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After Abington Heights High School and Keystone Junior College, I transferred to University of Pittsburgh. While there I was actively involved in student politics & human relations, represented MADD at high schools in and around Pittsburgh, worked on both campains for the Clinton-Gore Administrations, met and talked with Geraldine Ferarro at Pitt's student union, had occasional pieces published, spoke and wrote for the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force, and eventually moved down to Arizona to be part of my brother Frank's kids' lives. He went through a nasty divorce and futile custody battle in which his exwife had hidden behind religion as a veil to get away with her incessant lies and supposed purity & virtue. It's funny how religious zealots flip-flop with the Seperation of Church and State. Frank and I and our Mom eventually pooled our resources together and got this house in Mesa, near Phoenix.
We have rescued dogs Xena & Gabby & Matey, who were adopted seperately (Xena apparently suffered with major hip trouble while I was up with Dewayne, and needed to be euthanized to end her suffering, but the house is not the same without her). Our newest member of the family is Chanel (sounds like Coco Chanel but w/o the cocoa). Her mother was the sole-survivor of a house fire you can read about by Searching "Firefighters rescue puppy from Maricopa house fire" and see latest pictures on facebook. And we have sister cats named Finley & Gracey, who were adopted as kittens and named after Steve Finley and Mark Grace from the AZ Diamondbacks years ago.
Theatre Director Sherry S. Strain had cast me as Assistant Director for Keystone's production of Tartuffe in October of 1990, and I think it's extremely ironic that the hypocrisy of religions and religious hypocrites are destroying the otherwise awesome world as we know it. Shortly after I was confirmed into the little church in the village of Milwaukee early 1980s, toward the Ransom end of Milwaukee Rd, I had seen it all back then as glorified mythology, laced with hatred and bigotry but all wrapped up with pretty sermons and pretty music.
For links to more of my commentery on social and political issues, Google an "advanced search" and then "for the exact phrase" of my full name Warren G. Richards. You'll mostly see links to messages on one particular right wing (fright wing) website, yet my writings are with other sources too.
Before moving from PA, I graduated from Keystone and struggled at the University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Technical Institute, but then resumed coursework at Arizona State University. As a volunteer for the Allegheny / Beaver / Westmoreland chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, I had spoken at dozens of high schools in and around Pittsburgh and had occasional pieces published. During my last couple years there, I lived in the Highland Park section of the city, with my friend Rodger who helped me put my public speaking abilities to further use in the AIDS Education community as a volunteer with the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force, in Youth Education and also Community Outreach at area bars and night clubs.
As a proud Democrat, I worked on both Victory campaigns for the Clinton-Gore administrations, and had heard them each speak and got to meet President Clinton after he concluded his speech at Market Square in Pittsburgh. At Pitt's student union, I had HAD a brief conversation with Geraldine Ferraro, and years later, here in AZ, attended the post-debate party at Tempe Beach Park where Senator Kerry addressed us after his debate with Duhbya at Arizona State University.
My heart goes out to Larry and Bev DeFazio for everyone's loss of their daughter Laura Lee (DeFazio) Morrabito, who was on that first jet that flew into the World Trade Center on 9/11/01. Larry and Bev once owned that bar across the street from the post office in Clarks Summit, and years later they also owned the tavern across from the Keystone campus, on Routes 6 & 11, where I had gone often with members of Keystone's English& Theatre staff, so memories of playing Abington Astros football decades ago with Craig and sitting with Larry and Bev during Comets football games linger on still, and I cannot even imagine their loss or her own family's loss on that horrible morning.
Because I've been out of touch from former AZ Governor Janet Napalitano's downtown Phoenix office in recent years, I did not even try to go see President Obama address the Class of 2009 at Arizona State University.
Most of my weekdays now are spent at the front counter at the Mesa Active Adult Center, in downtown Mesa AZ. When I'm certified with the State, hopefully I'll be further involved with East Valley Senior Services, Inc., and also hopefully working with the faculty and students in Kayenta, AZ.
My partner Dewayne is Native American, of the Navajo Tribe, and he and I have been considering having one of his relatives be our surrogate mother, so that our child or children will be from both our genuine bloodlines. Dewayne is a middle school/jr high school Science teacher Kayenta AZ, so I spend about half my time up with him and his family on the southern end of the beauiful Navajo Nation reservation, practically in the shadow of El Capitan of the Monument Valley, and about half my time down in Mesa, near Phoenix AZ.
We should remember the days of our youth. Even though sometimes there were the usual growing pains, those were the days when our matters made no difference and our differences did not matter.
