"Life After West High School"

We are an interesting and relational Class and the overall tone of the "stories" in this edition indicate that life after high school has been about education, hardwork, family and friends.

I hope you enjoy reading these stories and that you will email me your stories at rockymtngreens@comcast.net that I will include in upcoming editions. As you will see, the format is simple and you can share as much or as little as you like.

Also, I'm adding a new section to the newsletter/blog entitled "What's New" with our classmates/friends sharing special events like anniversaries, retirement plans/life, travels, births of grandchildren, relocations, etc. I'll remind everyone about this section on our WHS Buddies emails and West HS 1965 Facebook page.  

If you have any ideas for keeping this Newsletter Blog interesting, please let me know.

Blessings and Hugs,

Angie Ford-Green

                                         

Margaret (Maggie) Little

I've never sat and thought to put in words a summary of the years since High School. Many of my memories go back further than WHS.. moving into the new housing tracts in Torrance and waiting for Carl Steele Elementary to open, when I was in 3rd grade, I think. 

So many of us went through grade school and high school together, the memories of Carl Steele paper drives, touch football on the grass in the front of the school, does anyone remember painting murals on butcher paper in the cafeteria and tacking them up? And, the teachers...Ms.Gaston, Mr.Grey, Mr. Petrat and if you had him..who could forget Mr.Vaughn.

The events of WHS, and briefly NHS, are endless and wonderful... and we shared these wonderful times together in a great time, a safe time, and here we are 50 years later catching up on our lives.  

My life has been rewarding. When I realized at 5'2" I'd never qualify for the Police Dept. with 1965 requirements, I chose Nursing instead and stayed with that until 1979. 
I left Nursing and California and made my way to Washington state,where I have been ever since.

I retired after 28 years in our community hospital and am still in love with all things Northwest. I have one daughter and 2 granddaughters, 3 cats, a dog, and a back yard turned into a huge vegetable garden that keeps my life busy and happy!   

50th Anniversary Tahitian Cruise

Donna Lawson-Schmidt

I married Gary Schmidt 2 weeks after high school and we celebrated our 50th Anniversary July 1, 2015. 

In 1967,  I started working for the Social Security Administration (SSA) in Torrance and transferred to Sacramento in 1971. 


In 1977,  I graduated from CSU Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration.  I commuted to Sacramento until an office was opened in Placerville in 1982. In 1989, I also became a self-employed travel consultant.  

In 1995 the Federal government started downsizing and offered an early retirement pension to anyone with at least 25 years of service. I took the opportunity to retire early and travel. I still sell travel,  but it is just a hobby and not a career. Being in the travel business I have had the opportunity to visit many parts of Mexico, but now as I start to slow down I prefer to travel by cruise ship!

From 1971 to 2005 we lived in Northern California - El Dorado County in the country on 5 acres in Shingle Springs and Placerville.  In 2005, we left California and purchased two seasonal houses. During the summer we live in Lakeside, Oregon between Winchester Bay and Coos Bay on the beautiful Oregon Coast. Our winter house is at Del Webb Sun City Festival in Buckeye, Arizona.

Living in El Dorado County for 34 years, we took advantage of being close to water and snow sports and lots of camping in the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains. We traveled in our RV to many of the National Parks and spent lots of time in Arizona and the Oregon coast before we left California.

We lost our son in 2002, but he left us with a precious granddaughter, Nikki, who is now 19 years old definitely spoiled. Our last 5 cruises have been booked around her school schedule so that she can travel with us. We have created wonderful memories from Alaska, Mexico, Tahiti, Western and Southern Caribbean. Now, Nikki is in college so she will be left behind on our next cruise. She has threatened to unfriend me on Facebook so she doesn't have to see the trip that she is missing.

I don't feel like I have changed since high school, I'm just older and wiser. I  never thought I would live this long so I have been working on a bucket list for years! Our first cruise was in 1982 around the Hawaiian Islands during Hurricane Iwa!  The following year the cruise line was looking for passengers on their new ship sailing the Tahitian Islands and off we went and it was love at first sight. Last year we went back to Tahiti for the 5th time to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary.

Europe has been on my list, but I could not get Gary to travel that far on an airplane. He still complains about his 17 hour flight from Viet Nam 50 years ago! This year we worked out a compromise. In April, we are taking a 33 day trans-Atlantic cruise from Houston to Northern Europe and around the British Isles. Now we just have a 10 hour 40 minute flight from London to Phoenix.

I would like to see the East Coast of the United States and then maybe back to Europe. I plan to keep traveling as long as our money and health allows us this pleasure.

Life is a gift and it is a JOY for me to wake up everyday and thank God for another day!
                                                                                                          

                                                                                                      

Dave Harnisch

After High School, I tried one year at El Camino then went into the U.S. Air Force.  In 1969, returned to South Bay, in Redondo Beach 1971-1976, when I was stationed at Space and Missile Systems Organization in El Segundo.

After a 22+ yr career in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a contracting officer in July 1988, I have been a full time Realtor.

My wife, Marti, and I have a daughter, Jill, 45 yrs, and a son, Brian, 41 yrs, and our granddaughter, Rowan, 6 yrs.  

I have lived in Omaha, NE, Thailand, Edwards AFB, CA, Redondo Beach, CA, Chandler, AZ, Ft Walton Beach, FL and Sun Lakes, AZ.

My interests and hobbies include golf, traveling, reading and stained glass. 

I think I was easy to get along with in high school, but my many years in the U.S. Air Force refined that and gave me much more confidence than I ever had before. I've also become much more aware of the importance of having God in my life and letting Him be in charge, and my life has become much easier since I realized that.  

I don't have a bucket list per se'. I've been fortunate to do a lot of cool things during my life. I guess that if I could say there's one more thing that I really want to do is to stick around long enough to watch our wonderful granddaughter, Rowan, grow to be a fantastic young woman.

Marti and our granddaughter, Rowan, are the true joys of my life. Rowan never fails to make us smile. We are so blessed to have her near to us so we get to see her quite often. Other than that, helping people brings me a great deal of joy. Whether it's a personal relationship or a business connection, helping others brings me joy.   

