Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly, Joy Rubins Morris, Rainer Klauss, Bobby Cochran, Collins (CE) Wynn, Eddie Sykes, Don Wynn, Paula Spencer Kephart, Cherri Polly Massey
Contributors: The Members of Lee High School Classes of 64-65-66 and Others
Happy Mother's Day to all of my clasmates who are mothers. Many, if not most, of us have already lost our mothers, but will remember them on this special day.
I'm still looking for Graduation Present stories and stories about what you bought with money earned from your first job.
Please include your class year with your e-mails.
T. Tommy
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From Our
Mailbox
This Week's
Mystery Photo
Here's front and back pictures of another item of our days that were often given as promotional gifts from businesses. They were soft plastic and mostly flat and the diameter is smaller than an egg, if you need a reference.
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Graduation Presents
Linda Beal Walker, Class of '66 - I do remember that my parents saved Kennedy half dollars to purchase my graduation ring which is in my jewelry box.
A gold chain with a jade pendant and earrings to match are the gifts I remember the most, probably because I do still have them. They were given to me by Mr. and Mrs. Johnson who owned the "big" department store here in Milan. The gifts were mailed to me and that was a big event too. The department store is no longer a department store and the Johnsons are no longer here, but because of their gift, I will remember them always.
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Carolyn Burgess Featheringill, Class of '65 - The high school graduation gift that came immediately to mind when I read the Traveller was what would have been in the category of "unmentionables" when I graduated in 1965. However, with underwear as outerwear now, I guess I can mention that I still have a beautiful lacy, turquoise half-slip in my dresser drawer that I got for high school graduation. It was snug then, and I don't think I've ever worn it. Guess what--it's still snug! But, I'm keeping it. Hope springs eternal!
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(Do you have any memories of a special something that you were given, but may not still have? Send in any graduation present memories you would like to share with your classmates.)
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Last Week's
Mystery Photo
Armed Forces Day: May 18, 1957
by Rainer Klauss
Class of '64
When I was a young lad growing up in the shadow of the Cold War, Armed Forces Day became one of my favorite holidays. This martial day came into being as a result of the National Security Act of 1947, which, in the face of a threatening new world order, called for a major re-organization of the foreign policy and military establishments of our government. Under one of the unifying provisions of that act, the Department of War (Army), the Navy Department, and the newly-created Air Force Department were subsumed in a governing body called the National Military Establishment. Convert that into an acronym, say it quickly, and you’ll understand why it was re-named the Department of Defense in 1949.
Unity was enforced, too, in the separate celebrations of Army Day, Navy Day, and Air Force Day. They were combined, and the third Saturday in May was officially designated as Armed Forces Day. President Truman, in an excerpt from the Presidential Proclamation of Feb. 27, 1950 stated: “Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 20, 1950, marks the first combined demonstration by America’s defense team of its progress, under the National Security Act, towards the goal of readiness for any eventuality. It is the first parade of preparedness by the unified forces of our land, sea, and air defense.”
As the holiday evolved, it took on larger purposes beyond honoring and acknowledging the people of the armed forces and evoking patriotism. Its organizers developed the public relations and educational aspects of the day as they sought to expand understanding of the role of the military in civilian life and some of the general details of military occupations. And, in one of the most popular functions of the holiday, it became a day for the military to display its state-of-the-art equipment to the civilian population they were protecting.
Each Armed Forces Day carried a theme. On May 18, 1957, “Power for Peace” was the presiding message imparted to Huntsvillians by Major General Edward H. McDaniel, a native of Alabama serving at the Department of Defense, and the main speaker at the brief ceremony held before the parade began. Butler High School had started the festivities that morning with a band concert on the Square, so the Huntsville High School Band was given the honor of leading the parade. Several other bands serenaded the spectators with patriotic music as they marched down Washington Street: the 142d Army Band, the 296th Army Band, the Councill Training School Band, and the Councill High School Band. The armed forces component of the parade was sizable: 1,000 Redstone Arsenal troops, 300 Army Reservists, 300 National Guard troops, and about 100 Naval Reservists. Aerial displays were not forgotten either: five Thunderstreak (F-84) jet fighters were dispatched from Berry Field in Nashville for a fly-over during the morning, and 15 Civil Air Patrol planes also took part. An Open House was held at the new Fort Raymond Jones National Guard Armory that morning, and the building was dedicated in ceremonies that afternoon.
