Update

Great news from Wendell...Cindy called and said that the surgery went so well, and that they are so happy. He is off of the ventilator which is great...in a bunch of pain, but she said that he can holler and cuss so he is doing good. He is resting and may be in the hospital 7 - 10 days. She said she will take him his laptop probably Thursday so he can chat with everyone. She thanked everyone for their prayers.

addresses

Wouldn't you love to have a booklet with the names of all of your old classmates, showing their addresses, phone numbers, email addresses...and other information that they would share...married, children, grandchildren...if you still have the form sent to you earlier, you can fill it out and mail it back.

We are asking for all classmates to please send us your current name, address, phone, email address to our email address chsclassof69@charter.net We need to begin the organization and typing of this booklet.

This is not only good to keep up with friends, but it is necessary for you to be updated on things going on with our class.

Thank you for you help.

Wendell Stanfill

A reminder to everyone to say a prayer for Wendell...he will undergo surgery tomorrow 3/31/09 in Memphis. The blog will be updated as soon as we hear from him or his family.

Rosemarie Petty Upchurch

Hey classmates...I was so excited yesterday to get an email from Rosemarie Petty Upchurch. She was using our chsclassof69@charter.net address and sent me this gorgeous picture of her and her oldest granddaughter. She has worked with State Farm Insurance for 30 years, and lives in Germantown, TN. I think she enjoys the grandkids pretty much. Rosemarie is trying to get some pictures together for the video, and I certainly hope she plans on coming to the reunion.

I am not the best one for my memory, but the best I remember I had a PE class with Rosemarie, and she was always keeping us laughing. She still has that smile, and I can't wait to see her again. Thanks for catching up with the class Rosemarie!

I hope others will send an updated photo to us, you too can be the star of our blog...

Pictures for video

Last call for pictures to be added to the reunion video. If you have any pictures of you and your friends growing up in C'ville, birthday parties, sporting events...just being with friends, let us know. They will need to be sent to Tana as soon as possible so that she can add them to the video. They can be scanned and sent on a disk, or 3 or 4 can be scanned and sent directly by email.

If you don't see yourself in the video...it is probably because you didn't send any pictures. So get those pictures ready and send them to Tana. Contact us at chsclassof69@charter.net and we will make sure they make it. We only have a week or so...

Wendell Stanfill

Our classmate Wendell Stanfill is going to be headed to the hospital on March 31st, 2009 for some surgery.

You may recall last year that Wendell had a very serious illness that required surgery...well they are going to go back and do some repairs and "updates" . He will be in the Methodist Hospital, downtown...address will be added later along with his room number.

Everyone please keep Wendell in your prayers...

Planning meeting

The next planning meeting for the 40th reunion is going to be April 18th, 2009 at 10:00 am at the Roundhouse. This has turned into a really great place to meet, we get to eat and talk and they like us.

Some of us are attending the Lorrie Morgan concert on Friday night the 17th. If you are interested in going please let us know and we will see about getting tickets together.

This will be a very important meeting. We will be finalizing the plans. If you are going to attend please let us know. Respond to chsclassof69@charter.net

Thank you and we hope to see a lot of classmates on the 18th.

CHS

Today was a great day spent with a couple of old CHS friends. As I headed back to Cape, I drove by where the old high school used to be, and the new one will be built. I was surprised and happy to see that two buildings that we knew will be kept. The music building, and the shop. I think that is pretty cool. There will be part of the old school left that will be familiar to past students, and the new students will get to know as we did. I spent a lot of time in the music building both in band, and in choir. I remember the old blonde wood piano...I hope it is still there. Mrs. Polly Masters was a really fun teacher. She was a small spunky little lady. She was tough, but fair...and I appreciate everything that she taught me. She retired and moved to Cape Girardeau, where I saw her several times. She always seemed to remember me, (I don't know if that is good or bad), and I always told her how much I loved her as my choir, glee club, and girls ensemble teacher. I always played " Battle Hymn of the Republic" on the piano when I would get in the classroom, and at the Senior Awards Ceremony, she presented me with two awards, one for vocal music award, and one was a piece of wood that she had sanded down and glued a picture a grand piano on...my "piano" award. I still have that little piece of wood.

I would really like to thank all of the teachers who "gave" me something to remember, I wish I could personally thank each one of them. The list would be a long one. I give credit to my teachers each time I type, sew, cook, knit, spell, speak, sing, and drive, (thanks Coach). I know now just how much I learned... think how much more I would have learned if I had really paid attention! My bad!!

