THIS IS SURRATTS FOUNDATION E-NOTICE 2009-5 OF MAY 1, 2009

Hello Hornets:

Here are some items that might be of interest:

1.  INTEREST GROWS FOR FOUNDATION'S 2010 ALL CLASSES/FACULTY/STAFF EVENTS.  We've had a very positive response to last month's announcement of the Foundation's third "All Classes/Faculty/Staff" events to be held over the long weekend of Friday June 25 - Sunday June 27, 2010. The schedule of events is as follows:

-Friday June 25, 2010 - Golf Outing. 

-Friday June 25, 2010, 7 p.m. - 11 p.m. - Surrattstock III.

-Saturday June 26, 2010, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.. - All Classes/Faculty/Staff Picnic and School Open House.

-Saturday June 26, Evening - Saturday evening will be set aside for Class-specific events. 

-Sunday June 27 - Sunday will be set aside for Class-specific picnics and other informal gatherings.

Thanks to those of you who already have stepped forward to help with these events, and please send me an email at hsmith@smithdowney.com if you'd like to join the current corps of volunteers.

2.  ACHIEVEMENT AWARD NOMINATIONS SOUGHT.  The Foundation continues to seek nominations for the Foundation's annual Achievement Awards.  These are awards presented to members of the Surrattsville community to recognize outstanding career and other achievements.  (Photos and bios of our absolutely extraordinary Achievement Award recipients to date can be found at http://www.surrattsville.org/achievement/index.shtml.)  Please send an email to hsmith@smithdowney.com if you would like to submit a nomination for a 2009 Achievement Award.

3.  FOUNDATION PRESENCE ON FACEBOOK GROWS.  There are now over 500 members of the Surrattsville Alumni "Group" on Facebook.  It can be found by going on Facebook, entering "Groups," then entering "Search for Groups," and then entering "Surrattsville Alumni".  (You will know you are at the correct site if you see a color photo of the front of the "New School" when you get there.)  The url of the Group is http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=49215776591.

Please consider joining this Group on Facebook -- it's free -- because we will be posting information about upcoming Foundation events there.

In addition, a number of Class Official Reunion Contacts have opened Class-specific Groups on Facebook, many of them titled simply "Surrattsville [Year]" (for example, "Surrattsville 1970," "Surrattsville 1971," etc.)  We're really hoping that folks will consider joining their Class group on Facebook as a way to keep connected with classmates and news on upcoming Class-specific events.

4.  MEMORIES OF TEEN CLUB.  Here are some responses we received in response to our request for memories of Surrattsville Teen Club:

"Memories of Teen Club?  Ohmigosh!  It was January 25, 1969, and my sister Barbara (70) and I wanted to go to Teen Club, but we did not have a ride. She called a friend, Dave Lambert (Crossland, 69) and asked for a ride, and he said sure, but he would have some buddies with him.  I have a vivid memory of my sister and I standing in our driveway, waiting to be picked up, and she (the vivacious and popular one) admonished me (the shy and quiet one) to not embarrass her by being "a bump on a log" (in other words, don't be a wallflower).  I thought, "I can do that, I don't know these guys, I can act interesting and engaging; I'll never see them again anyway."
 
The car drove up, I slid into the back seat, and seated to my right was a guy (Jim Oles, Crossland, 68)  to whom I was instantly attracted.  At Teen Club, I kept hoping he would ask me to dance, and he finally did.  The song turned out to be a Beatles medley, so he was mine on the dance floor for more than five minutes.  I did not see him again for several months, but we did form a connection and ended up "going together" for four years.  We've now been married for 36 years! Pat Becker Oles (71)"

"Teen Club Stories From The Inside:  My Dad, known affectionately as "Big Burnis" Walker, ran the Teen Club in the multipurpose room of the Surrattsville School before current high school was built.  I was in junior high at the time, 1960-61.  He was paid $10 per Saturday night by the Prince George's County Recreation Department and used the money to buy tools for his wood shop.  Dad set up my brother Bob as the owner-operator of the concession stand in the cafeteria.  Later, I inherited that business.  I sold cokes, candy, and gum.  After paying for the two cent deposit on the bottles, I purchased an 8.0 ounce Coke for $0.03 and sold it for a $0.10.
 
Teen Club ended at 11:00 p.m. (if memory serves), and Big B and I had to wait until all the kids were picked up by their parents.  Sometimes this was as late as 12:00 or 1:00 a.m.  Sometimes we had to drive a kid home, because the parents had forgotten them or the time. 

