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"Toots" Cooper and Joe Hunter ('53) were married on November 9, 1957. She became a teacher with the Erie School District where she taught for 26 years. The Hunters have three children and have one grandchild. Their eldest son Tom is now a Ph D in Chemistry (Penn State). Lynne is a Ph D in Biology (Pitt), and Tim is a CPA and Treasurer of McGinnes Steel in Corry. He was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the corporation.

Toots said, "I enjoyed the article about "Ma" Betts, which apparently passed by my innocent little ears way back then. I wish I had been there! It may have been an eye opener to prepare me for many things to come when I became a teacher. Like when one of my second graders, Michael, came to school with a can of beer for his lunch. Also Zenobia's mother, who must have been 160 pounds or so, was afraid of me. I was speechless."

This issue of The Alumni Newsletter honors Carl Fetzner. In high school Carl seemed to be always interested in mathematics and science. In Pop Waren's class, he was the master of casting nines.

After graduating from East he earned his degree from The International Accounts of Chicago and worked for Weil Mc Lain for 22 years.

Carl married Twila Bartlett whom he knew since childhood. Several years after they were married, on weekends they would go by St. Joseph's Orphanage and pick up one girl and one boy to spend the weekends together with them. Carl and Twila loved the excitement and wonder of bringing small children into their home and sharing their life and happiness with them..

Soon they became interested in the Foster Children's Program. Since they were married in 1954, they have been Foster Parents for 96 children. They have three natural children (all girls) of their own and adopted three boys. Two of the boys , Larry 18, and Joe 14, still are at home and keep the Fetzners forever young at heart. Their two oldest daughters are married and living out of state. Their youngest daughter is completing her internship in medicine in Pittsburgh, and their oldest son lives in Erie. The Fetzner's have four grandchildren.

When asked about his work, Carl said, "I have been in the foundry business for 41 years. After 22 years with Weil Mc Lain, Zurn lured me to their company, and I have worked there 19 years." Currently Carl is the Vice President of the Cast Metals Operations at Zurn Industries.

Carl has accumulated numerous awards and civic honors since graduating from high school. He has been the President of Sertoma, an officer with the National Association of Accountants, the American Foundrymen's Society, and the Industrial Management Club.

Carl is also a board member of the Gertrude Barber Center, a member of the Foster Parents Association, and the American Legion. He is also an active member of the Wesleyville Conservation Club, the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Club, Gem City Gun Club, the Three C. U. Trout Club, and Sons of Lake Erie.

When Twila was asked what it was like to be a foster mother for ninety-six children she said, "It was a very satisfying feeling helping the under-privileged. It was something we always wanted to do."

Carl explained what prompted him to become a foster parent. "It was our love and desire to help children get a better start in life. It was a wonderful feeling to help them make and earn respect for themselves and others."

Carl and Twila often visit the grown up children they took into their home. Carl said, "It is great to see what they have done with their lives. I am glad that I was a part of it."

Carl is busy as a Chief Executive Officer with Zurns. The family lives in Lawrence Park. Carl looks forward to weekends when he and the family go to what he calls his GETAWAY farm at Centerville, PA.

photo available

Whenever you get out toward Findley Lake and are moved by the tranquillity of the placid lake, remember that Peggy Lamb Kinney enjoys sitting on her porch watching the sunsets on the lake.

Peggy is the local Postmaster and her husband Craig is the Town Justice. Peggy has worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 27 years. She said, "...And I plan to go on working till I drop!" Peggy recently was the recipient of the Bicentennial Medal from the US Postal Service for community service."

There are many things that Peggy enjoys doing at this time of her life, and no longer being the church organist for the past 35 years has freed her to enjoy those lazy summer days on Findley Lake with her seven grand children.

(Ed.: Peggy understands that postage is not three cents like it was in 1952. She has contributed $20.00 for stamps to the Alumni Newsletter. We appreciate it, Peggy. Thank you.)

