Woodrow Wilson Class of '68: 2017

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

We Survived the 60s... Celebrating 50 Years Since High School!

Note: The donation request on the main page of wilsonhighreunion.com goes to Herb Halling from class of '62. He has been maintaining this site for all the classes of Wilson. The donations do not go to our class. Thanks

Friday, January 20, 2017

Magical Mystery Tour

There will be two buses. First bus will be a 5PM pick up time at the Pacific Inn in Seal Beach. The second bus will be a 6PM pick up time (arriving at the pier event at 7PM). Location of the second pick up will be decided at a later date. Sign up for the buses will be sometime around June.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Joint was a Rockin'!

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Groovin' on a Sunday Afternoon

Meet

"UNDER THE ARCHES!"

Park Ave. and 10th St.

PAY Easy ONLINE!

Pay with Paypal or Your Credit Card!

Just CLICK on the Blue Arrow box above the ADD TO CART button to get the drop down menu for each event. Make your selection for SINGLE or COUPLE. Each time you click on "Add to Cart" it will take you to the Paypal page. Click on "Continue Shopping" in top right corner to go back to this page to click on the next item. Continue clicking on the ADD TO CART button for each event. If you'd like to send a check, please use the reservation form mailed with your invite.

IMPORTANT! YOU NEED TO STILL FILL OUT and SEND IN YOUR RESERVATION FORM (mailed with your invite) EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE PAYING ONLINE.

Friday, Aug. 24
“Magical Mystery Tour”…
Buoy’s at Veterans Pier/ Double Decker Bus
No Host Bar - Light Dinner Included
End of Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier
15 39th Place • Long Beach
(Parking lot located at end of Termino off of Ocean Blvd.
Golf Cart available for ride to end of pier and back!)
Aug. 24 • 6PM to 10PM $20 per person ........

Attendance-to-Date 50th Reunion

Let me know that you plan on attending so your name can be added!
Names are listed as reservations come in... hence why they aren't listed alphabetically :o)

Grads Name and Guest:

Patti GEHRKE
Gary PLUNKETT
Pat ANDERKIN Ferrer
Ed FERRER
Susie STEWART Ramage
and Jon Ramage
Laurie MURPHY Barry
and Pat Barry
Jack RABER
and Cindi Raber
Greg THORPE
and Debby Thorpe
Cheryl GILES Donnelly
and Scott Donnelly
Patty McWILLIAMS Peterson
and Bob Peterson
Burke GUMBINER
and Susan Ware
Steve DRAKE
Steven KELLAM
and Nancy Kellam
Kathy RILEY Bratt
Mike MARSHALL
Dennis ROQUET
and Kelly Kolleen
Wes EDWARDS
Nancy HOLLISTER
Rob TOWNER (from New Zealand)
Jane WALLACE Brug
and John Brug
Carol RUNNELLS Hinis
and Russell Hinis
John CUNY
Larry NEWBILL
Carol-Lynn CAMPBELL
Richard DEMPSEY
amd Babs Dempsey
Steven MacPHERSON
and Margaret SEAMAN MacPHERSON
John TARLTON (from New Zealand)
Linda MINIFIE
Diane KIRBY Howse
Barbara "Bebop" WOOLPERT Druzsba
Jerry COMPTON and
Suzy Compton
Richard MALLETT
Ken BUCK
and Cathleen Buck
Jim LANDIS (from Colombia)
Sharil ORR Follman
and Jay Follman
Sandi SARVER
Karen CARDINALI Best
Candy ANGLE Santini
and Godfrey Santini
Deberah PORTER
Greg COOPER
and Elaine Cole Cooper ('69)
Brian MEALEY
and Rhea Ruelke Mealey ('69)
Christine SOUTHWICK Palotay
Glenn HARWOOD
and Karen Harwood
Debby "Buns" CUNNINGHAM Eddy
Stephanie FAULKNER Johnson
and Dave Johnson
Andrea CENTOZ Fairborther
and Clarke Fairbrother
Jim SOLOMAN
and Diana Soloman
Susan KIELB Abeles
and Mike Abeles
Martin HART
Kim JOHNSON
and Jeri Johnson
Bob GRAVES
Greg JONES
Wendy BARLOW Cecil
John PRICE
Kathy RODE Ediss
and Ted Ediss
Carol MORIARTY Bingaman
Jennifer MEYER Dronick
Carol SINGLETON Halverson
and Craig Halverson
Margie SINGLETON Aplanalp
Nick HARRIS
and Patti Harris
Ron CLARK
and Carol Clark
Angelique CAUSEY Eddins
Chet ROHER
Fred WISE
and Karen Wise
Geni LEVINE Thomas
and Marc Thomas
Gail PILCHMAN Emery
and Doug Emery
Candy SHOWS DeFazio
Tony DeFaziio
Tom CROWELL
Marty PAIGE
and John Taxis
Carol HOLMES Buckley
Mel MARKHAM and
Sue Markham
Bob MORLEY
and Guest
Richard MARCOUX
and Trudy Tinsley Marcoux (Wilson '69)
Priscilla Ann McCOY Bright
and Phil Bright
Neal PETERSON
and Brenda Peterson
Jody POWELL Smith
Stephen NEES
and Helen Nees
Mimi DECKER Puckett
Marc PUCKETT
Colleen DESMOND Mason
and Don Mason
Judy LANDIS
Mike McCLAY
Paul ROHR
and Denise Rohr
John BIGELOW
and Susie Bigelow
Marilyn CALDWELL Weaver
Bonnie HAND Zimmerman
and Dennis Zimmerman
Betty JOHNSON Perry
and Tom Perry
Kathy SHINDLER Gauhan
Randy ROSSI
and Cristy Rossi
Robin WORLEY
DeAnne WILLIAMS Manley
Kent EASTMAN
and Sharon Gescheider Eastman ('69)
Lynn EFFINGER
and Kathy Effinger
Fonita RANDOLPH Fambrough
Randy SIMMONS Budihas
and Brenda Budihas
Craig TERPSTRA
and Kathleen Terpstra
Artie WILLISON
and Judy Sterling (Wilson '69)
Monica COZENSA Brady
and Fred Brady ('66)
Lawna FORHING Munholland
Glenn HOWARD
and Mary Howard
Rita CRUZ Jones
and Charles "Butch" Jones ('66)
Swen LANGEBERG Nater
Wendy PEARL Ghiora Nater
David GOLDIN
Janice TWEEDY
Lucille "Liz" SEKULICH Calafiore
Karen WEBECKE
Candy HIROTO
Kathy KENYON
Bob LUDLAM
and Carol Ludlam
Priscilla RAGLAND
and Hubby
Alan HYDE
Claude CURRIE
Greg LITCHSKE
Ann TERRELL Cook
Debby KELLER Blasdel
and Bradley Blasdel (Wilson '70)
Kathleen MONTGOMERY Parks
Susan VIGNOLO
Barry JETTON
Andy ORDON
Bob HILLMAN
and Lisa
Rick WILCOXIN
and Yvonne Wilcoxon
Deborah RICHARD
Michele d'ARLIN Lynch
and Larry Lynch
Tony FREW Renfrew
John BRAGG
and Janet Rapaport
Phyllis COVEY
Geoff MAGNALL
Tom POE
Joni DIXON Pontius
Pat MATHEWS
RaeAnn Suter Mathews
John BLUMBERG
Rob SAGEHORN
and Marilyn Masuda Sagehorn '70
Katie HENDERSON McCelland
Monica MacKAY Turney
and Dr. James Gee
Nelson MEAD
and Diane Mead
Susan MINSON Evert
and Bill Roediger
Mickey TIMMERMANS
John MEAGER
Jeanette LA ROE Preece
and Michael Preece
Chris KEY
Laura McCRARY
Robert MILLER
and Catherine Miller
La Vonne MILLER
and Scott
Paul HARTMAN
Debra HILL Dellorto
and John Dellorto
John STUMM
Rich TEITEL
Mark ZAHN
and Bonnie Zahn
Bob STEIN
Steve MANN
and Donna Cusimano
Jim HUNT
and "date" Greg PIKE! :o)
Liz MOTSINGER
David BERNEKER
Nord EMBRODEN
and Nikki
Carl EBERLY
and Sheila
John MURRIN
and DeVonna Murrin
Sharon NIED Butterfield
and Steve Butterfield
Melissa TRIMMER Jusztin
and Julie Beaucham
Karen HOOVER
Ed SCHULTZ
Doug DANNY - Friday only
Susan OLSON Goldman
Craig WIESENHUTTER
and guest
Carol WILSON Brassel
And Robert Brassel
Below are waiting to confirm:
Dennis CLARK
and Patti Clark
Dexter PADGITT ?
and Julie Gilmore ('69)
Harry SMITH ?
Linda FINKLE Reilly ?
and Patrick Reilly
Russ ALDRICH ?
and Pamela Aldrich
Jim WERNER?

