THS/TWHS Class of 1962 55 th Reunion October 6-7, 2017 Welcoming Remarks by James McHenry, Ph.D. On behalf of your reunion planning committee, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 55 th Reunion of the THS/TWHS Class of 1962. We are delighted that you ve joined us, and we look forward to many wonderful conversations. Let us first acknowledge a debt of gratitude to the members of the planning committee including co-chairs Sara Senne Hischke and Tom Gorrell, ably assisted by Jane Edmonston Sewell, Louise Singer Ecord, and Nels Anderson. We also wish to thank Bill McDonald and Dick Thornburg for helping to organize tomorrow s golf outing. Dick has asked me to remind participants that they should plan to meet at 10:00 am on Saturday at Cyprus Ridge. Thanks, too, go out to David Nelson for his dedicated oversight of our class website. I will be returning to Sara and Tom shortly. For now, let s give these reunion supporters a round of applause. Under the heading of housekeeping, Sara has asked me to make several announcements: 1. Please plan to take your name tag home with you when you leave this evening. It will be your pass into the Saturday night dinner. 2. Classmates who intend to visit THS tomorrow morning are asked to arrive at the school by 10:00 am. We will be greeted by Joan Barker, who is the executive director of the THS Historical Society. Current THS students will be available as tour guides. Your prompt arrival will be greatly appreciated. 3. For those of you still considering taking part in the tour, Sara has done her scouting, and she reminds us that THS has a new mural in the library, which celebrates the history of communication. You may also wish to drop in on the Paul Fink museum located on the 2 nd floor across from the Hall of Fame. You may also note that one of the
-2- benches located along the walkway into the main entrance was paid for by our class. 4. Finally, Sara has confirmed that the renovated State Capitol Building is open on Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm. Tours are available from 10 am to 3 pm. Underground parking is available on the north side of the building. It is amazing how excellent restoration can transform a 19 th century landmark. It is worth your time. I now need to go off script and ask Sara and Tom to join me for a special presentation. When you make a man MC, there is always a chance that he will go off the rails. And so, as your designated MC, and by the self-sanctioned authority vested in me, I pronounce you both winners of the Benjamin B. Franklin Class of 1962 Reunion Support Award. Your work has been like a love letter to our class, and we understand the debt of gratitude that we owe you. As award recipients, you are each entitled to a gold medal (identifying you as a reunion champion) and a small gift that we hope you will enjoy. May you live long and prosper! Under the heading of greetings from classmates who had planned to be here, Dick Thornburg has alerted us that Bob Davis a member of the TWHS Hall of Fame contacted Dick with the sad news that his wife, Linda, is not well. Bob needs to stay at home with her, but he promises to make the 60 th. Dick also heard from his cousin, Larry Parrett, who expresses regret that travel preparations make it impossible for him to attend. Like Bob, he hopes we will have a 60 th reunion and he sends special greetings to Steve Van Hole. Let s now have some fun with our historical recall or lack of same. Your planning committee thought it might be fun to take a short trip down memory lane, using some leading questions to test your recall. Those giving the correct answer will win a prize. I ll get the ball rolling, but then I d like for you to suggest challenge questions for us to address. I m requesting that Tom
-3- Gorrell serve as my spotter. Please raise your hand to be recognized if you think you know the answer. *In 1962, THS math teacher Marjorie French was named National Teacher of the Year by Look magazine. Who presented her with that award? *During our time at THS, Martha Herrick directed a memorable cast in the comedy Harvey. One of our classmates was cast in the leading role of Elwood P. Dowd, a part played to perfection by Jimmy Stewart. Name that classmate. *What was the name of the librarian who led the campaign to have THS receive recognition with the National Bellamy Flag Award? * One of Topeka West s principals started his career as the science teacher at Boswell Jr. High. Name that teacher. *What was the name of the AFS exchange student to THS from Argentina whose host sister was Patty Peterson? *What was the name of the AFS exchange student to TWHS from Denmark whose host sister was Sherry Buchanan? *In our sophomore year, there was a lively campaign for the office of President of Student Congress. Who were the two senior candidates and who won the election? *In what sport did THS win the state championship during the 1959-60 school year? *The fathers of two of our classmates served on the Topeka Board of Education during our high school years. Name the classmates and their fathers. *Name the beer that made Milwaukee famous? *How did Hunky Anderson acquire his nickname? *Which of our classmates served as a speech writer for Senator Robert Dole during his 1996 presidential campaign?
*The cheer Hoy, Hoy Mighty Troy is well known. Name a comparable cheer celebrating the virtues of Topeka West High School. Now let s see what creative questions we can surface. Extra points are given for brevity, degree of difficulty, and good humor. TRANSITION A Concluding Thought As I ve gotten older, I find myself increasingly interested in how humor expresses itself among our younger citizens. Although lacking any scientific evidence for this observation, my impression is that our age cohort appreciates irony more than our younger counterparts. Our advanced years seem to enhance our ability to come up with the perfect remark or story that captures some important life lesson. I first became aware of this phenomenon in the summer of 1964, when I was working at a resort in Colorado. One day I had an afternoon off, so I decided to fly fish on the Taylor River in Gunnison country. Working my way up a lovely stretch of river, I came round a bend and found an elderly fisherman sitting up on a boulder having his lunch. Directly below him was a lovely pool with a nice set of riffles located at its upper end. As I surveyed the scene, I saw a huge trout rise in the water right below him and delicately pluck an insect off the surface. I said to myself, This is almost too good to be true. If this good ole boy will just stay seated, I m going to catch that fish right in front of him. Having sized up the water and decided how I would play the fish once I had hooked it, I began false casting, stripping out line to cover the distance. Keeping a tight loop to handle more line, I executed my final forward cast, only to discover that my fly was lodged high in a willow tree way to hell and gone downstream from where I was standing. I will not repeat the language I used. Looking up, I could see from the big grin on his face that my one audience member was greatly amused. He put down his sandwich, cupped his hands and shouted: Fishin for squirrels sonny? Timing, accuracy, irony and humor that rhetorical question had it all! -4-
-5- I submit to you that as we age, our ability to enjoy humor, even when it arrives at our own expense, is a blessing in and of itself. Grandchildren seem to be especially receptive to humor. And many health-related studies confirm it is very good for our health and can even help to defuse tense situations. So let good humor thrive within our interactions as we celebrate the 55 th year since our graduation from THS or TWHS. These are conversations worth having. Thank you for your kind attention.