Tom Wat

Does anyone remember the "Tom Wat" kits. You may not believe this, but the company is still thriving and still doing fundraisers, over 50 years. If I recall correctly, we did them in FBLA. We each received a suitcase shaped cardboard box filled with "things". I remember the plastic tote bags adorned with large blue and yellow flowers...kind of a sixties thing. Who knew we sold people bags that they could reuse, and save the trees. There were plastic rain bonnets, collapsible cups, notepads, and some of the tackiest little items. But we sold them. We went door to door, opening the cardboard suitcase each time to let the customers view each and every item. This was to teach us about business. Talking with customers, handling orders, collecting money and finally delivering their orders.

The one thing that I remember is that at the end of the fundraiser, we ordered the extra items that we sold, but filled some of the orders with what was in our cardboard suitcases. I always wondered if the customers knew that their item had been carried around in a box for a month, handled by other people, and given to them as a new item. If they did, I am quite sure they didn't mind one bit. Our parents and our friends didn't buy the items because they needed, or wanted them. They bought them because it was us selling them. Or it was one of our friends selling something. I am sure that every parent, and now grandparent, has a "had to by it" closet or drawer. And we will just keep adding that magnet, decal, or if you are lucky, cookie dough to our collection. Wish I still had one of those bags...they would be back in style.

Dwayne Potts

I am sad to say that in looking for past classmates, I found that Dwayne Potts passed away in 2004. Reading his obituary I found that Dwayne lived in Elkhart, IN. He was a National Guard Veteran, and worked as a welder for Dexter Axle in Elkhart. He attended Mottville Community Church. He had three sons, and three daughters, and eight grandchildren. He had been married again in 2003. He passed away August 26, 2004.

I know that some of you have some thoughts and memories of Dwayne. I sure do. I remember him as a really cool guy. A lot of the girls had a secret crush on him. I didn't know until our last planning meeting, that he played with Don, Steve, & Keith when they were the Hurricanes. Don said that he had a lot of talent.

I am sorry to say that I don't remember when he left Caruthersville. High school was a whole different world for a lot of us, but there are pictures of him in our yearbook. I hope he had a good life, and I hope that he had good memories of the time he lived in Caruthersville.

I invite you all to leave your thoughts about Dwayne.

Reunion

Five months until the CHS Class of 1969 will celebrate their 40th Reunion...but the 40th year has already begun...what were we doing 40 years ago. Attending classes, singing in choir, playing in the band...finally getting your locker open. This past weekend I attended a classic car auction...can you believe that 40 years ago we drove classic cars...and didn't even know it! And if we had known...we would have held onto them and sold them for 10 times what we paid for them 40 years learlier.

Since we had our 35th reunion in 2004, I have come to the realization, that the people in our class are the very best friends a person could have. We spent 12 years with almost all of them. They know things about us that other friends will never know. They have laughed and cried with us. Now they are back...with Facebook, email, cell phones...there is no reason not to stay in contact with all of your old friends.

Since we graduated, we have lost 25 classmates. Don't let time pass by and not say what you have always thought about saying to that special friend from school.

You all should have received a letter about the upcoming reunion. Please answer with the personal information that is needed to make an address book for everyone to have. Please make your plans early to attend the reunion also...August 28th -30th.

Tentative plans:

August 28th - Informal gathering with classmates
August 29th - Social gathering for the ladies
August 29th - 40th Reunion - Caruthersville Community Center, catered BBQ, I-55 performing
August 30th - Special Church service for Class of '69...special music

Other special events will be added as we get closer to the date. If you have any ideas of something that would be fun, please let us know.

The planning is getting serious now...the next meeting is April 18th, at 10:00 at the Roundhouse. They actually took a picture of us last time to put on their Wall of Fame...we are so special!!!

Planning meeting

The planning committee met Saturday Feb.28th at the Roundhouse. Seven class members and one spouse attended. More photos were offered for the reunion video, and plans discussed for the weekend of August 28-30, 2009.

The group ordered a flower arrangement for Kathy Montgomery's service...red and white carnations, from the Class of 1969.

Several members also went to see I-55 perform. It was a good weekend, even with the snow.

The committee is working together to make sure the reunion will be outstanding!!

Kathy's services

Kathy's visitation will be Monday March 2, at 11:00 at the H.S.Smith Funeral Home. Her funeral will be at 1:00 at the funeral home. Flowers were sent from the Class of 1969. Kathy passed away Friday from a heart attack.