Sweethearts Forever!

Are You Married to a Wilson Grad?

Doesn't matter what year your spouse graduated...
just that they are a Wilson grad! We'd like to honor
you in the Alumni Book with your wedding photo,
date and "now" photo. Also, please indicate what
year your spouse graduated from Wilson. Here is a
sample of sweehearts Monica COSENZA and
Fred BRADY '66.

May 18, 1974

Please send your color or black and white photo of your wedding day and a recent o

Please send your color or black and white photo
of your wedding day and a recent one of you both
along with date of your wedding to:

P. Gehrke
4515 E. 2nd St. • Long Beach, CA 90803

via e-mail
p.gehrke@verizon.net

Photos will be returned to you!

See below for current list of Married Grads!
Please let me know of anyone that was left off.

Cynthia ADAMS and Lester NELSON '68
Kathy ALEXANDER and Jim LINGLE '67
Pat ANDERKIN and Ed FERRAR '68
Wendy BARLOW and Joe CECIL '66
Greg COOPER and Elaine COLE '69
Monica COSENZA and Fred BRADY '66
Ritz CRUZ and Charles JONES '66
Mimi DECKER and Marc PUCKETT '68
Kent EASTMAN and Sharon GESCHEIDER '69
Lawna FOHRING and Jim MUNHOLLAND ‘62
Patti GEHRKE and Gary PLUNKETT '68
Jane GRAHAM and Ralph SPENCE '68
Karen HERRICK and Bruce ONKEN '68
Debby KELLER and Bradley BLASDEL '70
Patty McWILLIAMS and Bob Peterson '66
Marsha MILTON and Al ROBERSON '66
Steve MacPHERSON and Margaret SEAMAN '68
Marianne MANHART and Oren SHELLEY '68
Dee HARRINGTON and Steve CHAMBLESS '68
Richard MARCOUX and Trudy TINSLEY '69
Jim MASTICK and Sally MINNIE '69
Brian MELAEY and Rhea RUELKE '69
Yvonne MORIN and Monte BEARD '69
Paula NEFF and Michael RILEY '68
Wendy PEARL and Swen NATER '68
Debbi RUFF and Albert MACK '68
Rob SAGEHORN and Marilyn MASUDA '70
Karen WAFFLE and William RUMFOLA '68
Nancy DUNBAR and Don ELMORE '64
Robert HEGGIE and Meredith TAYLOR '70

RESERVATION Form

In case you've lost your Reservation Form sent with the invite...
Please send this back even if you paid online.

A Note from Fall Student Body President, Rob Towner

Please enjoy this note from Rob Towner, our '68 Fall Student Body President as well as his Vesper's Invocation from 1968...

May 2018:

When Patti Gehrke asked me a few weeks back if I’d write a piece for our reunion, I readily said that I’d be happy to without having a clue what I could meaningfully say. I guess the best I can do is to reminisce about our years at Wilson and share some of my memories. And given what the organising committee has planned for us on the Saturday night of the reunion, what better place to start than the Rolling Stones.

I loved the Stones’ music. And although their best music came after we had left Wilson (the first of their four great albums, Beggars Banquet, wasn’t released until later in 1968), we already had Jumpin’ Jack Flash, Get off of My Cloud, Time is On My Side and Ruby Tuesday... and of course Satisfaction. Interestingly the Stones have a connection with New Zealand (where I live), as an Auckland neurosurgeon saved Keith Richards’ life after he fell out of a tree in Fiji in 2006 and was flown to Auckland for emergency brain surgery (I’ve seen the framed letter of thanks which Richards wrote to the hospital staff after his recovery). And my wife Ann and I saw the Stones here in concert 4 years ago.

