Jay's Last Ride

The only time I ever
saw a picture of Jay in a tie

We said goodbye to our friend Jay Ayers yesterday. We only heard of his passing on Friday. We had every expectation that we'd see him on his bike just like we see Bob Willis every now and again. It seemed like only yesterday that we were sitting outside the Bishea building at Burdette Park for the Pig in the Park, and now he's gone and we had to share our deepest sympathies to Jan. We got to Alexander East a little later than I wanted, but I had to teach and I had to get back from Mount Vernon before we could head out. When we got there, we were greatly comforted to know that so many of our classmates took the time to do the same for Jay to help send him on his last ride.

I will miss seeing him sporting one of his special reunion shirts joking with Barry Weissmann and John Reynolds and Gene Hollencamp. At almost the same time I found out from one of my Wayne Valley High School friends that one of my classmates who had been "missing" had passed away suddenly in 2014.

Considering how many Reitz classmates we've lost in a very short time, (Janet Frohbeiter Cox, Tom Wright, Bill Wimberley, Jan Yestigsmeier, Steve Jarboe) I realized that for some of us, this upcoming reunion might be the last time we get to see old friends in this lifetime, and so I urge you all who live in those far flung places to try and make plans to join us on October 7 of 2017 just before Fall Festival for the 50th Reunion of the FJ Reitz Class of 1967 at the St. Phillips Conservation Club.

In writing for the Wayne Valley blog, I composed a statement that I repeat here:
"Time cares not where you went to school, but only how long are spun the threads of Fate, a longer length for which mere mortals can only hope."

It may be sad but it is true. There is no guarantee for tomorrow. Don't pass up the opportunity to see your friends before they are taking that last ride with Jay.

Jay's Last Ride

It's the last day of school for the Mount Vernon School District and I should be a lot happier than I am, ready to celebrate a glorious summer after 5 months of teaching English for the sixth grade. Maybe teaching is for the young and patient, not for old curmudgeons like me, but although physically taxing, it was a worthwhile experience. While I sometimes feared for the future of our nation, some of the kiddos really renewed my faith in the youth of America. Little do they know; little do they realize yet that Time is relentless and unforgiving and it is calling them as surely as it calls to us. To both young and old, the message is the same. Time is fleeting; do not waste it.

Life's Reminders

I was just reminded by my phone (I've long since given up trying to remember things much more advanced than a few days without committing it to my phone, which never forgets unless I forget to make an entry), that it is time for my foot surgeon's one year follow up exam. It made me think back to that time last year when the agony of de feet caused me to go under the knife, and despite the inconveniences and discomfort of recovery, I must admit that the constant pain is gone. I have had to trade off to a certain extent. I can no longer consider marathons or steeplechases. Good thing since they were never on my bucket list.

What that IPhone reminder also did was remind me that I have neglected this blog greatly in exchange for living a busy life with your classmate Linda. She has, all along, reminded me, much like a living IPhone, of events that ought to be blogged.  That time is here.

First, I remind folks that we have booked the St. Phillips Conservation Club for the 50th reunion of the Reitz High School Class of 1967. The reunion is currently scheduled for October 7, 2017. I will be your IPhone on this matter, as well as informing you that likely Schnitzelbank will be catering. This affair will have a cash bar and as we have done in the past, will have an agenda, a program and lots of great conversation, fun and laughter, and no end of reminiscing. As more details become available, we will pass them along. Cost is yet to be fully determined but as ever, we will try to keep it as reasonable as possible so the most classmates can attend without hardship.

Further, plans very slowly develop for the centennial celebration of FJ Reitz HS. These plans revolve around 2018 and planning currently involves developing branding for the event and collecting class lists to involve the greater Reitz alumni community which pretty much includes the entire westside.

Facebook continues to serve as a wonderful birthday reminder and if Linda and I have missed any, it is not from neglect but from spotty Internet connections in the various campgrounds we have occupied or inexplicable cell phone voids found in the most unexpected locations during our travels. That we all may continue celebrating our birthdays with family and friends is our most fervent wish, even though the numbers on the cake seem to grow disturbingly larger.

