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
I hope all is well with all of you as we start the holiday season. If you would like to share any schooltime Christmas memories in the next few weeks then please send them in.
Please include your class year with your e-mails.
T. Tommy
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A Major Award
For
Participation
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Current Open Topics
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.
Do you have a story about the first big thing you bought with money earned from your first real job, either during or after Lee?
What did you do or do you have planned for your 60th Birthday?
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From Our
Mailbox
JEFF FUSSELL - CLASS OF 1966
Opening The Cedar Treasure Chest
(A Time Capsule of Memories)
Part 3
by Tommy Towery
Class of '64
Last week we skipped the Cedar Box serial because of the tragic news of the Lee High School bus. This week we'll continue the story of the contents of the box.
I selected one of the items in the box to discuss this week because of the mystery surrounding it. You see above a photo of a boy in a red shirt and that photo is also the object of this week's Mystery Photo. It is a mystery to me because I do not know who this person is, or why his photo ended up in my box of treasures. It looks a little like Bob Davis of Huntsville High, but I really don't think it is Bob.
It could be a cousin perhaps. In remembering cousins there are lots of things to think about. To me cousins were really mysterious. I found it hard to understand at a young age how my first cousin's first cousin was not at all related to me. I had a set of cousins that lived on Oakwood for a while: Brenda, Kay, and Phillip Towry. They were the children of my father's brother, my Uncle Howard, so they were my first cousins. If I have not been wrong all these years, one of their cousins was Sherry Adcock, Class of '64. I suppose Brenda's, Kay's, and Phillip's mother was kin to either Sherry's mom or dad. Anyway, Sherry and I both shared cousins, yet we were not cousins. It was so confusing.
I also had some cousins, Kenneth and Billy Benson, that I was close to and their mother was the sister of my grandmother. I can't really say right now which cousin that made them, but to me a cousin was a cousin so the number thing really didn't matter that much. Kenneth and Billy lived in West Huntsville, so don't go trying to remember them unless you life took you in that direction as well. Kenneth was a little older than me and one of the odd things I remember about him is that one day at a funeral of one of our Fayetteville relatives we both were standing around and talking. He wanted to know if I was still split up with Ginger, my on and off girlfriend. I told him I was and he wanted me to give him her number so he could ask her out. Since it seemed that Ginger and I were always on-again-off-again, I did not think that was a good idea so I somehow avoided that. I still don't know where he had seen me with Ginger to even know what she looked like.
So, anyway, forget about cousins...help me find out who this photo is of, because I really don't think he is a cousin after all. I just don't know why his photo is in my treasure chest.
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This Week's
Mystery Photo
Okay Classmates, help me out here. This is a photo that was locked away in my Cedar Box. Who is it? No, I mean it...who is it bcause I can't be sure. Do any of you recognize this person? If you know please let me know so I can put the mystery to bed. This is obviously a school photo, but it is in color. That probably means that it was taken sometime after 1964 because all of my photos up to then were black and white. But it could be that we also had a few color ones in our photo package. The hair and the shirt style looks Sixtyish to me. Any clues?
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Last week I explained the Metal Typer and gave you the link to get one for yourself. The guy that had the web site stated on his site that he would send a free one to people who would write in and tell him why they wanted or deserved one.
On a lark I wrote him and told him about the Mystery Photo series I run in Lee's Traveller and asked if he would make one for me to present to someone who won the trivia contest. Since we really didn't have a contest exactly, I have elected to present this Good Luck Metal Typer coin to one of the best participants I have in the weekly contests - Jeff Fussell, Class of '66. If you can't read the writing on the coin, it says "LEES TRAVELLER.COM TRIVIA WINNER"
Jeff has always gone the extra mile to participate and keep the memories alive on this site, and I hope all of you appreciate his efforts as much as I do. So, Jeff, if you will send me your snail mail address, I'll send you your prize. Congratulations.
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Another Classmate
Loses Father
(Editor's Note: I got the following note from Jennifer, but somehow did not get the original e-mail. I guess my spam filter struck again. Sorry to be late reporting this.)
Jennifer White Bannecke, Class of '66 - I sent this a few weeks ago but you must not have recieved it. My step father, Jim Campbell, died October 18, in Huntsville and 15 days later Craig's dad died. We did not come home for Thanksgiving since we had been back for both of their funerals and did not feel up to coming back again so soon. We did get to see Niles, Cleave, Carol Jean, Tommy and a few others at the visitation and it meant a lot. Thanks guys.
Erwin Julius Bannecke
July 30, 1921 - Nov. 2, 2006
Erwin Julius Bannecke, 85, of Huntsville died Thursday. He was born in Milwaukee but had resided in Huntsville for 49 years. He was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II. He retired from a civil service position at Redstone Arsenal after 34 years. Mr. Bannecke was a member of St. Marks Lutheran Church. His wife of 41 years, Frances Helen Scruggs Bannecke, preceded him in death. Survivors include his sons, Craig Bannecke and wife, Jennifer, of Augusta, Ga., and David Bannecke and wife, Jennifer, of St. Louis; daughter, Marlene Warren and husband, Mark, of Huntsville; and grandchildren, Zachary, Clayton, Kelan, Dylan, Anna Lee and Tess Elyse. Visitation will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday at Laughlin Service Funeral Home. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Monday at the funeral home chapel with burial in Huntsville Memory Gardens.