                                                                                                  
                                    

Bob and Angie Ford-Green

As Seniors, Bob and I decided that we would go to El Camino college for a year and get married in June of 1966, so though I didn't have a ring (he couldn't afford it) we were engaged before we graduated. 

The plan was that I would continue to focus on music/drama and Bob would continue in his dad's footsteps in aviation, hopefully as a commercial airline pilot.

My first semester at El Camino was a whirlwind of opportunities that began with my being invited to join a 

16-voice performance group under the direction of a well-known Hollywood choral director; followed by an invitation to audition for the Young Americans, and having a talent scout from the new Andy Williams Show invite me to be a member of the chorus at a starting weekly salary of $350.00- that was a LOT of money then.

My vocal coach paved the way for a career in musical theater; he lined up a New York agent, dancing and drama coaches and he assured me "Your name will be in lights on Broadway before you are 21 years old." What? Was I dreaming? All of this just out of High School? 

Well, the "lights on Broadway" idea didn't sit well with Bob and he made it very clear that he didn't want to be married to a Broadway or Hollywood performer, so he gave me a choice - you guessed it, him or a career in the music/drama industry and it was no contest - I chose a life with him and I've never regretted my decision, but Bob mentioned not too long ago that he was inmature and jealous and that $350.00 per week sure would have come in handy - HA! (I could have hit him)

Bob and I were married on June 10, 1966. Sharon Oglesby, Carol Seefried and Ruth Cassidy were 3 of my bridesmaids and Roni Lunde and Kenny Michael (Class of '64) were 2 of Bob's groomsmen. Mr. Fenn was our guest vocalist and our candlelight ceremony, punch and cake reception was intimate and sweet; we were 18 and 19 years old - - two kids "off to see the world."  

Bob's first job in aviation was as a flight instructor at Torrance Airport. He flew for a tri-city commercial airline and was hired as an Air Traffic Controller with the F.A.A. in May 1971 with a slight detour in August 1981 after participating in an illegal strike with about 11,000 other controllers nationwide and being fired by President Reagan. 

From 1982 to 1997, Bob was a flight dispatcher for Boeing. In 1997, he was rehired and regained his years with the FAA, working again as a Controller at Long Beach Airport until he retired in March of 2007 - a miracle to say the least. We voted for Reagan even after Bob was fired, at least he was a President who did what he said he would do and we respected that about him.

My employment experiences were in marketing/sales, customer relations and university student development administration. I had a head for business and academia and the work was rewarding, but I was fortunate to be able to retire at age 55 and I was definitely ready.

Our greatest blessings and joy in life are our three sons, Eric, David and Kevin (who died of sudden cardiac death in 2002 while surfing); our two beautiful daughters-in-law,Vel and Vonda; and our eight (8) precious grandchildren Joey, Nicole, Brianna, Josslyn, Jayde, Grant, Blake and Kevin. We are expecting our first great-grandchild (a boy - Greyson) this Spring and we are glad that we got married young and started our family early so we can enjoy these "grands" before we hit the nursing home. 

When Bob retired in 2007, we decided to head north to Alaska - well, almost. We relocated to Ft. Collins, CO just 35 miles south of the Wyoming border and sometimes during the winter months, it feels like we moved to Alaska. We are enjoying the four seasons and life here at the base of the Rockies is GOOD and we are happy and at peace here and "NO" - we aren't part of the pothead community.

As we look forward to celebrating our 50th Wedding Anniversary this June, we both say "Where did the years go? And, to God be the Glory for the things He has done!" 
                             

 

Al and Margie at Tony's on the Pier

Al Schriver

I went into the Air Force right after Graduation on July 1, 1965. 

At that time,  I was only 17-1/2 years old and my Mom had to sign a release for me to be able to enlist. 

I was stationed at Kimpo AFB in South Korea and England AFB in Louisiana. 

I married Judy Flaherty in January 1967, and when we returned from the military, we bought our first home near South High in Torrance. We stayed in Torrance until 1976, when we moved to Orange County.

After Linda Langner and I got married after the 20th Class of '65 Reunion, we lived in Santa Ana and then moved to Apple Valley, CA in 1992. 

I have also lived in Agua Dulce, CA and West Hollywood before moving with my wife, Margie Colbert, WA (just outside of Spokane) in 2007. 

I have two sons, Jeff and Chris, who were born in 1969 and 1973. 

I have one 21 year old grandson who is currently a Sophomore at Eastern Washington University studying chemistry.  

Retiring as a Battalion Chief after 38 years with the Los Angeles County Fire Department, I would say that I feel "very, very retired!"   I like to hunt and fish, growing vegetables, cooking, boating and as much traveling as we can do in a year.

I would say that I'm about the same person as I was in high school, because I don't think I have ever grown up, just slowed down a bit with age. I know that I have mellowed, and I am enjoying life much more now because of that change.  

Having an active and exciting life all these years, I don't feel that I have missed out on doing anything that I have wanted to do. My theory was always to do the things I wanted to do before getting too old to enjoy doing them and I guess that I have lived all my fantasies.

My joy these days comes from watching my family grow, spending quiet time with my wife, Margie, and taking road trips. We get together with other fire department retirees four (4) times a year and split time between our country home in Washingtong and our city home in West Hollywood. 

Truthfully, the most joy I have had recently was helping to plan and going to our 50th Class Reunion last August. Seeing so many of our childhood friends and classmates, I never fully appreciated how special all of you were until we all reconnected.  I now look forward to staying in touch with and communicating with everyone on a regular basis, as if it hasn't actually been 50 years since our high school days. 

Gary and Ruth Cassidy-Arneson

There was a waiting list for El Camino's Nursing program, so I went to work downtown LA as a sewing teacher for Singers Sewing Company for a year and the May Company for 6 months until Gary Arneson came home from Viet Nam.

Gary and I were married  February 11, 1967 and we moved to Clarksville, TN and Kentucky for 2 years.  

