01/04/05 - NNHS Newsletter - From a Distance

Dear Friends and Schoolmates,   

     Does someone have a nice January story for me?  I'll admit it.  I have a hard time with January.  In my experience, they
nearly always begin disastrously.  Last January, for instance, was almost unbearable for a variety of reasons.  The only one
I can remember that was not was 1984.  That's because my sweet little boy, Dale, was born that year on this very day, and
brought with him a wonderful spirit which permeated everything around him.

    For some reason I thought that this year would be different.  Actually, like Charlie Brown and Lucy's football, I always believe
that this time it will be different.  Instead it began with learning of the death of a good friend back in IL who was killed in a tractor
accident on New Year's Eve, and the unexpected betrayal by a good friend within hours after that news arrived.

   I have learned to live vicariously.  Optimist that I am, I'm certain that January does not portend gloom and doom for all of y'all. 
Therefore, if anyone has a really uplifting January story, I would greatly appreciate hearing it.  Thanks!



From Fred Field ('45) of CA - 01/02/05:

 Two obits today from the Daily Press web site: www.dailypress.com
 
First is for the daughter of my NNHS home room teacher, P. W. Allen Raine.  As close as I felt to Mr. Raine,
I don't think I ever heard one word about his family.  The obit reveals that he came to NN from Louisville
in 1940. Since he taught the required freshman subject of plane geometry, all NNHS students of our era would
have known him. I learned of Mr. Raine's death from teacher Herman Levy.  This would have been on one
of my several visits to NNHS while I was still in the U.S.N.  Therefore probably in 1946 or early 1947.

Frances Blunt Raine

 
RICHMOND - Frances Blunt Raine died Thursday, Dec. 30, 2004, at her home. Born in Louisville, Ky., on May 11, 1935, she was
the daughter of
Peter Woodward Allen Raine and Edith Virginia Moore Raine. She moved with her family to Newport News
in 1940. She graduated from Newport News High School in 1953 and graduated from Longwood College in the class of 1957.
She received her master's in secondary education from the University of Virginia in 1971. Her teaching career began
in Newport News. She then spent four years at NASA before returning to teaching in Henrico County at Tuckahoe Middle School
and finally Douglas S. Freeman High School. In all, her teaching spanned 35 years. She was a member of Third Presbyterian
Church, Nathaniel Bacon Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Huguenot Society of the Founders
of Manakin. She was a 50-year member of Zeta Tau Alpha National Women's Fraternity, Ginter Park Woman's Club, Tuckahoe
Woman's Club, The Book Club and a bridge/support group. Survivors include her sister and brother-in-law, Wirtley and Douglas
Anderson of Miami, Fla.; and her sister, Edith Raine Fenick of Richmond. Also surviving are nephews, John Douglas Anderson
and his wife, Christy, of Boca Raton, Fla., and Michael Allen Scott Anderson of Miami, Fla.; nieces, Wendy Hoffhines and her
husband, Rob, of Chicago, Michele Raine Fenick, Melissa Irving and Melinda Fenick, all of Richmond; great-nieces, Megan and
Beth Hoffhines of Chicago; and great-nephews, Nicholas Eitner Anderson and John Raine Anderson. The family received friends
6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 1, 2005, at Bennett Funeral Home, 3215 Cutshaw Ave. A memorial service will be held 3 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 2, 2005, at Third Presbyterian Church, 600 Forest Ave. Interment private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent
to Douglas Freeman High School's Scholarship Fund.

Published in the Daily Press on 1/2/2005.

 
 
This second obit. is for someone that we (of the Class of 1945) must have been in contact with at NNHS.  He was
the same age as we (within 1/2 year) but note that his graduation from NNHS is 1951 (5 or 6 years after what
one would expect).  Of course we had a fairly high percentage dropout rate - especially during the war years
when jobs were plentiful and pay was enticing.  He might have been a candidate for being pulled out of school
by the draft board if he had gotten a year or two behind in school.  I think the WW-II draft continued to about
May of 1946.  Note that he was born in Roanoke but a "lifelong" resident of NN......  Also, in his teens he may
have attended .... NN First Methodist.


William H. Woodward Sr
.

