Update 11-29-11

Hi,

Hope everyone had as good a Thanksgiving as I did, though I don't mean to brag.  It was just fun, with great food.  In any case, here are some new notes and some more catch-up.

First, from Peggy Cooper Schwartz:  So very sad to hear about the untimely passing of Jimmy Lorey.  At our 37th reunion, he and I reminisced about being in the same kindergarten class at Clear Stream Avenue School and about our very nasty, scary, teacher, Miss Alonzo.  I also remember how, after Jimmy's dad perished in an aircraft accident, Jimmy would proudly wear his dad's Air Force officer's hat to school.

From Barnet Kellman:  Very sad about Jimmy Lorey.  We were friends as little kids on the block.  I knew both his parents and remember well when his father crashed and died.  It was awful.  I never saw Marc Fishman’s tribute.  I’d like to if you have a copy.

[Rich -- I wrote Barnet that somewhere in the ten years worth of newsletters, I have Marc's piece.  But old newsletters really are old news, so I've never moved them to a format that's searchable.  But I did write Marc, asking if he still had a copy of the piece.]

Meanwhile, Barnet wrote Marc:  You and I and Jimmy and all the kids on our little isthmus of Eastwood Lane/Flower Road were close friends/backyard playmates up until the time Jimmy’s dad was killed.  I remember the shock and sadness of the news to this day.  I hadn’t thought about it for a long time, however, and I was very touched when I heard that you had written about it.

And Marc Fishman replied:  The original is gone, but I will do my best to rewrite it, from the current perspective.
    Jimmy Lorey was my back-door neighbor.  We knew each other to say hello, and sometimes played together as young children.  I always knew him as a nice fellow.  I did not know Jimmy's father very well, either, but I clearly remember him as a kind person and as a hero.
    As a child, every Christmas, Jimmy's dad would show up at our door dressed in a Santa Claus costume.  I can't remember the gifts he brought, probably some candy.  He was, however, the only Santa I ever knew.
    One day, my mom called me to the TV.  A new plane with collapsible wings had crashed.  Apparently, one of the wings had collapsed in flight.  Jimmy's dad was the test pilot on that plane.  When ordered to bail out, he said that he was over a residential area and would not bail out.  He guided the plane over a vacant industrial area and stayed with the plane until it hit the ground.
    I reminded Jimmy of that story at our reunion.  With tears in his eyes, he thanked me for remembering his dad.

And Barnet added to Marc:  Thanks for this.  It's more detailed than I remember, so I’m glad to have it.  It’s very touching. 

[Rich -- It's nice that so many of us can remember both Jim and his dad.  Though I'm sorry that we have to in this way.]

In other notes:

From Ray Staley:  Thank you, Debbie Oppenheimer, for the wonderful story about Central Hardware.  I remember going there in the early 60s with my father. 

From Mary Sipp-Green:  Congratulations and best wishes to Paul Zegler and his new wife Becky.  I think this kind of news is great.

From Eric Hilton:  First, I wanted to wish Paul Zegler and his new bride Becky congratulations on their wedding.  Had I not been up in New York, shooting a wedding, I would have been more than happy to be shooting theirs -- had I been in California last week. 
    Just a quick story that I think I've already told to my fellow classmates, but it seems worth repeating just now:  Paul Zegler and I both fought for the hand of the fair maiden, Jean Cohen, at Brooklyn Avenue School. Later, my lovely lady, Jean, honored me by being my girl at my bar mitzvah.  Of course, I did have a crush on the beautiful Diane Fruzzetti at the same time.  Loving many girls at the same time is the Woody Allen credo I've tried to live my wholesome Navy life by.  As Allen put it: “Sex is something very beautiful between two people.  But between five, its fantastic."
    When I heard about Central Hardware going out of business, I was truly saddened.  Growing up, it was one of my favorite places to hang out, meet friends, and drool over the cool tools.
    And Pez -- the candy, not Paul's nickname -- was, and still is, a wonderful memory for me and my brother.  He use to eat almost all my Pez and only leave one in the dispenser.  When he passed away, we buried him with my favorite guitar tie, his new pair of drum sticks, and with a package of Pez.  When we visit his grave, we leave another package of Pez -- which is gone when we look back.  Well, sometimes... maybe.
    I hope all my fellow South friends and their families had a wonderful, happy, and safe holiday.

Finally, from Allen Moss:  Hi Folks... Moss in Maine here.
    We had a spectacular fall here, with rich and varied colors.  Maine has never been more beautiful, even with our bizarre Halloween snow storm.  But as the colors wane and the temperature drops, it's on to winter.
    My congrats, as well, to Paul and Becky, and I really enjoyed Marc Jonas' dog and family connection story, as I, too, have that same type of connection -- only with Beagles.
    My dad also brought home a surprise, only it was in a hatbox instead of a brown box, and that dog, Bonnie, was with us for fifteen years.  Fast forward to 1973, and I picked up the threads by buying Jason, who was with me for almost twelve years.  He traveled the country with me on many road trips out West and into the Canadian Rockies.  He was a great traveler and loved all the smells of the different states.
    After Jason came two Beagles, Orion and Artemis, who lived to ripe old ages of fifteen-and-a-half and almost thirteen, respectively.  It was tough losing them so close together, and I vowed that I was done with Beagles and dogs.  Uh... no.  I now have Argos, who is eight, and Apollo, who is five.  The great thing is that Orion, Artemis, Argos, and Apollo were all bred and raised as puppies at the same kennel in Iowa, and their pedigrees are generationally linked.  And I can see some of the same physical characteristics in all four.      
    Hope everyone is well and will enjoy the upcoming holiday season with partners, family, and friends.

[Rich -- And there's still a bit more news left over for next week.  And I think there's an Alumni Association holiday dinner coming up quickly.  And did I mention that my favorite newsletters are the ones like this one, where I barely have to write anything?]

The South '65 e-mail addresses: reunionclass65 . blogspot . com

The South '65 photo site: picasaweb . google . com / SouthHS65

As usual, please delete the spaces.


Rich