South Pasadena High School

KPCC site

2010-09-02T01:31:04-04:00

Justine Limpus Parish and I are writing for KPCC's new public media site, The Freeway. I'm one of several co-hosts.

I put up an essay today, and a couple of the comments will entertain anyone who ever had to take the junior high sewing class .... which is half of you.

Cassy

http://apps.facebook.com/kpccfreeway/en/stories/random-road-tales-of-the-packrat-1-sewing-supplies.html

RE: Missing Friends

2010-05-20T23:35:49-04:00

I saw Dave Halpin a few years ago at his nephew Luke's wedding (son of my best friend Nancy Johnson Halpin & Phil Halpin) He and his family were living in the Chicago area. I asked him why he never comes to any of the reunions, and he said he might one of these days... I'm not sure why he hasn't stayed in touch. I'll ask Nancy for an update, I'll be talking to her tomorrow.

Missing Friends

2010-05-14T20:12:16-04:00

Does anyone know what happened or where is Alan Hoffman ? The last time I saw Him, Was In 1970 I was driving Him along with a bunch of other friends in my Pickup truck up to Mount Baldy right after a big storm. He Just said I got to go and jumped out of the back, Never saw him again....

The other is Dave Halpin anyone know where he is.

I know that some people have contact with other classmates that do not want to have any thing to do with any reunion or old H.S. stuff.

So any Info would be great

Rich

RE: Whatever!

2010-04-28T01:06:17-04:00

Hey!

I don't see too many people posting on these boards. Let's get going! I'm sure someone wants to talk about something! Don't make me stop this car!

What are you looking for?

2010-04-01T21:27:18-04:00

I'm looking for a class photo... I asked everyone I could at the reunion, but I know there are a lot of folks who stop by the website here who didn't come to the reunion.

I'm in search of my 5th grade class photo from El Centro School. The teacher was Mrs. Whedbee. If you have one, or know of someone who might, email me at: stefanie@sphs69.org.

How about you? Have you been looking for something? The title of your favorite book in junior high? A song by a favorite artist? The name of a restaurant you used to love? Post it here! Maybe someone with a memory like a steel trap can help you. (Actually I think it's "MIND like a steel trap", but that didn't sound as good).

RE: Spring Break

2010-03-31T12:11:44-04:00

I was part of a group of girls who went to Laguna Beach for 2 or 3 years in high school... one year we went to Balboa Island instead, I can't remember whether it was 9th or 10 grade. We got a chaperone (who as I recall was a college student) or maybe two. We rented a house right on the beach. There were two different places. There must have been 10 or so of us, and we had a blast. I remember getting up early in the morning to jog down the length of the beach with Lyn Lemaire. Playing beach volleyball, sneaking out late at night, going to the "Greedy Beady" bead shop, buying beads and making our own hippie necklaces to wear. I remember buying incense, and walking down PCH with our lit incense and John Lennon glasses feeling like a true California girl.

Later, long after we returned to school, a couple of times, several of us drove all the way back to Laguna Beach after school for a Taco Bell run. Can you believe we did that? Those VW bugs got awfully good milage, and we must not have been too busy!

Spring Break

2010-03-31T11:44:55-04:00

So in the late 60's, spring break meant a trip to the beaches of Corona del Mar even though it was way too cold to sit on the beach or go in the water. What are some of your memories of Spring Break?

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T20:19:08-04:00

The elementary school teacher that had the biggest impact on me was Mrs. Lillian Boyce at El Centro School. I had her for two years, because she taught 2nd & 3rd grades combined, and I had her both those years. She was by then in her late fifties, early sixties. She spoke fluent Spanish, and often wore beautiful clothing from Guatemala- embroidered skirts, peasant blouses, etc. She taught us songs and phrases in Spanish, many years before we embarked on our language classes at SPJHS. She was originally from Brigham City, Utah, and my Dad knew her family very well. (he also grew up in Brigham City) She was about 10 years older than he was, but her cousins owned a famous chicken restaurant ther (which is still operating, by the way) and we used to eat there from time to time when we went to visit his home town.

Mrs. Boyce apparently taught in South Pasadena since the early 30s when she was known as Lillian Kotter. I've done lots of research about her, and found her living in South Pasadena from at least 1932 on. In the book, Pasadena Cowboy, John Church wrote about having a Miss Kotter as his 2nd grade teacher at Oneonta in the early 30s. I'm sure it was the same person.

Mrs. Boyce taught the most important principle that I believe children can learn: self discipline. I never heard her utter the words "self esteem". She believed in setting high standards and letting the children figure out how to meet them. We had several immigrant children during those two years: a girl from Mexico, a boy from Yugoslavia, and I believe, that's when the Pieters family arrived from Indonesia. She never babied them, but loved them and helped them excel in school with the new English language. Her approval meant more to me than anything else during those impressionable years.