When we came back from Clarksville, TN and Kentucky, we returned to Torrance and bought a house. I still live in Torrance and I'm missing my man everyday, as we had to say "goodbye for now" in 2014.

I was a Registered Nurse at Harbor UCLS for 25 years, retired now for 6-1/12 years and LOVING it! 

We have 3 daughters and 7 grandchildren.

My hobbies and interests include traveling, crocheting, going out with friends, going to the gym and my newest interest is target shooting.

I think I'm  basically the same person I was in high school with a whole lot more life experience. 

Getting back to church and being with my family is what is bringing me the most joy these days and I take life's opportunities as they come along.  

Jerri Chilcote-Gallup Johnson

After high school, I enrolled in college.  I dabbled in part-time work (Northrop Aircraft: designer trainee, JC Penney's: (illustrator) while pursuing a degree in Fine Arts.   

But, my parents stressed the importance of a career with a guaranteed paycheck, so I made the decision to enter the education field.  I received a BA in English and then spent a 5th year getting my teaching credential.

I married my high school sweetheart (John Cochran) for a short time, but distance (he in Pomona, I in Torrance) created too many hurdles. We grew apart and divorced.

I left Torrance in 1967 and moved close to my college, CSULB. I stayed in Long Beach until I began teaching in 1970.  When my parents retired, I bought their condo near Del Amo Shopping Center and continued to teach in Torrance for 16 years at Madrona Elementary, Grace Wright Elementary and Calle Mayor Middle School.    

I married the love of my life, and left the South Bay for South Orange County. Seal Beach/McGaugh Elementary School hired me, and I became part of an astonishingly talented team.  Initially, I called Newport Beach home, but then moved to Huntington Beach where life could not have been more satisfying.  I am still firmly planted here and plan to live out my life in HB.

When I remarried, I made the best decision of my life.  My husband, Gary, had 2 beautiful children that came as part of the package…a boy and a girl.  Since I was not physically capable of having children, the two kids were welcomed into my life with open arms...a gift from heaven. They are now grown with kids of their own…3 grandkids with another due in June.  

I was a teacher for 34 years.  I taught 3rd grade through 8th grade in various disciplines.  I worked with the gifted as well as remedial students.  I pursued continuing education, including a MBA in curriculum and instruction.  It allowed me to become a media specialist during the last 10 years of my career.

Retirement came at a perfect time for exploring new possibilities…and I have.

Photography became my first post-retirement passion.  I took classes, but in this digital age, I taught myself a lot about photo imaging and processing…the learning curve changes by the second.  I'm crazy about Photoshop and all the wildly creative things you can do with it.  I was never an avid reader when younger, but today I literally devour books, especially historical fiction.  My hubby and I have done plenty of traveling…usually overseas.  Since he taught architectural history, that means I've been on many guided tours. Gotta love it!  We sail our boat and sailing often includes the kids/grandkids, so it's a shared hobby that's being passed down.

It's difficult to remember "myself" back then, but I would have to say I am different.  I'm much more serious now…used to be so lighthearted.  I guess that's to be expected with time and loss.

Gary and I have a tandem bucket list.  We're better at adding things than we are at checking them off.  Travel is always #1.  What is never on the list is anything that involves heights.  "Acrophobia" is our middle name.  

As many of you will probably say, FAMILY = JOY.  The highlight of family is grandchildren…such profound joy.  Smiles, giggles, hugs, nonsensical sentences, imaginary friends, riding a trike…bike, curiosity, friendships, going to school, T-ball…the list is endless.  Every day grandkids are the definition of love.  Whether it's travel, entertainment, or exploration…if I can do it with family it will double the joy.

Susan (Sue) Squillante-Hutchins

After high school, I floundered for awhile trying to figure out who I wanted to be and what I wanted to do. 

I ended up divorced and starting college at age 19. 

I loved learning but was once more unsure of what direction to take. I met an older man, who was working for an airline.  I thought he had "it" all together. We got married. I enjoyed 4 years of traveling with him to many foreign lands and yearly trips to Hawaii before giving birth to two wonderful baby girls in the span of 1 1/2 years. When they were age 5 and 6 1/2, I went back to community college and received a certificate in Travel Agency Training. 

I worked in that industry for almost 10 years until things changed and the need for travel agents fell by the wayside. I then found work in a corporate office as a secretary and company travel planner. Eventually I divorced again. I was single for many years before meeting my husband, Steve. 

We have been happily married for 23 years. I now work for a small business in Torrance and we live in Torrance. 

My Mom is 91 and still living in Torrance. I have been blessed with 4 grandchildren, who are a source of unconditional love and fun. 

I am fortunate to be able to enjoy daily long walks with our dog and my husband.  We enjoy a simple life. We love to take road trips with our dog and have found some wonderful dog friendly places to visit. 

I have several hobbies: painting, various crafts, learning to knit and most of all just enjoying life and all my blessings. 

Sandi and her daughter, Tanya  

Sandi Kenner-Contreras 

This is a short timeline of my life, since leaving high school:

I married at 19 and had twin boys at 20. Got divorced at 21. I worked as a hairdresser for about 7 years, but did not like all the nights and weekend hours. 


At 22 I remarried a man with a 3 year old son so at 22 I had three children under the age of 5, very challenging I must say. 

After 9 years of marriage I got pregnant with my daughter. Needless to say that was my last child. She was born in 1978 and in 1980 my husband and I started a tow company in Redondo Beach, called Redondo Towing. We owned it for 6 years and sold it to move to Las Vegas for two years as our oldest son went to college there. After he graduated from college he decided he did not to stay there so we moved back to Redondo Beach and started a new tow business. I went from being a hairdresser to being an administrative assistant for United Van Lines in Torrance. 

In 1993 my husband was diagnosed with terminal Renal Cell Carcinoma (kidney cancer) where it has had gone from his kidneys and metastasized to his brain. He died almost a year from the time they told him he had cancer, which was Oct. 1994 after being together 27 years. Now the love of my life was gone and thank God I had the four children to help me pick up the pieces of my life. 

