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I remember Skipper as a good friend and a great point guard. He probably would have gotten a basketball scholarship. If I remember correctly, he and Tommy Lockridge were in a small boat in a creek near Jean and Brad Morgan's house during a flash flood. The creek was several feet above its normal level that evening, and Skipper fell out of the small boat. A nearby corrugated steel culvert pulled him in, and his body was found the next morning. It was very traumatic, especially for Tommy. Please add or correct details as you know them. Skipper has surely been missed!
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Barry Massey (1978)
Skipper and I were best friends throughout high school up until his death. He spent many a night at my house and we used to spend nights at his parents houseboat on Lake Hartwell. We had a lot of crazy adventures. I'll never forget the time me, Skipper and Tim Donald ran Skippers 63 Plymouth through my granddads corn field. Took out about two acres of corn, boy were we in trouble. Skipper and I were suppose to play tennis the day he passed away, but the rain and storms were to much so we didn't go. That was the last time I saw & talked to him. He was a great friend & a barrel of fun. I still think of him often.Barry Massey
John Hayes (1975)
Barry,
I ended up "inheriting" that houseboat that you and Skipper enjoyed. We were good friends of the Ballenger family, and I graduated in '75 with Skipper's sister, Cathy. One night months after his tragic death, the family was over at our house for dinner, and his dad announced they wanted me to have that boat. I was working as a mechanic at the Keowee Marina, and the boat needed a lot of work. I immediately contacted some good college friends of mine, and we formed the "Lady Keowee" corporation, to transfer the boat to Lake Keowee and salvage it. We spent all summer rebuilding the engine and outdrive that were totally sunk underwater, and fiberglass wrapping the pontoons. We cleaned up the trailer and refinished all the beautiful redwood trim around the outside. She was a beautiful boat, and we enjoyed it as much as we could until I graduated Clemson, and moved away. I have no idea what happened with the boat, but yes, I too think often of Skipper and that boat.
John Hayes, Class of '75