July 9, 2021

Saw this on Facebook, courtesy of Sandie Robbins Knox '61.  The first comment was I'm not changing THAT diaper.

Nooooo!!  I'm watching some creaky geezer on TV advertising a foot massager or something and realize it's Jerry Mathers!  The Beav'!!  It's a little like Frank Sinatra's biography when he saw one of his former lovers, June Allyson, pitching adult diapers.  Old age ain't for sissies, but it apparently beats the alternative.  

Janice Ricca Hom drove by Crawford last week and snapped the photo above.  I didn't think it would tell you much and hoped to snag an older photo of the same location.  I got the photo below off of Google Street View.  It doesn't help much.  You're on Colt Way (which may have had a different name when I was there) looking north.  I think I see the outline of Blessed Sacrament Church on El Cajon Blvd. in the distance at the left.  If you squint you can pretend that the main office and auditorium are still there at right center.

Remember Locker Clubs?  Sailors were not allowed to come back aboard ship in their civvies (not to be confused with skivvies.  I learned that one the hard way.  They had to rent a locker and change out of their uniforms and into civilian attire.  I have it in my head that the 7 Seas was owned by the family of a Crawford student.  Anybody know? 

Members of the Class of '62 -- and one imposter -- gathered on the steps leading up to the gym on September 3, 1997 -- the 35th year after graduation.  Click HERE to see THREE photos, all of them enlarged.

I took this picture of Tuna Harbor, next to the Fish Market, on the day after Christmas 1992.  Our family used to dine at Tom Lai's Restaurant at this location in the 1950s.  I expect a lot of new buildings have been added since I made this photo -- and one big deletion.  The Naval Supply building on the left was recently demolished to make way for a hotel.  I forget what the Navy got in return.

Robert Harrison ’62 passed away June 9, 2021.  He served a four-year term in the Air Force after high school, then worked in construction and with mechanical and electrical equipment. He married for a short time in the early 1970s and had two daughters. In July of 1979 he married the love of his life Sharyl, and became the instant father of four children.  Bob loved working on his classic cars, piddling in his shop, fixing up the house, fishing and boating on the Colorado River. His positive outlook and one-of-a-kind humor will surely be missed by all who treasured him.  He is survived by, among others, his sister Sandra Harrison Barlau ’60

Ramon Villon

June 22, 1954 - May 20, 2021

July 2, 2021

 

As a senior at CHS, I often stayed after for activities and missed my bus. At The bus stop at 56th & El Cajon there was a used car lot. There was my first sight of a Willys Jeepster -- the only car I ever really lusted after.  And it was yellow.  I finally got one for my 75th birthday! Hoorah!!   Maggie Down Hart ‘64

Richard Bertain was my 11th Grade English Teacher.  I think he was also in charge of the Pacer.  When I made some snide remark about the school paper he opined that maybe I should sign up if I thought I could do better.  I did, but he left for Harvard University, to do graduate work I assume, and Mr. Rieker became the Pacer advisor.  I credit Mr. Bertain for getting me involved in journalism.  In May of 1992 I was in Washington DC doing research in the National Archives and Mr. Bertain was working in some capacity as part of the George H. W. Bush administration.  I gave him a call and he took me to lunch.

I spruced up the Class of '61 Senior Awards Day page.  Click HERE to check it out.

From Greg May's Vintage San Diego page this week

Another pastoral view of Mission Valley in the 1940s taken from the Presidio.  Click HERE for enlargements of this and two other Mission Valley shots -- plus a bonus view of vintage cars parked at the Serra Museum

Who cares about the San Diego Skyline.  Check out the '58 Chevy wagon and the out-of-uniform sailor.  Click HERE for a big, fat enlargement.

I'm going through some old photos.  Here's one I took at Bates Nut Farm in Valley Center on October 9, 1991.  Yikes, that's pretty close to 30 years ago.

June 25, 2021

The ’61 Lunch Bunch got together last Saturday, after a 2-year COVID hiatus, at Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza.   Left side:  Don Young, Larry Willis, Fred Dickson, Nelson Moore and Fritz Ziegenfuss  Right side (right to left):  Denny Bishop, Paul Dean, Ernie Dronenburg, Barry Marassi and Flip Capp

Ken and Linda Shulkind Bluer check in from Oxnard Shores, California.  Click HERE for a Blumer review.

Jack in the Box turned 70 earlier this year and Fred Dickson shares a nice little 6-minute video history.  It contains several images snagged off my Jack in the Box page, some rather recently.  Click HERE and enjoy.  

I've added a photo to the Campus Chuck Wagon page.  Click HERE to see it enlarged.

 

Debi Cox Cowan '72 shares a color snapshot of her and the other cheerleaders from the 1969 Horace Mann Student-Faculty basketball game.  Click HERE for an enlargement.  And names.  The "S" apparently stood for Student -- as opposed to Faculty.

