returned to full-time work on animated entertainment for a variety of studios, including Disney and Warner Bros. Recent projects have included Mickey’s Twice Upon A Christmas, Mulan II, The Three Musketeers, Teamo Supremo, American Dragon, What’s New Scooby Doo, Duck Dogers, Johnny Test and currently, Krypto The Superdog (for Cartoon Network). I also continued to write and draw stories for Bongo’s line of Simpsons titles and other funnybooks, some of which have won Eisner Awards for excellence. I recently contributed to Weird Tales Of The Ramones boxed set of CDs and DVDs from Rhino (for which I’ve done work for over 25 years). Speaking of which, I’ve been interviewed for "extras" on many DVD cartoon collections, including The Flintstones, Top Cat, Wacky Races and Donald Duck. (Flintstones Season Three and Four even feature tours of my Flintstones collections; check Œm out!) I also make an appearance in my pal Mark ("Luke Skywalker") Hamill's direct-to-DVD film Comic Book: The Movie. And soon, I’ll be collaborating with one of my childhood heroes, comic genius Jonathan Winters, illustrating his new book. I also write a weekly column for the Internet on "the craziest comic books ever published", Oddball Comics, which is being collected into a series of books. I’m also an active member of the National Cartoonists Society and LA.'s Comic Art Professional Society, and have recently worked with Gary Owens to raise funds for the American Diabetes Association.
Kirby, now almost 14, is entering high school next week; he’s pursuing a career as either a rock star guitarist (Jimi Hendrix is his hero) and/or an actor. (Yes, Kirby’s actually decided upon a career path even more difficult than his old man’s!) Meanwhile, poor Judy is faced with the ongoing ordeal of sharing a home with two adolescent boys ú a somewhat mature 13-year-old and a decidedly immature 53-year-old!
I’m sorry if all of the preceding sounds like undue chest-beating; I guess I’m just kinda proud that -- for myself, at least -- being a high school weirdo can actually work out. I guess I’m not only a very lucky guy, but am also living proof that your dreams actually can come true.
I sincerely hope that all of your lives are as happy, interesting and fulfilling as mine has been over the years since graduating from Crawford High School waaay back in 1968.
Check out the Craziest comic books ever published!
Scott Shaw! presents Oddball Comics -- voted Comic Book Resources' "Favorite Column"! A new weird 'n' wacky funnybook every Friday -- with over 1,050 Oddball Comics now archived -- exclusively available at: http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/oddball/
Oddball Comic # 1,084: Friday, September 2, 2005
What’s worse? Being saddled with an embarrassing name that sounds like Bambi's twin, or having to battle a ferocious gorilla while bungee-jumping? Let’s ask the only comic book character who really knows -- Wambi The Jungle Boy, the unfortunate star of this week’s Oddball Comic! Talk about a bungle in the jungle!
Visit my Oddball Comics discussion board and vote in the weekly Oddball Comics Rate-A-Rama at http://forums.comicbookresources.com/forumdisplay.php?f=27
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Check out "The 'Secret Origin' Of San Diego's Comic-Con International", the first installment of Cartoonist-At-Large, my new monthly column at Jim Hill Media.com!
http://www.mediabinge.com/index.php
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Visit my website for my art samples and resume!
http://www.shawcartoons.com/
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OK this is becoming a wild trip down memory lane. Now I HAVE to find my yearbook. I keep seeing the newsletters and even check out John’s web site, but never recognized any of the names — until now. Norm your name jumped right out, and Ann I remember your name too, although I’m sorry I can’t place you just yet.
I got married right after high school to a Marine (much to my parents disapproval). That was 37 years ago and we still hang on to each other. Our daughter (now 36) who gave us two beautiful grand sons. One of them is 13 and taller than me. The other is 10, and I cannot begin to tell how much I love them.
We also had a son, John Jr. who now resides in God’s arms. We lost him at 14 and he will always be missed and enjoyed. We later adopted a 10 year-old boy who is now 26 and makes us proud.
We live in Arizona and have for the last 27 years. John retired after 23 years in the Marines and with the kids still in the area or at home we just stayed on. Plus I had worked my way up to Comptroller at the car dealer I work at. But now we really would like to get out of the heat so we have gotten property in Montana that we hide out at when it is too hot.