Those are some of the historical facts of that day, but what had me all fired up (ignited, you might say) about it?
Like most boys of that time, I was in love with things military, the hardware and the heroes of all the services. By the age of 11 I had acquired a comprehensive education in the martial world through dozens of movies, hundreds of comics, lots of books (I still have the copy of To Hell and Back, Audie Murphy’s autobiography, that I bought at the Huntsville Bookstore), and television shows (I was a big fan of The Big Picture, the Army’s public information broadcast). I was an avid collector of Army patches, those colorful heraldic unit insignias (especially prized were the various triangular armored division patches). I was a frequent browser at the Army-Navy Surplus Store near the Post Office. And in terms of hands-on experience, I built plenty of plastic models of planes, ships, and other weapons of war. At times I wondered: do I want to go to West Point or Annapolis? To top all that off, my father worked at Redstone Arsenal, helping to develop guided missiles.
So, for a kid like me, Armed Forces Day was the real deal. As I hurried off the bus at the northeast corner of the square, I would have dashed right over to the missiles on display in the photograph above. There I stood, feasting my eyes on the Nike Ajax and the Nike Hercules, our nation’s last line of defense against Soviet bombers. On Friday, May 17, The Huntsville Times reported that “the biggest variety of rockets and guided missiles ever assembled publicly will be on display.” And they were: arrayed around the Square that day, in addition to the Nikes, were the other major missile weapons in the Army’s arsenal—the Dart, Little John, Honest John, Lacrosse, Corporal, and Redstone. Other antiquated weapons, such as howitzers, were set out, too. The Air Force even snuck in a Falcon, an air-to-air missile. I circled the Square in delight and awe that morning, taking it all in with youthful enthusiasm.
After the parade was over and the dignitaries on the reviewing stand had toured the exhibits, they route-stepped over to the Russel Erskine, where a chow line had been set up for them. I might have given some of the missiles another look while waiting for the crowds to thin out at the Krystal, Walgreen’s, or W.T. Grant’s. If I wanted to see a movie afterward, I had a choice of The Rainmaker at the Grand or a James Dean double feature, East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause, at the Lyric. Since I had become a big fan of Burt Lancaster after seeing The Crimson Pirate, I probably passed up the heavy drama and teens-gone-wrong at the Lyric. A short stop at Grand News Stand before I caught the bus back home would have been the perfect ending for a very exciting day in downtown Huntsville.
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On Thursday, May 16, 1957, the Times reported on an address given in Birmingham by Erik Bergaust, the managing editor of Missiles and Rockets: “Russia has operational missiles with a range of 400 miles and test-fires a two-stage missile with a 1,800-mile range several times weekly, a magazine editor said today.”
On Monday, May 20, 1957, another article on the front page of the Times revealed disquieting news on the status of the Vanguard Project: “Earth Satellite May Be Delayed; Unseen Hitches Arise Which Will Hold Up On Launching of Project…beyond the original September target date.”
October 4, 1957: Beep—beep—beep—beep—beep—beep. America gets a wake-up call.
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I put this together with archive articles from The Huntsville Times, factoids from the Internet, an article in Smithsonian Air & Space, and Sputnik by Paul Dickson (a highly recommended book).
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My First Purchase
Polly Gurley Redd
Class of '66
I loved your article about first purchases. I am sure that I bought things with my first babysitting money or that first switchboard operator job in college, but the item I remember is a Lane cedar chest, sometimes called a "hope chest".
I was already married when I bought mine, but had earned a whooping $50.00 bonus check for being the supervising teacher for a student teacher at my first job.
You need to realize that I was so green - fresh out of college and barely over my own student teaching, when this young woman showed up to work for me. I was the 7-12 girls PE teacher at a small consolidated school in rural southern Indiana and I was an outsider. My student teacher was a local woman, older than I was and related to over half the faculty. They called me Mrs. Redd and her Janey.
