Rock Island High School - Watchtower Yearbook (Rock Island, IL)

Page 28 text:

A year of many changes We returned to school after a dry, scorching summer. The record breaking drought, however, did not keep Rocky students from enjoying swimming pools and lakes. Mother Nature gave us mild winter weather as a Christmas present. The temperature on one January day was 60 degrees Fahrenheit. We held on to these warm memories through light Feb¬ ruary snow fall. The world of sports captured our interest as we watched the 1988 Summer Olympics. Runner Florence Joyner-Grif- fith won our hearts, while Canadian Ben Johnson broke them. The Dodgers beat the Oakland A’s to win the world series. The Superbowl Title went to the San Fran¬ cisco 49 ' s. Davenporter Michael Nunn fought off numerous opponent’s to remain Middleweight Champion. Most of Mike Tyson’s fighting was done by lawyers defending him against his estranged wife, Robin Givens. The biggest game in politics, the Presidential Campaign, finally came to an end in November. Michael Dukakis and Jesse Jackson played until the end, but George Bush, with running mate Dan Quayle, ended victorious. Many Armenian citizens lost their lives during a horrible earthquake. Mikhael Gorbachev, and wife Raisa, had to cut a New York visit short to return home and comfort the nation. Pan-Am Airlines flight 103 crashed in Scotland killing hundreds of passengers. Reports indi¬ cate that a terrorist ' s bomb was the cause. American and Russian workers collabo¬ rated to prevent another disaster; they helped to free three whales stuck under the ice of Alaska. 1988 saw the succesful return of the Shuttle “Discovery” to space. The Rus¬ sian troops were pulled out of Afganistan. The U. S. refused to allow P.L.O. leader, Yassir Arafat, to enter the country to speak at the United Nations. Again, Rolling Stones Reader’s Poll named U2 the best band of 1988. The temperamental marriage of Sean Penn and Madonna kept us more entertained than their movies. Rain Man” was hon¬ ored with the greatest number of Oscar nominations while the controversial “Last Temptation of Christ evoked heated conflicts. A Japanese Art Collector payed $39 million for a painting by Van Gogh. Locally, the summer of 1988 was brightened by the lighting of the Centen¬ nial Bridge. The old Farmall Plant in Rock Island became the Quad Cities’ Industrial Center. A group also bought the old train depot. A passenger train ran from Chi¬ cago to Rock Island. Also, the city of Rock Island built a new fire station on 30th. Street. Moline continued the construction on Highway 5, making it easier to get to Southpark and the airport. Rock Island prepared itself for a new mayor. The idea of combining the Illinois Quad-Cities into a Super City was vetoed by voters. Rock Island High survived the highs and lows of the news. Various teachers and students even made a little news themselves and will continue to do so. 24