Other people from Carter Country

I was looking at a memory on Facebook this morning where I had promised to write a story for the Eagle about people I had known in Carter County and those that I had met since then on Facebook. I have never written that story and really don't remember exactly what tack that I was going to take in it but I will try.

Spending my whole twelve years of school in Ekalaka, of course I knew the kids that I went to school with. It would be boring to just go from one to another, saying something about them, so I will just hit a few highlights with my apologies to those that I don't mention. There are only a few of my Class of 1956 still living, Milton Markuson, Erlend Laird, Ed Collins, Buddy Morrison and myself. I haven't heard about Linda Wollesen lately, but guess that she is still around. Are there any others? A real good friend of mine was Gary Harpster. He was a blue baby so he was somewhat handicapped. He lasted a lot longer than expected but I was told he did die some years ago.

I considered Jesse LaBree, who was a year younger than I, as a good friend and a wonderful guy. He married a real nice girl who was in my brother Charles' class in school. Since then I have got to know their son, Elton LaBree on Facebook and like him very much. Gale Welch was a year younger than I in school and we were good buddies. “Griz,” as we called him, married Marie Beach(?) and she is a very good friend on Facebook. She once told me not to put her name in the paper so I hope that I am not in trouble over that. One of the people that I have most admired on FB is Grace Blair. I knew of the family but didn't know her. She came from small beginnings there and became a heart surgeon. It had to be very hard to be a lady heart doctor at that time. Now she likes dogs, as I do, and posts wonderful pictures of birds and other animals.

Most of the people that I knew in Ekalaka are somewhat older, as I am, so most of the Ekalaka people that I know on FB are a younger generation or at least a few years younger than I. Loyd Townsend is a few years older than I. What a good guy and a wonderful athlete and referee. A few years ago, when I was in Ekalaka, Louise Dague pulled up alongside me on the street and introduced herself. Later, I had a really nice conversation with her and her husband Dell, who was in my sister Dorothy's class. The whole Tooke family were good family friends, I was so sorry to see Ernest go. I do hear from Beth Figg every once in a while on FB. We were good friends of the Figgs and Beth Williams used to sit next to me in band class. I liked her very much.

Several ladies which I either didn't know or barely knew have become very good FB friends. These include Ella Voise, Ellen Knipfer Beach, Judi Klem, Carole Carey, Colleen Parks and others who don't come to mind right now. I suppose that the FB friends that I read the most are Sherry and George Farwell. The Farwells were neighbors and good friends with my grandparents in early Belltower days. Sherry is, I think, six years younger than I and George is even younger so I didn't know them in Ekalaka. I moved away the night I graduated in May, 1956. Some of our very best friends while in Ekalaka were Kenny and Harriet Speelman. I am very pleased just recently to become FB friends with their daughter, Sally Young.

These are just a few of the people that I knew in Ekalaka and now know on Facebook. I hope that this makes an interesting and readable story.