15 minute read
ALUM & I
We were known then to other schools in New Orleans, Louisiana, as the Washington Lions. We began to celebrate class reunions twenty years after graduating. Our first reunion was celebrated with a meet and greet, dinner at a local restaurant, picnic at Audubon Park and Zoo, a church service and our first cruise. This has been the agenda that we’ve followed for all of our class reunions since.
We have sailed to many places on our cruises: the Eastern and Western Caribbean, Hawaiian Islands, and The Inside and Outside Passages of Alaska. We have sailed on many cruise lines including Princess, Norwegian, Carnival and most recently, MSC Cruises. Our class has been fortunate to have a great travel agent in Darlene Thomas of Thomas Travel and Cruise, wife of classmate Reginald Thomas.
We’ve had shirts made that showed where we traveled on our reunion trips. In addition, we’ve used some interesting mottos on the shirts such as “Cruising into the New Millennium” and “Striving for Excellence Past, Present and Future.” Attendees have received mementoes in a class bag with the year and number of the class reunion at each reunion gathering. Our school colors are red and white and our mascot is a lion. Our shirts are proudly worn at reunions or when requested by classmates’ families at their funerals.
After our first reunion, we formed a small group known as the steering committee which meets each year at the home of Anita and William Crawford during the Christmas holidays to discuss what is going on with classmates, their kids and grandkids. This event is called BTW Dinner Night and has been held for more than 35 years. This year our beloved chairperson of more than 50 years, Eugenia W. Chambers, died. The class was blessed to have someone with her dedication and love for her high school classmates. Class reunions were her dream and she made all the hard work look easy. To say that we’ll miss her is an understatement. To honor her dedicated service, she’ll be remembered on the t-shirts this year. Reported by Anita W. Crawford, New Orleans, Louisiana.
The Booker T. Washington High School Class of 1960 makes t-shirts in red and white school colors with their mascot, a lion.
50th anniversary reunion of Orange Bowl high school band
Recently, the Phillipsburg, Kansas, community, honored the 1970-1971 Phillipsburg marching band with a public event at Fort Bissell Museum. The 128-member band performed in the 1970 New Year’s Eve Orange Bowl Parade in Miami, Florida! The reunion event was organized by former members of the “Orange Bowl Band” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of their performance.
Event MC, Tadd Felts (left), was a local radio announcer who traveled with the band and Dave Elliott, who initiated the reunion and gathered names of the band members, came up with weekend agenda and planned from beginning to end.
Tad Felts and Cynthia Horner Clonch, a band member who gathered memorabilia for the memory table.
The reunion, emceed by Tad Felts, featured refreshments, memorabilia from the era, and shared memories by alumni. The 2020 and 2021 Fort Bissell Wall of Fame awards were presented to the band honoring their Orange Bowl achievement and for building the sod house at Fort Bissell as a fundraising project.
The band’s Orange Bowl audition tape was recorded
and submitted in spring 1969. Once Phillipsburg was invited to play in the Orange Bowl, months of rehearsing and fundraising preceded the trip.
GETTING IN SHAPE
The band’s director, Jerry Rehfuss, was only in his second year teaching band in Phillipsburg. He took over a seasoned band and lifted them to new heights, which required countless days of early-morning marching and performing.
“We didn’t just march; we had special moves, high steps, and all kinds of things,” Paula Schilowsky, a junior clarinet player that year, remembers. “We practiced a lot. We would get up very early and march before school. We marched the streets of town constantly. People were out watching us after it became a routine.”
Peggy King, a senior whose husband, Howard, was also in the band, played alto saxophone. Peggy said the band played many events for conditioning the summer prior to the Orange Bowl in preparation for the 7-mile parade route. “It made no difference what the weather was; we were out there marching. When other towns had parades we went to them. It didn’t matter how small the town. If it had a parade we went and marched in it, to build up our endurance.” Practice paid off. “We were good and we played songs that were tough.”
HUGE FUNDRAISING UNDERTAKEN
Rehfuss estimated between $15,000 and $20,000 would need to be raised for the trip and a goal of $20,000 was set ($137,000 in 2021 money). The entire community pitched in with enthusiasm, holding a multitude of fundraisers to help the band reach its goal. Civic groups sponsored countless events: bake sales, a continuous garage sale, an “old timers” baseball game, an ice cream social, dances, performances, and raffles. Coin receptacles for donations were placed near cash registers at businesses around town.
About $9,000 was raised by students performing nearly every kind of odd job: mowing lawns, washing cars, cleaning houses, painting houses, clerking in stores, babysitting and even selling hand-painted oranges, capitalizing on the Orange Bowl theme. Around $7,000 was donated by businessmen, townspeople and merchants. Committees of community members were formed to manage the fundraising efforts, including a business soliciting committee for commercial fundraising and a residential soliciting committee for general community fundraising. A Ford Maverick was donated to the effort by Leonard Ford Motors and raffle tickets were sold. Ironically, the winner of the car was band member Julia Lunberry. In the end, the band exceeded its goal, raising $23,000. About half of the funds covered the round trip cost of chartering the TWA Boeing 707 to transport the band and its sponsors to Miami and back.
