Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Trees and Such

 








This is the school building where I attended high school for three years and from which I graduated in 1965. 

During the 1960s, we spent only our sophomore through senior years being educated in this school, which was built in the early 1950s. 

This past Saturday, Karen Martin Rolf, a member of our class reunion planning committee asked me about the Bulldog which our Class of 1965 provided the funds for it to be painted on the side of the building above the doors to the gymnasium. 

If I recall correctly, a local artist named Dick Tibbs (no relation to our Tibbs family members), painted the Bulldog.  

It remained a proud icon there until sometime in the 1990s when the new high school was built and the old turned into Sandpoint Middle School. 

Some time after that happened, our Bulldog was replaced by a smaller version to denote the school name change. As a member of our 1965 projects committee, I expressed my dismay at this move.

Life moves on though, and so does history. 

When Karen mentioned the Bulldog, I remembered that in addition to the Bulldog, we paid for trees to be planted both in front of the school (deciduous variety) and at the side of the school along Division. 

The money we used for these two projects came from our efforts in a raffle which gave a trip to Hawaii or $700.  One of the best stories that came out of the raffle involved classmate Doug Pennington, who went to the local bars and earned the distinction of selling the most tickets.   

Back in those days, it was against the laws of journalism to call our money-making project a "raffle" because to do so suggested gambling, which had been outlawed in Idaho. 

These days, using that term seems to be the least of the problems that concern our citizens. 

So, I felt liberated this morning calling it a raffle, knowing that no journalism adviser was going to reprimand me. 

Anywho, Karen's inquiry inspired me to get in the car and go down to the old high school and take some pictures of our trees. 

They're 60 years old this year and appear to be standing strong.  Bill, the tree man in our house, remembers when a couple of the row along Division succumbed to disease and were removed.

Still, an impressive row of vibrant spruce trees remains. 

This realization added a nice touch to our reunion planning.  We might just gather as a class down at our old high school in September and have our picture taken with those trees. 

So nice to see something that has lasted, even through all the growth in Sandpoint. 

I have a feeling my classmates are quite proud to realize that we contributed an, as yet, lasting gift to the Sandpoint community. 



🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳


I also think that Mrs. Alta Morris, our seventh grade literature teacher, would be proud to know that we students took the poem she had us memorize to heart.
 



Our class met for another planning meeting at DiLuna's Restaurant yesterday.  With Karen as scribe, the rest of us contributed what we knew about classmates on the list---if they'd been contacted, are they still alive, are they coming to the reunion, etc.

Yesterday's group included Judy Chronic Dabrowski, Mike Parkins, Ruthann Kiebert Nordgaarden, Marianne, Karen Martin Rolf, Sharon Clark Bayless, and Jim Holt.

Slowly but surely, we're getting a plan together.  









These ladies came into DiLuna's yesterday while we were meeting. 

I was amazed that Susan Abadaca (hope I got it right) from Troy, Mont. graduated from high school five years before we did. I want her secret of youth. 

She enjoyed lunch with her granddaughter, a dog groomer from Naples, and I enjoyed meeting both of them.  



Speaking of dogs, Bill bought some new potholders for opening the wood stove door. 

I reported a while back that, often at night, Miss Bridie takes things from their assigned place and puts them on the floor near the sliding glass door. 

One of her favorite items has been the pot holder near the stove.  If Bill doesn't put it in an unreachable position for Bridie, she takes it and moves it to the area where she sleeps at night. 

So, Bill decided with this purchase to pick out something Bridie appropriate. 

I think he made some good choices for Miss Bridie Love's nocturnal adventures. 


Sandpoint's girls varsity takes on the Coeur d'Alene Vikings at Les Rogers Gym tonight at 7 p.m.

Game will be streamed for free on Hudl Fan. 


GO, BULLDOGS. 

🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀

Another nice, dry day ahead, so one more day of not complaining about January. 

Yay. 

Happy Tuesday.  



















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