The only two negative aspects of Teen Club that I recall were keeping the smokers and the sometimes inebriated, rowdy, naval personnel from Cheltenham Naval Radio Station outside the building.  On the upside, the business model was that of the Dick Clark Sock Hop.  Periodically, maybe once a month, the funds collected at the door (maybe $.025) was use to pay for a live band for the dance.  On regular Saturday nights, a DJ was hired. At one point, Big Burnis was able to purchase a juke box on wheels that he rolled out to play the music.

But, the best event of the year was the Marshall Hall Moonlight Cruise.  Dad and a few chaperones would herd the Teen Clubbers onto commercial busses and drive to downtown Washington D.C., where we boarded a multi-deck cruise boat that chugged down to Marshall Hall Amusement Park.  After a few hours of rides, cotton candy, and any poodle skirt chasing we could muster, we somehow all managed to get back on the cruise boat and the buses back to the school.  Then Dad and I had to wait for the parents to pick up their kids. 

I know that those were more carefree times, but I marvel at the courage and dedication of my Dad to take on such project and do it well.  Cheers, Richard A. Walker (64)"

"I loved Teen Club.  I won the dance contest almost every time I went.  Can you think of the old dances?  Some kind of moves!  Just wait until 2010; we'll be there and show everyone how. You know we Surratts Gardens residents must stick together.  Later in 2010!  Tim Smith (77)"

"Two things in response to the April e-Notice.  First: Vicki Forsht was the best.  Second: My memories of Teen Club, and I am sure those of many others, are probably better off not shared. But I sure do enjoy them!  Mike Rumley (71)"

5.  CLASSES OF 83 AND 84 REUNION.  The Classes of 83 and 84 will be having a joint reunion in August 2009.  On August 7th, there will be golf with tee times starting at 10:00 a.m. at Blue Mash Golf Course in Laytonsville, MD.  On August 8th, from 7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., there will be a Social at the Marriott Inn and Conference Center at UMUC in Adelphi, MD.  On August 9th, from 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., there will be a picnic at Greenbelt National Park in Greenbelt, MD.
 
The Classes are in search of any teachers or faculty from the years 81 - 84 interested in attending.  Also, they'd like to locate any classmates that still may be missing.  Faculty can contact Gary Stallings at gstallings@yahoo.com.  Class of 83 classmates can contact Becky DelVillar Levin at dbrlevin@comcast.net.  Class of 84 classmates can contact Debbie O'Clair MacKenzie at debbiemackenzie45@ayhoo.com.

6.  CLASSES OF 69-74 COMBINED REUNION.  The Classes of 69-74 are holding a multi-Class dinner dance event, at the Ft. Belvoir Officer's Club, on the Saturday evening of the All Classes/Faculty/Staff events (June 26, 2010).  Tickets are limited, so please contact Leslie St. Clair (70) at lesliestclair@yahoo.com if you would like to purchase tickets.

(Class of 72 members also should check-in with the 72 ORC, Sandy Gwynn Martin, at sandy@eastwestlm.net for information.)

7.  MORE SURRATTSVILLE HISTORY.  We received this fascinating email from Madeline Ivosevic Oetinger (65): "Henry:  I've always found the concept of "six degrees of separation" interesting as it has happened to me several times.  Most recently, and of interest to Surrattsville folks, I was dealing with a lady visiting here in Owensboro, Kentucky who had the last name of Serratt, which caught my eye despite the spelling.  After chatting, I learned that her husband's great great aunt was Mary Surratt, but the family had changed the spelling for the obvious reasons.  Best, Madeline"

8.  NEW HYDE FIELD PHOTO ON WEB SITE.  Continuing our exploration of all things Hyde Field, thanks to Mike Large (74), there will soon be a photo on the Foundation's web site of Colleen Large Hall (84) and Jimmy Buffett at Hyde Field in 1997.  Mike reports that Buffett had just flown in (on "Parrott I?") to visit with President Clinton, and Colleen's husband gave her a heads-up and she headed down for an autograph and a photo.

[Ed Note: I'll bet there are some interesting six degrees of separation possibilities in Buffett's visit to Hyde Field!]

9.  SEEKING INFO ON LOST HORNET.  Kim Williams is seeking info on James Woodrow Smith, Sr., who married Elizabeth Mae Grigsby and attended Surratts sometime around the early 1940s.  If you have any information, please contact Kim at kim_williams97@hotmail.com.