My oldest (stepson) is a Battalion Chief for Laguna Niguel Fire Department in Orange County. The twins are in construction where one of them has his own business (Brian Williams Construction Inc.) and builds multi-million dollar custom homes in Hermosa, Manhattan and Redondo Beach areas. My daughter lives in Huntington Beach where she works as a biller/accounting. I have 8 Grand-Children ranging in age from 7 to 28 years old. They keep me busy with going to sports etc. 

My oldest grandson races off road trucks for fun and owns his own demolition company along with his dad called Brian Williams Construction Inc. in Lawndale. We are a very tight knit family and go on vacations together to the river during the summer for fun in the water to the river in the winter to go offroading among other places. 

My parents are still alive,  dad is 91 and mom is 88 and they are still going strong. They live in Washington State so I travel there at least 3 times a year to visit them. This October they will have been married 70 years.....quite a feat I must say. 

I retired from Northrop Grumman in 2014 to work for my son in his construction business office. It is very laid back job and I only work part time, so if I want to travel I can take off anytime I want. It keeps me busy and gets me out of bed in the morning and do any of us ever really retire? I like to stay busy!

I have not found that someone special to share the rest of my life with, but my kids keep me busy. I retired.

                                                                             

Gerald (Jerry) Nelson                      

After high school I went to college, I wasn't in the military and I got married. I have always lived in the South Bay areaand am in a house across from West High School.  

I have two children and four grandchildren.  

I was an aerospace enginner and retired from Boeing in 2004.  

My hobbies and interests include motorcycles, golf, surfing and cruising.  

I think that I haven't changed much since high school, but I know I am a little wiser. 

I had a "bucket list" before I heard the term. Most of the things I could finish I have. One thing I know is that enjoying my grandchildren will never be finished. 

Golf, movies, long trips on my motorcycle, long walks on the beach and watching the girls play volleyball brings me joy these days.   

Rita Hoffman-Houghton

After high school, I became engaged to Bill Houghton. 

He was stationed in Hawaii, so we waited until his tour was finished before we got married. In the meantime, I took a Civil Service job with the DOD as a GS4 Secretary. I worked there until we got married in January of 1967 and then transferred to Camp Pendleton, as a secretary to the base Comptroller.

I moved from the South Bay area in 1967 and back to Redondo Beach in 1968, while Bill was in Viet Nam. We have lived in Oceanside, Carlsbad, San Diego, Stanton, Long Beach, Garden Grove, El Toro, and then we bought a house in Anaheim, where we lived for 4 years. From Anaheim we moved to Arvada, CO, for 2 years, while Bill was on recruiting duty. In 1979, we moved to Lake Elsinore for a year, where we received orders for Okinawa Japan. 

That was the best move we have made. We lived there for 5 years and then came back to California to be stationed in 29 Palms, where we live to this day.

We have 3 daughters – Cassandra 48, Kristine 46, and Anna 45. Our girls gave us 7 wonderful grandchildren – Leo 25, Shoop 23, Zoe 23, Lydia 14, Lily 13, Burgundy 13, and Johnny 9. Zoe made us great-grandparents this past November with Killian Wolf, our first great-grandson.

My profession was mother and wife. For the first 30 years of our marriage, I was a stay-at-home mom. I was very involved in the Girl Scouts, both in the states and in Okinawa. I was the Director of Girl Scouts in Okinawa for 5 years, and really enjoyed working with both American and Japanese Girl Scouts. 

When Bill retired in 1989, I went to work as the Secretary/Bookkeeper for a local Methodist church. That gave me some money and time away from home. While working there, I happened to be asked to work as a data entry person for the local public transportation system, called the Morongo Basin Transit Authority. I said how much does it pay? That’s all it took. They hired me and 16 years later, I retired as their Dispatch/Customer Service Supervisor/Driver. I learned to drive buses, and that was the fun part of my job. It got me out of the office when we were short handed for drivers. I left the job at the church a year after starting at the MBTA.

I retired 2 ½ years ago in order to be with Bill full time. He was having some heart issues, so I was old enough to retire, and did. It was difficult changing from such a disciplined routine of working to not having a schedule any more. I’m finally adjusting.

My hobbies and interests are very eclectic. I love sewing, and have been teaching my granddaughter, Burgundy, how to use patterns and construction. We bowl on a Wednesday morning league with other retired friends; I love gardening and herbals; mosaic art work; photography, traveling and cruising; camping and fishing; hanging out with my grandkids; And last, but not least, cooking. After remodeling my kitchen this last year, I’ve loved doing more cooking than before.

Things are definitely different since I was in high school. I have totally different goals than I did then, I don’t worry about what other people think about me anymore. I’ve lost my two best friends to cancer and heart disease; others have moved away and haven’t really kept in contact. It’s really hard to pin point what the differences are.

A bucked list? Yes and no. I’ve had a few things that I can say I am marking off the list, and one is to go back to Hawaii. I went there once before I got married, but haven’t been since. We’re taking a Hawaiian cruise this November. It will be for 15 days, and we’ll be hitting most of the islands. I do want to do a cross country road trip, maybe next year. One important item on the list is to celebrate our 50^th wedding anniversary in January 2017. I can check off the part about having great-grandchildren, and hopefully seeing my grandkids all graduate from high school. There’s not too many things on my list, probably because I love to just do things as they come, not plan too much. No regrets about the things I can’t do.

The joy in my life comes from being with Bill, waking up every morning and seeing such a beautiful sky out here in the desert, talking to my grandkids, holding little Killian, getting hugs from granddaughter Zoe – Burgundy – Lily and little Johnny and getting phone calls from friends that just want to talk and don’t need anything from me.  

Carol Moschetto-Claus

I spent my time out of high school working for an airline and traveling.  Once l had my children, l moved into management, but was fortunate in being able to meet up with family summers at national parks.  

I am divorced but did something right because I have two lovely daughters.  No grandchildren.

Now it is time for me to turn the page and move on to the next chapter of my life.  It is very sweet of you, Angie, to keep after us to share our stories.  Best wishes to you and your family!