Robert Miller is the Erie Area Director of Soccer. Besides coaching soccer, Bob also coaches ice hockey. Bob is very active in organizing and developing athletic activities for youth. He has worked at Lord's for 41 years. He said, "I plan to travel to Germany after my retirement. I am really looking forward to it."

Helen Liebel Szparaga's bowling team finally took the championship this year. Helen has been bowling for the past 17 years. She belongs to the Nineteenth Street Falcons and goes to out-of-state tournaments each year. She explained, "Each year our team contacts the St. Louis team we met the first year. We really have an annual celebration!"

Betty Jean Corbin Whitford's husband Glenn is to retire soon and they both plan to do some volunteering with their daughter who is a nurse at Camp Bethel Ministries in West Virginia. Betty Jean has done some ministry work in Ecuador, South America.

After 27 years with the Pennsylvania State Police, Richard Harrington retired. He is now the Lt. of Security at Hamot Hospital. Richard and his wife Carole live in Fairview, PA. Richard had a sporty 41 Ford in high school and could lay down fifteen feet of rubber. Dick says he enjoys gardening now, but every now and then thinks about his hot Ford and dragging rubber one more time.

Since Dolores Nowak Filipkowski's husband Chris is now retired from teaching, she is busy with her catering service. Dolores started her business from "scratch" and now stays very active catering parties. Dolores has been the manager of Scott's Motel now for 30 years.

Dolores would like to know the whereabouts of Peggy Lamb.

Dick Lewis has been busy since his retirement from the Pennsylvania State Police. He said he has "bagged" several trophies including a bull elk, buck mule deer, and a buck antelope in October, 1991. Dick explained, "When I am not hunting, I am busy playing golf in Citrus Springs, Florida where I live." Dick has won several golf tournaments in Citrus Springs."

Harold Lewis has worked at International Paper Company for the past 36 years. He has two sons Chip and Dale. (Would Harold kid you?) Harold said that Chip is the head basketball coach at East High and Dale is the head baseball and assistant football coach at East High. (By the way you single girls, Harold is a widower. So is Tom Fischer and Ted Zimmerman..)

Bob Oatman has a couple of great photos from the Eastcapades that he is sending to Alumni News. Bob is now a Financial Advisor with Waddell and Reed. Bob and Bernadette plan to visit Arizona this summer.

"Boom Boom" said that Ben Preston has negatives that he has promised to give him for years now. Bob reported, "At each reunion Ben promises me those negatives. I want the entire Class of '52 to know that Ben has not given me those the negatives." (Ed.: Sorry, Ben, but Bob promised he would show me how to twang the hair pin if I black mailed you publicly in the newsletter.)

Betty Pyle Beck and her husband David (EHS Class of '49) enjoy sailing and antiquing. She said that she and David both work for The Erie Insurance Group. Betty is an insurance agent; David is an underwriter.

Rose Ann Wiercinski Zmyslinski has two children and two grandchildren. She is widowed and enjoys art, crafts, and gardening at her St. Petersburg, Florida home. She said she was delighted with the first newsletter and is looking forward to future editions.

Gloria Hawley Quinlan has worked at Erie Insurance for almost 16 years. She and her late husband James have enjoyed almost all kinds of spectator sports, especially the Annual Winston Cup Car Racing Event. Recently Gloria has been busy with crocheting and reading. Can you believe that Gloria has seven grand children.?

Lois Schley Gilson has worked at Dowlings Tavern in Erie for the past 16 years. Her husband Richard is now retired and they both enjoy gardening and boating.

Nancy Kennedy Shufesky is a retired Registered Nurse. She and her husband Myron (Mike) have six children and nine grand children.

Eleanor Breyley Jass is currently working at St. Agnes Hospital in Pleasantville, New York. Although she has worked in various capacities, she said that she is now working in data processing at the hospital and really enjoying it. Her husband Andrew is a retired science teacher who is now a part-time college instructor. They plan to go to Alaska this summer. Both of them enjoy traveling, including staying at various Elder hostels.