10.  AND MORE "LOST SWIMMING POOL" MEMORIES.  We received this email from Mike Johnson (77): "Henry: There was most definitely a swimming pool across from Gene's Crab House.  I swam there many times. There was a sign that said "Please don't p#@ in our pool; we don't swim in your toilets".  Does anyone remember that?  Mike"

[Ed Note: Our hometown always had class!]

11.  CLASS OF 58 LUNCHEON.  The Class of 58 is planning a luncheon on May 15th at Lowery's Seafood Restaurant, 528 Church Lane, Tappahannock, VA, at noon.  Reservations are necessary by May 10th,  and can be made by contacting Bill Lewis at connie_lewis@yahoo.com or Jean Beardmore @ jmbeardmore@comcast.net.

12.  REQUESTS FOR DECAL SPOTTINGS.  Now that a fair number of the Foundation's "Surrattsville Alumni" car window stickers are in circulation, we'd love to have reports of decal spottings from our readers.  (If you would like to purchase one, please send an email to hsmith@smithdowney.com.  A sample can be found on the web site at www.surrattsville.org.)

[Ed Note: In 1976, while my brother Bill (73) and I were stopped in traffic in a back-up on the I-10 in Los Angeles, we looked up to see a "Surrattsville Hornets" decal on the back window of the car in front of us.  More six degrees of separation?]

13.  VIRTUAL REUNION WEB SITE IDEA.   In addition to Facebook as a cyber-gathering place for members of the Surrattsville community, we received this interesting tip from Dick Walker (64): "Henry: I've set up a url for a Surrattsville High model "virtual reunion" social web site at www.surrattsvillehighvr.ning.com.  This is a model site to introduce new Virtual Reunion Administrators how easy it is to establish a social web site at ning.com.

This is the 2.0 social web space that I built for the non-technical Class representatives who want to put up their own SHS Class of X web site.  (Web 2.0 are applications that don't require coding skills like HTML or CSS.)  It's a free social web space by ning.com and has minimal text ads on the right side.

It only requires that one person function as owner/moderator/administrator.  But, it can have more than one administrator.  Membership can be limited to the invited class members or it can be open to all. It may be made non-searchable by Google, etc. for privacy.  It has all of the functions of Facebook, but is simpler to use and more intuitive. It creates the feeling more like a family or organization than one person floating in a sea of strangers.  The Surrattsville Class of 1964 has used ning.com rather successfully.  Cheers, Dick"

[Ed Note:  ORCs might want to take a look at this model as a supplement to the Surrattsville Class-specific Groups on Facebook.]

14.  POSSIBLE 80/81 REUNION.  The Classes of 80 and 81 are planning a possible reunion for June 2010.  They need a contact person for the Class of 80.  Please contact Teresa Blandford Pepper at teresa@dlpinc.net to provide contact info.

15.  CLASS OF 89 PLANS REUNION.  The Class of 89 is planning a reunion.  Please contact Debbie Owen Pell at dpell@comcast.net for information or if you have any contact information for 89 grads or members of their families.

16.  CLASS OF 59 REUNION.  The Class of 59 wishes to remind any of their schoolmates from other Classes who would like to join them for their reunion on June 6th to contact Laura Owens (aka Chubby Nolan) at chubby041@yahoo.com.

17.  CLASS OF 85 SCHEDULES REUNION.  The Class of 1985 has scheduled its 25th Reunion for July 16 and 17, 2010, celebrating with a Mix & Mingle Reception and an All-Day Family Picnic.  The Class is still searching for some classmates, so please send any contact info you have to Mary Beth at mbklick@aol.com.

18.  DWIGHT REED (81) MEMORIAL GOLF OUTING.   The 7th Annual Dwight Reed Memorial Golf Outing will be held on Friday, June 12, 2009 at The Links at Challedon in Mt. Airy, Maryland.  Anyone interested in registering a foursome or sponsoring a hole can visit the website http://www.drgolfouting.org) or contact Dawn Reed Schumaker (84) directly dawnschu@hotmail.com.  All proceeds will be donated to cancer research.

