"Bomber Memories"
November 18, 19 & 20, 1998
November 18, 1998
Ray Wells (54)
Comments for: Bill Johnson (61): You asked if anyone remembered what Miss Mecum was famous for. I'm not sure, but I'll tell you what I remember about her. She had boobs the size of bowling balls, and she wanted your biology notebook to contain camera-ready artwork and verbatim notes. I asked her if I could skip doing the notebook the 2nd semester if I got an A+ the first semester. She agreed and made good on her promise. I think she was an excellent teacher.
I do remember the old Richland Swimming Pool, located in the park down by the Columbia River. I learned to swim there. I remember that there were so many kids that wanted to use the pool, that they had to restrict the number of pool users by handing out little tags that you had to present on entering the pool or you couldn't get in.
Ray Wells
Grover Shegrud (56)
I remember the open backyards and the ball games and even the broken windows. One summer we had a base ball game between the boys of the neighborhood and the girls, Barbara Pierce [56] and her sisters, my sisters Bev and Marg, the Moorman girls and others. They beat us and we had to buy them a treat; what a blow to my young ego!!
Also I remember rushing to the store 1945, or 46 to get bananas when a shipment would arrive. Oh same thing when bubble gum came out.
To Ken Heminger [56] and others I have both the aluminum and green plastic tax tokens; I was and still am a coin collector and thought they would be worth a fortune by now!! We would get the tokens at home or outside stores where people would throw them out or give them to us. Then we would take strings of them to the store and buy candy or get cash to go swimming.
The Tucker story; the car was brought to town as a raffle during frontier days about 1948 or 49, they drove it in the parade ( it put out a cloud of oil smoke). Later that night I saw the truck heading out of town and found out the people skipped out and never did give the car away they left a lot of unhappy ticket holders in Richland.
Carp spearing with Don Wagster and friends along the Yakima river south of town on the other side of the C A P base. Also got my car (1948 Ford) stuck out there on a date and had to pay a cab fare to Kennewick and back.
OK! The oleo margarine story; the farmers and state law would not allow the sale of colored oleo so it was sold with a color packet or in a sealed plastic bag with a red ( yellow dye) capsule inside we would fight over who would get to pop the capsule and mix up the oleo margarine.
Grover
Bill Johnson (61)
I remember the "Old Dutch Mill" between Richland and the "Y." It was a restaurant and not just a tavern though.
Anyone remember the old Richland airport at the south end of town adjacent to the Yakima River? I remember it had an old Indian dugout in front of the office.
I remember my mother getting chickens from a chicken ranch (not what you're thinking here :-) about a 1/2 mile south of the by-pass right off of the end of Wellison Way. The old woman that owned the place would just walk out and grab a chicken by the head and give it about 2 wrings and off with its head. I was only about 5-6 then, but I can still see that chicken running around without a head until it just fell over. Pretty gruesome now that I think about it.
I have seen some comments about the camp out on the Yakima by Horn Rapids. It's name was Columbia camp. I remember that sometime around 1950/51 they finally went in and tore down the guard towers but left a lot of the building foundations which I am sure by now are all but gone.
Anyone remember the in-ground trampolines that were down at the bowling alley below Carmichael?
I remember the skyline drive in on north G.W. Way. When it was built it was the largest drive-in on the West coast (1080 cars) If you think about it most drive-in had the projection booth in the middle of the field so they only had to throw the picture about 150' The skyline's booth was all the way in the back and we had to throw the picture 575.' They had special lens made for just that theater. Back then they cost over $5000.00 as piece. Lot of money then.
Do you remember that the Richland library was a ford garage originally? The guy that ran it was Johnny Gerdes and he was the same one that had the union "76" in the uptown district.
I remember buying shoes in C.C. Anderson and sticking my feet into the fluoroscope and wiggling my feet to make sure that the shoes had enough room. Might as well go kiss an x-ray machine - HUH?
Well, that's all for now, but since I got to Richland in 1943 I am sure some other things will come back to mind. Also since my Dad was Robley Johnson - Photographer I am sure that some time in the future I will be able to come up with a historical picture or two that I will share with you. Just need some time to retrieve them
Bill
Paula Beardsley Glenn (62)
I've been meaning to write about the Stile's Family. They ran the theaters - Uptown and Village for many years. My folks were good friends of theirs and used to go down to their apartment above the Village Theater on Friday nights and it became party time at our house. Somehow word got out and everyone showed up to party. I remember my sister, Janice [64], taking off in a car with Terry Christianson [61] and some other people who had been drinking and I went nuts and kicked a hole in the wall. Man, did I get in trouble. I also remember a big food fight one night making sandwiches or something and someone busted a head of lettuce all over our kitchen. I never did find out who did it. Anyone want to own up?
