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R.L.
Paschal High School
Class
of 1964
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Last update: April 23,
2008
(On some computers, the buttons on
the right hand side are not visible until one slides the
bottom scroll bar to the right.)
William
Strauss and Neil Howe, in their landmark books, The Fourth
Turning and Generations, define a 'Baby Boomer'
as someone born after World War II and before the Vietnam
war, or between the years 1946 and 1964. This demographic
puts the graduating high school classes of 1964 exactly
on the edge of this social phenomenon. With few exceptions,
the members of our class were born in 1945 and 1946. Consequently,
we represent the year that bridges the generation born between
1928 and 1945, and those born after WW II and before the
Vietnam war.
Some
of us easily adopted a lifestyle very similar to our parents
- fiscally conservative, cautious, and focused on the traditional
American values of the first half of the twentieth century.
We married before we were twenty five, started families,
and found a house in suburbia.
For
others, we were the oldest of the long-haired, pot-smoking,
rock and rollers. We were the first to discover the liberation
of the birth control pill and to oppose the establishment's
positions on just about everything. A few of us probably
met the definition of 'hippie' for some time in our life.
We married later, initially resisted being seen as materialistic,
and had to be dragged into middle-age.
We
were the last to still know how to ballroom dance, but we
were the first to do the jerk, the dog, and the twist. We
bought records by Jack Jones, The Association, Harry Belafonte,
Johnny Mathis, and the Kingston Trio. But we were mesmerized
by Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin,
Jimi Hendrix, Chicago, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and on
and on. We were the last to go hear Andy Williams live,
but the first to go to rock concerts and to retrofit our
cars with stereophonic speakers.
We
are the contemporaries of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush
(both born in 1946, within sixty days of each other). Today,
Baby Boomers make up the lion's share of the political,
cultural, industrial, and academic leadership class in the
United States. It is the largest and richest generation
in American history. It may also be one of the most perplexing.
In light of the currently poor state of the environment,
the uncertainty of the future of Social Security, the burgeoning
cost of healthcare, etc., Andrew Smith, in his novel Moondust,
said that Baby Boomers "have the unique distinction
of pissing off both their parents' and their children's
generations."
Ironically,
after being credited for much of the social change of the
sixties, many Boomers now push for 'traditional values'
and play a strong role in attempts to make America more
religious. Indeed, we are a peculiar generation. We may
the last generation to hold a substantial constituency that
opposes the marriage of gay people, disagrees with the concept
of global warming, defines personal success by the number
of hours worked per week, and dislikes Hip Hop and Disco
equally. We don't use "like" and "dude"
as expletives, but we're far from averse to cosmetic surgery
and hair coloring. We go to the gym, eschew smoking, and
eat far fewer hamburgers and pizzas than we did in 1964.
Our
identity crisis can't be shaken. We are what we are, for
better or worse. And for now we just keep hangin' on.
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We've
lost Allan Eckholm, Darwin Harp, and most recently Sharon
Pace this year. See the In Memoriam page.
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Barsha
Baugh is back from Australia and found the website. See
her message in the Alumni Roster
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Brian
Freeze wants alumni to know of the new CD his band and collection
of local blues musicians have just released. Check out www.drwuproject.com
for more information or click on the Updates.
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Remember
Hank Leithner? He just found the website and left an Update.
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More
sad news on the Update page, including
the passing of one of our teachers. Thanks to those who
keep the rest of us informed.
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Who
can't remember where he/she was on 9/11/01. There may be
others of you, like me, who lost someone that day. I revisited
Ground Zero on the five year anniversary in NYC on 9/11/06.
Sometimes
writing things out is cathartic. If there are any who'd
like to share their memories, please email them to: alamodoc
(at) yahoo.com
Click
here to read what's been contributed.
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On
the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, most of the news media
(print and television) is running features about what happened
a year ago. It's likely several of you had personal experiences
with the aftermath of Katrina or Rita. We have decided to
share with you our experiences of the aftermath, and invite
anyone else to contribute. Click
here for more...
Clifton
Barnhart
John
Polk
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Have
you thought about the scary fact that most of us are now
about the same age our grandparents were when we started
high school? Some of us have even watched a grandchild get
a diploma. Yet looking at those old photos of grandparents
in the 1960s, one can't help but conclude the combination
of preventive medicine and a focus on fitness has worked
in our favor.
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For
those of you who appreciate golf, get your hands on the
April, 2006 issue of Avid Golfer (the Texas edition). Our
classmate, Tommy Koops is featured in a nice article on
page 64. I'll try to scan the article into the website evenutally.
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A
nice young woman named Melissa Carol Speed found the Paschal
website and recently sent me a picture of Carol Jean Hinton,
just prior to her tragic death in 1969. The photo is now
on her obit page. Melissa's father was married to Carol
Jean before marrying Melissa's mother. Melissa was named
for her dad's first wife. Rather touching, isn't it?
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If
you peruse the website, you will notice that all email addresses
have been modified. The plethora of internet robots, gleaning
email addresses for spam, prompted the step. Any email address
is now stated with '(at)' where the @ sign used to be.
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Click
here for more updates and news
The
Discussions page is still there,
waiting for some of you to act like bloggers and start some
controversial topics.
Send any feedback or alumni information to alamodoc
(at) yahoo.com.
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Paschal seemed to be
a very special place to so many who went there. It has one
of the most active alumni associations in the country and
in spite of its changes over the years remains a school
of excellence. Did you get the Summer, 2005 copy of the
Pantherette? If you're a member of the alumni association,
you did. On the front page is a picture of people lined
up before dawn. You'd think they were buying tickets to
a rock concert or at least the Spurs/Pistons playoff. Nope.
They were parents of kids who live outside the Paschal catchment
area trying to get their sons and daughters enrolled in
the limited spaces available for students from other school
districts.
Please consider joining
Paschal's alumni association. Dues are a pittance, and with
your membership comes copies of the alumni newsletter -
aptly named the Pantherette. You can find out how to join
the alumni association as well as keep up with news about
Paschal at www.paschalhs.org.
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As the last stragglers
walked out of Colonial Country Club on June 27, 2004, The
Reunion became history. But an amazing thing happened that
week in Fort Worth. What many suspected, turned out to be
true. That bunch of funny kids turned out to be some pretty
amazing people who rejoiced in each other's successes and
shared a bit of each other's sorrows.
Heard
at the Forty Year Reunion:
"Are you parents
still alive?"
"My mother's gone, but my dad is doing pretty well."
"Are you staying
at a hotel?"
"Oh, no. I'm staying at my mother's. She still asks about
you."
"And do you have
children?"
"You know I just happen to have some recent pictures of
my grandkids here…."
"It's been over
five years now, and my oncologist says I'm doing great."
"Mine too…"
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"I don't know how I got over
the hill without getting to the top."
Will Rogers
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