19.  59 YEARBOOK FOUND THANKS TO GENEROSITY OF HORNET.  As previously reported, the Class of 59 was trying to find a 59 Boomerang that it might borrow for its June 6, 2009 Reunion.  Thanks to the kindness of Frank Wise, the Class was provided with the late Jackie Wise's (59) yearbook to enjoy at their event.  The Class would like to express its heartfelt thanks to Frank for this very nice gesture.

20.  SURRATTS COOKBOOK.  As previously reported, Leslie St. Clair (70) and Diane "Cookie" Boyd (71) are putting together a Cookbook of Hornets' Favorite Recipes.  They're hoping that a number of you will submit recipes, and they'll break them down by category and have them bound and offer them for sale at the 2010 All Classes/Faculty/Staff events.  All proceeds will go to the Foundation.  If you have a recipe you'd like to share, please send it to Leslie and Cookie at surrattscookbook@yahoo.com.

21.  SPRINGTIME FOOD FOR THOUGHT.  Here's an email full of truly profound truths forwarded to me by perhaps the busiest Teen Club chaperone of all time (and one of the wisest people I know), Maggie Smith, MD Park HS '41 (your editor's mother):

"Food for Thought: I am Thankful:

For the spouse who says "It's hot dogs tonight," or who is on the sofa being a couch potato, because that spouse is home with me and not somewhere else.  For my teenager who is complaining about doing dishes because it means she is at home, and not on the streets.

For the income taxes I pay, because it means I'm employed.  For my shadow that watches me work, because it means I am out in the sunshine.  For weariness and my aching muscles at the end of the day, because it means I have been capable of working hard.

For the clothes that fit a little too snugly, because it means I have enough to eat.  For the pile of laundry and ironing, because it means I have clothes to wear.

For a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, and gutters that need fixing, because it means I have a home.  For my huge heating bill, because it means I am warm.

For all the complaining I hear about the government, because it means we have freedom of speech.

For the parking spot at the far end of the parking lot, because it means I'm capable of walking.

For the lady behind me singing off-key, because it means I can hear.

For the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours, because it means I am alive to see another day.

For the mess to clean up after a party, because it means I have been surrounded by friends.   And, finally, for too much email, because it means I have friends who are thinking of me."


I hope this e-Notice finds you well and enjoying a bright and cheerful May Day!

All the best,  Henry Smith (71)


In Memoriam

RUTH ANN BARROWCLIFF (63) passed away suddenly February 25, 2009, in Camp Springs, MD.  Ruth was involved with and an esteemed member with numerous local and community organizations, including the Glass Club in Clinton; Bells United Methodist Church in Camp Springs; the Port Tobacco Players theater group in LaPlata, MD, where she was an annual benefactor; and as a participating member and director with the NASA drama group at Goddard SFC where she worked.  Her fellowship and friendship was unlimited.

NANCY DREVENAK DICKINSON (59), a marriage and family counselor who since 1989 had been a senior partner with the Washington psychotherapy practice of Dickinson, Pentz, McCall and Honnold Associates, died January 27 at the James Cancer Hospital at Ohio State University. She had chronic lymphocytic leukemia. From 1981 until 1989, Nancy was the clinical director at the Fogel Foundation's Psychotherapy and Human Sexuality Institute in Washington. She also worked as a dance and movement therapist at Washington Adventist Hospital in Takoma Park and what is now Springfield Hospital Center in Sykesville, Md., during the late 1970s.
Nancy, a Bethesda resident, was born in Wapwallopen, Pa., and moved to Maryland in 1945. She graduated from Surrattsville in 1959. She received a bachelor's degree in general studies in the mid-1970s and a master's degree in marriage and family therapy in 1980, both from the University of Maryland. She was a member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Survivors include her partner of nine years, Michael K. Hoffman of Bethesda; two sons from her marriage, Mark E. Dickinson of Mount Airy and Gary S. Dickinson of Chevy Chase; a brother, Robert Drevenak of Dickerson; a sister, Donna D. Mitroff of Oakland, Calif.; and three grandchildren.


MANY THANKS TO THESE (EARLY) DONORS TO THE 2009 CAMPAIGN!

Steve Profilet (71)
Bob Marr (71)
Debbie Cox Marr (72)
Teri Pepper Dimsey (77), In veneration of my classmates turning 50 this year
T. Summers Gwynn III (64), In memory of BillGwynn (64)
Ann Weaver Pelle (71)
Donna Rae Sturtevant Smith (70)
Henry Smith (71)
Jeanine Carroll Maclary (73), In Memory of Her Brother, James R. Carroll, Jr.