We had lots of great music to listen to during our years at Wilson. Of course the Beatles were dominant in those days with their amazing run of albums – Rubber Soul, Revolver and Sgt. Peppers. But there was also Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, Van Morrison, the Byrds, Cream, the Beach Boys and the Doors (my first ever concert was in the summer after we graduated, at the Hollywood Bowl, with Jim Morrison and the Doors, opened by Steppenwolf and the Chambers Brothers). And we loved the Motown music of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, the Temptations, the Four Tops, and Aretha Franklin (after all these years, I can still hear Kent Eastman singing Respect). And let’s not forget slow dancing to Unchained Melody by the Righteous Brothers at the Bruin Den on Friday nights.

As well as listening to amazing music, we saw great movies during our years at Wilson. How could we ever forget The Graduate (“Mrs. Robinson, you’re trying to seduce me, aren’t you?”), Cool Hand Luke (“What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate”), Bonnie and Clyde (“This here’s Miss Bonnie Parker. I’m Clyde Barrow. We rob banks”), In the Heat of the Night, or 2001: A Space Odyssey. But TV was crap (Gilligan’s Island and Hogan’s Heroes were good but not exactly The Wire or The Sopranos).

We didn’t have mobile phones, computers, laptops or iPads, and only a few of us (not me) had a car. We wrote out our assignments in longhand or using a manual typewriter. We were fine; we had no idea what the future held.

But it was sport which was really important to me and most of my best friends at Wilson. The highlight was unquestionably winning the Moore League football title our senior year, and to do so when no one – nobody – picked us to win at the beginning of the season (the pundits thought we’d finish 4^th behind Lakewood, Millikan and Poly). We played before some huge crowds at Veterans Stadium that year, and many of you would have been there sharing in the excitement. My best friend Wes Edwards was player of the year in Long Beach. Those are great shared memories. And how sweet was it to then go to the Bruin Den to dance and celebrate.

But we had our difficult times as well, none more so than in our senior year. Just a few days ago, on April 4, Wes sent me a YouTube clip of Martin Luther King – 50 years to the day from the date of his tragic assassination in Memphis. And then there was Bobby Kennedy’s murder in Los Angeles shortly thereafter. I happen to recently come across the original copy of the speech which I gave at our Vespers Ceremony (in a folder which got sent to me only a few years ago after my mother died). Our Vespers Ceremony was on June 8,1968, which was also a national day of mourning for Kennedy, and we shared a moment’s silence in his memory. And two of my friends sadly died in our senior year, Scott McKenzie in an accident (only a few months after he had been a star of our football team), and Janice Holm from illness, a few months after we graduated.

And all around us there was hugely important stuff happening which I – and I imagine many of us – didn’t really appreciate the significance of at the time. There were the riots in the urban ghettos from 1965 to 1967, there was widespread civil unrest, and the war in Vietnam intensified – and we didn’t then realise that President Johnson and the military were lying to the American people about the nature and development of the war (probably like you, I watched the images of the war on TV at night, thought we were winning, and at that time supported the war without thinking a whole lot about it).

Some of my personal memories of our senior year at Wilson include: the all night gambling party at Neal Peterson’s house; the grad night party, also at Neal’s and all night (instead of going to Disneyland on the bus), following which there was a report in the Press-Telegram about an unsupervised teenage party in Park Estates involving drinking; bodysurfing Huntington Beach and The Wedge with Wes and Craig Wiesenhutter; playing sport with my oldest friends Rob Sagehorn and Randy Rossi; speaking at an assembly at Poly before one of their football games (I think that it was Millikan); and heading off with Craig on my first road trip a few weeks after we graduated, to Yellowstone in Wyoming (but then turning around when we got there because it was raining and returning home for a night, and then heading off the next morning to Rosarita Beach near Ensenada to camp and bodysurf).