Anyway, the Stiles family are all gone now but Doug who owned Bassitt Transit for years. David passed away in the early 70's and was a wonderful folk singer - even had a couple of records with his group. Haven't seen Doug in years but understand he is still in the area.
Paula
Gary Behymer (64) mailto:bjangary@colfax.com
Ok... here is what you have missed. (1) What do Joe Keefe (64) and Doctor Demento have in common? We aren't quite sure but Joe has had a number of his songs played on the Doctor Demento Show. (2) What is an O5C or O5 Charlie... A radio teletype operator.
Now, here is the big test. What do the following individuals have in common?
Mike Alchele, Jim Albaugh, Bill Allen, Gordon Anderson, Jon Anderson, Ken Anderson, Ron Anderson
David Barber, Mark Bircher, Bill Blankenship, Rod Brewer, George Brinkman, C.W. Brown, Norris Brown, Russel Burks
Mark Callen, Dan Cartmell, Dick Cartmell, Jim Castleberry, Steve Chalcraft, Roger Chambers, Brent Christi, Richard Coffman, Ken Cole, Bill Compton, Roger Cone, John Cowan, Bryan Coyne, Pat Crook, Kurt Crownover, Chuck Curtis
Larry Davis, Mike Davis, Steve Davis, Steve Denler, Steve Dickerson, Dave Dowis, Denny Duncan
Dave Emmons, Ted Engel, Ron Ensign, Pete Erie, Kelly Euteneier, Joe Evans,
Paul Felts, Matt Fields, David Forrest, Robbie Forrest, Steve Forsberg, Ken Fortune, Don Foss, Randy Free, Bob Frick
Charles Gant, Glynn Gibson, Harold Gibson, Bill Gill, Jack Glover, Gary Gottschalk, Bill Griffin, Mike Grinnell
Earl Hall, Syd Hall, Mike Harty, Matt Haskins, Robbie Hatfield, Jim Hawkins, Bill Henniger, Pat Henniger, Bill Heriford, Mike Hogan, Mike Hoke, Pat Hoke, Jim Hollick, John Hollick, Pete Hollick, Pete Hollick, Jim Holmes, Matt Hopson, Jim House
Emmitt Jackson, Rich Jacobs, Bill Johnson, Brian Johnson
Jim Kasey, Dave Keller, Brian Kellerman, Bob Kennedy, Wally Kennedy, Roger Kindley, George Kinney, Brian Kissinger
Robert Lacy, Dean Lansing, Pete Larrick, Doug Lukens
Donal MacDowell, Dave Mann, Cris Manolopoulos, Randy Marcum, Rodney Marcum, Blaine Marlin, Bob Maulsby, Bob McClellan, Les McDowell, Mike McKeown, Tom McKeown, Dave McVicker, John Meyers, Roger Mikulecky, Jim Miller, Steve Miller, Bob Mitchell, Cameron Mitchell, Derald Mitchell, Greg Mitchell, Nestor Mitchell, Wayne Moss
George Naughton, Tilbert Neal, Cris Nickola, Mike Neill, Phil Neill, Steve Neill, Dick Nelson
Denny Olson, Don Ott, Jim Ott
Mark Palmer, Steve Panther, LeRoy Parchen, Scott Parnell, Bob Paul, Chuck Peoples, Jeff Phillips, Rob Phillips, Keith Pritchard
Bernie Qualheim, Jim Qualheim
Rennee Rathbun, Paul Rinehart, Bill Roe, Rick Rose
Steve Sandlin, Dave Simpson, Jack Sinderson, Rick Slater, Bruce Smith, Dave Smith, Dennis Soldat, Kevin Soldat, Dave Sonderland, John Sonderland, Jerry Spears, Jim Spencer, Marc Spohr, Rick Spohr, Charlie Steele, Rial Steichen, Ray Stein, Mark Stevens, Fritz Strankman, Dave Strasser, Dennis Strasser, Bobby Sturgis, Richard Suppel
Blaine Teverbaugh, Wayne Teverbaugh, Nick Thoennes, Dean Thompson, Jim Thompson, Tony Todish, Mike Toner, Tom Tracy, Dave Tuttel, Don Tuttel
Bob Utecht
Bob Valentine, Jack Vanderburg
Bruce Wallace, Maurice Wallace, Theartis Wallace, Steve Waltar, Jim Walton, Dave Warren, Jim Warren, Gary Webb, Lonnie Whitner
Good Luck!