I just recently had a trip to San Diego for Mrs. Johnson’s funeral. Not sure if any of you remember Mike Johnson? While we were there I also got to see Connie Zwibel Greenwald. So like I said this is becoming a wild memory lane ride.
It has been a blast to think of all of you, and I hope all keep doing well and enjoy every day to the fullest.
Hearing from everyone is such a trip. I have been married for thirty-three years and I have three children — two girls ages 32, 27, and a son 18 who just started college.
We have lived in the San Diego area for all of our lives except for a year in the Eureka area where for just a short while I worked in the lumber industry. Yes, for a short while I was a lumberjack.
Today I work in a major department store where I sell shoes (yes Al Bundy is alive and well). We are thinking of buying a home in Show Low, Arizona soon and think about retiring. I love hearing everyones life stories keep them coming.
(Did you mean a Humboldt State Lumberjack or a "climb-up-big-trees" lumberjack? -- JF)
I was abducted after high school into some LBJ war machine and got shot up a little, but returned in one piece with all extremities in place. I just retired from IBEW local 357 Las Vegas NV and am back in California just taking it easy.
I managed to attend all three reunions and they were fun.
I remember tying for first place with Clayton Olds for “Least Amount of Hair Remaining” in 1988. Everyone looked at me funny, as I had a different wife every time — 5 of them in all. I have been single for a few years now. I have a 35 year-old son and daughters 16 and 18.
I visited the old neighborhood (San Carlos) and there was a freeway where my house used to be. Kathy Lally I bet yours is gone too. We lived close by.
My sense of humor has changed radically in 37 years. I don’t think setting plastic trashcans on fire in the quad would be hilarious these days.
Does anyone remember the counselor Mr. Mustol? I wouldn’t have made it through school without that guy. I owe you man —wherever you are.
Hi -- I’m so happy to hear from so many old friends from Crawford. I am married to Michael and we live in Las Vegas, Nevada. We moved from San Diego about 11 years ago. I have three daughters, (twins 36 years old and one 33 years old) and one stepson (38 years old) and 13 grandchildren. Our kids and grandkids live in the United States and one of my daughters lives in Germany so traveling to see them is always fun. My husband and I own an entertainment business and we do a lot of traveling all over the world with our shows. I visit San Diego often because my parents, brother and one daughter still live there.
I think we need to have a get together next summer in San Diego and call it a 38-year reunion. Why wait until the 40-year reunion??????
After graduation I went to Nevada and became a keno shift manager for the Carson City nugget for 12 years. I have one daughter and one granddaughter 10 months old. I now work for Pitney Bowes. I have been married the second time for 20 years.
Keep this going. It is great.
Hi everyone,
I am 54 and live in Orange County, CA. I have been married for 34 years. I have a son 32 and a daughter 29. I have one granddaughter with another one on the way. I am a principal in Garden Grove and my husband is a principal in Capistrano.
It is great hearing about all of you and your lives. In many ways, high school seems like it was just yesterday.
Hi everyone,
After leaving Crawford I went to work for a construction company in Escondido and was a carpenter/cabinet maker.
In 1981 I joined the San Diego Police Department and have been there for over 24 years. The last 13 years I have spent as a detective in the Child Abuse unit, Street Gang unit and for the last 3 years years have been a Robbery Detective. I have 30 more working days left and will be retiring on October 20th.
I have two boys from my first marriage. Jeff 36, lives in San Marcos and has my two granddaughters. Scott, 32, lives in Las Vegas. My second wife, Diane is a retired San Diego Police Officer and is currently working for the City of Poway. I hope there is a 40th reunion. I would love to see many of my classmates.
I hope everyone is well and enjoying life as I am.
Ron Hall
Classmates of 1968:
Well, far be it for me to hold up progress—it’s been nice reading everyone’s updates—interesting life journeys we have all undertaken ... Here’s my 2 cents...
It all began when I had my appendix taken out in Baja the summer after graduation. Five years later I graduated from San Diego State with a degree in Biology and went back to Mexico for about 3 months of hitchhiking, only no surgery this time. After a couple of frustrating years in San Diego, I moved to South Lake Tahoe in 1974 where I helped remodel a house rent-free.