Dear Dan.

I was at the 40th Reunion and enjoyed it very much. Dot Rachocki, Toni Oldach, and Ruthie Demichele have always done a great job. I want to thank them.

The reason that I am writing is to correct something that Mr. Mishcler said during his speech. He referred to classmates with odd nicknames. He mentioned that Bob Oatman's nickname was "Oats." If I am not mistaken, he did not go by that name. I remember him being called "Boom Boom". Who is right, Mr. Mischler or me? How did he get the nickname?

Confused,

Shirley (Daub) Dash

Dear Shirley,

You of course are right, because Bob Oatman's nickname was "Boom Boom". As to the derivation of the nickname and when he got it, I had to do some investigation with his family. It seems that he got the name "Boom Boom" just before his toilet training days. The nickname faded as Bob "improved" on his toilet training skills.

Mike and Jo Ann Lepkowski left early this summer to Madrid and Portugal. Mike says he and Jo Ann both love traveling. They have been to Hawaii twice and to many of the islands in the Caribbean.

Mike worked for 31 years for General Electric and is proud of several awards that he won while working for G.E. The Lepkowskis moved to Scottsdale, Arizona where Mike is the President-Owner of Thrifty Transmissions. Jo Ann has retired from being a dental assistant and Mike says she is now a Mega Shop-a-holic.

They were married in September 1956 and have four children. Mark is a biochemist, Cheryl is a dental hygienist, Kent is a pilot for American Airlines, and Jolene is a bank executive. Cheryl and Kent are twins.

"National Inquirer Buys Out

· New format Seen in Next Edition

Of Newsletter

· NEXT ISSUE REVEALS STARTLING NEWS

Toni Marinelli wants sex change.

Wants to be called Tony

Hunter Dick Lewis Abducted by Female Big Foot

Honeymoon planned in Remote Rockies

Frank Wisniewski Wins $90 Million Lottery

Liz Taylor-Wisniewski Nuptial Planned.

Liz says "I have always been crazy about men

named Shorty."

Seven Foot Ray Szumigala Discovers Growth Hormone

Views 1994 Olympics High Jump as Possibility

Also talks about a Dick Lewis rescue mission.

Gene and Dot Rachocki to adopt Martian baby.

Gene sets his hopes on capturing "Classmate

with the Strangest Kid Award."

There are many classmates who continue to show great school spirit. They have offered to write articles and submit them to the newsletter. They will write about the "old days", about fellow classmates or teachers, or something contemporary. These contributing writers include:

Joan Smialek Wenzel

Toots Cooper Hunter

Marlene Beck Schrader

Joan Franz Rosequist

Dick Lewis

Dolores Nowak Filipkowski

Robert Mc Naughton

Rosie Milewski Jaskiewicz

George Hahn

Mavra Simon Iano

Peggy Lamb Kinney

Carl Fetzner

Bob Oatman

Dick Petit

Shirley Daub Dash

Marian Fabin Wisniewski

While you are thinking about it. Please put the Alumni Newsletter on your Christmas Card List. It would be helpful to get a card and short message from you each year. It would guarantee that we will stay in contact with you, just in case you move or relocate. Besides, just one short note to us can reach 150 classmates who are really interested in what you are doing these days.

Many classmates are looking for other classmates. Is that other classmate YOU?

Betty Corbin wants to know the whereabouts of Betty Morganfield.

Toots Cooper Hunter would like to know where Mary Lill Gardner and Donna Dembaugh are living and wants to contact them.

Elenore Breyley Jass is still looking for her English homework assignments that she lost in 1952.

(Ed.: Elenore, when Ma. Betts asked the class to pass in our homework assignments, I saw Jerry Hopkins erased your name and put his name on your assignment papers.)

Dolores Nowak Filipkowski wants to contact Peggy Lamb.

Jerry Hopkins is looking for his 1952 Most Improved Student in English Award, signed by Ma Betts.