John Bradley (65)
To Ron Sledge (65): RON: YES, I REMEMBER THE FATEFUL NIGHT ON THE VESPA RIDING ALL OVER THE PLACE TRYING TO FIND THE DANCE. IT WAS COLDER THAN YOU KNOW WHAT TOO. THAT OLD MOTOR SCOOTER WAS A REAL BLAST TO RIDE, AND CHEAP TOO!!!!!
ONE OF THE FUNNIEST SIGHTS I EVER SAW, WAS MY DAD AND MOM ON THE SCOOTER. THEY WOULD TAKE IT TO THE OLD WEST RICHLAND GOLF COURSE AND PLAY A ROUND. WHAT WAS FUNNY IS THAT MOM WAS HOLDING ON TO THE HANDLE OF THE GOLF CART WHILE DAD DROVE. THAT OLD "BAG BOY" CART SURE HAD SOME MILES ON IT WHEN IT FINALLY GAVE UP THE GHOST.
BRADLEY
Patty de la Bretonne
(65)
Yes, I had Mr. Bill Allen for homeroom in his first year of teaching at Colhi.1965. This was when he, as he himself said it , still had some hair of his own.
Rich White (83)
Someone was recently asking for memories from the 80's generation, so here are some 80's memories from an unofficial member of the class of '83 (my family moved from Richland after my junior year, so I didn't graduate from RHS, but I still consider myself part of the Bomber class of '83 :-)
Marching in the Bomber band under the direction of the "Skin Dome" (A.K.A. Mr. Hopkins). BEST IN THE WEST! Winning state football championship in '82! (marching in the Kingdome). Playing hackey sack with the burnouts on dope slope. Using 6 yellow peechee's taped together as a notebook. Biology teacher (forgot her name) killed in a hiking accident. Cheating our way through the driver's ed modules (the TA would just check them off in the grade book if you sweet-talked her) ... remember watching those 20 year old driving movies in the car simulator?
Rich White
Jim Moran (87)
About the street names in Richland: Yes they are named after Army Engineers. But also they are named after great Army Generals. Such as General Lee (Yes, Lee. He graduated from West Point) , Gen. Washington., or what about Thayer? At West Point, the guest hotel is named after Thayer. But I am not sure if he was an Engineer, or a military general.
Jim Moran
Heather Carstens Pedlar
(88)
To: Teena Stoner Giulio (79): I had Mr. Blankenship for Government Fall Semester of my senior year and then TA'd for him the next semester. I LOVED having him, although I definitely think I was in the minority. He had us each do so-called current event oral reports to the class. Everyone hated them, and it was even more uncomfortable because he would just sit there and not say a word! It was always difficult to figure out what he was thinking:) What I most appreciate about knowing him was learning that age definitely means experience. He had a lot to offer us that very few people took advantage of. I still think about him occasionally and wonder how he is doing.
Heather
November 19, 1998
Ralph Myrick (51)
Here are 2 fishing stories I heard when I was a kid. One was a guy was fishing for sturgeon by the original Desert Inn. He hooked one and people watched him pull it out with his Model A Ford. The second was fishing for sturgeon at Sacajawea Park. The story goes that a guy hooked one, fought it for three days and three nights only to have it surface one time. It finally straightened out the hook and got away. The onlookers that saw it said it was the grand daddy of all sturgeon. This was in the late forties. Has anyone else heard these stories?
Ralph
Dick Wight (52)
Regarding Bill Johnson's reference to "Richland Airport" down near the Yakima river: That 3-runway field was a Civil Air Patrol field that didn't serve general or commercial aviation. It was supposedly for Civil Air Patrol use only. The southernmost runway was actually part of the dike. Many of us "Bombers" learned to fly there. Walt LePage, who taught aeronautics, meteorology and other science courses at Col Hi instructed many of us. I took a few lessons from him. I remember one summer day ('51?) "shooting landings" in an old Aeronca Champ many of us flew. Some of my fellow CAP cadets were swimming and rafting in the Yakima River adjacent to the runway, and I made a couple VERY low altitude passes down the river. My first pass sent a couple of the kids diving off the raft into the river. My second pass was less successful - I encountered heavy "flak" consisting of riverbank mud thrown up by my friends - and I had a pretty dirty airplane to clean up! I had lots of flying adventures that in retrospect
am unsure how I survived. One terribly windy day Jane (Rollison) Hightower '52 and I flew to Yakima and back, nearly ran out of fuel just getting to Grandview (cars were going faster than we were!). I had real trouble landing back in Richland in the high winds. The plane's owner, parents etc. were gathered at the airport trying to figure where we'd gone. No flight plan, you see! Jane and I thought the aftermath of the flight - the trouble we were in - was more traumatic than the flight! The CAP cadet squadron consisted largely of Col Hi students, and usually numbered 30-50 members. The squadron yielded quite a few career military people, two of whom made general rank - Dick Meyer '51, and Rod Linkous '53. I was a career Coast Guard officer, non aviation. Go figure!