I was so sure of my craft and my skills and had wonderful memories of my supervising teacher and this young woman was, in my opinion, inadequately trained. Her supervising teacher on paper was the head football coach, as he had the required years experience and master's degree which I lacked. Yet I was the one who had to give her grades and I was not kind. I then had to justify my grades to both the principal and superintendent (self contained school), both of whom were also grading her during her time at the school without ever asking me how she was doing. They changed her grades so she passed and when I left the school the next year (Jim was transferred to a constuction project in Florida) she took my job.
I know that she was still there in the late 90's, over 20 years since I had left, and I was still known as the teacher who had failed Janey at student teaching. From the report I got at a national meeting about her, she never improved.
Imagine my surprise after failing her and having my grades changed to let her pass, when I received the $50.00 from her college. I almost didn't want to keep it, but my husband said I had earned it in angst and anguish over the 6 weeks. We went out to a local furniture store where we had been gradually purchasing furniture for our apartment and bought the cedar chest to store sweaters and linens.
We still have it today, 35 years later, at the foot of our bed in North Carolina, and I occasionally think of that school and Janey when I put something in it. Thanks for sparking the memory and for the great work you do each week.
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Subject:Pam Goatley
Kathy Reiter Taylor
Visitor
(Editor's Note: After last week's inquiry, Escoe German Beatty sent a note saying, "Pam Goatley is in Scottsdale, AZ. She is married to Dave deLuca. The two of them have gone into real estate, the last that I heard. Also, the last e-mail address on her was p-deluca@cox.net. I don't know if this is still valid." I used whitepages.com and found a number for a Pam deLuca and sent it to Kathy. She sent me back the following note.)
Thank you. Thank you.
Pam just called and it was the phone number/address that you emailed to me earlier. Our story.
Many years ago my dad (Col. N. I. Reiter) was stationed at Redstone Arsenal. We lived on and off base and Pam’s parents were military (retired) also. Our families did things together and so Pam and I became very good friends. As girls do, we would go to each other’s house. Pam’s house was the quiet one since she was an only child. My house was noisy due to the fact that I had two brothers and one sister. Everyone always wanted to play. Of course just before junior high, we moved to several other bases around the USA but our parents always kept in contact throughout the years. Mother always showed us the yearly Christmas card from The Goatleys or they talked several times a year. So I was able to keep up with Pam and her boys. I often thought of her but it wasn’t until getting ready for our 1966 class reunion from Hooks High Schoo, Hooks, Texasl that I thought I would just go back and see if she happened to be listed on one of the high school websites in Huntsville, Ala. I found your fantastic website and you know the end of this story. Today there is nothing like the internet. Pam had not been able to find your website so I just emailed it to her.
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Subject:Your Prayers
Sonny & Winona Brown Turner
Class of '65
Tommy, I'm writing this with a very heavy heart, Mothers Day has always been hard for me and Sonny. He lost his mother on Mothers Day in 1969, I lost my father on Mothers Day in 1978. I had a very hard time after losing my father. Our son David was 12 and our daughter Dena was 8. Sonny and my mother got together and decided that I needed a baby to care for and that probably saved my sanity. We decided that foster care would be a good way to go. We got Michael the last of September when he was 6 weeks old. He had been born prematurely on 7-31-1978 and weighed lest than 3 lbs. When we got him he only weighed 4lbs 12 ozs. He required an extreme amount of care as he did not have his sucking and swallowing co-ordinated, so we sometimes didn't get through with one feeding till it was time for the next one. It didn't take long though until I had several chins on him. We were only suppose to have him until he was healthy enough to go back to his birth mother. She had a disease called Huntington's Disease and was in the very early stages of it. Things happened and after 5 years we were able to adopt him. Of course, I would pity the person who might have tried to come and take him away from us. We knew that Mike had a 50/50 chance of getting the same disease. It didn't matter!!! He was our son. Mike was diagnosed with the HD disease when he was 14. It is a very rare and deadly disease when it developes in juvenile cases. We knew Michael would have a short life span and now it is coming to the end. We have had Hospice Care since December and things have been going downhill very rapidly since then. He was a strapping 6' 1" 200 lbs a few years ago and now he is down to 150. He has lost 16 lbs in 2 months. H has lost the ability to swallow and his body is shutting down. He has lost the ability to talk and we have to help him walk. We feed and bathe him as if he was a 1 year old again. We decided not to go with a feeding tube, since there is no hope for a cure and he has suffered enough. Would everyone say an extra prayer for our family during this time of need. And please God don't let him die on Mother's Day!!!!