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Subject:Bus Crash
Eddie Zachary
Class of '69.
I first heard of the crash after work the day of the crash. It brought back memories of the crash upon Monte Santo mountain in the either in the late '60's or early' 70's that had students from on top of the mountain that was going to either Lee or Chapman. My prayers went out as soon as I heard of it to the families. As I live in Knoxville area now I was able to donate some money through the hockey team here that was given to the fund set up by WAAF for the families Sat. night at the Knoxville /Huntsville hockey game. I pray that the families will have peace over this tragedy and will have something good come from it.
Thanks Eddie and go LEE
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Subject:Bus Crash
Dianne Hughey Mcclure
Class of '64
Hey Tommy and All
I just thought I would share my experience about the bus crash. I am a pediatric nurse at Huntsville Hospital. I was called in to work due to the bus crash and the need for extra help. I actually felt sick to my stomach as I was getting ready to go. I did not know what to expect when I got there but my manager had said it was very bad. When I arrived I was struck by the quietness on the floor even though parents, family and friends were there in great numbers. My thought was that the children of these people had been brushed by the wings of the angel of death that day and they could have just as easily been identifying their child instead of holding there hands.I was very impressed with the way the emergency personnel as well as the E.R. had handled the disaster. Within two hours after I arrived most all children had been triaged and were either gone home, admitted to a unit or admitted to the floor. I hope to never experience this again and we did not even have to deal with the worst of it. Life is so fragile and can be gone in a minute we do not need to dwell on this but we need to be more aware of it. Edit this if you need to I know it is long but I just felt like I wanted to share.
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Subject:Bus Crash
Polly Redd
Class of ‘66
The bus wreck was truly tragic. I read it in our Carolina papers since I was in Columbia, SC with my mother at the time, but did not know it was from Lee until your alert. Thanks for keeping us up to date and, yes, this group of students, parents, and caregivers are in my prayers.
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Subject:Bus Crash
Rose Sharon Towery Linsky
Class of ‘65
Thanks for the update on the bus accident. We were all sickened to hear of the incident shortly after it occurred. Heartfelt prayers of support and concern went out at that time and continue as the families continue to grieve. To lose young lives is always a tragedy and seems even more so at this time of the year when thoughts of family members and dear friends are so prevalent on our hearts and minds.
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Subject:Lee's Traveller
Connie Cornelius Thompson
Class of '75
I heard about your website from my old neighbor Steve Craig. Like him, I graduated much later than all of you but my big brother is a member of the class of 64. I have many fond memories of all those years at Lee, not only watching Don play sports but attending all kinds of events with my dad, Howard Cornelius, better known as Mr. C. Lee High School will always be a special place to me. Thanks for sharing this website with others. I will be sure to tell Don about it. Perhaps he can make a reunion one of these days. He's living and working in Birmingham but isn't very good at keeping in touch!
From: Jacksonville AL
Email: thompson@jsu.edu
Year of Graduation: 1975
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A Very Special E-Mail
TT - Just wanted to encourage all of our 60-year-old classmates to make sure you get a colonoscopy. I decided to get one only because my wife did and I got lucky - I hit paydirt on the first try, I've always been lucky.
The good news is we got it early and they are only going to remove 1" of my colon. The bad news is no beer until I get out of the hospital, I can't drive "The Lehman Express" for three weeks and no golf for two months. I never thought I would be happy to have people pray for me. I go under the knife next Tuesday.
Lehman Williams
Class of '64
Gwilliams@ymcawhittier.org
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How I Plan To Celebrate
My 60th Birthday
Polly Redd
Class of ‘66
My husband and I have now decided how we are going to celebrate our 60ths (his in 2007 and mine in '08). We are joining Vancouver, Canada friends with whom we have traveled in the past on an around the world tour in 2008. It is the company’s Northern Hemisphere Tour and starts in Toronto and goes to Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, Egypt, Czechoslovakia, and back to Toronto. (The Southern Hemisphere goes to Galapagos, Easter Island, Tahiti, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Brazil, and Antilles, but we are all opting for the Northern this time.) It should be a great way to celebrate – I hope we are still able to go when 2008 gets around.
Classmates Recommend
Some Web Sites To Visit
Over the last few weeks several of you have sent me links to some web sites to share with Classmates. Click on the underlined word and enjoy if you wish.
Tommy, A friend turned me on to this site... Russell Wells does this as a hobby... Check it out & let me know what you think about it ... Jim Bannister
Gary Kinkle suggests this site and says In March, 2005, this song was performed at a Diamond Rio concert. They received an immediate standing ovation, and continue to do so every time they perform it! Sadly, major radio stations wouldn't play it because it was considered politically incorrect. Consequently, the song was never released to the public. If this song speaks to your heart, share it with friends and loved ones. Then let us cease being the silent majority and join together -- not as a particular political party, but as Americans!