Dick
Marilyn Peddicord
Whitley (53)
This is what I remember about Miss Mecum - She never kept her knees together when she sat down - offering a biology lesson to all who were observant. Lee [Whitley - '52] says she also showed dogs and was a winner at shows.
Marilyn
Jim Russell (58)
A couple of thoughts about the swimming pool: Prior to moving to Richland in 1949, we lived in a small town (Silverton, OR), where the swimming pool was filled by piping directly from Silver Creek. There was nothing in the world south of the Arctic Circle colder than Silver Creek. My folks tried to send me through the swimming classes there. Brrrrr. I didn't fare well in those classes. I couldn't stand to put my head in the water, as I recall one of the first requisites to a swim "certificate."
When we moved to Richland, the old pool was still in use near the Columbia River and park. That water was not heated either, but it was certainly a lot warmer (of course) than the Silver Creek feed. There, my brother, Jack, and I passed our swim tests. Yes, I remember passes to wait our turn to enter the pool. It was small in comparison to the "new" pool below the high school.
Now, for the "dumbest thing I ever did" award: In the "new" pool, we spent long days during the summer. One day, several of us, and I don't remember who at the time, were playing "keep away" with the top of a miniature Morton's salt shaker. At one point when I received the toss of the plastic shaker top, I put it in my mouth and quickly swam to a new location. As I came up for air, a wave of water hit me at the same time and down the throat went the shaker top. Try as I might, I could not swallow the top or cough it up. I went home, attempted to cough it up or swallow it down but with no success. Ultimately, I had to tell my folks about my problem. The little shaker top finally was dislodged by doctors at the Kadlec Hospital. Anesthesia to put me to sleep and to relax the throat was required. This has been my only stay (knock on wood) overnight at a hospital. That was about 43 years ago!
Now, that was dumb.
Jim
Bill Johnson (61)
Sunny Hyatt [59]. What a fox she was. She was also the class secretary at Carmichael and it was her job to stand up on stage and lead the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance. Well, to say that she well endowed for a ninth grader would be an understatement. So boys being what they are, when she placed her right had over her chest, we did also, except that we held our hands out about 4-5 inches away from our bodies. We wanted to do it right, you know. More than once when she would look out and catch us and it would mess her up and then of course we caught the attention of the principal. Nuff said.
Jim Overdahl [57] Jim was great guy and so is his brother Pete [60], but as any of you who knew Jim, you know he had a speech impediment, commonly known as a harelip. Well, some of you may remember that there was girl that worked at Zip's that had the same problem. One day Jim pulled in beside me and picked up the phone to order and as it happened this particular girl answered. Well, Jim started to place his order and all of a sudden this girl came storming out to Jim's car and Said, "Are you making fun of me?" He replied, "No I'm one of you and I still want my damn hamburger and fries." As she walked away to go inside, Jim turned to me and smiled and said, "I guess that got her attention." I thought I would fall out of my car laughing after watching this.
Brian Brown (57) Anyone remember when Brian drove his car into the irrigation canal in West Richland? He was probably kissy facing some sweet thing instead of driving. So much for a night on the town.
Jim Bobo (57) I only tell this story because we are good friends. For those of you who know Jim you know he was on the basketball team and I'm told he was pretty good. Nice looking guy, popular with all the girls and all that other stuff that goes with high school, but there was a darker side to him too. I was 12 at the time and Jim's grandmother lived he and his parents. Addy, short for Adeline I think. Anyway she couldn't go to the games and wouldn't stay by herself so I grandma sat with her. The fact that Jim's folks had one of the first TV's that I had ever seen didn't hurt. Anyway Addy was deaf as a post and deathly afraid of the dark After the game, Jim would come home and I would see this hand sneak around the corner and turn off all the lights and the t.v. In about 10 seconds, Addy's feet would start to shuffle and she would start to yell which got steadily louder until Jim would turn on the lights again and peek around the corner at her. She would shake her finger at him, give him a hug and tell he was a naughty boy. In retrospect, I think it was a ame with them and she really enjoyed it. Shame on you Jimmy
Last but not least and I'm sorry if this is a little cryptic but probably the girl I feel closest to because I have known her longer is a girl I used to sing "Aba daba daba said the monkey to the chimp" to on her front porch. What did I know at 6 years old? I thought it was a love song. She still holds a very special place for me and she knows who she is.