I ended up working at Harvey’s Casino for three years, working my way to blackjack dealer and getting married to the love of my life, Christine. Not wanting to be a blackjack dealer (or a pit boss) for the rest of my life, I packed my bags and wife and moved to Sacramento, enrolling in Sacramento State’s Nursing Program. Being able to deal cards on the weekends really helped pay the bills while I was going to school. It was a busy 2 1/2 years going to school all week and driving up to Tahoe every weekend. I graduated from Sac State with a BS in Nursing and promptly headed back to Tahoe and worked as an RN at the local South Shore hospital, where I am still currently employed as a surgical nurse after 25 years (kinda came full circle from graduation.)
I am still married to my lovely wife of 27 years and we have a son, 25, who is entering a paramedic/ fireman program, and a daughter,22, in school at UC Davis majoring in International Relations and Spanish(who has lately spent more time out of the country than in...) I guess she got the wanderlust from me. We count our blessings daily, never taking them for granted. I live my life without excuses, adhering to the credo: I might be getting older but I refuse to grow up! I ski and snowshoe throughout the winters and backpack and fish during the summers. Life is Beautiful...
PS. Scott it was especially good to hear from you. I heard things were going very well for you and how nice to end up pursuing your passion.
Hi everyone;
What a great surprise getting emails from my high school classmates. I have my class album right next to my computer so that I may attach a face to the names. Some of you I remember, some I don’t.
Here is my snapshot bio for the last several years. I married young, and had 2 sons, now 35 and 33. My first marriage ended after 8 years, during which time I went to nursing school and became an RN. Even though the career decision was one of practicality, I found that my choice was one of the best I ever made. I have been an RN for 25 years, and still love it.
I spent way too many years trapped in LA and in 1999 finally decided that money wasn’t even close to everything and moved to Grand Junction, CO. This is a beautiful place to live, and I am still in the nursing game.
I remarried and now reside in a lovely home, surrounded by the most beautiful scenery nature has to offer.
That’s it in a nutshell. I have hit lots of bumps in the road, but all in all, I can’t complain.
Scott, I remember you from even further back. How does Oak Park Elementary School tweak your memory? Remember your endless descriptions of dinosaurs to JoAnn Marshall and me?
And Marshall, did you by any chance work at Harvey’s when my brother was there? His name was Jerry Filgo and he was in Security there for many years.
Wow!!! Hearing from all of you is really a treat!!! This is my story:
After graduation, I went to San Diego State for two years, married, and began a “career” as a delivery trucker for Coca-Cola. Coke is a wonderful company to work for — but I didn’t want to spend my life hustling cases of soda pop into bars and liquor stores—so I joined the Los Angeles Police Department in 1972. I drove around in a big black and white car (in Watts) for a few years and ended up getting the stuffing pounded out of me by a bad guy.
The City of Los Angeles sent me to trade school where I learned to be a computer programmer. In 1978 I became a computer programmer, returned to college and got divorced. I received a BA in philosophy (YES! I have been trained to sit in the park and talk!) And I remarried in 1981. I obtained a BS in business, then an MBA, then a Ph.D. Now, I am the chief information officer (CIO means “career is over”) at a very large public utility. I teach part time at Cal State San Bernardino.
I live in a nice home in Redlands, California. I have no children, and I am looking forward to retirement this coming December. As an avid amateur photographer, I am looking forward to finally having enough time to work on my photos ... teach my classes .... do my little research projects ... and attempt to re-grow my hair!
Oh — one interesting tidbit: When I got married (the second time — that is the REAL time) my Wife-To-Be said, “Dan, I love you, but I can’t take your last name ... it would sound like the wrong end of my anatomy.” (Her first name is Dee, my last name was Ash.) So, we both changed our names to “Ashley.”
How many guys do YOU know who have a maiden name? I’ll bet that I’m unique in that regard.
COLTS ROCK!
Sandy...
Boy does Oak Park Elementary bring back some memories. I remember you and when you mentioned Scott and the dinosaurs. I also remember Scott being nutty about them. Weren’t you in Camp Fire Girls? I vaguely remember going to Camp Fire Girls meetings at Susan Kirk’s house. She had a brother named Ray. Gosh, I hadn’t thought of those days in years. What a fun trip down memory lane this is turning out to be.
