Jerry Benecke

JR - You are correct - I believe I have mistaken Jim Eastwood for Johnny Mac - my apologies guys - I was even wearing my indispensable reading glasses. Regarding the rock group photo, John & Rick on guitar, Mark lead vocal and is that our old friend Carl Kushner on drums?  Not sure who is on the right. Love to see pics from the other schools too - thanks, Jerry

PS - Although I didn't participate much in the past - I always enjoyed reading the posts. Thanks to all of you, especially John MacLeod for his insightful & humorous commentary. John I hope your Mom is doing well - I remember her as a very nice lady.

John Hein

Jerry: You are correct sir, that is Carl pounding the four skins. Dick Wassen was laying the lowdown on the bass. For all you trivia buffs, that's a Danelectro Longhorn bass; if the bass man still has it, it's a vintage ax worth some serious dinero, but probably not as much as it's sedimentary value. There was some recent chatter about Dick, now known more casually as Richard, and the Methow Valley Cider operation. Next time I wanna get a good saloon on, via Winthrop, I'll look him up.

John Mac also pointed out that he thot he was Jim Eastwood too, but has since apologized. No harm, no foul.

Sue N: You are absolutely spot on; we had such idyllic younger days....biking, swimming, boating. I thot then, as I do now, Lake Washington Blvd. offers the most scenic, postcard perfect vistas 2nd to none. We couldn't have realized it then, as we had no frame of reference. We can sure appreciate it now, eh what?

Barry Barrel: I like Whentworth, not sure why.......Being the clever students we were, a popular colloquialism fifty something years ago was Wittless. You decide........

It's all good !!!

John MacLeod

Jerry.............

Thanks for asking about my Mom.  She just turned 92, still going strong and sharp as a tack.  I take credit for her good health.  She got plenty of cardio work outs attempting to keep me inline.  The nurses warned her about me the day I was born.  She could have insisted on a DNA test, if there had been such a thing.  A day without a spanking was a day the sun didn't come up.  Some of you know that I have two brothers and two sisters.  When it came to spankings I tripled down on all of them combined.

Jerry and Mark....  I have a favorite picture of your Dad in my mind.  Friday night, our house.  Your Dad settling back in an arm chair, lighting up his pipe and saying "Now Alex..........what do you think about,,,,,,,such and such?"  It was off to the races discussing the affairs of the world.

Any who know my Mom, feel free to stop by and visit.  She is still in the same house and has all her marbles.

John MacLeod

Mr Hein............

If I remember correctly the leader of the band (Mark Linden Hale) is or was the coach for the "Rat City Rollergirls"  Sort of like trying to get through the halls at Franklin............

John Hein

Rat City Roller Girls coach? Hmmm.....I wunder if they need an assistant coach......

This is not a Hale's Angels reunion by any yardstick, but if you look closely you just might espy Ric and moi. The others are weekend warriors that escaped the kitefactory for some fun. 

Jim Eastwood

Hi all,

JR. I moved to Seattle in third grade so they stuck me with you.  I'm the little twerp on the left bottom of your picture.  Near Joan U., who I always thought was a cutie. Miss Karvonen lived near my grandmother on Brighton Street.

I had a ball at Whitworth.  I remember coming off recess and smacking the pipes in the basement with our baseball bats and laughing our asses off as we were covered with asbestos.

Since I have been fightng cancer for 14 months I love looking back to these great memories.  I even still crack up about Tom Balestreri's mom yelling at us as we walked home, if we were screwing up. She and Debbie Kashino's mom would watch us and by the time I got home, near the lake, my Mom was waiting for me.

Some things never change with good friends.  After I had surgery to take out my main tumor, Tom Balestreri,who is an anethesiologist in Anacortes, came to see me in the hospital.  Our main problem is that ever since we were kids, Tom and I always were crakng each other up.  If any of you have had major surgery, you know how well that effects the pain on your new 6 inch zipper. I had to tell hin to get the hell out of my room.  He said, "Oh yea, I'm a doctor I should know that!

Being a vet myself, II still mourn people like Walt Henery and Larry Dahl.  All  I ever did was keep the west pacific free from scotch.

Til later,

Jm Eastwood

John Hein

Jim, do you mean the other left? The little twerp on the left with the Cheshire Cat grin is Jack Alhadeff. You and Joan are on the right.   A great mnemonic device is Credence Clearwater Revival's song "There's A Bathroom On The Right". I think that's Shirley O'Meara on the right in the back. Sherry Jones is standing right in front of Karvonen. I heard that Sherry's parents pulled her outta Whitworth due to Karvonen's Bohemian actions. Don't know if it's true, but I don't recall seeing Sherry in 4th, 5th or 6th grades......if that means anything.