Jim
Ray Stein (64)
With all the talk about street names in Richland, I wondered if anyone is concerned that the road from the hospital to the cemetery is named "Swift Blvd."
Ray
David Rivers (65)
Brian Johnson: C. W. Brown, etal. I guess they were all on the Bomber's basketball team at one time or another... I mean their names sure seem familiar... but then Big John Meyers, Theartis Wallace and Ray Stein... never played basketball, did they? Maybe they all drove Buicks? No, Big John drove a Merc... Gee, I don't know... I give up!
David Rivers
Rod Collins (67) mailto:RODSOAK@aol.com
I was born in Richland and lived on Atkins St. across from Carl and Scott Beter and next to David Hill. We all went to Lewis and Clark and Carmichael. I noticed Rick Maddy's name and I assume it is the same one who lived across from Lewis and Clark.
I remember the trampolines and I think I was the first to try them. I used to deliver the Columbia Basin News and the Atomic Bowl was on my route. The morning manager let me in at about 6AM before it opened to the public.
Rod
November 20, 1998
Steve Clinehens (56)
From a Bomber Guest Book:
Date: Thu Nov 19 13:14:25 1998
Bomber Website Discovered!
A few days ago, I received an info copy of an email apparently sent to all cyber Bombers. Didn't realize we had a web site, but glad to be included... Brings back some old memories. I was class of '56 and have barely set foot in Richland since graduating... Going home is a little difficult when your parents move!
I was feature editor of the Sandstorm from 1955-56 and wrote a lot of stuff that I thought was pretty funny. Although my sense of humor was not shared by the rank and file student body, work on the paper was fun. I recall that we had to make the trek to the Tri City Herald composing room just before publication (weekly?) and that I enjoyed the smell of hot lead from the linotype machines. Come to think of it, I enjoyed the perfumy fragrances from the numerous female Sandstormers even more!
If anybody out there worked on the paper under Mr. Bruhn or tried out for the plays Mr. ???? (his name eludes me) staged, or even vaguely remembers me, send me e-mail.
Steve
Gene Johnson (57)
I've just been sending some of the Alumni Sandstorms to my brothers Richard [55] and Bill [61] Johnson. I just found out the other day that they weren't on the list. I see that Bill has already sent in some stuff. Bill the day that Brian Brown put his Ford into the ditch, I happened to come along just a few minutes later, came around a curve and there was Brian sitting on the top of his car in the middle of the ditch. The story was that he reached down for a coke that had fallen over, but the truth is that he was reaching for something else, or should I say someone else, the, as you put it, sweet young thing had already gotten a ride away from there, so the coke story held up. I'm not going to mention any names here.
While I was going over some of the back issues of Alumni Sandstorm, I noticed that Janet Devine Call (69) asked about the Hanford workers paying for a B-17. They did do this they were all asked to donate a days pay to pay for this bomber. This was done and the airplane was named "Days Pay" The Army had it flown into Hanford in 1944. I have a picture of this plane taken by my father Robley Johnson while it was at Hanford, to show the workers what they had bought.
Gene Johnson
Tom Matthews (57)
Comments/questions for Bill Johnson (61): I clearly remember your father and the group class pictures he took at least until 1947 (I've got mine from K through 3rd). Your dad always seemed to be in good humor as we were arranged for the picture. You indicated that you have access to his negatives or pictures. Does that mean the family has all his photography? It certainly would be quite a historical resource. Wasn't he an official photographer for the Hanford project in the early years? I stopped by his studio sometime in the late 70's on one of our trips to visit relatives in Richland and purchased a print of his "Desert Sky" photo of Rattlesnake Mt. which we have hanging in our home.
Tom
Nancy Burnett Trantow
(58)
Hello, fellow Bombers! For those who might not remember me, I'm Nancy Burnett of the class of 1958. I was drum major that year and still remember leading the band down the field in that Bomber formation. I also remember Operation Weed. Who else had such a great time burning tumble weeds in Uptown vacant lots? I loved the homecoming ralleys when we snaked through Uptown. My family lived in the old Hanford trailer park in 1943! I have memories of the sand storms, the washing freezing on the line, the shower rooms (very traumatic for a 3 year old) and turning in my pennies for war bonds. When my father went into the Army my mother moved back to Arkansas, but my father returned to work there in 1955.
