Otwell High School - Anchor Yearbook (Otwell, IN)

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It was a beautiful day in early spring when the leaves and grass were tender green, and tulips and hyacinths flirted with the breeze. But my heart was a cold lump, for far away in this no-time-for-courtesies city I had lived for the past ten years and never once had I run across an old friend from dear old Otwell. As I went down on the elevator, I was thinking of those yesteryears and wishing for the thousandth time that they were back again, when someone laid his hand hesitantly upon my arm. Pardon, Miss, but aren't you Karen Ruckriegle? he inquired. I gasped, Jerry Pride, what are you doing in Los Angeles? N Didn't you know that I'm a newspaper reporter for the International News Service? I'm on my way to Hollywood now to get an exclusive story about Elvis Presley. Ruth is going to meet me when I've finished, and we 're going out to dinner, Want to join us? Why, yes, Jerry, l'd love to. When we arrived in Hollywood, we went to the MGM Studios where, much to our surprise, we saw another old class chum, Loretta Brown. She told us she had just accepted a job as chief hairdresser at MGM, after having worked in Paris for the past ten years. After talking to Loretta for a few minutes, we were informed that Elvis was sick and had not come to the studio that day. However, Elvis's secretary, Marilyn Wiseman, told us that we could interview his side-kick. Can you imagine our surprise when it turned out to be Joe K. Alexander! That night after dinner Jerry took Ruth and me to Madam Kathie's Tea House, and as we entered, a beautiful lady dressed in red to correspond with the coloring of the. room fappar- ently the owner of the placej smiled so that her white teeth flashed in the pale light. Well, you should know by now that it was Katherine Powell, She escorted us to a table where her gypsy fortune-teller was sitting. Katherine asked me ifl wished to look into the magic ball and see the fate of some of my other schoolmates. On an island where the palm trees grow I saw Bob Gray and Dick Hill, both privates in Uncle Sam's Army. Bob was still as quiet as ever, and Dick had just been nominated for the Most Mischievous Boy in the U. S. Army award. The scene changed, and in a mansion down in South America sat a rich, unmarried man. After seeing the hot, customized convertible in the driveway, I was convinced that it must be Jim Lindauer. About ten miles away I saw Martha Sue Traylor doing a two-fold job. She was both a cler-typist and the wife of Ronnie Richardson. I then saw Karen Mosby who was living abroad raising little Phillippinos. Skipping around to various parts of the United States, I saw in our nation 's capitol two former classmates, Wilma Sendelweck and Juanita Rincker, laboring over their many secre- tarial duties for the President. -Rfl-