Remember the Turkey Farm at 52nd and Trojan?  I wouldn't think so.  It belonged to the grandfather of Gary Mitrovich '76 and was featured in a Ken Kramer episode on April 30, 2021.  If the cyber gods comply, you can view that episode.  Click HERE and cross your fingers.

Here's a Vintage San Diego shot of San Diego looking west from 23rd and Broadway.  It looks almost the same today -- except for the streetcar and skyline.  Click HERE for an enlarged view.

June 18, 2021

Chuck Hansen is a '57 graduate of Hoover, and knew the late Calina Estrada '59 at Wilson Junior High.  He went on to become a photographer in the Navy, and took a bunch of photos of Calina's Celebration of Life last Saturday on Vacation Isle.  Click HERE to see his work.

It's been a slow week, so we're taking another look at a photo of the Horace Mann band taken around 1961.  Click HERE for an enlargement with comments.

And another look at some color shots of motels and llamas on El Cajon Blvd.  Click HERE for a look back.

Click HERE to check out the Senior Issue of the Pacer from June 11, 1971 -- that's 50 years ago.

John William "Bill" McCreery '67 passed away February 10, 2021 after a long illness.  After high school, Bill attended Mesa College, eventually graduating from San Diego State.  He was a long-time regional manager with FedMart Corporation, then went on to General Dynamics from which he retired as the manager of the Tomahawk missile finalization program.  For the last fifteen years, he lived in Havre de Grace, Maryland with his wife Robin Spencer McCreery.  In addition to Robin, he is survived by four children, four grand children, three great-grand children and his “just out of high school” first wife, Jeri Maracin McCreery O’Keefe ’68

 

June 11, 2021

 

Here's a Bizarro cartoon from earlier this week

The various apps on my iPad need to be updated on a regular basis, and that's a good thing.  I always cackle when -- and it happened again this week -- the calculator needs refreshing.  What?  2 + 2 doesn't equal 4 anymore? 

Every thing old is new again.  The Padres are playing way too late for me to sit in front of the TV, so I listen to Jesse Agler and Tony Gwynn, Jr. announce the later innings in bed with my iPhone 8 under the pillow.  Kind of like 65 years ago when I listened to Al Schuss report on the Pacific Coast League Padres.  My mother was always afraid I was going to strangle on the ear phone cords.  

Click HERE to read the KDEO Top 40 list from the first week of June 1961 -- 60 years ago.

Click HERE to take a look at all 8 pages of the 1966 Senior Edition of the Pacer.  Gosh, that would be 55 years ago!

My brother Gary Hill ’61 passed away in Marble Falls Texas on June 6, 2021.  After graduating from Crawford my brother went to work as a carpet and hard surface installer.  He worked in that trade for ten years, then began doing home remodeling jobs.  Following five years of home remodeling in San Diego, he moved his family to his wive’s birthplace in Marble Falls Texas and set up business there.  He retired in 2018 and is survived by his three -- children, Susan, Tommy, and Lori.   I will miss him -- Terry Hill ’60

A message from the Crawford Foundation said that Donna Bratton Henricks '63 died on May 22, 2021.  That's all I got.

June 4, 2021

A group has formed with the express interest, as I understand it, of helping support athletics at Crawford.   All is explained on their web site.  Click HERE to check it out and lend support.

There's talk of the Class of '62 joining '60 and '61 for their October Reunion -- and Denny Aiken wants in.  As good a time as any to revisit a very early posting of Denny inspecting Joel Zane's new paint job.  Click HERE to take a look.

Oh, boy -- it's the 6-page Graduation Issue for the Class of '61.  Click HERE to check it out.

I attended the funeral on May 26, 2021 for Doug Griggs '75 at Miramar National cemetery.  "Little Dougie Griggs" played little league baseball in the Andrew Jackson Little League and was a member of the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts.  He was a Cree hoop dancer.  I remember walking to school at Andrew Jackson with him and his two older brothers Danny and David.  He served in the U.S. Army and was stationed in West Germany, going eyeball to eyeball with the Warsaw Pact countries.  While on leave in Italy he met his soulmate and the love of his life Gunilla who was from Sweden.  After the Army, Doug worked as a heavy equipment mechanic for the City of San Diego, performing maintenance and repairs on fire trucks and other heavy equipment.  He was a car enthusiast and had a beautiful yellow 1938 Chevy coupe that he had torn down and rebuilt from the ground up.  Doug is survived by his wife of 37 years, Nilla, his daughter Janice, his son Eric, and two beautiful grand daughters.  He was laid to rest with full military honors. I will miss him -- George V. Glover ’73  (Doug did not have a photo in the '75 Centaur)

May 28, 2021

 

Here's an aerial of Crawford taken September 30, 1957 -- the first week it was open.  Click HERE to see it enlarged, plus two bonus aerial photos.  