My first day at Columbia High School was a "We aren't in Kansas anymore" experience. My southern accent quickly earned me the nickname of "Rebel". At that time the school allowed a sophomore initiation week. We had to wear our clothes backwards, our hair in three pigtails and do anything an upper classman ask us to do. So - whoever you were who had me go into the boy's bathroom to retrieve toilet paper...? you owe me!
Before people were allowed to buy their homes from the government everyone's house looked the same and some families would ride around at night and peek into windows (nobody pulled their shades) to see how they had their government issue furniture arranged. When the houses were released to sell it started a boom of remodeling which I am sure is uneclipsed anywhere in the world.
I entered the Science Fair in 1957 with the help of Mr. Henrick (Chemistry). It was due to him that I went on the WSU to major in Chemistry. Mr. Scott (physics) was a great inspiration because he believed in me and encouraged me to seek a career in science when few women were entering those fields.
Who remembers Mr. Dawald's Government class?
Nancy Trantow (nee: Burnett)
Barbara Chandler (59)
Comment for Bill Johnson (61) Yes, of course, doesn't everyone know what Ms. Mecum was famous for? She would dip very deeply into the top of her dress, reach way low down her arm and yank up her bra strap. Every time I see anyone do that (or do it myself, blush) I think of her, and yes, in spite of all that, she was a dedicated and brilliant woman, just a bit eccentric.
Barbara
Carol Carson Renaud
(60)
I was pleased to see the reference by Dick Wight [52] about Civil Air Patrol. My brother Steve Carson (58) and I Carol Carson ('60) were members. What great times we had. Some other members were Fred Klute ('58), Jerry Sybertz ('58-deceased), shoot - my mind just went blank! Must be getting "old timers" disease. Anyone else involved in CAP?
I also wonder if any of the girls remember Mrs. Wiley (Shorthand). She used to walk around the room with a Vicks inhaler stuck up her nose when she had a cold. She always wore an old brown denim dress with a big scarf around her shoulders which was held in place with a large Texas plastic pin. She once said that kept the boys from looking down her dress. She also once lectured us about school spirit and, before a pep rally, turned the trash can upside down, stood on it and sang the school song! She lived in a one bedroom prefab on Swift. Boy - what a character. I sure learned shorthand from her tho. The other memorable teacher was Mr. Morris in Business Machines. He had a wooden leg but still coached Tennis!
Carol
Joe Choate (60)
I remember them all, I swam at both pools, the one in the park almost everyday in the summer. The Pasco plunge was great with the rope in the middle which we would climb up and dive in. I skated in the rink many times and the ice cream stand was right next door. Twenty Five cents and the biggest soft cone you could get. I remember Fats [Domino], too. How about working in the summer months at the Walla Walla Canning Company.
Joseph Choate
Richard Spitaleri (71)
Rod Collins (67) asked: "Anyone remember Mr. Chitty's first three rules of golf":
Answer: Keep your head down, keep your head down, and keep your head down
Richard Spitaleri
Susy Rathjen Whitney
(71)
To Rod Collins (67): I remember you. I lived down around the corner on Benham. Your family had the smoothest drive way... for roller skating that is. My little sister Karen and I would roller skate up and down Atkins and detour into your drive way. Skating in front of the Copelands drive way was hazardous, as there were rocks from their drive way on the side walk. And there was a big blob of cement on the side walk in front of David Hill's house. So, your place was the best. Didn't you get to shake President Kennedy's hand when he came to Hanford? At least that's what I was told. I remember those days like they were yesterday. I can still see Carl Beyers working on his car. I remember the Bush's, too who lived in the "F" house across the street from you. I remember a day that all the kids in the neighborhood were out on Atkins, with their bikes, trikes, roller skates, what ever they had. It was like a big parade.
I remember Gary Bush [66] walking on his stilts. In fact, someone told me that Gary could walk on his stilts backwards with a sack over his head. If you're reading this, Gary, is this the truth or one of those things older kids make up to tell the younger kids? And David Hill [66], nicest kid in the world. We had a pretty nice neighborhood.
Susy Rathjen Whitney
Greg Sletager (72)
Does anyone remember that on Halloween someone would put the delivery truck up on the roof of the pharmacy out on GWay? This apparent prank happened for several years in a row in the late 60's and early 70's.
