Reading Beccy Tanner’s poignant article about the Last Man’s Club, the Robinson schoolmates and 1937 East High graduates whose numbers have now dwindled from 14 to one, Howard Babcock, it was hard not to envy their rare bond, and wonder whether it had something to do with pulling the men all back to Wichita as they retired.
It seems doubtful that many of today’s youths, for all their texting and cell chatter, will ever experience such friendship. (Then again, who does in these hurried, disposable times?) Surely the best gift to the last man would be if his story inspired some current group of Wichita middle-schoolers to make a similar pact, then be even half as steadfast about holding true to it in the decades to come.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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8 Comments
I found it a very moving account indeed.
Maybe if more of us recognized that we’re all going to get old and we’re all going to die, we would treat each other a little better with the time we have left.
I am going to die young, so I don’t really care what you piss ants think of me.
Indeed it was a moving and motivating story. Beccy Tanner ‘dun good’ and I tip my hat to her on an extremely well written story that tugs on the heart strings of who we are and how melancholy memories can be inspirational.
I never thought about making an actual pact with my old friends but I do share the longevity of friendship with them, in a sense that longevity becomes the pact.Thanks to Beccy Tanner’s article for the reminder, I am thankful that I still have several classmates and my friends of 45 years.
Funny that this is here. This past Friday and Saturday I attended my reunion (East HS 1977) and I saw people that I thought I would never ever see again after graduation and we were all glad to see each other again. Hugs and tears all over the place- even between old enemies and rivals. This was my first reunion and I now have lots of old “new friends” as we exchanged email and phone numbers. Unfortunately I also found out that I lost a few friends along the way. I got to thinking though that reunions will probably one day go the way of the horse and buggy because with the internet, cheap travel, cell phones and free long distance, the kids of today like my 16 year old daughter will probably never lose contact with her circle of friends. When I was a kid, I had a good friend that moved away- to Arizona. When he moved I was sad becuase I knew that I would probably never see him again. Back then a long distance call was out of the question (expensive) and the best you could do is write a letter once in awhile. My daughter has a friend- Holly- that moved to another state and she was not bothered at all because they talk, email and text each other everyday. And I even went on the net to a site and put in my old friend’s name and birth year and found him within 20 seconds (living in Denver now) and called him so now we are friends again.
Kev: Good contrast between the way it used to be and the way it is now in regard to staying in touch. I recall so well that when leaving a specific activity such as high school, college, graduate school, Army assignment, a job somewhere (the summer I spent in northern California working for the U.S Forest Service) … I knew I might trade a few letters with friends but would eventually lose touch.
Now with e-mail, the situation is completely changed.
Today, my high school has a blog basically by graduates in the 1950’s and early 1960’s in which information is exchanged on a daily basis. At the end of the day, its interesting to check in to see what’s going on. Even though many have not been back for years except perhaps to attend a high school reunion, everyone is interested in changes to businesses, streets, parks, etc. of the things we knew so well back in our teen-age years.
“Today, my high school has a blog basically by graduates in the 1950’s and early 1960’s in which information is exchanged on a daily basis. At the end of the day, its interesting to check in to see what’s going on. Even though many have not been back for years except perhaps to attend a high school reunion, everyone is interested in changes to businesses, streets, parks, etc. of the things we knew so well back in our teen-age years.”
The same things we talked about too! Hanging out at Hardees that used to be Sandy’s, Mr Magoo’s game parlour and smoking cigarettes outside the west door.
KevI had a great time too!First time I went to the new Cowtown meeting room.I just told my daughter to check it out for her wedding reception. She had already looked at Exploration Place and Botanica.
I must admit, I still have a tough time, even today, that close to Sims Park.
Other memories are easier, like “Scott Johnson” AKA Pat Lajko, the US Olymic Team wannabe who changed his name, enrolled at East, after college, and “won” all those gymnastics trophies at East, only to later disqualify the team. (He almost disqualified the swim team too.)
By the way, I was President of the Science Club, and Lajko/Johnson toured a Titan II nuclear silo with our Club. The Commander of McConnell AFB later asked me to be quite about the fact that the Air Force didn’t know who Lajko was, before they let him touch a nuclear missle.
By the way, Kev, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU? lol.
Another point: Robinson Jr. High kids are TIGHT!Several Robinson classes have reunions.Some of us talked about doing a Robinson Reunion at the 30 Year East Reunion.
My Robinson class would have included Danny Otero. He was a good friend, at the time.
Robinson and East were involved in the KING KUNG FU movie. John Balee was a great guy, but the movie flopped, lol.
I am not sure what it is about Robinson. Perhaps the fact that it splits between Southeast and East. Also, some of the kids go to Kapaun from Robinson.
We all seem to miss each other, no matter what class we are in.