The May 25, 1961 Pacer -- sixty years old -- is filled with news about folks from the Class of '62.  Click HERE to check it out.

Pat Edwards gets front page ink in the May 26, 1966 Pacer -- and he's the one who loaned us issues to post on the web site.  Click HERE to read the paper.

Don Edic ‘59 passed away May 17, 2021 after a battle with cancer.  He was my next door neighbor and close friend beginning when we were eleven years old.  He was a member of Crawford’s first cheerleading team.  He became an ordained minister and traveled the world with ESL Ministries teaching English literacy.  He was an accomplished oil painting artist in his later years and many of his works can be seen on his Facebook page.  I will greatly miss him -- Claudia Messerli Baker ’59

A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, June 12, 2021 at 2:00 pm.  An in-person service will be hosted by Christ Presbyterian Church Rancho La Costa, 7807 Centella St., Carlsbad, CA. Guests may join virtually as well at https://christ-pres.church/

May 21, 2021

 

Class of '66 Vietnam Veterans Dan Burton, Mark Mellinger and Gary Crossland got together recently for lunch at Cass Street Bar & Grill in Pacific Beach.  I'm not sure what's in the bags.

Here's a 1967 color shot of Morena Boulevard, where it branches off to Linda Vista Rd.  It's a lovely billboard to be sure, but if you look carefully you'll spot a Kinney's Shoes, gasoline for 28 cents a gallon, Presidio Nursery -- and an Oscar's Drive-In.  Click HERE to see the enlarged view.

I'm sharing this photo of the Stardust Motor Hotel parking lot mostly because of the cars.  I can't decide if the car on the left is silver or Ice Blue, but -- as I comment inside -- you could smuggle a whole bunch of kids into the Ace Drive-In by the looks of that trunk.  Click HERE for the bigger view.

I think Claudia Messerli Baker '59 has some 'splaining to do.  This was her entry in the 1959 San Diego City School Quest magazine loaned by Sharon Culver Considine '60.  Click HERE to peruse all 49 pages.

Crawford's fourth consecutive CIF Swimming Title captured the headline on the Sports Page of the May 21, 1971 Pacer.  Click HERE to read the rest of the school paper published 50 years ago.

Carolina “Calina” Estrada Eckert ’59 passed away May 5th, at the age of 79, following a massive stroke while vacationing in Palm Springs.  Calina was born in Calexico, California, the only daughter of Gustavo and Leonila Estrada.  She was a member of Crawford’s first graduating class.  She helped coordinate numerous Class of ’59 reunions, staying close with many wonderful classmates.  In 1976 Navy Lt. Bill Eckert asked Carolina for a dance at the Admiral KIdd Club and a romance began, culminating in a military wedding in August 1977 and 43 wonderful married years thereafter, with enjoyable trips to many parts of the world.  Carolina was very proud of her Mexican heritage and maintained close relationships with family members in Mexicali, Tijuana, Los Angeles and New York City.  She shared many fun times with her San Diego girls’ sorority, the Iota Pi’s.

A Celebration of Life is scheduled for June 12, 2021 in the southernmost section of Paradise Point called Vacation Isle Park, on Hibiscus Lane, from noon to 3 PM.  All are welcome to attend and celebrate Carolinas life.  Lin lieu of flowers, please send donations to https://www.stjude.org/ Carolina’s favorite charity.

Ron Newport ’62 passed away May 10, 2021.  He was born in Nevada, Missouri and moved to San Diego in 1948 with his brother Larry and sister Linda.  Ron quickly adopted the Southern California lifestyle.  He received his education at San Diego State University.  As a youth, Ron became interested in the environment. Two of his interests were forestry and firefighting.  In 1963 Ron was hired by the California Division of Forestry. His initial assignment was with a dozer crew where he assisted in building fire roads, inspecting dams and learning the wildland firefighting trade.  In 1965, Ron was called to serve his country in the United States Army. Ron completed basic training and was stationed at Fort Polk, Louisiana as an orthopedic medic. His job included setting, casting, splinting, pinning, and treating soldier’s fractures and other orthopedic related injuries. Three months later, Ron’s brother was called to serve his country. His brother was deployed to Vietnam and was unfortunately killed in action while performing Special Forces duty.  After being discharged from the Army, Ron went back to work for the California Division of Forestry (CDF). His initial assignment as a seasonal firefighter was in San Diego County. In 1967 Ron was hired permanently as a firefighter in CDF/Orange County Fire Dept. Ron became a member of the crash fire rescue crew at the Orange County Airport (now called John Wayne Airport).  Ron married Merrilee Fortin in 1978, and had one daughter, Dani Newport Barker.  Ron enjoyed his time off with his family and friends water skiing and snow skiing and house boating. He played rugby many years, golf, and Senior Softball with the La Mesa League, along with many other sports.