Marlene Beck Schrader is looking for Jan Brewer Shaffer.

By Chooch Conley

I can remember the exact moment of Freddie's birth just as though it was yesterday. I am unsure about Freddie's conception though. My best guess is that it was in Dick Petit's and my early childhood more than a half century ago.

Dick Petit and I are not related through a blood line, but his Mother's sister married my Dad's brother. I guess that would make us cousins-in-law. Dick and I lived in the same neighborhood when we were growing up. Our parents thought that our imaginations were a little strange or weird, because, Dick and I often played with "imaginary" friends who sometimes broke windows and stole cookies. Dick's family moved away when he was seven years old.

It was not until high school that we met again. Almost instantly we began prodding each other's fantasy and imagination. When we saw the movie "Harvey" starring James Stewart, we instantly created our own imaginary friend, who was exactly two inches tall. We called him "Freddie".

We saved Freddie a seat at football games, the movies, and the school cafeteria. We dove at where he was sitting dozens of times to save him from being sat upon by others who did not see him. We even toyed with the idea of getting him a blind date with one of the shorter Villa Maria girls even though we knew that Freddie was too shy to show up for the date. If anyone heard a tiny "burp" in class, you could be sure to know that Freddie did it.

One day in Poster Art Class Dick was painting a poster advertisement for the Junior Prom. He had just started with his poster when Bill Murray was walking by and accidentally bumped his desk. Some of the dark blue paint spilled out over Dick's large poster board. We knew that Miss Claire Lillis, the art teacher, would be angry. Dick smiled and asked, "Should we tell her that Freddie spilled it?"

When I looked at the paint blot it reminded me of a large puddle of paint with one tiny footstep coming out of the paint. I picked up Dick's paint brush and painted another footstep. And--

Dick painted another footstep...And I another, and from that moment on Freddie was really alive and on the move. Dick penned in the caption:

Within days Freddie's footprint tracks coming from the puddle of paint were everywhere. They were on the wall of the boy's room, the locker room, inside book covers, and on wall lockers. Footprints were everywhere!

Once the school was getting etched with footsteps, Mr.Lieberman demanded from the assistant principal, Mr. Mc Donald, that it had to come to an end. The next day he called Dick and I into his office. Freddie did not show up. We had sensed that Mr. Mc Donald had a limited sense of humor about very short people..

Mr. Mc Donald always looked like he was about 7 or 8 feet tall or taller. His baldness and baggy knees seem to make him look even taller than Ikabad Crane. We sat in painful silence as he stared at us sternly. In a shallow voice, barely above a whisper he said, "Since you were so ingenious to create Freddie, you now have to find a way to make him disappear."

He further explained that our prank would cost the school hundreds of dollars to repaint the walls over the upcoming Christmas holidays. He said firmly, "When we come back to school after the holidays, Freddie is to be gone. If he is not, you two will spend an eternity in detention and scrubbing the graffiti off the walls."

Over a coke at the Hill Mill near Wayne Park, we painstakingly planned our strategy. We toyed with dozens of ideas. I suggested that Freddie should quit school and get married, but Dick said that would not work because next Spring there would be Freddie's footprints and his tiny son's footprints.

We also contemplated having him transfer to Erie Tech, but we were fearful that the footsteps might follow him there. We dreaded that we might end up in front of the Erie School Board. Out of fear, we told our parents nothing.

We considered having Freddie be drafted and going to Korea. We were afraid that would make a hero of him. I suggested that Freddie commit suicide, but Dick said that would only make him a tragic hero. Just like Dr. Frankenstein, we had created a monster., and now we could neither control nor destroy him.

The Christmas recess was over and we still had no plan to get rid of Freddie. I was sound asleep at five a.m. that cold snowy January morning in 1952 when Dick called me. His voice was alive and cheery. "Chooch, I got it." I knew he had come up with a plan.

I listened carefully. I heard him say, "Freddie got a dose and died."