And Facebook also serves as a window on life's other events, like grandbabies, new puppies, travel adventures and much more and we're always happy to like and comment on such happy occasions in passing and it is always comforting to know that people you know and like are keeping tabs on you even as we strive to keep up with others' travels and tidings.

Sadly, we have also recently learned of two additional classmates who will no longer celebrate birthdays with us. On October 22, 2015 we lost Bill Wimberly and most recently, on October 24, we lost Janet Cox Frohbeiter. I will be updating the website memorial page and including obituaries that were locally published.

The Good Fight

After the stress and joy of the holidays and, for me, the prospect of walking around again like a real boy after foot surgery, we received disturbing news from Gayle Brown Gurksnis:

When Jan was diagnosed with brain cancer she was only given a few months to live but she has fooled us all by being with us for 2 years.  As you will read, things are progressing very quickly now.    It still does not seem possible to me that we will not have her much longer but I am just so forever grateful for these last few years that she and I have had together and all because of the Reitz67 website.  Thank you too Milton!

 

Gayle

---

 Subj: Update on our "Jani Girl"

 

Hi everyone,

Jan and I will celebrate our 23rd anniversary in a few days. We are certainly blessed to have reached that point. But her strength is waning and her mind is largely in a special place only she knows. She fell, or perhaps "dropped" is a better word, to the floor three times in the last few days and had a sustained seizure last Saturday. Fortunately she still has no pain from her cancer. There's no way to know how long she will hold on; professional estimates are a month or two, but this is Jan we're talking about! Until the last few days I felt that was hogwash, but things change without much warning despite her vitals being good.  We stopped all chemo in November as the disease was showing progression and the chemo was too demanding. We began home care about three weeks ago.
Attempts at oral communication, such as phone calls, are quite frustrating at this point. She doesn't answer questions and if she speaks, only "parrots" what others say to her. I read her emails and cards and show her pictures from Facebook, etc. and she does seem to enjoy these. At the insistence of my buddy Terry, I set up Facetime yesterday and it is great. If anyone has this and wants to give it a try sometime, let me know cause she can wave.

Remember "Hey Jude" from the day of her big operation over two years ago? Many of you recall that her surgeon was Dr. Jude! Every time he stopped by the hospital room we irritated him with a hearty ...Hey, Jude. At the time, I asked all I could reach to sing a verse during her surgery and connect our energies. Well, hum a verse once in a while and channel her...stay connected, and drop her a card when you can.  Love ya all, Al

Jan and Al Clark
2196 E. Sahuarita Wash Way
Oro Valley, Az 8575

So if you get a chance, do drop a card or letter to Jan while we still can. 

Reitz Century Campaign

Back in 1918, Evansville decided to use the top of an unused hill on the westside of Evansville to build a school. That school came to be known as Francis Joseph Reitz High School. Well, in 2018, Reitz will be 100 years old, and there's nothing like a century to make for a great celebration.

Once again, Linda finds herself in the middle of things.  When Beth Carnahan (current principal of Reitz) first raised the notion of establishing an Outstanding Alumni group of people who bled blue and grey, who were active in their graduating classes, and who sparked reunions and kept track of everyone, I said to myself, "Self, I think they're talking about Linda!" Well I did nominate Linda and then didn't hear anything more until a couple weeks ago. Turns out Beth suggested to the Big Blue Boosters to contact us to work on the Century Campaign.

The long and short of the Century Campaign is to raise a lot of money to help fund Reitz's wish list for projects that the school needs that may not necessarily part of the EVSC budget. It also intends to hold a series of celebratory events over the course of 2018 culminating in some sort of blowout birthday bash.

So somehow or other, Linda and I will be helping to locate a group of active alumni from each class to try and contact every living classmate from '21 to 2018 and get them to contact their classmates. So far, we've been working on getting representatives from every graduating class to attend a January meeting with Beth Carnahan so she can fill in some details. We will also assist these other alumni reps on how to contact their classmates if they have not done so already. How you folks can help is if you know alums from other classes who might be interested in participating in this big effort, especially those who have been actively organizing their class events. Just let us know.

This is also a timely moment to mention to all to make sure that you let us know of any contact information changes that you have had in recent past; thanks to Pam Carroll Oldham for letting us know of your recent move from Germantown to Franklin Tennessee. Congratulations!