Sadly, she passed away when we were in junior high. I can remember hearing about it at the time (I believe it was 1965) and am still sad all these years later.

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T17:12:54-04:00

Miss Christiansen was a great teacher....no nonsense, but not mean. As I recall, Miss Nash was the oldest teacher we had at Marengo, and she must have been at least ninety when she died. I'll never forget the time, in the third grade, when she said she had met my grandmother.....not the one who was actually part of my life, but my dad's stepmother, a former scriptwriter in Hollyweird before the war. The BIG war.....you know, it was in all the papers. I was a little taken aback at the time, as we had practically no contact, but I guess the name Ferrer was unusual enough to stick in her mind.

I tried to figure out how old Miss Rhodes would be by now. My fourth grade class with her was her first.....we got her right out of college. That would have been 1961, right? So if she had graduated, as people mostly did then, at 21 or 22, she would now be 70 or 71....only a couple of years older than my brother. If THAT doesn't scare you.......

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T16:57:37-04:00

Gee, I sure remember her too! And yes, I had heard that she went to work as a flight attendant, but have no idea what airline it was for, nor exactly when. I lived for a while in an apartment on the corner of Huntington Drive and Wayne Avenue, almost across the street from her old apartment, and went and banged on her door, but no answer, and I never went back to check it out again. She was a kick! I don't recall hearing/reading anything about her getting married, but she may have. I would think that by now she'd be well into her 70's if not more since we're all pushing 60!!

The only theacher that I remember sticking around Marengo for decades was Clarice Christianson(sen?) and I would imagine that she'd be long gone and dead by now. You knew that Curt Eastwood, the principal died a number of years ago, didn't you? He was well into his 80's as I recall.

I was saddened to hear a few years ago that Jack Dalton died.

And if anyone wants to know. Mary Ida Phair is living in an assisted living place in Irvine these days. After her husband died, and after my mother died, she and my father had a few visits as they had dated before they married their spouses. Talk about the small town of South Pasadena!!! When she was still living in Dana Point, she'd come into my ticket office and visit and her way to or from her docent work at the San Juan Capisptrano Mission.

Whatever happened to Marilyn MacDonald?

Barbara Ercek's nephew used to come by once in a while and buy a train ticket from me, but it's been a few years since i've seen him. He told me that she had died wuite a few years ago.

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T14:12:25-04:00

I know she married after she left teaching, if the airline information was correct. I may have heard it from Mr. Dalton, as she lived in a duplex on Huntington, about a block west of him, but I can't really remember. For some reason, I associate her with a move to Florida, but that's just an impression. When you get home, you might take a quick look to see where she was in about 1966 or '67....I know she was still at Marengo when we were in Jr. High. I'd appreciate anything you can dig up....thanks!

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T12:26:33-04:00

I don't know if I can help, but I have all of the SP Faculty directories from 1949-1987 or so.... depending on what year she left, I would have her address for the years she was a teacher. That might get you started. If she married while a teacher, I can figure that one out too.

RE: Do you remember?

2010-03-30T10:46:12-04:00

Actually, there IS a teacher from Marengo that I would like to locate.....Joyce Rhodes. I had her for both 4th and 6th grades. I heard years ago that, after her mother died, she left the teaching profession and became a stewardess, or whatever the politically correct term is these days. I tried going through the district office, to see if they had any information on former teachers......you would have thought I was asking to borrow a million dollars without collateral. Does anyone have any ideas on how to trace someone? I also heard she got married, so most data bases wouldn't have her maiden name. We were her first class, so it's not as if she's past finding, necessarily. Surely we have class members who know how to find out such things.

Do you remember?

2010-03-30T00:45:09-04:00

This is a great forum thread for writing about the memories of our young years growing up in South Pasadena. Have you been wracking your brain trying to remember a store you used to go to? A teacher from Marengo School? That cute boy or girl that sat behind you in Junior High, but moved away? I hope you come by and participate!

Whatever!

2010-03-30T00:38:39-04:00

Bruce showed me some cool new stuff I could do on our website, so I thought I'd add this fun forum feature: we can talk about whatever you want, you guys are in control. If you want to start a new thread, just pick a forum: either the General Discussion, or In Search of, and click on "Post New Topic". You can then start your own thread. The General Discussion is about, you guessed it, general stuff. News. Questions. Books. Gossip. Memories. The 'In Search Of' is specifically designed for searches: friends (they don't have to be from the Class of '69) teachers, places. "Do You Remember" type stuff, or "What was the name of that...."

I hope we can keep this going. The old forum is still there, but this new place might be a fun jumping off place for different types of conversations.