 
NEWPORT NEWS - William H. Woodward Sr., 76, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2004. A native of Roanoke, he had been
a lifelong resident of Newport News. He graduated from Newport News High School in February 1951 and served in the U.S. Army
in Germany during the Korean War. He was a member of Warwick Memorial United Methodist Church, where he served on the
administration board and was an usher. He was an optician at White Optical Co. for many years. He was also senior designer
in piping for Newport News Shipyard and retired from M. Rosenblatt & Son, Inc. Mr. Woodward was preceded in death by his father,
George Avis Woodward Sr.; mother, Lou Rea Woodward; brother, George A. Woodward Jr.; and sister, Katherine Lee Staples.
Survivors include his wife of 48 years, Ann C. Woodward; daughters, Deborah L. Hurley and husband, Bobby, of Suffolk, and
Della A. Parsons of Yorktown; son, William Woodward Jr. and wife, Amy, of Cornelius, N.C.; seven grandchildren, Jenni, Shane
and Laura Hurley, Matthew and Addison Parsons and Brooke and Will Woodward; and many nieces and nephews. The family will
receive friends from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 2, 2005, at Peninsula Funeral Home. A funeral service will be conducted
at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 3, 2005, at the funeral home, with interment to follow at Peninsula Memorial Park.

Published in the Daily Press from 12/31/2004 - 1/2/2005

   Thank you, Fred.

   
1953 Anchor, p. 13
Frances Blunt Raine
1958 Anchor, p. 13
Miss Frances B. Raine
1958 Anchor, p. 5
Mr. P. W. Allen Raine
1956 Anchor, p. 121
Wirtley Anne Raine
   

   According to the 1958 Anchor, Mr. Raine passed away in 1957.  His younger daughter, Wirtley (Raine Anderson of FL), was
a member of the Class of 1956.

   I'll supply the next "small world" story myself.  We moved to Richmond from MO in August of 1984, and spent one year there. 
My two oldest sons, Lewis (Hillsboro HS - IL - '89) and Brent (Hillsboro HS - IL - '90) attended Tuckahoe Middle School. 
I wonder if Miss Raine taught them?  I would not have made the connection back then, but I'll ask them today.

 



From Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA - 01/04/05:

   (RE: Yesterday's Newsletter:)

From Marc Fusillo of FL - 01/03/05:

Dear Carol
I have a grandfather that attended this school, and today we both need a copy of two year books, one from 1939
and one from 1940.  Please help me to obtain them.  Please reply with your insight into this matter. 
Thanks ,
Marc Fusillo,  Largo, Florida


If he needs a look-up, I can do that at the Hilton Library. I can make a photocopy or a close-up digital of any page.

If he needs the entire book(s), Fred Mays ('60 of VA) may have extra copies with which he might part.

   Thanks, David!



From Kathleen Pilgrim Clark ('63) of VA - 01/04/05;

Carol,
I noticed the request from Florida for help finding old yearbooks and it made me laugh when I read your reply
about looking on E-Bay and in shops.  I worked on our yearbook of 1963 and did the same at VaTech for the Bugle
of 1964.  Obviously, all yearbooks were lost in 1989 when my house burned down.  I was at the Ethan Allen furniture
store in the summer of 1989 looking at furniture.  In one grouping, there was a sofa, chairs and a large book case. 
There were various books on the shelves with oddments and tchatchkes.  As I sat on the sofa, I regarded the books
on the shelf and commented, "Wow.  You have a copy of the 1964 Bugle there."   The designer I was working with
didn't know what I meant.  So I went to the shelf and got the book down.  It was, in fact, the yearbook from my
freshman year at Tech.  When I showed her my photo in the Class of '67, she gave me the yearbook.  They had bought
it at a used goods shop because it had an attractive binding and would look nice on their shelf!  So I have one yearbook
from college.  KC 

   WOWZERS!!!  What a cool story!  Thanks, Kathy!



From Bill Black ('66) of GA - 01/04/05:

Please forward this memento to Carla (Fine Cripps - '65 - of Australia) for me...
 
         
April 15, 1965 - Junior Birdman Society      

I have no idea how I got hold of it, Thomas L. Nevin was a 'secret name' between me, Chip Clark, Frank Blechman,
Allan White, Betty Blandford, Debbie Fink, District Secretary Carla
and some others.  But from where it
originated, I have no clue.
 
Bill Black

   Well, it originated in the vivid imagination of Frank Blechman ('65 of Northern VA) - I remember that part, anyway! And he
"was" Thomas L. Nevin.  I seem to remember he bequeathed you his card in his "Last Will and Testament" published in the
Beacon
...



From Me to Bill Black ('66) of GA - 01/04/05:

Hey, Bill!

   I just sent this forth to Carla.  May I also use it in today’s Newsletter??  Yes, please?  Pretty please with whipped cream on top???

Carol



From Bill Black ('66) of GA - 01/04/05:

Oh, good grief...  Sure... Go ahead...  Sheesh!  Now everyone in going to know  I still live in the sixties.
 
Maybe someone out there with a working Way Back Machine can refresh my memory about Thomas L. Nevin.   You were
in the Science Club group...Do you remember anything about it?  Remember Oscar, and the Order of the Aardvark? 
Would a banana-flavored Bonomo's Turkish Taffy bar help stimulate the brain cells?
 