Needless to say, there is still a log of legwork that needs to be done, and after early November, any legwork that needs to be done will have to be done by Linda since I'm having foot surgery and will be off my feet for a couple, maybe three months. 2018 is still a ways off, and before then is the little matter of the 50th reunion of the Class of '67 in 2017. We are starting to turn the crank on some planning in this regard but it's way to soon to let the cat out of the bag. First we have to get the cat; actually we still have to get the bag!

On other fronts, sad news for the Beck family with Paul losing his 93 year old mom last week; on the other hand, cause for celebration with the Qualls family as Patty and her brothers help their parents' 70th anniversary. Albert and Dorothy have had a busy month with Albert flying to DC as part of Evansville's first direct flight WWII honor flight and Dorothy recovering from a bout of pneumonia.

The Plan Came Together

I used to think that it was one of the laws of the Universe that nothing ever worked the way you think it should; that there was always a little adjustment necessary to keep all the wheels on the wagon turning in the same direction at the same speed.

It turns out that sometimes things work out pretty well; that is certainly the case when it comes to the Pig in the Park get together held this past Saturday, June 7, 2014. For an in-between early summer event for a reunion event that has never been done before, the Reunion committee has reason to be pleased. A few that planned to attend were at the last minute unable to attend and were replaced by folks who thought they wouldn't be able to attend and found last minute that they could. The question was,"Is it too late to sign up?" We replied that only on Sunday would it be too late! As it was, people streamed in and out over the course of the afternoon and there wasn't a great time to photograph everyone together.

We had planned for indoor activities in the case of rain or scorching heat, and a combination of indoor and outdoor activities for good weather. We probably over thought the event by a lot planning contingencies for disasters that never happened. It turns out that for the Reitz Class of 1967, as long as there is a time and place to meet, and good food to eat that the party is on. Between eating and catching up with all the latest, nothing else was needed. Jeff Stevens catered the veggies for a ridiculously reasonable rate per person and Bob Willis's butts were in Pam Irwin's words, "The bomb"! Refreshments provided and BYO were sufficient and the desserts that were brought undid an entire season of restraint and exercise.

We had the building from noon to midnight, but understandably, considering the kind of schedules that grandparents and young at heart seniors maintain, a good 4 or 5 hours is asking a lot.

It's always hard to plan a summer event, and even though it was pretty universally agreed that we wanted to hold an event sometime before the 50th, there just didn't seem to be the ideal date and reservations had to be made for a venue.

All things considered, it was a successful event high in social and caloric content but not too high in revenue. Thanks to the generosity of the attendees, it was not necessary to dip into class funds that have been set aside for the 50th without having to resort to another round of fund raising efforts.

And thanks for your patience in waiting for this blog entry until after our memorable RV journey to Glacier National Park.

So we have a bit of rest before having to think about the next big event: the Big Five Oh! It'll be here before you know it!

The Winter of Our Discontent; Waiting for Renewal

It's been a rough Winter for us all. The weather has been unusually vicious for the region, and it has taken its toll on the Reitz Class of 1967 with the passing of  Stan Hebbeler, Karen Campbell, Linda Kitzinger and recently Jean Davis Trotter and the continuing health struggle of Steve Jarboe. With Spring nowhere in sight, it is hard to turn our thoughts to renewal and celebration, and yet, with each sadness, there is a corresponding joy as we are collectively blessed with grandchildren and, dare I say it, great grandchildren and their achievements and personal milestones. Life goes on, and we remember lost classmates fondly, and anticipate getting together with those of us who remain behind.

The Reunion Committee recently met at the Parkway Pizza, breaking bread, cracking jokes and shattering traditions to plan our next event. What have we come up with? One image, one idea come to planning fruition:

Here is the way it lays out right now. We've got the Bishea Building out at Burdette Park reserved from Noon to 10pm (The Bishea building is the one you get to after taking the first turn on the right once you enter the main entrance to the park). Barbeque and all the fixings. $10 bucks. Bring a dessert and sugar up the crowd. Wander off to play Putt Putt or a swim or some tennis (warm weather, we're waiting.....), wander back for more food. Let's make more memories as we share some old ones. There'll be new faces and familiar ones too. One thing is for sure: Once again, the Reitz Class of '67 is going to show how a class is supposed to stand strong and united over the years.

