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SOPHOMORE YEAR 1963-1964:
Once again, I had MR. BIANCO as my Band teacher. My French teacher was MRS. BERGER. My Typing teacher was MR. BISHOP. My World History teachers were MISS PORTER and MISS SHEPARD. I remember MISS SHEPARD telling us of her experience in the WACS (WOMENS ARMY CORPS) during WWII. She told us that one of the teachers at NORTHEAST (I can't recall the name) had been at PEARL HARBOR when it was bombed. Even though she was young at the time, her hair turned white and stayed that way all of her life.
Due to my eye problem, I never took Boys' Physical Education, although I did participate in Intramural sports.
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SENIOR YEAR 1964-65:
MR. BIANCO was once again my Band teacher. This was the first year we got to wear our brand new Band uniforms. One of the biggest thrills I had was marching in the AMERICAN ROYAL PARADE. I don't know why, but we were the very last band in the parade. I believe we were actually the caboose of the whole parade. It wouldn't have been so bad, but there were 3000 horses scattered throughout the parade ahead of us. Of course, they always liked to leave their little horsey calling cards on the street. MR BIANCO told us about the problem and he said that there used to be a little diddy called "HORSEY KEEP YOUR TAIL UP," which he didn't elaborate on. I think it was a fine old Irish lullaby. MR. BIANCO was a veteran of many parades with horses and he knew what to do. He would signal the Drum Major or Majorette to space the formation out so that we could march without stepping in anything. We had to become all-terrain marchers, because many times you never knew where you would be marching. All communication is done with hand signals, drum cadence and whistles. For the most part, only people who have ever marched or led a band will understand what is going on. A well-drilled marching band is a beautiful and entertaining sight. Our Drum Majorette that year was JACKIE SCHOOLEY. A lot of times she walked backwards signaling us to make sure the lines in our formation were staight. Let's just say she kept the band members out of a lot of messy situations. We had what was, for lack of a better term, called the, "HORSE POOP SHUFFLE." It was a nifty little jump in which you could skip over any mess and still stay in step with the rest of the band. You always knew when something was ahead, because you could see the band helmets going up and down in front of you. That year we had decided to wear white bucs or as they were sometimes affectionately called, "PAT BOONE SHOES." To any young reader unfamiliar with PAT BOONE, he is a famous singer who when he was young, always wore white shoes. We had just about made it through when I saw the helmets bobbing up and down. This meant that me and my precious white shoes were headed straight for you know what. MR. BIANCO had said that you always keep your eyes straight, but I couldn't stand the suspense and started looking down. I'll tell you right now, trying to play a cornet and look out for horse manure at the same time is very stressful. Anyway, I looked down and saw I was marching straight into a big one. It wouldn't have been so bad, but that horse must have been sick. The whole pile was filled with blood and urine. I cannot even begin to tell you the things that went through my mind when I saw what I was headed for. I know the BIBLE says that the Devil will put obstacles in your way, but they never said anything about this in SUNDAY SCHOOL. I was scared. I started praying: "Please JESUS, don't let me step in it. I'm only sixeteen. I've got my whole life ahead of me!" I did the shuffle and thought I had missed it. WRONG! My left heel caught it when I came down. MR. BIANCO had always taught us to march with our knees high. So, I came down hard. Needless to say, it is rather difficult trying to stay in step and shake horse manure off of your shoe at the same time. Now you know why band members always had a separate bus. The other kids couldn't take the smell. But, you do get used to it after a while. Okay, I'm only kidding. We had a separate bus because we had so much band equipment etc. You can always tell a band member. They walk home scraping their shoes on the curb. I'm not kidding about that. I used to do it myself. If you ever want to scare a band member, just say those three little words: "HORSE MANURE AHEAD!" Horse manure is to band members, what Kryptonite is to Superman. MR. BIANCO once told us about the time a drummer lost control of one of his sticks and it went flying into a horse pile. In true VIKING fashion, he picked the stick out of the mess and shook it off into the crowd and continued playing. Being a spectator at a parade can be dangerous sometimes. Forget about it hitting the fan. It's when it flies off the drumstick that you gotta start worrying! We have an organization called the VFW (VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS). With that in mind, I'd like to start an organization myself. It is the VHM (VETERANS OF HORSE MANURE). If you have ever marched in a band that had to dodge the stuff, you are automatically a member. Just like the PURPLE HEART which is awarded to those wounded or killed in combat, I am creating the PURPLE POOP for those like me, who actually stepped in it. VETERANS like to exchange war stories and band members like to exchange horse poop stories. It's the AMERICAN WAY. After the parade, we went to our bus which was parked on the hillside near the LIBERTY MEMORIAL. I remember some RED CROSS people came and passed out coffee and doughnuts. That was my first taste of these goodies. It was better than going out on a date. Girls may come and go, but a coffee and doughnut will stick with you. The bus driver got some too. While we're on the subject of bus drivers, I'd like to say that all through school we had excellent people. They were good drivers and not at any time did we ever have an accident. Sometimes we had a male and sometimes a female. They let us kids talk and yell all we wanted as long as the chatter didn't get out of hand. They also made sure we weren't bothered by the usual bullies who seem to pop up like mushrooms. All the adults I knew when going to school always commanded respect from the students. They also protected the students from anything that might cause trouble. Most of the time, they did it by themselves.