Sue and Sandy and everyone else. It probably won't surprise you, but I still love dinosaurs ... strictly in a platonic way, of course. (Strangely enough, I can trace my dino-mania directly to my career-long work on The Flintstones.) Back at Oak Park Elementary, I must have driven everyone nuts with my obsession for all things prehistoric. When I got my turn as a captain of a "four-square" game team (to everyone's agony), I even named the team "The Triceratops"! Kinda pathetic, eh? Thanks for putting up with me, then and now. For that matter, who remembers Oak Park's principal, Mr. Naiman (the uncle of Michael Naiman, with whom I'm still good friends), Mrs. Stout (5th grade teacher) and Mr. Burris (6th grade teacher)? I was always extremely impressed with the latter's drawing ability.
Speaking of elementary school obsessions, I've got some sad news that reached me through George Sorensen (for whom I occasionally do artwork; he's the PR guy for the M. C. Gill Corp., a big aircraft materials manufacturer.)
Remember Larry Larson? What dinosaurs were to me, insects were to Larry. He was completely fascinated by 'em. (I recall, at one of my early birthday parties, while the rest of us were playing pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey, Larry was going around my parents' back yard, examining all the plants for bugs.) Following his dream, he eventually wound up employed by Dow Chemicals for many years, developing various insecticides. Tragically, working with all those poisonous chemicals must have affected his health, because Larry died of cancer a few years ago.
Anyway, keep 'em comin'. I really dig reading everyone's stories.
P.S.: I find it fascinating how many of us have been married more than once. I guess statistics for our generation bear this out, though. Nowadays, I like to refer to temporary relationships such as these as "starter marriages. -- SS!
Hi Colts!
Wow, this is great! John, you are the best!
Anyway, this is Kathy Lally, and to keep this going, here’s some of my info. After college, I married a federal firefighter and had two children — a daughter, now 28, and a son, 24. We were married for 25 years before getting divorced. During the time we were married, we lived in San Diego, Guam, Bermuda, and the Philippines, and I visited Hong Kong, Hawaii, Okinawa, and Korea. I loved the Philippines but was forcibly ejected after Mt. Pinatubo decided to blow up! It took my children and I four days to get home — but that’s another story!
Another ’68 Colt, Bill Wolf, and I reconnected after our 30th class reunion. Bill was a Sergeant with the San Diego Police Department, at that time. He retired about three weeks before 9/11 after 27 years on the PD. On August 6th of this year, after being together for 7 years, we finally decided to make it official and got married in the backyard of our Colorado Springs home.
Between the two of us we have seven children, seven grandchildren, two dogs, & three grand-doggies.
Patty Province, it’s great to know you’re still out there! I ran into Dave Keller back in the 1990s and thought about you.
Keep the bios coming ... my yearbook is right beside me. I sure hope there’s a 40th and everyone shows up!
It’s been great catching up with so many from Crawford!!! After graduating, I immediately went into the Army and served in Viet Nam as a Crewchief/Gunner on a Huey assault helicopter. Went down five times, but never got a scratch -- must have had a guardian angel!! After Vietnam I spent two years as a Drill Sergeant at Ft Ord, CA.
In 1974 I joined the San Diego Police Department and spent 27 years with them retiring a few weeks before 9/11 - which was good timing since I was in charge of their Critical Incident Management Unit. Since then, I’ve been doing consulting and that has been both fun and “work”.
Shortly after the 30th reunion (which I missed), I re-met the lovely Ms. Kathy Lally again (also class of ’68). Things just clicked perfectly and we have been together for 7 years now and got officially hitched on August 6th. We now live in Colorado Springs (moved here in December) and love it.
I remember Crawford fondly (how it has changed!!!). I remember almost blowing up Mr. Billings lab classroom by mixing the wrong chemicals (that’s what happens when you have chemistry right after lunch!!). I had a great time in ROTC and know that many of them went on to serve our country most honorably. I have 4 sons and a daughter and Kat has a son and a daughter. We also have a herd of grandkids! I hope all of you are well, and life is treating you kindly.
See ya at the 40th Reunion??!!!
Bill Wolf
Colorado Springs, CO
Hi all!
It’s Mia — checking in from Portola Valley, CA, near Palo Alto/Stanford. It’s been terrific hearing everyone’s stories. Here’s mine, in a nutshell:
I’ve been married since college to a great person. After 33 years, 2 children and one grandchild (so far) we’re still going strong. In the 1970s we spent 2 years with a volunteer organization in Indonesia, where Crawford High classmate Steve Epstein visited us during his wanderings around the world. I still don’t know how he ever found us there!
I’ve spent most of the past 30 years working as a nutritionist and health educator here in N. California. I still like to do all those outdoorsy, sports things I used to do — I’m just not as good at them anymore.
