From Roy Lee Adams '63 ~ I am new to this site too. It looks like it could be a lot of fun
to reconnect with old classmates. I married Dory Pettit from Rankin in 1964 and she has had to put up with me for this long. We have three grown children and 8 grand children. We have lived in Northeast Ft. Worth for 16 years. Before that we spent some time in Colorado and
Montana Fill us in on your family & what you have been doing & let me know where your folks & your brother John are.

From Jerry Ward '63~Hi Diane, you may not remember me, but I am a RCHS Alumni and would like you to add my name and e-mail address to the list. I graduated in 1963
andwas so thrilled to find this site. Actually Philip Chick sent it to me.  I have e-mailed all of the 1963 classmates and told them a little bit about my life. By the way I do remember you.  Diane, that is such a nice letter you wrote on the Hoot. I am so proud of you!! No one could have worded it so well. I too miss our roots, even though I was only an Owl for a little over a year, I think I was in the best class ever. We had Tommy Franklin and Mike Holmes and Bill Ashcraft. People that made us laugh and love to be a part of that class. Bill A. made me laugh so hard that I couldn't breath sometimes. He was truly Mr. Mill's 'Nemesis'. I remember some days that Mr. Mills would just roll his eyes and just give up at some of the antics that either Bill, Tommy or Mike would pull.  I am married to Penny who is my soul mate and are so happy together. We have been around the world together. We were stationed on the Island of Guam for 5 years and had a great time there. I have 3 daughters and 1 son. All grown of course. My oldest daughter Holly is 35, then the next one was Rora who is now a full time Mom. Then comes Jacob or Jake to us is 32 and is a FedEx courier in Seattle, Washington.  That is where we lived for the past 11 years. Then there is Julie who is our Lawyer Daughter, she is 28 and is married to Sean. They live in Indianapolis much to her Mom's dismay. ha. We just moved here to Delaware to work in Riddle Park PA at Boeing. We plan on only being here a little over a year and then we want to go back to Washington to retire. I want to finish building my airplane and start a little wood working business. I love flying more than anything. I guess it comes from flying in the Navy for so many years.  I was in the Navy from the time I graduated from RCHS until 1983.  I am so far away, who's going to even remember me.. I was not the most popular guy in Big Lake in 1963. But, guess who did remember me. I sent Mr. Curry a note and he e-mailed me right back. What a guy. I was so happy to hear from him. I remember being in his class and he said he did remember me. That is quite a feat since he taught for 35 years, and must have had thousands of students.  Thanks Diane. Jerry Ward alive and well in Delaware.

From Jeneva Joyner Leifeste '64~ Yep, I'm retired! I won't really realize it until August when my friends go to school and I don't! I think it was a good choice for me.  This year has been hard. I had another knee surgery in April, then the night after surgery had problems (not related to the knee!), but
wound up in the hospital for 5 days. Found a bacterial infection and ulcer. I'm still working to get those cleared up.

From Monte Nevills '64 ~ Hey, I'm still in JAX---kids will probably come down sometime in June or July, and I am sure we will go to Orlando.  36 - are we getting old or what.  Of course, we should still feel 36 - BS!!!!!!!!!
Laurie finishes soph year at Texas Tech the 9th, middle one, Landee is a HS Senior cheerleader next year, little one, Lasen is a soph and on the dance team. Remember of summer before our SR yr...Wonder what we did - besides go the drive-in and the SLAB!!!!!!!
Your doing great on the WEB site - check it every once in awhile - Thanks
for the memories.  Monte

RCHS EXES AND TEACHERS REMEMBER:

Below is a reply from my request via Classmates.com to Fred Huddleston, '44.  I asked him if he would share some memories of high school at RCHS in the 40's.   Fred and his wife, Doris, live in Lewisville, TX.  They have been married 50 years.   I found his recollections very vivid and am thankful for his contribution:

Dear Diane:  It is rather difficult to answer your question without writing a book.  The reason is I am a die hard fully dedicated fan of Big Lake and Reagan County.  I will concentrate on high school since grade school goes back into the 1930s.  When I left Big Lake in 1944, World War II was at about its peak.  Many men from Big Lake were in service all over the world.  One family, the Frank Lindley family, had 3 sons, all in combat zones with the Navy in the Pacific.  That would be Glenn, Pittman and Vic Lindley, just real fine guys.  Glenn and I along with Bobby Newbrough graduated on May 17, 1944.  Glenn left for the Navy on May 18.  Bobby Newbrough and I left on May 20, 1944.  There were some deaths from the war of brave guys from Big Lake, one stands out, BillyMcGuire, who was an Air Force pilot who was shot down over the English Channel.  Food Stamps were required to buy essentials like sugar, coffee and other items.  Gasoline was rationed, I believe each car owner could buy about 5 gallons a week.  A highly prized item was chocolate.  Auto tires were as scarce as hen's teeth.  This country was still emerging from the depression.  We folks from those eras understand low pay, hard work and the necessity of a good education. 

