Becky (Ensley) Higgins

Buenas Dias to all the class of KHS 1976. A fter 25 years, it's been nice to hear from so many classmates, gone to many parts of the world, but certainly not forgotten.  My story after high school began with a couple years at BHE college and then on to a couple years of training in Radiologic Technology at Kewanee Public Hospital.  After graduation, I took a job at a small clinic in Peoria, and after that took another job working for the Federal Government at the Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic, where I stayed for the next 16 years.  

I met my husband Steve Higgins in Peoria and we were married at the Ernest Hemingway House in Key West, Florida in 1991.  We lived and worked in Peoria until 1999 when Steve's long time career with Caterpillar Inc. brought us to Santiago, Chile.  Not only did this send us on an adventure of a lifetime, but also enabled me to retire at the tender young age of 40.  Steve is now 48 and is only 15 months from a full 30 year retirement with the company himself.  If and when that ever happens (company men NEVER retire), we will come back to the states and live in one of our favorite places on earth, the Florida Keys, where we already have a waterfront home only 21 miles from Key West.  We decided long ago that children would not fit into our plan, so we don't have any.  

For the most part, here in Chile, I just run the household, which at times is a challenge in itself, especially due to the language barrier, but I'm still working on that, and have found that daily communication with other people has taught me enough conversational Spanish to get by.  Steve, on the other hand, is very fluent, and I find that I rely more on him than I should.  He also travels a great deal to places like Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Columbia and Peru.  When retirement does happen for him, we'll be traveling together.  I must admit that there are many more places that I'd like to visit while in this country, but no place is as great as the good old USA.

I have enjoyed seeing pictures of many of you on the web page, and look forward to seeing many more.  I'll be planning to attend the next class reunion and by that time (hopefully) will be more geographically desirable for that to happen.  In the meantime, we send our very best to all of you, no matter where you are.  Life has been splendid so far, and we look forward to many more grand adventures where ever the upcoming years will take us.  Perhaps someday many of us can meet for a cocktail and a Key West sunset.  Until that time.

Saludos and God Bless,
Becky (Ensley) and Steve Higgins