My mom and brother are still in SD so we visit a couple times a year. It would be wonderful to get a reunion going for 2008. Meanwhile, keep those emails coming!
It’s good to hear from all of you.
I finished college in Santa Barbara without ever considering a career path. I lived in Eugene, Oregon and San Diego again before deciding in 1979 that what I really wanted to do was to design quilts and write. I found my dream job in the Denver area at a quilting magazine, where I was an editor for 8 years. I wrote my first six books there. My husband, Steve, and I quit our jobs in late 1987 to start our own publishing company. We have self-published and worked out of our home ever since. I am working on my eighteenth quilting book at this time.
We moved to Iowa twelve years ago (a theme in my life seems to be fleeing population). We live in an old house on a tree-lined street one block from Grinnell college with our 16-year-old daughter and 14-year-old son. We spend an inordinate amount of time enjoying our son’s baseball games in spring, summer, and fall leagues. We also enjoy playing European board games such as Puerto Rico and Carcasonne.
I am enjoying your reminiscences about Crawford and Oak Park (which I attended through most of third grade). I recall climbing the pole in Mrs. Calloway’s kindergarten class and getting a star on my forehead the one time I reached the top. I also seem to recall Bruce Rattray getting hit in the head by a bowling pin. I attended Andrew Jackson for the upper primary grades. Mrs. Rost and Mr. Vanyan were favorite teachers there. I also liked Ole Kittleson, the substitute teacher in Mrs. Telzrow’s 5th grade class. He was an actor in local theater, and he taught us songs from The King and I and My Fair Lady. I especially liked his teaching us to speak with a cockney accent.
At Horace Mann, I remember being mortified to have to wear the skirt I made in Mrs. Pitkanen’s Home Ec class. And I can still smell the stench from putting formaldehyde in the jar with my stink bug in biology class. What was that teacher’s name?
From Crawford, I remember Mr. Billings and Mrs. Perkins fondly. I remember many of your names, but I haven’t kept in touch very well. I saw Marcia Leight a few years ago. She was living in Las Vegas. And I ran into Kathy Chin in Denver, when she had a brief stint as a newscaster there sometime in the ’80s.
Hi everyone. It’s been great getting all the emails and hearing about what everyone has been doing over the past 37 years. I married Mel Burright (Hoover High Class of ’68) in 1970. We have two sons and a daughter (Paul 33, Lori 30, and Mike 27) and they have blessed us with 8 grandchildren ranging in ages from 10 yearrs to 1 yearr. Mel and I moved to Omaha Nebraska back in 1976. We had just missed both the blizzard and the tornado of ‘75, which -- we were told -- hit Omaha quite hard. I love the seasonal changes here in the Midwest, though the summer heat and humidity I will never get used to. We would visit San Diego every other year when the kids were young and in recent years we would get back to visit family once in a while. With my younger sister moving to Colorado this past spring leaves me no family in California now.
I am currently working as an administrative assistant/office manager for a construction management company. The construction business is rather foreign to me but I am learning quickly and thoroughly enjoying my new job. It’s a very small office of only six people with half of them gone on the construction job site most of the time. It is a lot less stress than I saw in my previous job of 10 years as the accounting / human resources / office administrator as well as sometimes wearing a forth hat as receptionist. Mel worked for 26 years for a major supermarket running the dairy department. He finally decided he had enough of the retail business and studied for his engineer license and went to work for the Omaha Public Schools.
I was unable to attend any of the previous reunions so I am looking forward to the 40th. I did not do a good job of keeping in contact with anyone so it has been great having all the emails come. Keep them coming and if you know the whereabouts of the many missing Colts of ‘68, get in touch with them. Thanks to all for bringing back fond memories of Oak Park, Horace Mann and Crawford.
All,
I had to chime in. It’s been great hearing what everyone has been up to and how well everyone seems to be doing. John, I have to thank you for making this possible. I was contacted by Dahlia Bokow a few weeks ago. We were the best of friends through junior and senior high school. It had been 20 years since we had last seen each other and she found me from your web site. She lives in Las Vegas and so does my Dad. I already had a trip planned to see him so we got together last week to get caught up on the lost years. What a treat! It was like we had never lost contact.
