David Auth

David Yates and I were friends way before New Trier. I lived at 629 Central Avenue from 3 months old through 4th Grade, but have long since forgotten where David Yates lived. It had to have been within walking distance on an adjoining "block", probably on Greenleaf Avenue where the CTA trains ran before being torn up beyond Little Wilmette. Our paths did not cross in high school, which was a universal for my many younger school friends who also went to New Trier. It is unfortunate but inevitable for the shy how close grade school friends lose contact at a huge high school like New Trier, where so many males become far more competitive and start chasing after the girls. I made more close male friends between kindergarden and eight grade than I did at New Trier (only one in four years, but we are still friends 57 years later!), in addition to the 30 males glued together in Mr. Ickes home room for four years (thank goodness for home room and our great role model!). David Yates had Mr. Gould as his home room advisor, who was also my second year German teacher. I remember David Yates as a very happy boy, always laughing, with absolutely no vices, and taller than I ever would be (back row in his home room picture; front for me). We always played with his toys up in his bedroom, but he never got invited over to my house because I was afraid of my much older two brothers. I would undoubtedly have bonded with David had we ever gone outside for an crab apple fight with the other neighborhood gang! Nonetheless, David Yates was my first close friend in life, and I was terribly sorry when I much later learned he had died so very young.