Good to hear from ya, I'll be in touch.

John MacLeod

Jim..........Sorry to hear about the fight on your hands, hope all goes well.

Many times I have related the story of the camping trip you, Tracy Dahlby and I took during spring break, in the 8th grade.  We went to Bandera Emergency Airfield on Snoqualamie Pass.  First day and a half went great.  Hiking, fishing and generally cutting up.  Started to rain mid-afternoon.  We were good, plenty of tarps to cover the tables and all.  Welll, about 3 AM I hear Jim and Tracy rustling about.  I roll over on my air mattress and drop off into 6 inches of water.  Houston, we had a problem.  We survived.  However Tracy figured we needed some coffee.  Said he knew how to do it as he had hunted with his dad and uncles.  He had a six cup percolator into which he proceeded to put 8 scoops of coffee.  Barely survived the coffee.  Didn't touch another one until my mid twenties.

Fair winds and following seas my friend..........

John MacLeod

Sherry Jones...........They lived at the fish hatchery at Seward Park.  I delivered their newspaper.  Fortunately they had a paper tube at the top of Juneau St. going down into the park.  I had to hop on my bike to go collect once a month, pretty dark and miserable in the winter.

Ric Rivera

LOL....

Greetings All! 
Speak of Quakers making music here is a fully FHS Funk bunch of smooth jazz revelers! Got a tip from Jeff Fiorini (class of 69’) so last night went over to Issaquah’s www.vinobella.com

 
Pictured (left to right):

Peter Jamero (keyboards)http://www.peterjameroproject.com/Pages/ThePlayers.aspx ,

Matthew Vining (drums), Jeff Fiorini (bass), Clarence Cal (sax), 

Leonard Berman (guitar) http://www.doctorfunk.com/players.html

These cats were laying down some serious grooves. I was sitting outside, Peter Jamero's Project FHS group of guys were turning heads in the joint's direction. Like some, got out behind parked cars heads boppn'; dance stepping down the sidewalks especially to their cover rendition of Spyro Gyro's Shaker Song-Morning Dance. The toe tapping mainstreet city goers were groovn' happy! Light it up FHS grads!

John Mac: Wow! memory is fuzzy going back that far. LOL! Jeez, we practiced a time or two at my place.  As for leader of the pack don't know, but for the Rat City Rollers LOL! anyway, don't think it was me though it was a collective for the talent show pulling together trying to name ourselves and brainstormed from Hells Angels. LOL!  Later on down the road JR, Ric R, and Carl K got Harleys go figure. So, it is that at this part of the journey JR, RR and RW still have the blues for performing music too.

Jim E: I too as others, send warm wishes that you will be in good health moving forward. 

John MacLeod

Jazz and Franklin seem to go hand in glove as evidenced by Ric's and John-Boy Hein's postings.  In fact it was one of our famed class musicians that got me to make my first posting to this site.  In fact it was this famed musician who made the first posting to this site after Nancy R got it set in motion.  He is still in the music business.  Toured with "Delaney and Bonnie" during the 60's and played with "Shea" in the 70's.  Would the real Tony Mamon please stand up.  When the first piano was made, they designed it with Tony in mind.

I'm pretty sure Tony still visits our site.  He just happens to be shy.  I really wish we could get him back.  Maybe someone who knows him better could persuade him to move his digits from one keyboard to another.

Thanks

John MacLeod

Click on page #1 and it shows that I made the first posting.  Well, that is a crock of baloney as evidenced by the first line in my posting.  The real number one poster deleted his posting.  Here we are 27 pages and six years later and the site is still going strong.  Tony, for better or even better you are the reason we are still going strong.  Thanks pardner.............

Jim Eastwood

Hi both Johns and everyone else,

Thanks all for the good wishes.  I am doing very well, considerng I have stage 4 colorectal cancer.  I had about 40 little tumors, but after 14 months of chemo, I'm down to one little bastard  on my lung.  I am very fortunate in that I've had no sickness and have lost lttle work time.

My wife and I started a distrbution company 25 years ago, along with another company.  We are selling  them both so we can use our motorsailor more often.  We live aboard at Semiahmoo on the weekends.

John M:  I had lost track of Tracy for quite a few years.  One day I sent an email to a person with that name.

I only asked if he ever slept in Denny Creek.  It was our Tracy, living in New York at the time.  We are in

 contact quite often.  I am writing a cancer survival book and I'm leaning on Tracy for publishing advice.

JR:  you are correct.  Jack is on the left from where I'm sitting.  If I had looked closer, I probably have seen the chocolate bar ice cream he always had on his face.

