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01/18/09 05:15 AM

Claudia Galloway (Elliott)

Welcome to the Tehachapi High School Class Of 1969 forums. Please press "Post Response" to participate in the discussion. Whether this section will become active as we move toward our 40th reunion will depend upon interest, but I will start this out with a few thoughts.
I drove from my home in Porterville (north of Bakersfield) to Tehachapi yesterday afternoon to meet with Becky Markey (Smith) and Nick Damian for an "in-person" meeting to start planning our reunion. Becky actually got the ball rolling a couple of months ago and has been gathering phone numbers and addresses and this website is the next step toward trying to get everyone "connected" and notified (of course, if some aren't doing the e-thing, we will try to reach them the old-fashioned way).
I last lived in Tehachapi around 1981 and things have sure changed. Of course, I've been to town a few times since then, so everything wasn't a shock, but there sure are a lot more lights in the valley then there were when I first moved there.
Actually, I've lived in Tehachapi a number of times; first when I was about three and my dad worked for awhile in the pear shed and then got on at Monolith before deciding to move us to Southern California; then when I was in the seventh grade through high school with the exception of part of ninth and all of tenth grade when we moved away for my dad's job. After high school we moved again, but I returned a couple of more times. And maybe I will again, who knows.
Tehachapi has always been a very special place to me. I remember starting seventh grade and having Karen Van Westen show up at my door the following day offering to be friends. She was my first Tehachapi friend. At that time we lived across from Becky Markey and she has been a great friend through the years. I really missed my Tehachapi friends when we moved away for awhile and was very glad to be back. I remember Sing Out! and lots more fun from those days.
I've not been great about keeping in touch with people but often think of you all. There were fewer than 90 of us at graduation, and fewer still today, so I hope we can use the occasion of our coming reunion to remember the good times, let the rest go, and keep in touch.

01/19/09 09:03 PM

Becky Markey (Smith)

Thank you Claudia for putting together such a wonderful website for us. We just talked about it last night and this morning it was up and running. It is great.

We are steadily making progress finding people. Sometimes when I find a phone number of someone I haven't talked to in years, I just have to call them. I can tell already, this year will be a very nostalgic year for me and I hope for you too.

The Souza Family Vineyard is beautiful. It overlooks Cummings Valley. It should be breathtaking the night of our reunion. I hope you all will come to celebrate our class and all of the memories. Nick shared alot of his memories last night - we had a great time.

2/7/09 Just wanted to thank all who have registered, added notes and pictures. It has been so much fun catching up with everyone. I also want to thank everyone who has joined in on the search for classmates. It has been a tremendous help and so satisfying when we finally get in touch. We are still actively working to find several, so if you have contact information, please contact one of us. Again thanks.

Hope to hear from you all!!

01/23/09 11:50 PM

Becky Markey (Smith)

The pictures are a great addition. I especially appreciate the pictures of our deceased classmates.

Thanks.

02/01/09 01:50 AM

Claudia Galloway (Elliott)

Dear classmates,
Please feel free to post general messages and comments to the group in this Message Forum space. The more the merrier!
Thanks,
Claudia

02/01/09 03:50 AM	#5
Bekki Pena (McCurdy) As I already knew of several of our classmates' passing, Pam's caught me off guard. I am saddened to learn the news, but I have a snapshot of her smiling face in my memory! Mr. Howitz was one of my favorite teachers. Some of us referred to him as "Elmer Fudd". I wonder why? : )

02/02/09 11:13 PM

Becky Markey (Smith)

That picture of school brings back so many memories. Remember when we first started as Freshman at the new high school? No grass or landscaping. Just buildings setting at the edge of town. Was the first parking lot dirt or was it paved?
Over the years whenever I've gone back into the gym, I remember P.E. class, basketball games, pep rallies (do they still have those?) and of course, our graduation. And who can forget G.A.A. slave night (think that's what it was - can anyone remember?. Zola Crowell "bought" me and I thought I was in for it for sure. We had a slumber party in the gym and had alot of fun. Turns out, we became friends and I like her very much to this day.

02/09/09 10:48 PM	#7
Jacque Van Nortwick (Proffer) Mary's thoughts really brought back some good memories about Our School plays and Miss Beckham. She was such a great teacher and director. I see her quite often, maybe she can add something to the website.