We once marched in the now defunt MINERAL BOWL PARADE in EXCELSIOR SPRINGS, MISSOURI. The parade preceded the MINERAL BOWL football game. That was a very embarrassing march for me. I had always had trouble with the zipper on my uniform pants. While marching, the zipper would work its way open. Fortunately, in cold weather, we wore blue jeans underneath. But, the people on the sidewalks didn't know that. I was on the very left closest to the sidewalk. As I marched and kept my knees high, the zipper worked open. People saw this and started passing word down the line to check out the kid whose fly was open. It was very embarrassing to say the least. For 5 miles I marched and played, all the while people pointed at my pants and laughed. But, MR. BIANCO had taught us well. I kept my head up, my eyes forward and my knees high despite the catcalls. After the parade, we went and watched the football game. During halftime, all of the school bands were gathered on the field and we played a number together. GOD does reward you for what you've been through. I was very thirsty after the march and game, but didn't have any money to buy a drink. As I was walking back toward our bus, I spotted a quarter on the sidewalk in front of me. I was alone, no one else was around. I picked the quarter up and went to, I think it was the local drugstore. If I remember right, I got me a tall cherry limeade, which was my favorite drink in the 60's Boy, did it taste good! It was a big drink, too. These days, a quarter will buy you just enough to use for eyewash. The people of EXCELSIOR SPRINGS showed a lot of kindness to us kids.
I remember we also wore white gloves. This was good because those who played brass instruments could hold their mouthpieces in their hand and keep them warm when not playing. Anybody who plays a brass instrument will tell you that tonguing the notes is a very important part of playing music. We sometimes marched in cold weather. Sticking a hot tongue on a cold mouthpiece could be very dangerous. It doesn't look too good if half the band is marching with their tongues stuck to their instruments.
My English teacher was MISS DAVIS. My printing teacher was MR. HARRIS. My Bookeeping teacher was MISS COMER. My Advanced Business teacher was MR. BISHOP. My Driver's Education teachers were MR. BAKER and MR. CHENOWETH. I wanted to drive a CHEVROLET, but we had a 1965 MERCURY. My Shorthand teacher was MISS MCMILLIN. I was the only boy in the class. Well, there are worse things that could happen to you. I'd like to say that the girls were very nice. Not at any time did they ever try and take advantage of me. Doggone it!
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SENIOR YEAR 1965-1967:
I missed my Senior year due to illness. When my Senior picture was taken, I only weighed 120 pounds. That may not seem too low, but when you consider I was 6' 2" tall, I think you get the picture. At the present I weight almost 220 pounds. Hey! There is a GOD! I went to Summer and Night schools in 1966. I also went the First Semester of the 1966-67 School Season. I wanted to graduate in December of 1966, but had to take the Second Semester because I was a couple of credits short. When I went to school, you had to have proven knowledge in order to graduate. It's not like the Diploma Mills being run today. I consider my Graduation Year to be 1966, but sometimes tell people I graduated in 1966-67. Of couse, my Band Teacher was once again MR. BIANCO. My French teacher was MRS. BERGER. My Human Science teacher was MR. HUHN. My Biology teacher was MR. ADCOCK.