I attended SDSU right after high school and majored in biochemistry. I moved up to Sonoma County in my senior year to attend Sonoma State because I wanted to live in a less congested environment. I met my husband there and moved to a little town called Sebastopol. My only child, a son who is now 29, was born there in 1976. It was great to hear from Judy Martin because I owned a fabric store and quilt shop in Santa Rosa and was aware that Judy was the editor of Quilters Newsletter magazine. I was even the President of the Santa Rosa Quilt Guild one year. I got divorced when my son was 7 years old and moved back to San Diego to go back to school (Coleman College) to get a degree in computer science. It was time to stop playing and support my child. Oh well. It is hard for me to believe that I have pursued IT as a career for over 20 years now. I was a single mom for many years but finally remarried and then eventually re-divorced. I guess marriage isn’t my forte. My son, Dan, graduated from UCLA and completed grad school at University of Illinois, Champagne-Urbana. I am very proud of him. He got married two years ago. He works in clinical research and his wife is a junior high school music teacher in Solana Beach. No grandkids yet.
I am currently head of the IT Department at a biotech company in Carlsbad. Last year I bought a house on Lake San Marcos. I know, everyone thinks it is a retirement community, but it is actually a quiet, peaceful oasis in the midst of all the rampant development in San Diego. The house is right on the lake with a private boat dock and I love it. My long-term boyfriend got a job up in Oakland about a year ago and I basically live in two places because I am up in the East Bay Area half of my time. We have two dogs –- a collie and a sheltie –- and they are our ‘replacement children’ since ours are all grown and gone. It’s a crazy, busy life but I am enjoying it enormously.
Last week, before this thread started, Dahlia and I talked about trying to get everyone together. I think we should still try to do that. The last reunion I attended was the 20-year and it would be great to see everyone!
My story is a bit different from most of you, as I did not grow up attending elementary or junior high school in the San Diego area. I was new to the Crawford crowd but everyone was quite terrific in high school. I really did have a lot of fun. My dad was a naval aviator and we moved often. As a matter of fact, Crawford was the twelfth school in my K-12 matriculation, and the longest I had ever stayed in one place to date, at that time. It was a crazy life but filled with an abundance of love and affirmation from my mother and father. When my father retired from the military and accepted a position to create an Aeronautics program at Mesa College, I transferred to Crawford at the start of my sophomore year. I had attended private schools in our travels and because of that fact, I had fulfilled most of my credits to graduate. My parents did not want me to graduate early, so my counselor suggested that I audition for Dr. Archibeque to fill my schedule with a music class, among other things. Dr. Archibeque must have seen promise in me or felt sorry for me because I made the Girls Chorale. Eventually, I sang in the Mixed Choir, Girls Ensemble and the Madrigals. Also added the USC Idylwild School of Music and the Arts to my resume, which spanned three summers (first summer as a student and the second and third summer's as a counselor/student alto section leader), the San Diego Youth Chorale, SCVA, as well as the Old Globe Singers for a while. Dr. Archibeque opened up a whole new world for me when she brought me into "her world" and I will forever be indebted to her. A week or so following graduation from Crawford, I sang in Europe with the Southern California Youth Chorale, sponsored by the Institute of Music in Vienna, Austria. My buds and fellow Colts Corinne Brown and Diana Taylor joined me. We three girls also sang with Dr. Archibeque for two years at Mesa College before she moved on to San Jose State. I moved on to San Diego State, but much to my chagrin, I left SDSU in my senior year. I know, pretty dumb, but at the time, I thought it was the best decision for me. Now, you may be wondering what in the world I was doing to prompt such a drastic move and here it is ... studio work-recording. I was up to my earlobes in music and school seemed a huge bore. Of course, this was never an option for my children (to leave college before graduation), and I have been successful in getting that point across. I married Patrick Millsap, a native San Diegan, in 1975. Patrick says he first saw me in a dream and lo and behold, one day, I walked past him and when he spotted my long ponytail and ribbon, he knew I was the girl in his dream. We were formally introduced in 1973, but it took me a bit longer to come to the realization that he was to be my husband. He never shared his dream with me until I accepted his proposal of marriage. We have been married for thirty years and have three children: Carissa (27) graduated from UCLA and a Bruin athlete on the softball team; J-P (25) graduated from TCU and is presently at the University of Chicago earning his masters degree in finance; and Jessica (23) is a junior at Chatham College, a political science major, and a collegiate athlete as well. In 2003, J-P married his high school sweetheart, Amy (23), whom we adore. They waited until Amy completed her degree in education at Whittier College before they were married. We look forward to grandchildren someday.
