5/18/02
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PHS Alumni On-Line
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May 18, 2002
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5 Bulldogs and an editorial note today:
Clyde "Henry" Janes (57)
Richard Holt (58)
Dennis Cresswell (58)
Janice Woods Ehrke (60)
Marcia Myers (63)
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** Editorial Note
I've added a new Alumni List page to the web site. It has a list of all active subscribers, meaning those for whom I have a good e-mail address. It also shows class year and where folks currently live. The list is sorted by class year, then by class name. If the class "year" or the "living in" column is blank it means I don't have that information in my database. If you want that info listed please send it to PHS Alumni On-Line.
If you take a look you'll see that we've grown a bit! - Paul
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From: Clyde "Henry" Janes (57)
Greetings to all. Thank you for your efforts in creating this site. I am enjoying hearing of some old friends and acquaintances.
Please add me to your list. I am Clyde Janes (57). Let me relate one of my experiences while at PHS. I was member of the baseball team. Tom Sullivan taught US history and coached baseball. We usually traveled alone, but one occasion we took a joint bus ride with the tennis team to Hermiston, Oregon. On the ride back to Pasco some of us thought it "manly" to harass the male tennis players, denying them seats and generally acting the horses ass. The bus was midway between Wallula and Umatilla when suddenly the bus pulled over to the side of the road. Mr. Sullivan (who was seated next to Mr. Gregson...the Vice Principal AND the Tennis coach) came to the back of the bus and said rather firmly, "you, you and you" (Clyde Janes, Keith Adkins and Roger Hastings) "GET OFF THE BUS." We were quite literally out in the middle of nowhere. We initially figured he was just making a grandstand play and would surely let us back on. Wrong! Off drives the bus, leaving us abandoned by the side of the road.
We stuck out our thumbs and, as luck would have it, first car that comes by pulls over. The driver turned out to be one of our classmates. It was Craig Beesack. Craig was later killed in a car accident. Rolling down the highway, we urged Craig on, "faster, faster!" We were set on catching and passing the bus. But, we arrived at the underpass without ever seeing the bus. Craig went racing through the neighborhoods and dropped us off at the school. We sat on the curb, elbows on knees, chins in our hands as the bus rolled into the parking lot.
We went to lunch a couple of years ago and had a good laugh and reminisce with old Tom. Told him we were gonna sue him for all he was worth but he assured us that the statute of limitations had long since passed. Memories. Tom did say that he was never so glad to see anyone in his life as the three of us "safely" back at our home base.
I am currently managing a rare book library for the state of California. It is the Sutro Library located in San Francisco. In addition to the rare book collection, the Sutro has a substantial genealogy/Family History collection. Still can't figure out how I got here. I barely made it out of high school. But, life is good. Expect to hang it up and find a rocking chair (and read San all those books I failed to finish in high school.)
I would welcome hearing from any former classmates.
Clyde "Henry" Janes (57)
Francisco, CA
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From: Dennis Cresswell (58)
Since everybody's sharing memories of Mr. Gregson, here's my story. My family was in the egg business, and my brothers and I would sometimes put aside a few eggs to get really rotten before Halloween. On Halloween one year I took the flatbed truck from our farm and had a hayride for a few friends. Some of the rotten eggs went with us. Mr. Gregson always stood outside his house on Halloween to prevent pranks, so I drove past his house and some of the guys in the back pelted him with the rotten eggs. He brought up the subject of he passing truck the next day at school, and I tried to play dumb -- but somehow he knew whose truck it was. There was no punishment, but he wanted me to know I didn't really get away with it.
By the way, Mr. Gregson came to our reunion in 1998 at Willie Evans' Towne Crier tavern in Richland. He was brought in by his fulltime caregiver in a wheelchair. He talked a lot, but in a very low voice, and it was hard to understand him. He died not long after that.
I, too, have fond memories of the Tailor Maid. To this day I like my burgers with a little chopped onion -- not a slice -- the way they served them there (for 25 cents). But how many of you remember that it was a Dairy Queen before it was the Tailor Maid? Now it's a convenience store and the school is the Pasco City Hall (nicely restored, incidentally).
