Update 9-1-09

Hi,

End of summer.  Everyone's gone to the beach or the mountains.  But some mail:
   
    From Judy Hartstone:  How could I have forgotten Mr. Batorski!  I was so fortunate to have had him as a teacher for five years of Latin.  He was a sweetheart of a man, and what I learned about football was beneficial when I worked for the San Francisco 49ers, Andy Dolich's new home -- small world.  Too bad we couldn't have worked together; I was there more than 30 years ago.
   
    From Peter Shapiro:  Thanks to Booker Gibson for letting us know the status of Bob Leist.  I always wondered what became of him.  He was a fantastic band director and person, and I know many of us in the marching band always felt that, because of him, we were the top band -- although marching in a hot Memorial Day parade in wool uniforms left a lot to be desired!  He was innovative at the time, introducing interesting formations for football half-times and always making us work to perform at our best.
   
    From Joan Kass Lipson:  In last week's newsletter, there was a question about whether or not the class of 1966 has a reunion web site -- the answer is no, we do not.  But anyone who is interested in the details about our upcoming "mini" reunion on Saturday night, January 30, 2010, in Boca Raton, Florida, can contact me at:  jlipson@optonline.net  or Eileen Gunderson Gelet at:  egelet@verizon.net.
        The class of 1965 is welcome to join us, along with anyone from other South classes -- the more the merrier.  An e-mail will be sent out shortly to the class of 1965 -- we did this last year and heard back from a handful of people, but, unfortunately, no one was able to join us.  I've copied the e-mail addresses from the class of 1965 web site but am not sure how current the information is.  In any case, thank you all for keeping us up-to-date about our old friends and teachers.  I enjoy reading the newsletter every Tuesday morning.     
        That's it for now.  Best regards to everyone.
   
    [Rich -- The e-mail addresses on the class web site are reasonably current.  There are probably a half-dozen that need to be changed, but I need to check all of them to fix the few that should be updated.  And I keep forgetting to do that.  This is another good reminder.  Thanks.]
   
    A link from Barbara Blitfield Pech, who adds, "It took some time, but I found it."  www.valleystreamjc.org
    "Welcome to the Valley Stream Jewish Center, formerly the Temple Gates of Zion - Congregation Tree of Life."
   
    A thought cribbed from a note from my sister Marilyn:  As far as having perspective about the way we all were raised in Valley Stream, living here in Cincinnati sure has taught me the worth of that.  I'm constantly reminded of all the pitfalls our parents and teachers were trying to keep us from.  I've never met so many people who are in living poverty or who have been to jail because of their ignorance -- because they did not have parents and teachers pointing them into certain directions.  I have always empathized with people who had less than they deserved because of difficult circumstances, but the things so many people I've met here have done, or situations they've gotten themselves into, mainly showed that they lacked good guidance.  And everyone here "knows everything" and is "grown up," so they can't be told a thing. 
   
    An entertainment reminder for those folks in Los Angeles, from Amy Lieberman:  Once Upon a Canyon Night 2009, a presentation of  TreePeople and Actors Conservatory Ensemble, celebrating our 9th season of live entertainment at the S. Mark Taper Foundation Amphitheatre in Coldwater Canyon Park.
        Saturday, September 19th, at 8 PM:  Billy Valentine & Friends.  Presented by Lexus Santa Monica.  For all reservations, call:  818-623-4877.  Or e-mail: shows@treepeople.org.
        A popular performer at clubs all over town, Billy joined Mark Copeland and his big band as a special guest last summer, and we just had to have him back this year.  Accompanied by a terrific trio, this talented vocalist will offer an evening ranging from the standards of the “Great American Songbook” to the classic R&B of Sam Cooke, Al Green, and Otis Redding.  Billy began his professional career as a solo artist opening for such luminaries as Donny Hathaway and Roberta Flack, was the lead singer for the group Young Holt Unltd., and he and his brother John went on to form The Valentine Brothers, co-writing the hit single “Money's Too Tight (To Mention).”  His glorious voice can still be heard every week on “Boston Legal,” from the theme song right through to the end of each and every episode.  His latest CD “Travelin’ Light” currently is playing on jazz stations across America, and you can learn -- and hear -- more at:  www.billy-valentine.com. ;
        General admission: $15.  TreePeople members and seniors: $10.  To Best Enjoy Your Park Experience:  Bring a sweater or small blanket for evening performances.  Wear comfortable shoes, as principal access to the venue is via hillside stairways.  Vehicle access is available, but please call ahead to make necessary arrangements.  Pack a picnic to enjoy in the park or at the venue before the event.  Venue opens 90 minutes prior to show time.  Help us to reduce, reuse, and recycle -- please leave the park with what your brought.  The coffee is on us if you bring your own cup.  Free parking on site.  Carpooling is strongly encouraged.  For highly attended events, our free valet service may “stack” cars in a portion of our parking lot.
   
    Another reminder about a Los Angeles event, this one especially important to Paulinda Schimmel:  The Ovarian Cancer Coalition of Greater California is presenting its "11th Annual Walk/Run for Awareness and Hope" in Studio City, California, on September 13th.  The web site is:  ovariancancercalifornia.com, or you may contact Paulinda for more information.  Her e-mail address is:  Paulindadi@aol.com.
   
    [Rich -- And a quick note about Los Angeles:  As you can tell from news reports, the fires are burning rather consistently.  Some of these were first reported as relatively good fires, burning into the National Forest, away from homes, and burning off up to sixty years of accumulated, potentially more dangerous undergrowth.  Now, these are considered less good fires, threatening to burn suburban neighborhoods and forest towns and killing at least two people.  This morning, the fires threatened to destroy the 103-year-old Mt. Wilson Observatory, but that had still been spared when I last checked.  The air smells sweet, the skies and sunsets are astonishing, but in places like Pasadena, the hovering smoke makes the city look like photos I've seen of Chinese industrial cities.  And tonight, driving home along the Freeway, I noticed huge flames about four miles north.]
   
    Finally, my mother-in-law, Elizabeth Silvas Puckett LaFave, died Saturday night, comfortably and surrounded by family.  Unlike Sharyn Berliner's or Janet Riccio's, Elizabeth's death was expected.  She was five months short of 90 and had been declining for the last five years due to Alzheimer's.  Also, unlike Sharyn Berliner, there'll be no other obituary besides this short one.
        Elizabeth was a librarian who began working for the Navy during WW II and who eventually retired from the Tucson, Arizona, public schools.  She outlived two husbands, two later life "boyfriends," and almost all her friends.  She even outlived her sister-in-law, Clara Puckett, who died earlier this summer at 101.  But, for a little while longer, she'll be remembered.
   
    The South '65 e-mail addresses:  reunionclass65.blogspot.com
   
    The South '65 photo site:  picasaweb.google.com/SouthHS65
   
   
    Rich