Someone please tell me they also saw this so I don't have to wonder about why I think it happened. ; )
Greg Carolyn Polentz
Burnham (74)
Gary - not all the names listed in your test were players .....at least one I remember was the coach during the '70s, Frank Teverbaugh. How many people from the '70s remember the "bleacher bums"? They were the bench warmers who put together choreographed routines to keep themselves (and the fans) entertained during many games! I think they finally got into trouble because it got to the point where we were all watching the bench waiting to see the next "routine" instead of focusing on the game.
I think many of us didn't realize at the time how lucky we were to have such a basketball dynasty during our era. I remember regional tournaments in Spokane - we all stayed at either the Ridpath or the Davenport Hotel and there were quite a few stories to tell when we got back to school the following week. The hotel personnel probably hated those weekends - being over-run with teenagers can't have been good for business. It was the first experience with liquor for a lot of students, and not all the rooms were left in the same condition in which they were found! I believe at one point all the hotels (and maybe the school?) required letters of permission from our parents before we could get a room.
Carolyn (Polentz) Burnham
Rhonda Miller Williams
(78)
Re. Rich White's (Class of '83) comment that he remembers a biology teacher being killed while he was at RHS, but couldn't remember her name: She was Judy Scott, killed in an avalanche while up skiing or hiking. I don't believe she could've been much older than 30 (if that) or so when she had the accident, but I don't recall for certain. I remember having her for biology my sophomore year (1975-76), when she was a very new teacher. Her youth and enthusiasm for the subject did a lot to get and hold my interest, in spite of it not being one of my "faves," and I remember her fondly.
Another favorite was Mr. LaBreque, who taught the most interesting world history class I ever could've imagined, complete with slides gathered from his own travels, which had taken him literally around the world. I was able to take a trip to Europe immediately following graduation, and found all the guided tours immensely fascinating, all the more so for having just been exposed to a teacher who taught not only the history we were required to learn, but the actual sights, sounds, flavors and colors of the times and places we were studying.
I sang in the Swing Choir all three years of high school, so Ted Baer was an obvious, big influence. He was a thoroughly beloved music teacher, who set high goals and standards for all of us. Besides providing us with a widely varied, challenging array of music to tackle, he also looked for as many performance and competitive opportunities for us as he could manage, sometimes requiring us to travel to various places throughout the Northwest. But best of all, the sense of belonging he imbued in all of us, the bond we felt as a group and the genuine love we had for each other -- that was a direct result of the way he cared for us all. My life and times in the Col High music department were the best part of my high school career.
And of course I shared many of the teachers familiar to us all: Mr. Cole for typing; Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Davis and Ms. Korpi for English; Mr. Haney for history; Mr. Greenough for government (a legend unto himself, if I may say!); Mr. Allen as our drama coach (I was in two plays my soph. year, but chose an after-school job as soon as I was old enough to get one -- couldn't manage all the rehearsal time after that!) and Senor Lujan for Espanol, all three years!
We had some terrific teachers, didn't we folks?!
I don't write in often, so while I'm tripping down memory lane regarding teachers, I'll just include a list of the most memorable teachers from my years at Chief Jo, 1972-1975:
Mrs. Kiel, our terrific homeroom teacher when we were scared little seventh graders, teaching and mothering us as needed.
Mrs. Bishop, who actually stomped a mouse to death during our seventh grade math class -- we NEVER messed with her much after that!!
Ms. Boatman, the PE teacher who scoffed at our alarm at the prospect of actually getting NAKED and showering after every gym class (not to mention those fabulous, blue one-piece monkey suits we gals used to be forced to wear -- I was about 5'7" tall and maybe 100 lbs by 7th/8th grade; let me tell ya, folks, it was a thrice weekly exercise in humility and motification.... Thank God they let us wear our street clothes when we danced in PE!!)
Ms. Boswell, the always smiling, always pleasant English teacher half of our eighth grade homeroom, even when we pushed her to the absolute LIMITS!
Mr. Frank Flynn, the History-teaching half of our eighth grade homeroom, who trained us all to respond to his daily, "Good Morning Class!" with a resounding, loud "GOOD MORNING MR. FLYNNN!!!" (big smiles, say it with attitude class.....!) He also had a police officer come to class to show us the most horrific, gruesome accident victim photos I've ever seen, even to this day. Scary stuff!
Mr. Beeson, my eighth grade math teacher, who tried to teach all us cretons the true magnitude of 1,000,000 by initiating a drive for us to collect A MILLION bottle caps....Anyone else remembering pestering their families, moms in particular, to save, save, SAVE those bottle caps...? We didn't make the million mark, but we did collect an astonishing number of caps, which were dumped and displayed in the glass case across from the auditorium.