Bill

   GIGGLES!  And what could be wrong with that?!?

   Yes, I remember things....


 

 

     
1964 Anchor 1965 Anchor        

   I lost my beloved Order of the Aardvark membership card which I always kept with me when my purse was nabbed by an
unpleasant large dog, and its contents strewn outside in Missouri in the summer of 1983.  I am not making this up.

   Thanks, Bill - and Frank - for the cherished memories.


From Joe Madagan ('57) of FL - 01/04/05:

Hi, Carol:
This page will take you to a photo album link of a recent trip (by the Saint Leo University BasketballTeam) to New York City.
ESPN's Dick "BAABBEEEEE" Vitale greeted the team at Madison Square Garden.
Then just below you see the invitation to view the photo album.
(My son, Coach) Mike Madagan is the one with the beard. He took his wife Georgianna and their two daughters, Hannah
Grace
and Sarah Lynn and they had a great time. Take a look when you get a minute.
Old Grandpa

http://www.saintleo.edu/SaintLeo/Templates/Inner.aspx?pid=2995

   OH, how cool is that?!?  Thanks, Adonis!



From Linda Lane Lane ('64) of VA - 01/04/05:

Hi Carol,
It was great getting back to Virginia and being able to read all of the newsletters I missed while in Florida.  I wish I could take
the credit for bringing all of this nice warm air with me.  The James River Bridge brought back a lovely memory for me. 
In 1959 we were returning to Newport News after living in Idaho for 2-1/2 years.  It was the middle of January and we had
come the southern route because of the bad weather.  We were in the same 1952 Plymouth 2 door we had driven out there in. 
As we came to the JR Bridge, the lights from the shipyard were lit up like the 4th of July.  The smell of salt water was there
as we slowly drove across the bridge.  Of all the places we've been and all the many wonderful things we've seen, none was as
bright as the lights of the shipyard letting us know we had made it home. 
 
In my hope chest, I found a NNHS Typhoon Band car decal.  It was oval in shape and was white with blue writing.  It is
very similar to the one Old Dominion University sends to its Alumni.  I promise to send you a copy of the picture of Rose
(Woodard Groff - '65).
  I've been twice to get a copy and both times the machine was broken.  Hope all is well with you
and your family.  I don't know how you have managed to do all that you do and keep this website so up to date.  The happiness
you bring to those of us who read it has no price tag.  Showers of blessings to you and to all of our Typhoon family in the coming
year.
 
Love,
Linda

   What a lovely memory!  Thanks, Linda!  I posted a portion of it here:

http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/old-stomping.html

http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/james-river-bridge.html

   Ah, then there was more than one design!  Check this one, previously sent to us by Janice McCain Rose ('65) of VA:

http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com/63band.html

   I'm looking forward to the photo of you and Rose at your wedding!  By the way, thanks so much for the Reunion photos you sent
me!  Hey, I should have scanned those and added them to the site - DUH!!!  Okay, I'll wake up one day .... maybe .... perhaps
in FEBRUARY!  YEAH!  That's the ticket!!!

   Thanks so much, Linda!



    Y'all take care of each other!  TYPHOON FOREVER!

                          Love to all, Carol

==============================================

NNHS CLASS OF '65 WEB SITE: http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com
PERSONAL WEB SITE: http://www.angelfire.com/weird2/cluckmeat

==============================================




From a Distance

(Bette Midler)


From a distance, the world looks blue and green
and the snow-capped mountains white.
From a distance the ocean meets the stream
and the eagle takes to flight.
From a distance there is harmony
and it echoes through the land.
It's the voice of hope, it's the voice of peace,
it's the voice of every man.
From a distance, we all have enough
And no one is in need.
There are no guns, no bombs, no diseases,
No hungry mouths to feed.
From a distance we are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope, playing songs of peace
They're the songs of every man.
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us from a distance.
From a distance, you look like my friend
Even though we are at war.
From a distance I cannot comprehend
What all the fighting is for.
From a distance there is harmony
And it echoes through the land.
It's the hope of hopes, it's the love of loves.
It's the heart of every man.
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us from a distance.

 



"From a Distance" midi, courtesy of http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/6100/midi.html,
located by Dave Spriggs ('64) of VA - 01/02/04
 Thanks, Dave! 

  "From a Distance" lyrics courtesy of http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Bette-Midler/From-A-Distance.html - 01/02/05

 Winter Images courtesy of Cal's Gallery, http://www.wtv-zone.com/cal555/, located by my niece, Shari, of VA - 01/03/04
What a great site!  Thanks, Shari!

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