 Mike Stanley 

After high school, I entered college (Cal State Long Beach). Thought I might fizzle out; the 'college night' or whatever that we had as seniors scared the whiz out of me.  Didn't happen: took to college like a duck to water and blossomed there.  Did a spell in the Marines, and married...(drum roll here...) more than once (in the aggregate, over time...).

Left the South Bay area in my second year of college and when I was back in California lived in various parts of the LA area. Moved to Japan (temporarily, I thought) to work in 1979. I'm still here now, and haven't been to the US since 1999.

I have two daughters and one granddaughter.

Ended up using my photographic skills and my Japanese-language ability (learned in college with an academic goal in mind ) to forge a career as a 'feature photojournalist' in Japan. Think of large articles in a National Geographic kind of style: that's what I did for various Japanese publishers. The Japanese economic boom of the 80's was zooming up and up, and the publishing industry here had money to burn. They sent me all over the world on assignment. Sometimes I couldn't believe that I was getting paid to do it. A look at my photographic website ( mejstanley.com ) will give a small idea of what kinds of things I was doing, but what's on the website is only a tiny, tiny fraction of the breadth of the material I shot.

 In the early 90s I was tapped to do documentary videos for the Fuji TV Network (one of the 4 big commercial networks here ), and so expanded in that direction.  19 years ago, a university invited me to teach a couple of classes in 'International Studies'  I thought that would be fun - and a challenge, since I would be lecturing in Japanese.  After 5 years, another, bigger university 'head-hunted' me and I gradually laid aside the cameras, etc., and concentrated on the teaching. Never got 'rich', but it has been interesting and fun...

My interest and hobbies include both framing and finish carpentry, cooking various cuisines (Mediterranean, South and Southeast Asian, Latin American, some traditional American), landscaping and gardening.  Things like photography, scuba, parachute, were all career related, 

so I can't really say they are/were 'hobbies'.

I would say that I'm the same, but different. I grew up, but kept some quirks. At West I was kind of a soft, usually non-assertive type. That changed!

No 'bucket list', am enjoying life and keeping things in balance. My biggest joy is watching my younger daughter grow into a young woman. She'll be 15 in May - high school age.

What is a challenge is the fact that she is going through everything here in Japan, and despite my long time here and my fluency in the language, etc., I am still, and will always be an 'outsider.'

                                                                                                 
                               

Linda Auge-Clerke

Not a lot of exciting things have happened with me since West High.  I married, had two children, moved to the San Francisco area, where we lived for 12 years.  The marriage did not make it, but I did reconnect with my first love from 5th Grade, Bill Clerke. We ended up marrying and moving to Florida, where we have been since then. We now live in Port St. Lucie, which is about 50 miles north of West Palm Beach.  

We have both retired, and since my 95 year-old father and both of Bill's parents, both 90, live near, we help care for them. Not an exciting life, but we are happy and glad to still have them around.  

I was not able to attend the reunion, however I do keep in touch with a few of my old friends.  

I did not respond to Angie's request for information about life after high school at first, because, frankly, not that much goes on here. I do enjoy hearing from those of you who do keep in touch and reading the blog.  Angie  puts a lot of effort in it, and I'm sure everyone appreciates it, as I do! 

                                                                                                                            

Becky St. John-Helin

After high school I married Phil Fish.  Soon after we were married, he went to Viet Nam...not good.  After he came home, I got pregnant with our son (also named Phil Fish).  We were divorced a few years later.

I lived in West Covina for about a year, then back to Redondo Beach and I left the South Bay area early in 1979 after marrying Bill Helin  02/18/79. Bill went to work for the Boeing Company and they moved us to Renton, WA. and we moved to Renton, WA.  Bill went to work for the Boeing Company and they moved us up here.

 I have a son and Bill has a son and daughter......so "we" have 3 children and 8 grandchildren.

I was a secretary most of my career.  After I retired from Boeing, I went to work for a holistic vet for 7 years and loved being around all the animals (cats & dogs). Now I am retired.

My hobbies and interests include cross stitch, but after we got our 2 puppies I couldn't concentrate on it.....LOL and I've always loved reading

When Angie asked the question "Are you the same or different" I found that a difficult question.  Hopefully, I'm much different than I was in high school. I attribute it to Bill!  I grew up being told I couldn't do anything right and then I married Bill and he's always told me I could do anything I wanted to!  Must admit, it's been a long process.

Because of my limited mobility I can't do a lot of things I used to do.  These days we're looking forward to moving up to Anacortes in the future.  

What brings me joy is being with my best friend, our grandkids, friends, our dogs and acquiring Gold and helping others do the same. 

Alejandra (Alex) Kostuch

I hesitated to write my life after High School memoir for several reasons, one

I am a terrible speller and two I thought my life was not that interesting.

Once I was homeless, living in a VW bug {ok it was only 10 days} too embarrassed

to tell my parents. A friend and I took out the front seat and with plywood built a bed &

storage. I even arranged pictures on the headliner.  Guess I was destined for interior design.

           

 I attended Long Beach State College {university now} and worked for the Physics

department. I met my life partner, George, in February of 1966 in a Psychology class.  

He was the professor.  He was cute, smart and 50% older than me, now he's only 9%

older than me and still cute and smart.

        

We have a daughter Yasmine that lives in Pasadena with her husband Todd and

2  boys Aiden(8) and Grayson(4).  Our son TG, yep just 2 capital letters, is living in

Manhattan with his fiancee, Laura. He graduated from Duke Law on Mothers's Day,

and passed the New York Bar this summer. And yes I am a proud mom.

         

In the spring of '69 I dropped out of school to go on a 5 month trek from Istanbul

 to Morocco with 4 friends.   I tried a couple of times to go back and finish my degree

 but life got in the way.

                

While in school I made hand crafted jewelry and sold it at fairs and small shops

in beach communities from Manhattan Beach to Laguna.  I also painted  (houses not

pictures), so I continued that. Eventually we had nine employees. Occasionally we had

jobs that included the need for hanging wallpaper. So I became the in-house paperhanger,

that led me to  interior design. Witch led to working for realtors that needed

homes staged for sales and that led to buying some houses and condos.  Now I am in

property management for the properties we still own and a few others. We make it a point

to rent 10% our units to individuals with disabilities or difficult life situations.

