Big Island High School - Islander Yearbook (Big Island, VA)

Page 16 text:

CLASS PROPHECY It was spring of 1970 when I journeyed from my home on the campus of Notre Dame back to my old home town, the city of Big Island. As my husband, Maurice, is a professor at Notre Dame, I accepted a position there also - teaching music. I have 4 children which are quadruplets, 2 girls and 2 boys - but I had left them home with my highly educated baby-sitter Madam Mazar, who formerly lived in Big Island. (You may remember she told fortunes at all our old school carnivals.) J decided to first visit my old classmate, Phyllis Wilson (who is now Mrs. B. R. Vandoozen) at her ultra-modern apartment on the corner of Charlemont Avenue and Sweet Hollow Road. Phyllis is now the Superintendent of Nurses in the 1,000 bed hospital, the Oglesby Mem- orial, where her husband is a widely known surgeon. As I was planning to stay a few days in my old home town, Phyllis and I went over to the Burkholder, Big Island’s newest and largest hotel, which is one of a chain of hotels all over the United States. There we found Mrs. William Manley, the former Mary Willoughby who has been happily married for 13 years to her childhood sweetheart and has 10 children, all boys, who are in a private school while Mary and her husband are working. While driving through the big metropolis of Big Island in Phyllis’s 1970 Cadillac, she showed me the huge Spence’s Hill Baptist Church where another of our classmates. Doctor William Saxon Hudson, D. D. S. is pastor. His wife, the former Iris Routon, is choir director of the huge choir of 1,000 members. Mr. and Mrs. Hudson are widely known all over the world for their evangelistic crusades and missionary work. Their church, which has an enrollment of one million, is located on the peak of Spence’s Hill. The daily Big Island paper, the Rush Tribune, today carried the pictures and news story of the world famous star of the women ' s division of the Globe-Trotters basketball team - Mrs. Odie Coffey, the former Rosa Dawson. Although Rosa Ann is successfully married to the manager of the Globe-Trotters and has 3 little globe -trotters, she is renowned for her faking, pivoting, and stomping on the basketball court. Phyllis and I immediately made plans to see her the next time she came to Big Island or Notre Dame. The next stop we made was Phillips’ Supermarket, Bakery, Sandwich Shop, Restaurant and Snack Bar, Marian Phillips owner and proprietor. She was not in, however, as she was in Switzerland testing cheeses for her famous Grill Cheese on Rye sold at her Sandwich Shop. Miss Phillips is widely known for her recipes and food which she developed through her extensive eating program. Miss Phillips ' manager told us also, that Miss Phillips’ closest friend, Mrs. Leroy Arthur (the former Joan McNeely naturally) was visiting in Big Island. Since graduation, Mrs. Arthur has become a secretary for her husband, who is a general in the Air Force at the U. S. Air Force Base in Sweden. As Mrs. Arthur had not been home for 15 years, she was the center of attraction with her Swedish accent and clothes. That night we attended the astounding Parks Conservatory, a concert by Nancy Taylor who has toured the world as a concert-pianist. She had also a violin accompanist, Miss Nancy King Peck, her former piano instructor. Nancy has also invented a new combination instrument, the Callawacker which plays all instruments at one time. Nancy has become very wealthy as well as prominent since graduation. Next on our agenda was a visit to the jet plane factory of Carlos Arrington, the master mechanic. Carlos has established the Hensley jet plane factory and modeled several planes after the blueprints he made in Art Class. Carlos’ wife - the former Senorita Anna Maria Gondolas. Carlos and his wife have a huge rancher o with an adobe house. There, the 15 little senoritas can play. Miss Dot Reynolds, another of our classmates, is now teaching at the new consolidated Big Island High School. Miss Reynolds accepted the teaching position after attending Lynchburg College and touring Europe, She has charge of the revised physical education program at the new high school which includes swimming, tennis, hockey, and golf.

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PHYLLIS VERNELLE WILSON Quiet and sweet, likeable too, What will B. I. H. S. do without you. Our good-looking class president On doing her best, she is bent. CLASS POEM OUR THOUGHTS Our thoughts are of the things to come, More than of things gone by; But still there linger memories Of old Big Island High. Our thoughts are diff’rent now than when We shaped these memories; We did not know that someday we Would have such thoughts as these. We ' re thankful for the ones who gave Their all that we be led; And as we lead those after us, We’ll lead as we were led. And in the moment we depan From earth, God make our aged hearts As glad o ' er all the days gone by As those at old Big Island High. Billy Hudson Class Poet

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Miss Shirley Taylor is now nursing at Oglesby Memorial Hospital. Shirley is now engaged to a prominent doctor. After many love affairs she has finally decided on the doctor she likes best. Shirley’s dream of the past is coming true in the near future. Shirley also has quite a large interest in “Goodbar” - oops - we mean candy of course. Captain Gordon Bryant Dawson, Jr., U. S. Marines, was reported to have been married while in Hawaii to a beautiful Hawaiian girl. G. B., as he is better known, is making a career of the U. S. Marines. G. B. has been in all parts of the world and has become quite a well-known person. He will retire soon and live in the Hawaiian Islands with his hula dancers. Thomas J. Haley is now a National Forest Ranger in Ohio. After 4 years at the University of Wisconsin, Tom decided he didn’t want to live alone. He is now married to the famous Marilyn Monroe who has given up her movie career to stay home with the little Haleys. Even though there is an age difference, Tom and Marilyn have worked out a perfect marriage. ' This magnificent Senior Class of ’55 was the last to graduate from the old Big Island High School. As a gift to die school is the usual custom, this remarkable Senior Class left a new modern high school for the oncoming classes. After a tour of this magnificent building, I boarded my plane for my flight back to Notre Dame to my professor and my little “Mooses and Madam Mazar. CLASS WILL We, the senior class of 1955, leave our last will and testament. To Mr. Burkholder, we leave our troubles and many thanks for the wonderful work he has done during our senior year. To Mrs. Parks, we leave our many thanks and appreciation for her efforts and interest in our class. To Miss Harris, we leave a better senior class in the years to come. To Mr. Oglesby, we leave a better basketball team and all of our history books. To Mrs. Rush, we leave special typewriters which give 100 to the students each day. To Mrs. Oliver, we leave a mechanical brain that will select the book list for ’56. To Mr. Callahan, we leave our knowledge. To Mrs. Hensley, we leave a better lunchroom group. We wish to thank the entire faculty for their faithful guidance in helping us to make this achieve- ment in our lives. To the Juniors, we leave our homeroom and the honor of becoming sophisticated seniors. To the Sophomores, we leave our charming ways with the teachers. To the Freshmen, we leave our athletic ability to keep B.I.H.S. shining. To the 8th Grade, we leave the privilege of becoming Glee Club Members. MARIAN PHILLIPS leaves her size to Edith DeWitt and her sandwiches to Myrene Ross, MARY WILLOUGHBY leaves her date book to Eleanor Goff and her athletic ability to Phyllis Turpin. NANCY TAYLOR leaves her walk to Betty Arthur and her ability to raise her right eyebrow to Russ J dins on. PHYLLIS WILSON leaves her noisy ways to Norma McNeely and her dignity to Patria Manley. SHIRLEY TAYLOR leaves her ability to drive to Iris Routon and pretty smile to Shirley Tolley. DOT REYNOLDS leaves her history notes to Bobby Brown and her jammed thumb to Bobby Taylor. JOAN McNEELY leaves her witty ways to Emma Lou Sanderson and dashing ways to J ackie Oliver.