I have been greatly involved in community service, mostly in sports. I am currently the head scorekeeper at Biola University with the softball team, and getting back into singing again. My husband's work takes him all over the world and when my schedule allows, I travel with him. The Colt reunions have always happened at a time when I could not attend, but we did manage to attend my husband's ten-year reunion at San Diego High. With two years to plan, I should make Crawford's 40th.
Blessings to all. I think of my Crawford days more often than you might know. Growing up with a suitcase in my hand placed a desire in me to give my children roots, so San Diego has always been our home base.
You have all been quite wonderful in your life stories. Thank you for sharing.
P.S. If we find an alumnus, to whom may they contact to secure their email address on the reunion list?
That would be me -- John Fry
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Joe Keeyes '63
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Bob Keeyes '67
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Kathy Keeyes '68
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I can't resist this trip down memory lane any longer: Kathy Keeyes here. My brother Joe '63, told me about the Crawford website this year and he bought me John Fry's newsletter for my birthday. Great stuff.
Shortly after graduation I married Al Palmer, who graduated from Hoover in '67. We bought a house in Santee in 1972 and raised our two great kids there. Son Steve works for Bannister (Schuff) Steel in National City and daughter Patty is in Memphis -- a stay-at-home mom now with my first and only grandchild, Dylan. After the kids were both in school I went to work for the State at Social Services in Grantville. I worked with Peggy Jung '68 and some other Blessed Sacrament, Horace Mann and Crawford kids. I transferred to CalTrans in 1989.
I remarried in 1995. We both retired from CalTrans, sold everything and moved to Viola Arkansas, a town of 300 in the beautiful Ozarks. There is one traffic signal in the entire county. I visit my mom and son in San Diego every year and always see my friend since birth, Sharon Longerbeam '68. I also see Jose Navarro '68. Joe and I were neighbors on 49th Street. He owns Arrow Construction in East County.
My other brother Bob '67 married Arlene Cymberg '69. They live in El Cajon and have 3 beautiful daughters. Where is ASB President, Steve Epstein? I wish he would log on. I always enjoyed Steve in High School. As we said back then, he was COOL! Chuck Piro or -- as we said in second grade -- "Chuckie" Piro. I see your name on the list. Remember the good old days at Blessed Sacrament?
Hope all is well with you.
Well I will take my turn. It has been great reading all the stories and surprising to me that so many of you moved away from the San Diego area. Recently I was in the old area around Crawford and was very sad to see how bad the area has deteriorated.
I am Charles Wax and I live in the Del Mar/Rancho Santa Fe area with my wife Randi of 33 years. Randi is the owner of Travel Design, a travel agency in San Carlos. Her father Hal -- who is almost 85 -- lives with us as well. We have two daughters, Staci and Amy. Staci has three children who are 3, 7, and 16. Blake the oldest came to us with our son-in-law Andy and has been raised by Staci and Andy since he was 5. It is an exciting time for him as he just started his first football game at Quarterback for Torrey Pines Varsity this past Friday. Our younger daughter Amy is not married and graduated from USC four years ago. She went to the University of Pennsylvania where she was recruited for tennis, didn’t like the school and transferred closer to home. She also worked during the summer of 1998 for the Padres as an intern and got to go to New York for the World Series. The girls are partners in ladies and kid clothing store in Del Mar and built a very successful business.
Professionally after graduating from San Diego State at 20 with an accounting degree we moved to San Francisco where we lived for six months while I was working for the Crown Zellerbach company. After that I entered our family business -- Waxie Sanitary Supply. It has been a very challenging and rewarding experience as we have grown the business to operate 15 locations in 6 states. I became the head of the company in 1986 succeeding my father as the 3rd generation and this year we are celebrating our 60th year of business. For the past two years I have also been the chairmen of Network Services an organization based in Chicago that is one of America’s largest and best supply system organizations, with 70 locations in the country. A memorable experience of mine was visiting with General Colin Powell. He stayed with my dad for two days during the Republican convention here in San Diego and came to visit our offices for a tour.
I do feel very fortunate to still be able to ski and golf as I have had to overcome three back surgeries. We love going to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
I wish you all good health and happiness to live your life and enjoy it to its fullest.
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