            

Still enjoy travel, but the main reasons now are family or business. We took a Family

 Vacation in 2009 with Yasmine, Todd, TG, and Aiden to Paris and Spain. Everyone having

 3 weeks free at the same time will never happen again. It was a great adventure!

  Hint: Don't take the night train from Paris to Madrid, it's not as romantic as it looks in

old movies.

             

I was a vegetarian for over 15 years. I have not had any major health problems untill

4 years ago when my SUV was hit by a drunk driver while at a stop sign 5 blocks from

my home at 2:30 on a Saturday afternoon, and I sustained a knee injury.

            

My life did not go where I thought it would.  There is still an appreciation of music,

 both old and new, a little bit of hippy, and a little bit of surfer in me. 

        

We live in the greatest nation in the world, we missed WWII, we have computers

in our pockets, LED's in our homes, and no polio. Moving from Senior to Senior Citizen

has been a great trip and I am glad to of taken it in this time and space.

  

               

Elke Henry-Noetzel (Class of '66)

Here is my take on my life since high school; don't expect much and it's quick and boring. 

After graduation, as most of you know, I was born in Germany, so I returned to the "Motherland" to visit family and my real Father Adolph, you never knew I was part of the 3rd Reich did ya! Well anyway I stayed A REALLY LONG TIME came back to the US married to a German sailor, didn't last long, got divorced went to El Camino college like pretty much everyone else. 

I became a flight attendant for American Airlines, lived in Manhattan, New York, what a wild time that was. During a visit home in 1970, Carma Jefferies-Jackson set me up with a blind date (my first and last) with her husband at the time who was on the LAPD with his partner and he stood me up, can you even believe it. Well for the men who are reading this it was a bird in the hand and he happened to have a jewel. So back to the tale, he called me the next day to apologize and asked me to dinner I figured that it was a free meal and I could be really nice and make him feel really bad or I could be a turd that would be the end of it and back to New York I go anyway. 

He showed up, was really good looking, 6'5, had a hot car, brought flowers, kissed like no tomorrow and so a month later we were married, which will be 46 years ago come this May. Ray is the most amazing man even though he did run over me with car after I was thrown out of it and down a 50 ft embankment on the 91 Frwy on my 22nd birthday.  And, he continues to take excellent care of me after me 2 brain aneurysm surgeries and my 3rd active one that is a nagging headache for us both LOL. He is my rock, my best friend and I love him more each and every day. 

We have one daughter, lost a son shortly after birth. Our daughter Tiffany,  is an ER nurse with her BSN getting her masters May 7th and her NP (nurse Practitioner) in August; she is an awesome daughter and a truly amazing single mom who works too hard,  but strives for the best for her children and achieves it. We could not be any prouder of her. 

We have an 18 yr old grandson, Alex, attending ASU on a 4 year scholarship and a 15 yr old granddaughter, Mega, who is a sophomore in high school who wants to be a surgeon.

I worked for Digital Equipment Corporation DEC in Orange County and collect a retirement from them via HP as they were bought by HP by the time I started collecting. I then worked for CSUSB (Cal State San Bernardino) I was the system manager, set up and ran their ATT UNIX system for the campus that covered the ID card, library card, gym, dorm, book store, cafeteria, etc. didn't know I was a techie did you? 

I retired in 2001 from Cal State. Ray and I sold our house put everything in storage took off and traveled the US for a year,  a trip of a lifetime. During this time,  911 hit and we were at the World Trade Center weeks afterwards it was still on fire and they had not blocked it from the public yet we were able to get right up close and personal; we have unbelievable photos. I can't begin to tell you the emotions we went through just standing there and watching; the anger, the tears, hurt, the pain and sorrow we were feeling all at once. Something I hope and pray never to experience again.

After our trip we ended up in Tigard, Oregon and I wasn't ready to be retired and because Nike's world headquarters was based 8 miles from where we just bought a house I decided I was going go to work for Nike. So I did, I got a job working for men's athletic Training Nike Pro (how many of you know that I am a portrait and landscape artist as well as a graphic artist?). Loved my time at Nike, their campus is awesome it's 350 acres of forest with a 10 acre lake in the center, 3 restaurants on campus for the employees for breakfast and lunch, 2, 3 story gyms with indoor pools 4 soccer fields, running trails through the forest that is lit at night on and on and on they even give you time during work to work out. Worked remotely, when wemoved to AZ and then retired from Nike when I turned 65. There's more but I've bored you enough.
  

  

Bob & Violet Lenahan-Williams  (Classes of '64/'66)

Right after High School my mom drove me to Pacific Telephone & said 'go in & get a job,' really?  ugh...so I did, loved it, bought a '62 Chevy Impala. 

Meanwhile, Bob Williams (Class of '66) worked at US Steel & then McDonnell Douglas, joined the Army & went to Viet Nam! 

Chapter 2 ..... We got married raised 3 beautiful daughters & 1 son, who sadly passed away in 2008. However, we're blessed with fantastic sons-in-law.

We lived in Southern California until 1991.  After vacationing a couple of summers at Bass Lake with our family, fell in love with the area & moved to Coarsegold Ca., where we still reside!

While pursuing a career in law enforcement & working at the DA's office for 25+ years, Bob received a degree from Pepperdine University.  He's enjoying retirement & currently writing another book!  

As for me I worked for Sitmar Cruises (currently Princess cruises), a Dr's office & a publishing company.  Although my very favorite job was being a mom❤️

While the kids were growing up they were all involved in sports, piano etc. We were always going on road trips, camping, boating. fishing & all of the above! 

We have 4 grandsons & 1 granddaughter, just can't get enough of them, just love them to bits! 

