Daviess County High School - Echoes Yearbook (Owensboro, KY)

Page 215 text:

f' Porter's Ford Fiesta can squeeze into parking places cadillac would never consider. He also gets about 40 Best of all Barry boasts, lt's got a lot of power for a little car. The Clos-Soving Generotion Though many good changes swept DCHS in the 1981-82 school year, an economic crunch that squeezed the na- tion continued to cut into budgets. Par- ent layoffs and student unemployment forced many families to draw tight bud- gets. Others drew tight budgets not so much out of desparation, but out of a realization of the value of economizing. Instead of buying their children gas-guz- zling sports cars, parents began helping their teenagers finance gas savers. Gas- saving American-made cars along with every imaginable model of Datsun, Toyota, and Volkswagen began appear- ing in the Davies County parking lot. Gas prices were actually lower in the 1981-82 school year than during the 1980-81 year because of a Mid East oil surplus. At one point in early spring, prices actually dipped to 99 cents a gal- lon. However, by graduation, prices were back to 1.16 and promising to rise. At times like these, students like Gina Davis are glad to get 35-40 miles per gallon in town. Gina bought her orange 81 Datsun 210 in October of 1981 from Sturgeon Pontiac Datsun. She needed economical transportation, her dad liked Datsuns, and it was a good deal. Gas for Cina's trip to Florida only cost her 530. Making car payments are rough, but she feels like the money she's saving will eventually pay for the car. Until then, she can go as far on a dollar's worth of gas in her Datsun as teenagers in the 50's did in their gas guzzlers when a dollar's worth was 4 times as much. The future belongs to the gas saving generation. The Economic Crunch: Little gas savers have one dis- advantage, a major blow will destroy the car, Karen Thomas' Datsun 1200 may not survive its last Friday night in town. The Gas-Saving Generationf211

Page 214 text:

lohn Fovvler's Datsun 2402 gave him everything he wanted-a good looking car with great mileage, Gina Davis' Datsun 210 takes her to school and back from Whitesville every day. 1? 3556 V f Q st g ooii Mike Erickson chose his Ford Escort for its combi- nation of class and economy. 2'l0!The Cas-Saving Generation 3 , lodie Royal's AMC Pacer has plenty of room for anything she wants to put in the trunk.

Page 216 text:

The little big man lohn Bouvier became Sheriff , january Hels taking his job seriously to make Owensboro an even better place In 1981 and 82, DCHS Students have seen many changes, not only in the school, but also in Owensboro and Daviess County. New Restaurants like Red Lobster, O'Daisy Donut, Hardy's, and Burger King seemed to suddenly take their places beside the traditionals on Frederica Street. Sonic went out of business, Liks Driv-ln Ice Cream Parlor took its place. On the east end of the county, ground was cleared to make way for grocery stores, subdivisions, and shopping centers. Downtown lost all its parking meters and gained signs pro- claiming a 2 hour parking limit. Owensboro motorists discovered on their way home from work that both St. Ann and Allen streets had become one way. On weekends, students flocked to arcades that popped up all over town or to the Village, a new disco. Owensboro-Daviess County Hospital fi- nally started building a new parking lot. All of the physical changes made Owensboroans grin and say, llYes, Owensboro's really improving. The less physical changes were not as evident to many in the county. The Ech- oes staff paid a visit to the Courthouse to find out how else the county was changing. Richard Lewis, Daviess County Government Administrator told Echoes that the changes in the Daviess County Fiscal Court, which virtually runs the county, began in '78. The present court fpresided over by County judge Execu- tive Bill Froehlich and governed by com- missioners David Warren, Roy Stoops, and Fred Marksberryj is 'lpeople orient- ed according to Mr. Lewis, but is also very conservative. The county budget of 1982 had a 2.5 million surplus to take care of emergencies. lt also relies heavily on volunteers such as the Volunteer Fire Department and the Retired Senior Vol- unteer Program. Daviess County hasn't felt federal budget cuts much because it has never relied heavily on federal funds in the past. A few major projects cut into the budget this year: The court completed the juvenile portion of the jail which cost SB450,000. But Lewis de- clares, 'The jail is up to par for twenty years. lt will pay for itself. Looking to- ward the future, Lewis expects the county to rely more and more on volun- teers. lllf people want something done, they will have to do for themselves. john Bouvier had been Sheriff 3 months when interviewed by the Echoes staff. Already he had made substantial changes in mandatory basic officers' training. Every officer was required to complete 20 sessions before he graduat- ed. He felt this increased the officer's knowledge and confidence. Bouvier also had 7 new cruisers purchased for his deputies. Until that time, deputies had provided their own cars for official busi ness. Bouvier says basically Owensboro does not have a serious crime problem He does feel that Daviess County has a serious teenage drug and alcohol prob lem. He has begun a vigorous drive to apprehend sellers and has instituted Drug Educational Programs in the com munity. Vandalism is another problem the Sheriff's department is working to combat. john hopes to put an end to bashed-in mailboxes in east Daviss Coun Though students refer to Owensboro as the big 'O leaders in Owensboro and Daviess County have high hopes that '83 will bring even more improve ments. Housing for the 80's: New homes like this one in Thorobred East continually appeared in new and existing subdivisions in East Daviess County. 212!Owensboro '82 .aaO ' ,, , fm...fn-fwraaaww-Q ff was i f ,, ' ,, .,.,a.1Ww.,, f l