You'll be hearing from someone on the Committee toward the end of March when we will start taking reservations. By the way, it will be a lot easier for the committee to contact you if you update your email addresses and contact information as life pulls you from here to there to there to there. Insight to Time Warner email changes, land line cancellations, etc., etc. etc. Post cards are up to 33 cents! Keep them updated so they can keep you updated in return.

Remember that this is the 3rd class event staged by your new committee. Each time we have tried to change things up to keep up interest. Changes of venue, changes in menu, changes in programs, but always on the same principles: Keep it affordable, accessible, and inclusive. We hope you agree with this approach and hope to see you there.

How Much Do Your Memories Mean to You?

One of the fundamental reasons for all class activity, discussion, reunions, is to create and enjoy memories. In fact, it is probably the entire reason for doing any of this. I know that Linda and I have truly had a blast in seeing the Reitz Class of 1967 enjoy this rebirth of class spirit. I might point out the sad fact that some more recent Evansville high school classes cannot muster enough classmates for a reunion without joining several class years together, you know the Class of 65, 66, and 67 reunion sort of thing.

And then there are the family memories. Grandparents, parents, siblings, children, grandchildren and even some great grandchildren in and out of our lives weaving the delicate fabric we each call our lives.

And then there's work memories, for better or worse. Bosses, jobs, foremen, coworkers, subordinates, private contractors, consultants, all those things that go into careers in a lifetime.

Memories all.  I remember a Star Trek: Next Generation episode where Dr. Beverly Crusher finds herself surrounded by disappearing shipmates for whom the computer suddenly has no memory. One by one, her friends and shipmates disappear until she is alone with Captain Picard who has no memories of any crew except for the two of them. She begins to question her sanity and cries out in frustration. Even this little episode synopsis is a memory.

That is what is happening to Steve Jarboe. Each little stroke he has strips him of chunks of memories, those little things we hold so precious; those moments we remember that make life worth living. So Madison, his daughter has devised a plan to help him hold on to those memories, a memory book, filled with your memories of Steve, things you did together with him, moments you shared with him. She got a letter to us describing what she is trying to do:

Okay, just to recap, I want to gather stories about my dad from anyone and everyone who knew him to compile into a book to give him this year. As most know, he has had some health issues that, especially recently, have affected his memory. I think it would be wonder ful to show him the memories that others have of him and for his family to have a nice keepsake.

How many stories a person sends in is up to them and the amount of time they have to put them together. I would like for them to be typed if possible (for easier reading) and to have the sender’s name included on each one just in case something gets jumbled together when I’m organizing everything. If multiple people have a shared memory of my dad and want to write it together as one story, that is fine! Just so long as everyone’s name is on it. Everyone is also more than welcome to write a letter to my dad, either to go with their stories or in place of a story.

I would love to have at least one photo from each person, even better if it is of them and my dad or goes with a story. But at least a photo of themselves to go with their stories. The amount of stories they send up is up to them as well, but the more the better. It would be greatly appreciated if any pictures sent could be labeled with the sender’s name and any caption they want to include (or instructions for which story it accompanies.

I will be figuring out printing options in the meantime and will be organizing the book pages as I collect everyone’s memories to put into it. Stories and pictures can be sent via email or mailed. It doesn’t matter too much whether they sent them to you or me as long as I get them in the end. If someone prefers to mail their stories I would appreciate it if they could call one ofus to let us know that they have sent them so we know that they have sent them, just in case anything gets lost in the mail. Here is my contact information if anyone has questions or wants to send their stories and photos directly to me.

So, friends and classmates, let us send those stories in to us via email or snail mail and we'll get them to the Jarboes in Kansas or send them directly to Madison:

Madison Jarboe

10017 W. 68th St

Meriam KS 66203

Help the Jarboes rebuild Steve's life by rebuilding his life's memories of Reitz and you. Here is something that costs nothing but means so much. We know we can count on all of you.