And I have a confession to make. Yes, I was one of the group that toilet papered the quad the night before our very last day of school (we pooled our money and bought hundreds of rolls of tp). Craig and Greg Pike were dumb enough to run the wrong way when several police cars showed up, hide under the wrong bush (under a bright light) and get caught. They got called in the next day by Mr Nelson, but they didn’t rat on the rest of us, and we held our breath that last day at Wilson as we watched Craig and Greg clean up the mess.

We were young during our years at Wilson, and it was exciting to be growing up whilst being at a great school. We had a huge amount of fun. For me it was a time of innocence (apart from the toilet papering episode) and lots of new experiences. We all have our collective and separate memories, and for me the years at Wilson were some of the best years of my life.

It looks like Patti and the committee have organised what promises to be a fun and memorable 50th reunion – I look forward to catching up and sharing more memories – they were such special years.

Rob Towner

Sunday, June 9, 1968 Vesper's Invocation:

A new realm of life awaits each one of us: we are the men and women of the future – the voice of tomorrow. Yet tomorrow is not an easy road, tomorrow is surely a challenge. We realize this ever more in the tragic death of Senator Robert F. Kennedy. On this national day of mourning, let us hold the memory of Robert Kennedy dear, but let us also look towards the future. We are once again reminded of the trouble and violence in our land, again reminded of our challenge. Seniors, let us meet this challenge with open minds and open hearts. Let responsibility distinguish all of our goals, all of our efforts. May the spirit of truth be our guiding light. May we be people of conscience and let us possess an enduring courage in our convictions. Let us strive to bring understanding into the lives of all people, and may we have faith that the brotherhood of man will prevail. Most importantly, let ours be a time of joy and happiness. May the sunshine of our love illuminate the lives of all men. Let us meet this challenge with open minds and open hearts. At this time I ask that you rise for thirty seconds of silence in the memory of Senator Robert F. Kennedy.

A Note from Spring Student Body President, Mel Markham

To the 1968 graduates of Woodrow Wilson High School,

Thank you for making a difference. Ponder back over the last 50 years since we left Wilson High School and all the good things you have done and accomplished. The influence for good you are and were among your immediate family(spouse, children, grandchildren), extended family, friends, business partners and associates, and neighbors. Thank you for the self-less service you rendered at a moments notice when it was not convenient. Thank you for the time you dedicated to coaching, teaching, lifting, serving, sharing, caring, helping those in need around you. Maybe it was a member of your immediate family, your father or mother you cared for selflessly. It could have been an Aunt or Uncle, Brother or Sister or a spouse. Maybe one of your own children or a nephew or niece with special needs or Just needed you. Cancer and long term illnesses take a toll on everyone. But you were there. And you did it without complaining. Real service rarely occurs when it is convenient.
Think of the challenges you have faced and conquered over the years. And there are more to come. We’re not dead yet.
Our class was strong, vibrant, and dedicated. And what have we become? Even stronger, even more caring, and more dedicated. Over the years, in our own realms, we were, have been and are successful. What does that mean? What is success? There are many ways to measure success. Someone said that success is getting up one more time than we fall. We have all fallen and failed, to some degree, but we got up. And kept moving. But one definition I love is this: Those who know you best, love you the most. Using that as a measuring stick, I believe that our Class of “68 from Wilson has been one of the most successful classes to ever graduate. Individually and as a class we have made a difference—in our immediate families, extended families, among our friends,
business associates, and the widow down the street. Love is spelled TIME. Thank you for lovin and taking the time to show love to those around you.
Challenges, trials, and difficulties over the years have caused some of us to be bruised, but not broken. Down at times but not out. Wondering but not complaining. And knowing that with time, all things will be good and work out. Like Winston Churchill said at a graduation ceremony during World War II, (he arose and said the following 9 words), “Never give up. Never. Never. Never.
Never give up.” Thank you for having that kind of grit. We appreciate your example of goodness and what you have become. We love you.

Mel Markham
Spring Student Body President
Class of ’68
Woodrow Wilson High School

The Long Hair Days and Before!

Remembering those fabulous, free-spirited, long hair days!
My how we transformed in just a few years!
Send in your favorite pic ASAP!
The black and white head shots are our 1968 senior pics.
Click on each photo to enlarge.
We're also adding photos from days past that fellow Bruins have sent it.
Just email a photo to wilsonreunion68@gmail.com