MIAMI BOUND
The band departed Phillipsburg by bus on December 29, 1970, for the flight from Kansas City, Missouri, to Miami. The band was accompanied by several sets of parents and Phillipsburg High School Principal Bill Kendrick and his wife.
Clark Hopson, a freshman trombone player, recalled the Kansas City temperature was in the 20-degree range, but when getting off the plane in Miami the environment was quite different. “We flew straight to Miami and everyone was wearing their coats, but when we got there at 10:30 at night it was 70 degrees and the coats came right off.”
Upon arrival in Miami, the band went to Florida Military Academy dormitories where they stayed while the regular occupants were gone on holiday vacation. The barracks had bunk beds and were described as “Spartan,” but only cost $2.50 per night per person.
The group had a detailed itinerary each day. Band members did some sightseeing including a boat excursion, visiting Seaquarium where they watched a dolphin and whale perform, Pirates World Amusement Park, and the grounds of Vizcaya Castle. They also visited the beach, and while too cold to swim, Principal Kendrick reported that the kids had fun throwing each other in the water and getting wet.
Phillipburg band members on the go to the Orange Bowl parade.
New Year’s Eve Day was spent in preparation for the performance. The band left the barracks at 3:15 PM and were in line for the parade at 5:15 PM. They were able to get a good look at all of the parade floats while lining up for the march.
THE PARADE PERFORMANCE
Bill Schick, a sophomore clarinet player who later became a band teacher in Phillipsburg, said the art of coordinated dance steps while playing instruments was a new idea in 1970. “We did dance steps for some of the songs. It was Two of the Band’s Twirlers 50 years later, Sharon Rose Kellogg and Patti Mason Havenar something a lot of bands were just starting to do.” Schi.ck said the band memorized 12 songs for the Orange Bowl and played the songs in three-song sets, with drum cadences in between. “Whichever set Mr. Rehfuss told the drum majors to direct, we would play. If a set was popular with the audience, we might go back and repeat those three songs before going to another set.” Songs included The Swing March, Peter Gunn Theme, Swingin’ on Parade, The Horse, The Pink Panther, and Phillipsburg High.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cSn1Z-vv1wU&feature=share
The Phillipsburg band was on the schedule to pass the viewing stand and be on national television at about 7 PM Central Time. In December, it’s dark at 7 PM, but the viewing area was brightly lit for the cameras. “After that it was street lights and kind of dark, but there were people all over the place,” Schick remembers.
Hopson said all the miles of marching the previous fall and summer paid off in terms of endurance for the long route. “Our band and only one other didn’t have anyone drop out along the route,” he said.
The parade was still in progress when Senator Bob Dole called from Washington, DC, to congratulate the band, stating, “The band looked just great. No wonder Phillipsburg is so proud of these young people.” Dole had contacted NBC-TV to learn the band’s position in the parade.
Band members
BAND ATTENDS ORANGE BOWL GAME
The band members also attended the Orange Bowl game which featured the Big Eight undefeated Nebraska Cornhuskers facing the LSU Tigers. The Orange Bowl win gave Nebraska its first national college football championship.
Tad Felts was a radio news and sports announcer who lived in Phillipsburg. His son Gregg, a sophomore, was a clarinet player. He reported to KKAN radio along the way with phone calls and interviews and took pictures for the Phillips County Review newspaper. His reports on the radio had to be made on pay phones. “We were always looking for a pay phone to call back on,” Felts recalls.
SNOWSTORM STALLS BAND IN CONCORDIA
The trip home was delayed 36 hours by a major snowstorm during the band’s flight back to Kansas City. Planes were unable to land in Kansas City at the scheduled time and had to circle back to St. Louis. Once in Kansas City, the buses headed for Phillipsburg but eventually, roads became impassable. The band’s three chartered buses stalled in Concordia, Kansas, as the winter blizzard created snow drifted highways. They got as far as the junction of Highways 24 and 81 and had to be escorted 14 miles back to Concordia by police and a snow plow.
Concordia High School Principal, Don Musick, along with the president of the Concordia Board of Education, headed the task of finding homes for 128 band members. Generous Concordia families opened their homes at a moment’s notice, taking in two to ten band members each. Three men with snow tires on their cars transported the students to the various homes all afternoon. Band members did odd jobs for the families to show their gratitude, such as babysitting, washing dishes, and shoveling snow. The band was ready to travel at noon the following day, but one of the buses had broken down. By 4:15 PM, the buses were up and running and the band was on its way home, arriving back in Phillipsburg at 7:30 PM.