I replied, "I'm sorry, Dick. I didn't hear you. I thought you said he got a dose and died."

"That's right!"

I explained, "Freddie can't get a dose. He is just like us-- he's still a virgin."

He ignored me. Dick had the entire thing planned and mapped out very thoroughly, right to the most minute detail. He explained that over the Christmas holiday, the East High Varsity Basketball team played Bradford. He described how we would let the word out at school that the team took him as their mascot, and Freddie started fooling around with one of the Bradford cheerleaders, lost his virginity, and was already feeling ill on the school bus when it headed back to Erie. By the time they got to the school, Freddie was dead.

I had no idea what Dick would do when he became an adult, but it was obvious that his brilliant artistic talents could only be rivaled by his incredible twisted mind. How I envied him.

We discovered a long time ago, that the best way to start a rumor was to swear my younger sister Jeannie to a vow of silence to her friends. Another sure way to spread a rumor was to sit next to one of the seventh grade girls in the lunch room and let them over hear a conversation. We decided to do both. Somehow we were like Grecian gods to them, totally credible.

By three o'clock the halls were buzzing. As I walked into Mr. Mc Donald's office he was smiling. It was the first time I had seem him smile in three months. He nodded and said, "I've heard the rumor."

Dick has always been a brilliant strategist. He whipped up a couple of fast safety posters, and down in the corner, almost not visible to the naked eye, was a penned cartoon of Freddie's RIP grave. To insure that none of the faculty would see it, but none of the students could miss it, in the smallest print he wrote:

"But he died with a smile on his face."

In a matter of days, the halls grew silent. Freddie had become passé'. The newly painted walls were bright and cheerful, but void of any remnants of the once famous Freddie and his footsteps. Whatever fad followed, I don't remember now. Teenagers have a way of developing fads that seems to bridge from one craze to another so quickly.

It was almost thirty years later. Dick was now a with Ford Motors in Detroit as their Chief Designer for the Mark III. I had received my Ph. D. in psychology and was working in my stress clinic in Phoenix. I had almost forgotten about Freddie completely. But one day I was in Erie visiting my sister Shirly who showed me her daughter's new 1982 Warrior Yearbook. When I opened the cover I was speechless. In total awe I saw it standing as boldly as ever. The spilled paint had still not dried, and Freddie irreverently walked once more through the puddle of paint.

"Freddie Was Here"

THANKS FOR THE PHOTOS

Photographs bring our newsletter alive. The following classmates have contributed photos of themselves:

BEN PRESTON , OLGA TUPITZA PAKELA

JOAN FRANZ ROSEQUIST, JOYCE OLIVER KING, BOB MC NAUGHTON,

MAVRA SIMON, GEORGE HAHN, PATTI DENCH MAURER, PAT TRUDE STEPHENSON, MARION HOFFMAN HAUS, PEGGY LAMB KINNEY,

MIKE LEPKOWSKI, TOM FISCHER, TOOTS COOPER HUNTER,

GLORIA HAWLEY QUINLAN,

HELEN LIEBEL SZPARAGA, BETTY JEAN CORBIN WHITFORD, CARL FETZNER

DOLORES KRAINOCK DZESKEWICZ

LOOKING FOR!!!!!

We are still attempting to locate the following

classmates:

Henry Billman

Don Chesario

Charles Decker

Jim Diffienbacher

Jerry Finster

Mary Jane Harringten Tubbs

Robert Myers

Patricia Smialek

Dean Morrison

And who else?

In Memorial:

This Alumni Newsletter is being published in honor of the Fond Memory of:

The Alumni Newsletter is published free for all Classmates for the East High School Class of 1952. Costs for printing and publication is supported solely by Annual classmate contributions. Make checks out to The Alumni Newsletter.

Individual Contribution $10

Peggy Lamb

Memorial Contribution $25

George Hahn In memory of Sammy Raica

Dan Conley In memory of Gus

Halupczynski

Golden Contribution $50