Rick Shrout

J. D. Webster

Hey All - Let's make this 40th the best reunion ever! Tiger Power!

Photo from Wikipedia.
 

J. D. Webster

Here is an interesting and nice blurb from the current Grissom Men's Soccer Web Site:

"TRADITION is a word that symbolizes the Grissom Men's Soccer Team. The first high school soccer program in Huntsville began at Grissom in 1971. The Grissom Soccer Club became a charter member of the Dixie Soccer Conference in 1974 where it became the Champion of the Conference. In 1975, Grissom won the first Huntsville City Championship. In 1991, when soccer was first sanctioned, Grissom played in the Alabama State High School Championship Tournament. And thus the Grissom High School Tiger Soccer Team began its history of quality soccer teams. Today, this tradition continues."

http://grissomsoccer.com/mens/history.php

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As a former Football jock - and a wee one at that compared to some of the other BEEFY guys on our team, I knew there was this other sport going on in the background, but didn't pay much attention to it. I always thought it was just a bunch of skinny guys too small to put on pads kicking a ball back and forth with no particular purpose. Forty years later, I'm a raving pro-soccer fan and can't wait for the World Cup this summer. My transition began as a typical 90's soccer parent caught up in the sport when my 12 year old daughter started playing in the city leagues.  Anyway - these poor guys, and I don't even know who most of them were - are truly special pioneers, helping to bring a great sport to the U.S.A. When it wasn't well known or even popular, and certainly not "cool". I salute them.

On a side note, I remember when Rick Shrout, one of our football team's top kickers, decided he wanted to kick the football "soccer style" and perfected the technique even though I thought he was a "dork" at the time for doing so. I spent a lot of time in his back yard holding the ball for him...and fearing for my hand back in those days.

:-)

JD

Wally Helgeson (Malmborg)

Okay, J.D., you can salute me when you see me at the reunion.  Please add my name to the annual soccer player's alumni game list so I can participate next time. Also looking forward to the 2014 World Cup.

Kim Ellen Manning (Manning)

Wow, this is great.  I had no idea we had soccer in those years---I was completely oblivious to the sport unitil I moved to Chaple Hill, home of one of the world's greatest soccer coaches (Anson Dorrance)!!  Now I pay more attention.  Great to see the men's tradition still going strong at GHS!!

Donna B Bass (Scroggins)

Hey there, 

As I recall we nicknamed you Rick " Shrenorude (sp)

after Ron Strenarude of NFL greatness! I tell my students

to cherish your high school years! These were precious

memories!

we had a incredible football

team in 1973.  That was special! 

Go Tigers!

Donna B

J. D. Webster

Not just an incredible football team, we had an incredible school group over-all.  There was a lot of "can do" spirit amongst us. Not sure why - maybe it was the whole atmosphere of the early 70s and the fact that we were sort of the "new" school? The whole rocket city space program thing? Major Tummm? Wanting to one up the Beatles generation? Help me out here....

J. D. Webster

Classmates Dot Com has a Reunion RSVP site for us. There is not yet a link here in this group to the RSVP site. You can find it easily through google. Below are some details: Virgil Grissom High School class of 1974 reunion = http://www.classmates.com/reunions << you can RSVP here.

J. D. Webster

Reunion RSVP

Another update - the Reunion attendance count set up here by Rick will take precedence over the one in Classmates dot com that I previously mentioned. Great to see everyone signing on!

:-)

JD

Rick Eichelberger

It was 40 years ago today (April 3, 1974) that a tornado hit Huntsville. 

Parkway City received heavy damage as did many other homes and business's. 

I still remember that night and and the power going out just as they announced there was a tornado on the ground in Huntsville.   

Growing up in Huntsville that was the first tornado I can remember.  

Vance Moore

I remember one back in '62 or '63.  Was going to first grade at University before starting Weatherly in the second grade. My folks took my two little sisters (Terry and Debbie) and me into the bathroom in the center of the house (with no windows) to wait out the tornado.  My folks were calm, so we were calm.  They assured us we would be fine.  We had trust in them and were not afraid. (You can telegraph faith or fear to your children.) We were also too young to know much about tornadoes.  Nobody panicked.  After the "noisy tornado," we walked out of the bathroom and there was a bit of a mess.  The lasting memory was that I could see the sky through the roof over my parent's bedroom in the back of the house!   Fear has a lot to do with where you place your faith.

Jim Erben

Rick, i have not forgotten the multiple tornados at that time either.  I was an employee of Irelands Restaraunt off Memorial Parkway across from the airport.. Bill Stillwell and I were closing up and taking out the trash.  In the few moments it took to travel from the back of Irelands to the dumpster 60' away,  our world changed, the wind picked up, crazy multi-directional rain and a green glow and the sound of a freight train with it....Bill Stilwell said tornado get in that ditch and hug the bottom of a tree. Then the infamous words that stood the test of time, Bill said, " I wanted to see what was going to take me out",   we litteraly witnessed the 80' metal telephone poles being twisted like they were nothing. the wind, rain, debris and sounds of that night have not been forgotten..