Champaign High School Class of 1966

With no pattern or frequency I often recall with fondness crossing paths with so many during those innocent early years of the 1960s.

Hanging out at Uncle John’s Pancake House with Larry Skeels and occasionally Tom Majors while others dropped in and out.

Italian beef sandwiches at the Patio and plain beef sandwiches at Po’ Boys; Friday night sock hops, of course, wondering how to talk to girls, and frequent trips to the Tiger’s Den in Urbana, listening to a local band play Louie, Louie.

Mr. Baltis, a man I treated unfairly and one of my few regrets from those years.

Poring over a map with Mike Rigby planning a trip to the tip of South America.

Screwing up my date to the senior prom, skipping school on our last day as seniors, and heading out to Lake-in-the-Woods; hanging out with Steve Shelton, Bill Servis, working at Eisner’s with Denny Nicola and Anita Rohrer (I couldn't see what see saw in Carl Bergman).

Double dating with Ron Lovelette in his new Chevelle SS; Ron and I spending our last night together in Chicago before going into the military (he to the Army and me to the Marine Corps) with Candi Hamilton and her roommate (they both worked as secretaries for Playboy, as I recall).

Watching Mr. Webb point to an uncomfortable Cindy Wright as a prime example of good skeletal structure in Anatomy class; hearing about the shooting of President Kennedy over the intercom in Latin class.

Meeting up with Tim Rasmussen at the hospital in Da Nang. 

So many nights spent at Steak n’ Shake (“in sight it must be right”). 

Eddie Wilson, Chuck Collinson, Bob Poll, Liz Spector, Judi Vandemark, May Lou Clemons, Chris Kelley, so many memories, so many paths crossing briefly, close friends for a moment then in the blink of an eye all is dim, yet warm historical moments to be cherished.

Snippets from my personal yearbook of memories of people long gone and long gone from my present but always with me wherever I go.

I can sum up in simple terms my feelings about those uncluttered years at CHS, with apologies to Bob Hope, “Thanks for the memories. . .”