Columbus East High School - Altis Yearbook (Columbus, IN)

Page 27 text:

Energy crisis set back closing times of all Washington Street stores which left the streets deserted. Carefully manipulating his fork without it snapping in two, senior Jeff Brown devours the cold lunch plate which replaced the hot lunches because of the energy cut back. Ghost towns revive from energy crisis Bringing back memories of the ghost towns of the old west, dark, eerie, and quiet, Columbus and sur- rounding communities suffered through history being made as United Mine Workers struck for one hundred and nine days. History was being made as President Jimmy Carter called an emergency en- ergy set back for Indiana and other states. Columbus cut back all electricity except needed from businesses such as schools, factories, and stores. Employ- ees were laid off, homes and businesses cut back by utilizng few lights and less heat. East went through numerous cold spells as gym classes were moved to the open area between the audito- rium and the cafeteria to finish their dancing segment of the P.E. course. The gym was totally shut off from any heat and lights as it approximately dropped to a 40 degree level. Basketball practice was postponed but practice was temporarily moved to North or they played in the dark at school. Ex- tra-curricular activities were post-poned also for the time being. But as the energy crisis lingered on, the community realized how serious the shortage meant to the state of In- diana. Most of the citizens of Colum- bus and surrounding communities sup- ported the energy crisis to some degree. Ending the one hundred and nine day coal strike was a relief to many citi- zens. Even though some issues couldn’t be agreed upon, the strike was settled and the ghost towns of Indiana flick- ered back to life. Student life 23

Page 26 text:

Security lights of the First National Bank were shut off during the late hours of the evening which made Columbus seem as though it was a ghost town. Everything seemed to be disposable during the United Mine Workers strike as senior Duane Nichalson demonstrates his way of disposing of his styrofoam tray.

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Trucks and vans were highlights of the auto- mobile competition and received much recognition. New contests end boredom; Set promising precedent Motor heads and ping-pong tourna- ments set the winter blues behind the scene and welcomed the oncoming summer. Students and faculty partici- pated in the car show and ping-pong events which helped move along the slow days left until school was out. The warmth of spring filled the school with sunshine. Winners of the car show displayed great enthusiasm for their cars, trucks, and vans. First place in the car division went to junior Jim Daily showing a 1934 Chevy Coupe. Second place win- ner was senior Brian Morris and third went to junior Jeff Gullett. In the trucks and vans division, senior Jim Galbraith took first place with a 1977 van. Second was junior Ron Bartin and third was sophomore Bob Christman. The overall winner was senior David Wampler displaying a I960 Thunderbird. Celebrities visiting the car show were Ed Thurman from WWWY, Ray Massey from WCSI, J.D. Lewis from the Republic. A National Guard heli- copter flew over the car show to ob- serve the great-looking cars, vans, and trucks. After several weeks of practice, the ping-pong classic got underway. Both men and women participated in his event that took much concentration. Competition was tough but not too tough for the competitor who won the final round. Junior Matt Kutch took the ping-pong classic in stride and cap- tured the tournament trophy. Never before has there been a car show or ping-pong tournaments at East. Perhaps this first will be the be- ginning of new enthusiastic events in the future. Tournament winner junior Matt Kutch ex- presses a bit of distress, but keeps his eye on the ball. 24 Student Life