John Hein

OK, a round of applause for Debbie Kashino.....LOUDER, let's make it a standing ovulation !!! for sending me this picture of our 3 sixth-grade classes standing on the steps outside the gym at Whentworth (as Barry Barrel dubbed it).

Barrel: That's Ben Nak in the middle on the right. You can read the attitude 50-something years later. He's standing in front of Principal Bowen (aka Bow-Tie).  On the far left are the other 2 teachers; Mrs Lewis & Mrs. Bray. It saddens me to think about how many in this pic have "gone over". Mrs. Bray, Kathy Grovac, Mike Mickleson, Kathy Menashe, Mike Baldwin, Bill Talbert, Linda Spang, Patricia Haraldson, Nancy Saari, Walt Henry (killed in Viet Nam 1968).....am I forgetting anybody? Some in this picture disappeared o'er the summer of '62, never to be seen again.......Thanks again Debbie, you're a dear.

Jim E: Why're you lookin' so glum? Joan didn't wanna hold hands? Your memory is razor sharp; Jack Alhadeff had to have them chocolate ice cream bars, and often wore part of it for the after lunch classroom session. Funny.....the things we remember......

John MacLeod

Jazz singer.........Our very own Dorothy Rodes appears at various venues around Seattle when she isn't selling insurance.  She will be appearing at Egan's Ballard Jam House on Wednesday August 27th. Cover charge is around $10.  It is easy to find on Market street.  Egan's has a good website with all the particulars. Great place to have a get together.  We did it a few years ago and had a good time.  Remember Donna, Debbie, Bettie, Tony.  I only mention names in case some are suffering from early onset CRS Syndrome.

Jim E............Your question sure weeded out any Tracy Dahlby wannabes.  Think he is in Austin or Arlington TX now.  Could be wrong.

John MacLeod

So John-Boy.........Is that Bob Mitchell on the right, third row up standing next to Sandi Smith?  Jim....I  have always thought Joan is cute.  Hope this doesn't cause any marital discord at the Cram house.  As to looking glum I am pretty sure that John H had just biffed the back of your head just before the shutter clicked.  He has that whole Eddie Haskel routine down,  In fact I have pretty solid evidence they created the character after him.  Ask some of his former neighbors.

Debbie Kashino

John, thanks for calling me out!  I thought I could anonymously sit back and be an observer to this walk down memory lane!  What actually has prompted me to respond is hearing about Jim Eastwood.  Jim, I am so sorry you have had to deal with these health issues.  It is a wake up call for all of us to appreciate each and every day. 

Ms. Karvonen was one of my very favorite teachers.  I went back to visit numerous times until I graduated. Back then she set the standard  high for behavior and most of us never questioned her.  For those of us who got her message and didn't push the envelope, life was great.  I saw what a kind heart she had and how committed she was to her job.  I became a teacher in 1972 and though I did not have Ms. Karvonen's  size on my side, I think I always strived to establish clear expectations for behavior, while always tempering it with my love for my students.  40 years later, I would have to say what worked for me was to get students to love their school family, and then the love of learning would come automatically.  I can still recall Ms. Karvonen's "school family" and looking at that picture brings back so many happy memories.

No question, John was a "bad boy".  I remember the show 77 Sunset Strip and the song, "Kookie, Kookie Lend Me Your Comb".  I recall John always having a comb in his pocket and combing his hair like the cool guy on the show.  I think John was a bad influence on Steve Mansell, Tom and Jim.  I remember all of them biking to my house and always getting me to come out to talk to them.  I would sit there on my porch engaging in silly conversations for hours.  I think you would call that  early stages of flirting.  

I feel so lucky to have continued a close friendship with Val Maekawa and Janine Guttman all these years.  I also feel fortunate to keep in touch with Marsha Gross, Donna Amira, Karen Kummerfeldt and Susan Marino.  All of us in the class of 68 shared a unique, growing up experience and no matter what, we are all connected by that experience. 

Ric Rivera

Hi All~ Yes, our class luminaries Dorothy Rodes and Tony Mamon.

JM: If I'm not mistaken, Matthew Vining Drummer in Peter Jamero Project band is Tony's cousin.

Debbie K: I see in band picture of Hale's Angels that years later recall now JR always slickn' it back. Hey, JR?

John Hein

John Mac: I see the resemblence, and now realize Bob Mitchell (died 2009) is not in the pic. Musta been truant or shutter shy, eh what? The guy to which you refer is Don Heston. I don't think he went on to Sharples and never went to Franklin. I saw him now & again after grade skewl, but I've no idea what's become of him. I didn't tweak Jim's ear just before the shutter clicked and I have proof: If I had, Jim is in the perfect place to bust my kneecap and I'd be grimacing noticably, rather than just proudly sporting the Milton The Monster flat-top cut. There's 6-10 people there I just can't place. I hope the pic jars some memories.