02/09/09 11:13 PM

Bill Arnold

This is a great idea,this web site,thank you Claudia for setting it up. It's fun checking it and seeing what everone is doing and where they live now a days.
Your right Becky, seeing the pictues of the school brings back the past. Remember Coach "C"(one of his players called him pineapple princess at practice and I think he's still running laps today and the name stuck(behind his back of coarse)and his family movies from Hawaii he'd show us in english class the last week of school. The squirt gun fights in the halls. Remember the speedbumps they put in the driveways into and outgoing from our parking lot when we were juniors to slow us down and the first night they where there, members of the class of 68 and 69 removed them faster than it took to install them.They never replaced them did they. And "TP"ing favorite teachers homes and cars--you girls always went after the cute single teachers homes I noticed!! lol,lol.
Ya, those were the days, we had the world by the tail then, now I think it has us.

02/17/09 01:46 AM

Claudia Galloway (Elliott)

I was thinking about the great speed bump caper and wondered who else would remember it! Thanks, Bill.

02/17/09 09:05 PM

#10

Becky Markey (Smith)

I loved those babushkas. I wore them long after they went out of style. I remember going through some old stored clothes in the '80's and actually finding some of those things. I think I had one in every color. I actually had to think about whether I was going to throw them out. In the end, good sense won out and I threw them out. But didn't we all look cute in our little triangle scarves.

02/18/09 09:34 PM	#11
Jacque Van Nortwick (Proffer) I loved those scarves too! I had one for every outfit! One thing I remember about 6th grade camp was the raccoons. I never knew they were so big. As big as bears! Ha ha. Fun times.

02/19/09 06:14 PM

#12

Margo Huff

Thanks Claudia,
Wow, I'm so excited to win a contest! Obviously, she, Ms. Bagwell taught me little. On the other hand, you just taught me I’d better proofread whenever I send a response or comment because you’re gonna post it! I should know better than to get so emotional after a couple of beers. Seeing her photo was a nightmare from the past.

I tend to agree with Carrie that Mr. O’Donnell’s class was the most fun. I have fond memories of those field trips and his classroom. Mrs. Errecart was the teacher that forced me to do better in English. She had us diagramming sentences so long that it took sometimes two pages of paper to finish. She was IMHO one of the toughest teachers, but she expected quality work and you hated to disappoint her.

02/19/09 07:42 PM

#13

Becky Markey (Smith)

I noticed that no one else has addressed the speed bump issue. Do you suppose the culprits are still concerned about after school detention????

02/20/09 12:50 AM

#14

Bill Arnold

Becky, that is a SUPER-GREAT photo of Anni, if you took it "you done good girl" good color, good contrast,good setting. Hope Anni makes it to the reunion this time.Anybody remember Mr. Anderson( don't stand down wind) or Mr.Barras or Mrs.Barras in the front office?
Mr. Anderson let me setup a darkroom in a hall closet for the photo club, had Mr.Barras all four years for drafting, learned alot in his class thats come in handy over the last 40yrs.I think it was Miss.Beckham,her first year teaching was our senior year,then she went back to school at B.C.the following year and her and I had some classes together- talk about weird, classmates with a past teacher.

02/20/09 01:45 AM

#15

Claudia Galloway (Elliott)

I am not sure about Mr. Barras, but Mrs. Barras left Tehachapi and remarried and I have been in touch with her from time to time. Some of you will know that after she stopped being the high school secretary she went on to writing historical articles for the Tehachapi News and later a number of Tehachapi history books. She still does some historical research and some writing.

02/20/09 10:18 PM

#16

Nick Damian

Hey Mike Douglas........recall our job together "bucking hay " for Mr Willard? Seems to me Sue had her eye on you whike you were hatching those 70 lb. hay bales.
What a summer

02/21/09 01:54 PM

#17

Becky Markey (Smith)

Thanks Carrie for sharing that great picture. No wonder Karen and Bart have been married so long - look at the way he's looking at her! He is in love.

02/22/09 10:50 PM

#18

Becky Markey (Smith)

Hi Claudia:

I have to say, I think you are much cuter than Ringo Starr.

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