I remember the Sweet Shop, too, next to the Liberty Theater. And another restaurant I remember was the Kingfish Club in east Pasco. We went there for the barbecued ribs, and the waitresses were really cordial to us preppie white kids from the other side of the tracks. The old Top Hat downtown, where we took our prom dates in those days because it was one of the few nice restaurants, became really seedy in its final years and is now closed. And who can forget the old A&W Root Beer, which was at the north end of the "cruise" strip? The cruising loop was on Lewis and Fourth Streets, out Fourth to Court Street for a turnaround at the A&W, and back downtown again.
Dennis Cresswell (58)
Pasco, WA
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From: Richard Holt (58)
As the first Chieftain of the Tri-Cities Scottish Highland Games 2002 at TRAC, I welcome the class 58 to have their 45th reunion at our 2003 Games in May of next year. Scotland will be represented at CBC on Race Unity Day on 18 May come visit my booth.
Sincerely,
Richard Holt (58)
Pasco, WA
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From: Janice Woods Ehrke (60)
To Sheldon Spadafore:
Yes, I know your brother Bud, was my first love. When my young husband passed away in 1963, Bud was one of the first people I heard from and hope I can still call him a good friend. Some years later, on a cruise docked in Puerto Rico, saw Bud and wife debarking from a sister ship. Great Fun! I remember you and Neville, don't recall the littler kids tho. Heard you lost your Dad, so sorry. Hope your Mom is still truckin. She is a swell lady. See Judy (Geil) Bughy couple times a year, remember when she was in college, didn't she room in your basement?
To Pat Allman:
So exciting to see your entry, you probably don't remember me cause I was in Marie's class, but we were neighbors. What's happened to Sammy? Hope he's still around, is he on-line? Weren't you in my brother's class, (`59 Ken Woods)?
Re Teachers:
Anyone remember Mrs. Gustafson, Home Ec? What a capital lady! Even tho my domestic skills haven't improved much over the years, I still wash the silver and the glasses first because they are the dishes that touch the mouth. Also, Mrs. Fredrickson, 4th grade?, Longfellow. Tiny little, frail woman. Ruled with some well placed tears when the little tykes got to be too much for her. The day Cecil Johnson (Longfellow Playground "Bully") shot me in the eyes with a water pistol filled with perfume was a real "watershed." I had to go home to Mom and I think she went home too!
Re Burgers:
Taylor Maid, No. 1, but that place out under the underpass had pretty decent ones too! Can't remember the name of that drive-in tho, parking lot was always full of hot cars. Roy Thorpe, ` Chev; Byron Fink, Edsel; George Ling, Ford? … you see I have retained the years of those cars just about as well as I retained Algebra from Mr. Gower, wasn't it?
[Might you be thinking of Jumbo's Drive-In on East Lewis Street? - Paul]
Ask Eddy Triebwasser about snow skiing behind a vehicle out on those country roads. Think he might have spent some ER time with that endeavor.
Enough for today … Paul, thanks for putting this together, really enjoy reading everyone's comments.
Janice Woods Ehrke (60)
Woodland, CA
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From: Marcia Myers (63)
Hey You Guys!
To Sherry Brickey Pond:
I was going to respond to a few of these back when you said you still like to entertain the crowds, and quote a few lines from our former Theta Rho number, "Ballin' the Jack," "First you put your two feet close up tight, then you swing `em to the left, and you swing `em to the right." No longer have that snazzy black showgirl costume with the big red bow but I'll bet I could pull something together if necessary!
Yes, my sister Sally Myers, has been in Kennewick for the past year but is just getting ready to make her 40th move in 40 years, to southern California. They would be there now but have been delayed.
The two younger Struthers boys are still in the Tri-Cities. Dale and his wife Debbie live in Pasco and Toby and his wife Lynn live in Kennewick. Terry and his wife live in Reno-Sparks area.
Glad you are online with us Dawgs and am enjoying all the chat!
Marcia Myers (63)
Vancouver, WA
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