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I I I I I I I I I I. I I I I. I. I. 1. I. 1. I. I. 1. I. I. I. I. I. I. I I. I I I I I I I I MARTHA ADAMS, will my bashfulness to June Popp. JOE ALEXANDER, will to Jim Brace the ability to get along with Winslow girls. LORETTA BROWN, will to Phyllis Lemond another chevron and a star on her cheerleader sweater. BEVERLY BUCHTA, will to June Popp my ability to get shorthand ll. JERRY BUSH, will to T. D. Thompson the ability to be slapped out of government class. SHARON DAVIS, will my government book to anyone who can find it. BARBARA ELKINS, will to Helen Walters the ability to run out of gas on Main Street in Petersburg. BOB GRAY, will my selling ability to Don Meadors. DICK HILL, will to Delbert Schiller the ability to lift socks. LARRY JONES, will my old study hall seat to anyone silly enough to take it. LORETTA JONES, will to Ruby Willis the ability to get through the Senior year without a government book ELZENA LEIGHTY, will to Marilyn Fuhrman my ability to get an Air Force man. JIM LINDAUER, will to Donnie Weisman my ability to become a star ball player. JUANITA MEHNE, will to Rosalie Sorgius the ability to chase boys in Petersburg. CHARLES MYERS, will to Delbert Schiller my position as FFA Secretary. KAREN MOSBY, will by my baby sister, Irma, an opportunity to ride in Oxidine's new Ford. CAROLYN PADGETT, will to Sue Wiscaver my old torn-up government hook. SHIRLEY PADGETT, will my gray fur-lined shoes to Sue Wiscaver. KENNETH PANCAKE, will to Jim Himsel my hunting ability. KATHERINE POWELL, will to Janice Wiseman my cousin, Freddie. JERRY PRIDE, will to John Wineinger my ability to bushwhack after play practice. EARL RICHARDSON, will to Tom Leighty my sports abilities. IUANITA RINCKER, will to Bernetta Doades my giggles. RUTH ANN RISLEY, will to John Risley common sense when he gets his driver's license. RONNIE ROBERTS, will to Jim Brace my car when I get though with it. KAREN RUCKRIEGLE, will a trailer of pancakes to anyone who wants them. JERALD SENDELWECK, will to Jim Himsel my old slightly-used Petersburg road maps. WILMA SENDELWECK, will to Donnie Weisman the ability to grow fingernails. BETTY JO THOMAS, will to Nancy Hayes my inability to think. DANNY TRAYLOR, will to Doyle Cox the privilege of escorting the Senior Festival Queen Candidate. MARTHA TRAYLOR, will to Nina Nelson the ability to drink cokes in Miss Hart's class. FRANK WALTERS, will to Helen Walters my B's in conduct. JIM WHITEHEAD, will to John Wineinger the ability to steal pencils from underclassmen. PAT WILLIAMS, will to Sharon Kinman the outlines and reports that I had to give in government class. MARILYN WISEMAN, will to Carolyn Dedrick the ability to be the only blond in the Senior Class. PHYLLIS WISEMAN, will to Barbara Fettinger the ability to chew gum in Mrs. Ruckriegle's classes. BETTY WRIGHT, will to Arletta Whaley my back seats in every class. CAROLYN WRIGHT, will to everyone in the Junior Class the ability to graduate. -29-

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In Texas, I saw Larry Jones, the top rodeo performer in the West, do one of his famous bronco-busting routines. In another part of the country, Bob Hope had just announced on his nationwide TV show that he could not have been where he was today if it had not been for the wonderful jokes Barbara Elkins had written for him. I noticed that Danny Traylor had finally gotten the job he used to tell us he wanted back in '58 -- running the controls in Sputnik. Standing by, in case Danny needed any help was Loretta Jones, his stewardess. Martha Adams, secretary to Mickey Mouse, was trying her best to talk Mickey into let- ting her friend, Sharon Davis, have a job on his show. However, Pat Williams promised to get Sharon a job with the Barnett Manufacturing Company if all Martha's efforts failed. In still another section of the country, I saw that Elzena Leighty had lit a lot of little flames from the Blaize. Nearby, Betty Wright was raising little Harrisons and her sister, Carolyn, was busy just being an all-round good housewife. I was told that Jerald Sendelweck could be seen any weekend riding his motorcycle from Purdue to Indiana University. But not everyone had left Otwell, for when I looked in on main street, I saw Earl Rich- ardson who was now recognized as the hottest drag racer in Pike County. He had just left the meeting of the Otwell Drag Racers Club after seeing Shirley Padgett elected as their next president. Another member of the club, Beverly Buchta, was still driving her 1929 Ford. Not far outside of town was Ronnie Roberts and Iim Whitehead's fabulous fruit farm. Also in the farming profession were Charles Myers and Frank Walters. A recent issue of a well- known magazine listed them as Southern Indiana's two most prosperous farmers. I saw Kenny Pancake, the leading sportsman of Velpen, and Carolyn Padgett, who owned and operated the Velpen Winery. Nearby, Betty Io Thomas had a lovely home and garden. Her reputation was widely es- tablished as the biggest vitamin grower in the world, Jerry Bush hadn't changed too much. He was still running up and down the streets of Oak- land City. In Evansville1 Juanita Mehne was serving as head nurse at the Deaconess. Thus ended the vision. But where was Phyllis? I had not seen her. As I was going back to my friends, a young lady and gentleman entered the door. I recognized the young man as Ricky Nelson, and the gorgeously dressed young lady was Phyllis Wiseman. She had recorded some songs with 'Ricky and captured the heart of this handsome singing star. That night as Jerry and Ruth were taking me back to Los Angeles, I felt a peacefulness in my heart that I had not known for years. I realized that this world was not so large after all. In that one little town I had seen all of my old schoolmates, and I knew that it would not be the last time. -31-