Debbie K: I'm glad you joined the confab; always good to hear from ya. You really think I was a bad boy that influenced others? I relish the compliment. And let's face it Kookie was one kewl kat !!! 

Anybody know the circumstances of Bob Mitchell's departure? I don't think I ever saw him after June '68.

Ric Rivera

Some time ago in the course of searching for former NOAA inmates that escaped over to WSDOT ferries. Some past history…..

Our Marilyn Dreher (FHS 68’) left her shoulder star and stripes sometime after our 30th reunion and sails the waters elsewhere.
Here is composite of Marilyn, a website long gone…..

Sister's Crew

Name:    Marilyn Dreher
Home Port:    Vashon, WA
Date signed on:    3.November.1999    Las Palmas, Gran Canaria
Date signed off:    16.December.1999    Rodney Bay, St. Lucia
Marilyn joined us in Las Palmas, Canary Islands nearly three weeks before the departure. She has more time on boats of various types than the rest of us put together. Marilyn lived in Alaska for 15 years where she worked on and skippered various kinds of work boats. She also has sailed across the Pacific a few times.

For some reason she has only crossed from one cold place to another, Alaska to Russia for example, never making any warm water voyages. Having said that, Marilyn adapted to the warm weather just fine, thank you.
Marilyn made an invaluable contribution, particularly while we were in Las Palmas. She and Andy planned, shopped, delivered and stowed ad nausea. Sister was undoubtedly one of the best supplied, best packed boats in the ARC

Former neighbor from mid 80’s
Ty Anderson (FHS 66’) surely has retired

http://seattletimes.com/html/outdoors/2008883097_nwwferries19.html

Speaking of Noaa Kurt Gores (FHS 68’)  graduated in 72’ with the first ever women Noaa uniform officer. Kurt did not accompany the Navy Admiral’s daughter to the Oceanographer ship. That was a fun trip to Hong Kong, Tawian and Hawaii. Kurt, you missed out. And of course she was not the only women aboard. There was a lots of college grant post grads to keep the perspective balanced. 

Barry Meyers

All, This is incredible to contnue the read into nostalgia.

John R., That's the same Ben Nakagawa. I can ceratinly understand the perceptions of his personality.

Jerry. B, From personal experience, I know they are not your readers, but instead belong to Margaret.

Happy Monday, Barry

Valerie Maekawa (Jackson)

Hello all: Debbie K inspired me to finally respond. I've really enjoyed reading all the posts. Jim E, I join all of us FHS and Whitworth "kids" in sending positive thoughts for a full recovery. Debbie K has a wonderful way with words and I fully agree with her post. We often talk about how lucky we are to have lived and gone to school in such a diverse and wonderful neighborhood. John M, you are a hoot and I love reading your posts. Your mother sounds like a true inspiration, still cognitive and living in the same house! My parents just celebrated their 67th anniversary yesterday.

Donna Amira

Hi All,

The posts are so much fun to read. It is great hearing about everyone's experiences and their stories. After all these years, we can still get to know eachother in a much deeper way.

The class picture that John H. posted on 8/17 is so sweet. I had Ms. Lewis and just loved her.

Thanks to all of you for keeping the forum going. I hope we can see eachother soon.

Donna Amira

John Hein

Donna A: I had teacher-envy in 6th grade as I thot Mrs. Lewis was an incredibly gifted communicator and yet totally humble. I felt luv for her too, and I was never in her class. Zoom in on Ben Nak; you'll see he was oozing attitude. That's what I faced everyday at skewl in 6th. No teary good-byes in June '62 for this ol' boy........

Valerie M: You said you totally agree with everything Debbie K said, correct? That means that you also think I was a bad boy that influenced others? Ah shux, the adulation is overwhelming !!! I feel your collective LUV !!!

Thank you all, I feel illuminated..........

Glenn James Schoenmakers

Boy, I've really enjoyed reading all of the responses. Many memories, although I only went to kidnergarden at Whitworth, Mrs. Yook oversaw us, kind lady - especially compared to some I've read about. I think Jeff Yoshinaka was a crossing guard. After that I went to St. Edwards, a real education in rubber hose techniques, then on to Sharples. I walked to school quite a bit with Walt Henry, he was a golden gloves boxer. Really quiet and nice person. Can't say that for myself. Franklin after that. Quite a mix of diversity. There will never be another time like the 60's, was a great time for learning on the street and in the books. Oh and that work thing. I'll continue reading the updates. Life is short and so it should be.

Glenn S.