Speaking of bits, after replacing wornout body parts lol....we're ready to Boogie, well maybe in a slower mode!!  Looking forward to many 'Grrrreat' times in the future with our classmates from the best school ever-West High!  Thanks to Angie for all the hard work & perseverance in putting together such an awesome reunion!  Bob & I had a "blast from the past," THE reunion of a lifetime!  I only wish I could have sat & chatted with everyone of you, but we just ran out of time having way too much fun on the dance floor!  

Bob and I love to travel, spending time at the beach (usually Shell Beach,Pismo) and Palm Springs & Rancho Mirage.  Life has altered our plans to travel as much as we would have liked the past few years, but we're getting ready for the launch!  

Love to you all & looking forward to meeting up with everyone again soon.  Sorry we missed the Balloon Festival in Lake Havasu, heard it was lots of fun!!  Hope you all are planning to go to the Class of '66' 50th Reunion June 13th at the Pachanga Casino in Temecula, Ca.  

                                                               

Our 50th Wedding Anniversary  

Linda Elliott-Cloer (Class of '64)

Bob and I met in Sept 1964. My friend Sharon Dohrman forced me to meet him. I didn’t want to because she had mentioned he had been married, divorced and had a son. She was dating his roommate, Mason Wolpert, and they lived in the same apartment building as Sharon’s sister.

So, one day we were bleaching my hair, it was wrapped in a towel and we drove to her sister’s house and there was Bob standing in the doorway of a neighbor, so Sharon said "let me introduce you." I said "NO!" She said I am driving and if you don’t I won’t take you back and your hair will fall out. so...I said "OK."

We met, he asked me out, I said, "No thank you"and she held up her keys and gave me a look. Of course I said yes and  the  following June, we were married.

After Bob left the military, we moved to Orange county, lived in Santa Ana for a short while before moving to Orange where we stayed until his retirement from the Santa Ana Fire Dept.

We had two boys and with his first son that gave us three (Bob Jr, Ron and David). 
They gave us 7 grandchildren.

After Bob's retirement 13 years ago, we moved to Lake Havasu City. We celebrated our 50th anniversary last year. We have a happy, busy retired life. - Linda Elliott-Cloer Class of '64

Dianna Jurco-Nyhus (Class of '64)  

I worked during High School at a great family business in LA and after graduation I attended El Camino for one semester and worked for Mattel and a temp agency until 1969. 

On November 30, 1968, I married Jim, a guy from Banning High School. We both worked for NCR, then Jim took a job with the FAA as an Air Traffic Controller;he received his training  in the Air Force. I have always loved babies, so I did newborn child care until Jim retired in 2006 from the FAA.

We had identical twin boys on March 17, 1971 and we had a sweet baby girl March 1, 1975.

We lived in Torrance until January 1972, when we moved to Huntington Beach, staying in that house for a year, then moved into our second home in 1973. 

After our children were born, I was a lucky girl to be able to be a stay-at-home Mom. 

We moved into a bigger house in 1979, raised our kids in a great neighborhood, local schools and a great high school. All 3 of our kids went to local colleges, graduated, got jobs, married. We have 2 grandkids, a cat and a happy  life.

We have traveled all over the United States, cruising, flying or by car. 

We have friends still living in Torrance. We visit often. I have kept my long time friendships with a few of our classmates - some from grade school at Carl Steele Elementary and I loved reconnecting with the class of 1965 at West this past summer. That reunion brought  back a lot of great memories. Thanks again Angie and your committee for a great time. Hope to see you all again, soon. Love to you all! ❤️ 
                                         

Rita Scott-Clark (Class of '67) & Tim Clark (Class of '66)

I left the South Bay my Senior year and I went to junior college in Maryland then married Tim Clark.Tim was in the Air Force and we were stationed at Cannon AFB in Clovic, NM. We moved back to the South Bay for two years then we moved to Phoenix, AZ, because the South Bay was just too crowded for us. We now live in Surprise, Az. 

We have two boys and a girl, three grandsons and three granddaughters.

I worked as a secretary and then had a career as a massage therapist. I am retired and loving it! 

I got into genealogy after our kids were out of school and am still at it. So you may refer to me as a "Princess" without malice, as I have found my roots.  I love to garden and of course doing massage therapy.  I enjoy reading when it is too "d...m hot" outside.

I was shy, yet opinionated . . . I'm not shy now and have discerning views. LOL!

I wish I had the energy for a "bucket list." Grandchildren bring me joy and the "joy of my life" got old - thank goodness for grandchildren hahahahahaha - but, yeah I still the "old" guy, no one else would.  I'm amusing myself . . . everyone loves Tim.  
  
"I hoped to hear from Tim and his brother, Dan Clark, sharing something of their stories with but with no success - maybe another time - with moutaches like their's I'm sure their lives after high school have been very interesting - maybe another time, guys? - Angie  

                                                                                         

. . .  in the lives of our Class of '65 and Friends?

Sharon Oglesby-Rainieri and her husband, Tony, retired and have moved from San Jose, CA to Shadow Hills, an active 55+ neighborhood in Indio (on the border of Palm Desert). After 30+ years owning and operating their own roofing company in San Jose, CA, this active, fun-loving couple decided to have a house built in the desert, bringing Sharon back to So CA where she prefers warm and even HOT weather and they can be closer to their daughter and one of their sons.

Palm Springs should be a great retirement location for them to enjoy year-round warmth and sunshine, golf and their new pool, jacuzzi and fire pit in their backyard that butts up to a beautiful golfcourse with mountain views.

Recently hosting a wine party for their new neighbors, Sharon says that they have "really good neighbors" and they are looking forward to getting involved in neighborhood events, which reads like a cruise activity calendar.

Tony is especially happy about his golf cart parked in his well-equipped and "spotless" garage that also includes a very impressive wine cellar - he's Italian afterall!

Angie and Bob Green have plans to visit their "buddies," beginning this March and other times throughout the year, especially during the cold winter months in Colorado. While Angie and Bob are there for a visit they'll all get today with Al and Margie Schriver and Paul Canon and his wife, too.

Sharon and Tony are living the "good life" and she says that she has to "pinch" herself and feels like they are living at a Resort and are on a constant vacation!