Sorry this was so long, but thanks for listening.
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Johnny Sharp, Class of '64 - The two items in this week's "Mystery Photo" are old window weights. There was one inside the framing on each side of the window, the cords went over a pulley at the top and made the window easier to raise and let in fresh air. If the window wasn't too heavily painted!
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Linda Beal Walker, Class of '66 - I think these are window weights that held the windows open when the windows were raised and kept them from falling.
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Karen Tucker Oliver, Class of '65 - My parents have these in their windows still. They are window counterweights for when you open your windows. Of course, their windows are all painted shut these days and no one can open them anymore.
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Kevin L. Rice - I believe those are the counterweights that helped raise and hold the old glass windows. You wouldn't see them if they were being used in this manner.........but I remember them hanging on the front gate of my aunt's picket fence. When the gate was opened it would raise the weight and when you released the gate the weight would fall draw the gate shut.
Also used as boat anchors on a small vessel. Hey Jan Hunt !
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Jo Scholter - I’m not sure I’m spelling this correctly, but the phone appears to be “numb-chucks”. Used in martial arts self defense. I never graduated to these when I was in “karate” but watched quite a few work with them.
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Jeff Fussell, Class of '66 - These aren't items that most people would ever see unless you've done some remodeling in an older home. This week's mystery item is a pair of window sash counterweights.
They made lifting the heavy window sash relatively easy and helped it to stay up. They probably worked okay until some klutz like me took a paint brush to the window. After that, a crowbar was necessary if you wanted to get some fresh air.
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Rodney Vandiver - Window balance bars.
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Jim Bannister, Class of '66 - I believe that this week's Mystery Photo is a set of counter-weights from a window sash. A piece of broom handle placed under the edge of the window sash when the window is opened will do a better and more reliable job. An extemely low-tech but effective solution to keeping your windows open.
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Marc Bentley, Class of '66 - Tommy, they appear to be "window weights" designed to help raise and lower the windows of the day.
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Charlie Hancock, Class of '66 - The mystery photo is an excellent feature for the weekly newsletters. I might get 50% average. Maybe. You choose very well.
I thought at first they were (sp) numchucks used in marital arts. On consideration, they look like the counter weight inside old fashioned wooden window sashings. I have not seen wooden window sashing for decades. Only sliding aluminum windows. At least, that's how I remember it.
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Vern Lucas, Class of '64 - The mystery item for the week are window counter-weights. Old style wooden windows needed counter-weights to help lift the lower window unit when opening the window. The weights were concealed inside the window frame on both sides and were attached by rope over pulleys. When you pushed the window up, the weights (with the aid of gravity) assisted the effort. Worked pretty well until one or both of the ropes broke. A good basic design which has been around a long time.. Hey, I bet there is a good physics / math question there?
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Mike Griffith, Class of '66 - The two items look like window sash weights. Up until the summer between my second and third grade years at Lincoln, my family rented an older house on Virginia Boulevard and I seem to remember these. When we moved to our newly built house in Lakewood, we had "modern" windows that would, as if by magic, stay up when raised ... which was a good thing because opened windows and a large exhaust fan to draw in air was the only "air conditioning" that we had until I was in the 11th grade. Every summer I marvel at how we lived "under such conditions!"
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George Vail, Class of '66 - They're "Sash Weights". I've encountered these in window replacement/remodel projects. Modern windows use spring-balances to hold up or down window sash.
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Woody Beck, Class of '65 - Those look like the lead counterweights found in the casements of old windows to make them easier to slide up/down.
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Darryl Glassco, Class of ‘65 - These are window weights. They were used as counterbalance in double hung windows. You never saw them because they were hidden inside the window frame.