The band’s unexpected stranding in Concordia due to the storm made national news. The Associated Press carried the incident on its national wire which made it into major newspapers in St. Louis, Denver, Portland, and New Orleans.
Used with permission from an article by Brennan Engle in The Advocate in Phillipsburg, Kansas. Special thanks to Ruby Wiehman, of the Phillips County Historical Society and Curator at Fort Bissell Museum, who answered countless questions and willingly collected and shared details as I prepared this story, as well as Cynthia Clonch and Patti Havenar, band members and reunion planners.
Ways to honor deceased classmates
The harshest reality of a high school reunion is learning a fellow classmate has died. You’re young, or maybe you feel young, so it’s hard to believe a classmate just as young is no longer with you. You’ll want to remember these classmates at your reunion … in a respectful and appropriate way. Here are a few ideas.
1) Create a memorial table photo display.
Set framed photos of each classmate on a linen covered table. Place a lit votive or candle in front of each picture. You may also frame a list of names along with a single white candle. Adding an appropriate poem or quote is also a nice touch.
2) Include a directory page.
Include a page for each deceased classmate in your directory or memory book. Add their high school photo and ask a classmate to write a memory or reflection. Alternately, include a single page listing the names of deceased classmates.
3) Remember parents or family members.
Let parents or families know you haven’t forgotten your classmates. One class set out cards for reunion attendees to write a note to deceased classmates’ parents. Each card was filled with messages about how the classmate was missed. Or you may want to send flowers to the parents or families, letting them know their loss is felt by everyone in the class. It is a way to let them know you also share in their grief. Use your best judgment about what you and the committee feel is most appropriate.
4) Make a donation to your school.
Make a donation to your school or alumni association in memory of your classmates. Include the donation as part of the ticket price or ask classmates to donate to the fund when they register for the reunion. The donation may be used as a scholarship or to buy something the school needs, such as sports equipment or books for the library.
5) Create a permanent memorial.
Collect donations to purchase a tree or bench. Dedicate it during the reunion weekend. Place the tree or bench on school grounds with a plaque such as, “In Fond Memory of Our Classmates, the Benton Class of 1991.”
WHAT NOT TO DO
• It’s not necessary to include the when, why or how of a deceased classmate. This gossip isn’t anyone’s business, and you don’t want to offer information which may not be 100% correct. • Don’t read names or have a moment of silence during the reunion program. Classmates are usually too busy talking, visiting and drinking to listen to what you have to say, making it hard to maintain a tone of respect. If you are able to capture the attention of your classmates during this time, transitioning back into the spirit of the reunion celebration can be difficult. • Don’t leave empty chairs at a table in memory of deceased classmates.
Above all, know it’s not wrong to celebrate your reunion while at the same time remembering classmates who are no longer with you.
These are a few quotes you may want to include as part of your memorial. No love, no friendship, can cross the path of our destiny without leaving some mark on it forever. Francois Mocuriac
So many things have happened Since they were called away. So many things to share with them Had they been left to stay. And now on this reunion day, Memories do come our way. Though absent, they are ever near, Still missed, remembered, always dear. Author Unknown
Hold a true friend with both your hands. Nigerian Proverb We all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go, we take a little of each other everywhere. Tim McGraw
Lafayette High School, Wildwood, Missouri Class remembers deceased classmates with scholarships
During the planning of Wildwood, Missouri’s Lafayette High School Class of 2002 five-year reunion, the topic of how to honor deceased classmates came up. One had been killed in a car crash, one had a fatal bronchial asthma attack and one collapsed and died of a heart attack while playing basketball. Later that year, the idea was expanded by one when another classmate died in a construction accident.
They talked about ways to remember the four and a scholarship fund was agreed upon. They were ensuring their friends live on in a way that’s going to help other students. A committee person called the parents and said classmates would like to honor their sons; the parents were very enthusiastic.
Letters about the memorial fund were included with reunion invitations and they raised enough money to award three $500 scholarships the following spring. It went over so well they decided to keep the scholarship fund going. What makes this special is that when the fund started, these alumni were either barely out of college or still in graduate school.
Students who apply for the awards must have at least a 3.0 grade-point average and meet criteria specific to each of the deceased alumni. One was a Marine reservist, so those applying for his scholarship must be involved in ROTC. One was planning to enter the seminary, so his scholarship goes to a student who shows Christian values through leadership. Another winner has to have attended local schools from kindergarten through 12th grade and hold a part-time job in high school.
Parents of the deceased are also part of the process. They have the final say about who is awarded their son’s scholarship, and during an assembly, they meet the winners. The parents have formed their own support group and look forward to working together each spring. “It’s helped us through the grieving process,” one said. Another said the scholarships have alleviated her biggest fear, that her son would be forgotten.
The scholarship drive has spawned two fundraising events a year and a website that includes a blog where classmates post news about their lives.
From a report by Susan Weich in the St Louis Post-Dispatch, St Louis, Missouri.