Tim and Judy Perry-Speaks

"Well, we're still kickin' . . .  guess that's 'life after high school" at it's finest - HA! I officially retired recently after caring for a special needs boy for 13 years; now it will just be seeing him for fun and to remain close to family, but it was time for me to quit as far as working/responsiblity. 

Tim and I spent our 48th anniversary in Hawaii in September 2015.  It was my first time there, so quite exciting.  Tim had been there more than once during his time in the Air force Reserves, but this time it was pleasure not work.  It was also special because we were with Tim's 'siblings'...all of them:   Janet, Debbie, (her husband Dave Ciscel) , and Claudia.

We recently met Gary and Donna Lawson-Schmidt while they were in Buckeye, Az - it was fun to reconnect before they head for their Oregon home in April."  

Rita Hoffman-Houghton

We had our first great-grandson on November 17^th. He was born on his great Aunts birthday, that’s our youngest daughter, and she was totally thrilled. His name is Killian Wolf McAvenia – now that’s a mouth full. I’m so happy that my granddaughter, Zoe. lives so close, I get to see that little guy a lot. 

Also, I have to say, trying to keep up with3 teen granddaughters, Lydia 14, Lily and Burgundy 13, is quite a challenge. Ever try driving for 10 hours with three of them in the car? I did, and it took me a week to recuperate from the constant laughing, chatter, and music. But it was fun.

Next month, when the kids are out of school on their Spring break, we’re taking our two youngest grandkids, Burgundy and Johnny, up to Healdsburg on the Russian River for a week. Our eldest daughter, Cassandra, lives there and she’s wanted all the kids to come up for the week. It’s probably going to be rainy, which is a good thing for them, but it’ll be fun.

Then, in November, we’re heading to Hawaii the long way. We have a 15-day cruise booked, and I’m really looking forward to just relaxing at sea. We’re going as an early 50^th Wedding anniversary present to ourselves. My sister Jan and friends that we made on one of our Panama Canal cruises are also going. Our friends live in Tampa, so they will be flying in for this. We’re excited about seeing them again.

Not much else is happening. Just busy doing small renovations on the house, replacing flooring a room at a time, stuff like that.

Ruth Cassidy-Arneson

I'm going to take a few vacation's this year. Going to Sanibel Island, Florida with friends. 

Also, I will be going to Annapolis, Maryland, New York and New Jersey to see my cousins. Hoping to get in a few shows in New York and a lot of shopping. After that who knows what opportunities will arise. In between the longer trips I go to San Diego and Fallbrook about once a month for a few days  to see the kids and youngest grandkids down there. Saving a few big trips for next year.

Mark Neibel (Class of '66)

This Fall, I purchased another motorhome (2001 Minnie Winnie).  I have been working on it a lot getting it super safe to travel in. 

A Special Opportunity for us to make a difference in the life story of Carma Jeffries-Jackson's daughter, Roseanna . . . 

Roseanna Henwood

Roseanna and son, Andrew (he is now 13 yrs old)

As we are looking back and reflecting on our "life stories," it is with a  heavy heart that I share that Carma Jeffries-Jackson's (Class of '66)  daughter, Roseanna, was recently diagnosed and is being treated for a rare, irratic and very aggressive type of breast cancer. 

There has been an outpouring and show of love, concern and support for Carma and her daughter that comforts and strengthens them, but the medical bills are beyond anything we can imagine, as she must have a double mastectomy and post-surgical chemo and radiation treatments that Obama-Care will not pay for - no surprise.

If you would like to help, below is information of how you can help to eleveate the stress that financial hardship will impact this courageous young woman. Also, your prayers for healing and peace are greatly appreciated.  Let's show our support on behalf of Carma and her beautiful daughter, Roseanna.  Let's Go Warriors!   

"My name is Carma and Roseanna Henwood is my daughter. On January 25 she was diagnosed with a rare and very aggressive breast cancer called HER2. This cancer gene tells breast cells to make too many HER2 receptors which in turn makes cells grow and divide in an uncontrolled way, these cells tend to grow faster and are more likely to spread and come back.

After a mammogram and a Core Needle Biopsy, it was determined that the tumor was a 2.2cm mass. An MRI was ordered and in only ONE WEEK the mass had grown to 3.5cm with a 9cm stretch of cancerous cells spread throughout her breast.

A PET Scan was ordered to see if the cancer had spread to any other parts of her body. Insurance paid a portion of the scan, but with her deductible neither Roseanna or I were able to pay the initial payment for the scan; one of her best friends stepped up to the plate and paid the first payment for her. The co-pays, deductibles, out-of-pocket costs, and time off of work make this an impossible situation. Roseanna is facing upwards of $100,000 in medical bills. The amount is staggering. To date over $6,000 in donations have been raised. When Roseanna was first diagnosed with cancer she said "I can't afford to have cancer," and she clearly can't. The financial drain on an already over extended income has taken both a physical and emotional toll on her.

Roseanna is a devoted single mother to her son Andrew, who is having a very difficult time coming to terms with his mother's illness. Family and friends have taken it upon themselves to try to help Andrew cope and understand why he is angry, sad and scared. This coupled with the additional financial stress are almost more than Roseanna can bear. 

Roseanna has had a double-mastectomy and the beginnings of reconstructive surgery. She will be undergoing chemotherapy treatments and applicable prescriptions and medications and testing that will continue until she is cancer free. She has already hit the bottom of the barrel financially, and is facing financial ruin and she will have to continue working full-time during the year-long treatments, etc.

Please, if you can find it in your heart to donate to help Roseanna through this very difficult time it would be very much appreciated. ANYTHING you can spare will help. 

Prayers are also very much appreciated. If you would like to follow Roseanna's journey, you can go to www.CaringBridge/visitredlipssociety.com.

www.CaringBridge.org/visit/theredlipscampaign.com

Also, in solidarity, rather than 

shaving heads, family and 

friends have pledged to wear 

red lipstick througout her 

treatment. Roseanna is known 

for her red lips and she has 

said wearing them is 

something that makes her feel 

good and powerful."