Big Lake had a population of 832 when I left for service.  I carried photos of family, fellow students and a few scenes of the town.  I was one homesick Seabee (Navel construction) and simply wanted to go home, sit down in the old drugstore, order a huge malt, go to a good dance (the WWII era was a great time for great music).

Our schools were very, very good and the teachers were very good up until about 1942 when so many men went to service and there was a shortage of teachers.  I wrote a letter last year to the Alumni Reunion Committee stating that I would be eternally grateful for the fine education I received in Reagan County School.  The oil companies in Texon helped the tax income for our county and our schools.  There were two distinct groups of folks, one group was the ranch family and their children, the other was the oil workers and their families.  When I was about a freshman in high school they combined the Texon and Big Lake Schools and the two groups got along very well I thought.  When I was in high school our superintendent bought the world's largest school bus.  We could carry the whole student body, bank and football team on that bus.  We joked it was so long that you had to have a lookout on the backend to help turn a corner.  We had a great gymnasium at our high school and some really neat basketball tournaments.  Football was the biggest game in town.  Back in the early thirties, I was about 10 years old, we had a star running back name Curly Martin.  He had a critical operation on his mastoid bone (in the ear and next to the brain).  In those days such operations were very dangerous and the whole town prayed fro him.  He came out great. 

Outstanding citizens were:  Zola Johnson who taught first grade in Big Lake about 45 years.  A revered and beloved lady who had taught at least 3 generations of different families.  The superintendent who bought that school bus tried to fir her.  The whole town had a meeting at the Courthouse, fired the superintendent and bought her a brand new car (during the depression).  That's where Big Lake put it's values.  Bill Billingsley - a great sheriff who looked like a sheriff.  He was a huge but really fair person.  He always tried to help those who got in trouble by talking with them and being lenient on first offenses.  We had very little crime.  The school with the District Attorney had programs with speakers from the Courts and prisons (inmates) who told us about crime and the electric chair.  That made a real impression.  Dr. Patterson - A doctor out of the Norman Rockwell mode who came to your house if you were seriously ill.  He was not a wealthy guy but such a good doctor and friend.  I had a very bad case of pneumonia and stayed in bed a month (no antibiotics - just chest rub and rest).  He spent a good bit of time at my bedside.  Alton Holland - A wonderful, kind man who ran a good grocery store where they made paper tickets and customers paid once a month.

We had a chance to see really great rodeo performers.  At one time Big Lake was the hometown of two former World Champion Calf Ropers - Howard Westfall and Walton Poage.

My Big Lake roots will be with me.  I went to the all school reunion last year and got to see six or seven persons I graduated with.  Thanks for listening.  I just can't say enough good things about our wonderful old hometown Big Lake.  Your fellow former student, never an ex-student! Fred Huddleston 

From Mike Massey '72 ~ I have so many good memories of Big Lake ,that I could never put them in this small of a space. My wife Gina and I continue to live here. I hope that in some small way I am adding to some younger peoples memories of this unique town. Our youngest son, Jon, is going to be a sophomore next year and boy, if I could tell him some of my sophomore memories, but not till he is older. lol In recent years I have had the privilege of serving on the school board for 3 terms (9 years) and felt like it was in better shape when I left than when I started. I serve in a lot of the small town organizations that a lot of men do here. I have had the privilege of being involved with a lot of other citizens in forming a group to try and reestablish a youth center for the young adults here. It is still in the making and will try to keep you informed as it develops. Our young people are our future and am proud of the efforts here by good people to try and give them the chance they need to get a good start. The organization is called C.H.O.I.C.E. for the Future and a lot of alumni who still live here are involved. Mike Elkins, David Werst, Barry Matthews, Kim Armstrong Sexton, Mikel Jones, Mario Hernandez, Willie Black, are just a few involved. Very proud of their efforts. Anyway, I know there are a lot of you saying "Mike M. on the School Board?" "I can see him having to go in front of them, but never being one of them!" I know, who would have "thunk it" I promise stranger things have happen. Just wanted to say memories are still being made, so when you get a chance-come on home- You know that you are always "WELCOME HERE" Friendship is a very precious commodity that is sometimes overlooked or set aside until it is too late to express it. If you have a friend that you feel compelled to state your feelings to, don't delay-tomorrow may never come and they might leave not knowing how you feel. A lot of times it can make a big difference. Let 'em know how you feel. Thanks for the space and may God Bless you all. (David Routon-I miss you man.) Take Care. Mike Massey 

Published Literary Works by RCHS Grads:  Reba T Cross' '56 article as shown below was published in a recent issue of Country Woman .  And, while I don't know FOR SURE, feel like M. T. Whallets' poems have been printed somewhere.  Enjoy and remember....