Ms. Ford, the groovy, beautiful arts and crafts teacher -- I think the arts and crafts program got quite an influx of boys once she started teaching the subject! I think she's the one who inspired the "blacklight" soc hops we used to have, with the gym decorated with all our blacklight posters from art class, and selected students all painted up and dancing on tables -- completely dark except the the weird, bluish glow of the blacklights -- man, were we cool or what?!
Ms. McLaughlin, our English teacher who conducted a romance with a Richland Police Officer (whom she later married) during the better part of our ninth grade year. He would cruise by in his patrol car and they would make goo-goo eyes at each other out the second floor window of our classroom. (Patty: I think I've seen your name here as a reader/contributor -- did you know some of us actually remembered that....? I remember that we all thought it TERRIBLY romantic....!)
Mr. Schleer, the government teacher, who was prone not only to lecturing his classes on the evils of over-population, but to placing students out in the hall for entire classes if they disagreed or talked back to him. His temper was legendary; he would actually hurl things at students when he really blew his stack, most notably, a stapler!
Mr. Barnard, the algebra teacher: who could ever forget his "Ethiopian critters"...?! Not to mention his practice of deducting points from your test score for any homework not turned in, thus rendering it actually possible to get a NEGATIVE test score! Of course, I only HEARD that; that never happened to me..... nope, I swear!
I remember Herschel Griggs when he was still teaching, though he moved into a Counselor's position during my time there. (Isn't he the principal now? -- not sure!) Henry Yonce was the principal, a friendly, gentle man, who somehow seemed to know all of our names.
And, if you went to Chief Jo in the mid-70's you had the double-threat combination of Mr. Piipo for Health and Mrs. Sherard for Science, which we alternated between on the days we didn't have PE. "Toivo" -- boy, you might've thought about laughing about that name like, maybe, ONCE.... Then, you found out that he was somewhere near the scariest man who ever taught a class, and all thoughts in that direction would vanish immediately! Of course, once you got over your fear of him, you found out that he was a terrific teacher, who just happened to have a most unusual way of conducting his classes, not to mention a really STRANGE sense of humor. Some classics included: While screening a particularly gory film depicting some kind of surgery, warning the front row to, "Get back! The blood's gonna splash outta the screen; splash all over ya! Gonna get blood on your feet if ya don't get back....!" And absolutely skewering quite a few students with his "See that golf ball.....?!" routine. (I won't describe it; you'll remember it well enough if you ever saw him do it!) And handling a student who wouldn't quit talking during class (Mark Bowling, are you out there....?) by plunking an over-sized model of a human ear down on his desk, gruffly saying, "Ya wanna talk? Talk to this!!!" I respected the man, as I think everyone who ever met him probably did, but wow! I was a quiet kid, and he scared the bejeesus out of me!
What can you say about Mrs. Sherard? In the interest of kindness, I won't relate the nickname we gave her here, but she was a never-ending source of amusement to us. She was very much an absent-minded professor, to say the least. Remember how we would have an abbreviated class schedule on assembly days? She would sometimes spend almost an entire (shortened) class, just looking for the piece of paper that listed the adjusted class times. She would spend almost just as long looking for her glasses, which were right on top of her head! (Yes, I know we could have told her, but that's not point!!) By ninth grade, I had figured out that, if we were doing an activity that required us to be up out of our seats, all I had to do is be present for role-call, then I could cut out of class and she would never even notice! None of this intended with any malice -- she's another one I remember fondly. Gotta love 'er!
I won't go any further down memory lane for today, though I could probably come up with an equally long list of memorable grade school teachers from my years at Jefferson (Mr. Myrick and Mr. Nussbaum were a couple of true stand-outs there). I'd love to hear whether anyone shares some of the teacher memories I've listed!
Rhonda (Miller) Williams
Yvonne Jones Taylor
(84) aka Kathy Jones
On the subject of street names - It is the only place I know of where you can stand on the corner of Birch Street and Tinkle... and not get arrested for it!
Yvonne Jones Taylor
Amanda J
"Mandy" Holmes (97)
Subject: Younger generation Bomber
Just thought I'd drop a line to everyone and say that the younger generation does care. That Sandstorm effort was not from my year, but I know all of the people involved in that. We do know what's going on and while things have changed, much remains the same at RHS. I grew up green and gold and while I wear the white and blue of BYU, I still think green and gold every so often. . Amazing what connections alma maters give, though.
Keep the faith, smile, and keep in touch with those you love.
Mandy
