Baseball, Classic Cars More Than Just Pastimes for AUHS Class of ’56 Grad

April 6, 2016 by

1956-Del Drake 002Like many men from his era, 78-year-old Del Drake loves cars and sports, especially Fords and baseball. Of course, the vehicles he was driving while attending Anaheim High are now considered classics, and baseball has evolved from a game played with informal rules using improvised equipment to a big money sport that’s become America’s beloved pastime.

But classic cars and baseball are more than just hobbies for Drake, who has been recognized by the governor of Idaho for starting the first senior softball program in the state. And growing up with a father who was a mechanic known for coaxing the maximum speed from his vehicles, Drake’s life-long passion for cars just came naturally, as did his talent for playing ball.WP_003110

Trying to impress a girlfriend who he described as a “baseball nut,” Drake joined the Anaheim High team and played centerfield for Coach Wallin. He earned his girlfriend’s heart when his 1956 team won the CIF Sunset League Championship, the first time Anaheim High’s baseball team had achieved this honor since 1940. Drake still wears his Sunset League championship jacket and keeps a bookcase and trunk made in an AHS woodshop class in the loft of a barn on his 10-acre farm in Star, Idaho.

After leaving Anaheim High, Drake attended Orange Coast College, where he played football and baseball when he wasn’t taking HV/AC classes or heading to the beach for a game of volleyball. Once he graduated from OCC, Drake enlisted in the Navy and played baseball two years for the Armed Forces. When he got back home, he played in a Huntington Beach league.

WP_003107He already had a full-time job when Angel Stadium opened on April 19, 1966, but he didn’t consider his second job as an usher as real work since it put him closer to the game. Drake was there for opening day and continued working at the stadium for the next two and a half years.

Life went on and by age 40 Drake was still playing ball, this time fast pitch softball with such teammates as Irv Knowles from AUHS Class of ’58 who became an Anaheim City Councilman. It wasn’t until he moved to Idaho that finding a game became a challenge. His best friend since 6th grade, Al Tikker from Class of 1957, already an Idaho resident, urged Drake to join him, promising it was just like Anaheim in the 1950s, except spuds were the top crop instead of oranges.

On his second day of residency, Drake found the Boise Park and Recreation Department and asked about a senior softball league. When he was told there was no such program, Drake decided to help form a league.

Through advertising in newspaper and radio, he recruited 13 players, 9 of whom were California transplants. They played in a tournament that was covered by the “Idaho Statesman,” generating so many phone calls that Drake now runs a league of 18 teams with 150 players. He is now Idaho’s senior baseball league state representative, and the City of Meridian has proclaimed September 26th as Idaho Senior Softball Day.

He gets a lot of help managing the league from his wife Joyce Volpone, who attended Savannah High School in Anaheim. It’s a second marriage for both of them. Combined they have six children and eight grandchildren, including a grand-daughter who is a nationally ranked softball player. As a freshman on the varsity team, she hit a grand slam to win her high school championship game.

Only when baseball season is over is there time for his other passion: restoring his collection of classic cars and trucks.

His dad’s 1915 Model T has a preferred parking spot in Drake’s barn. The Model T is one of several vehicles his father owned. One of Drake’s first memories was standing at the steering wheel of his dad’s 1930s roadster. There’s also a photo of him sitting on his father’s only Harley Davidson, which appears in a book titled “The Indian Harley Davidson Wars” by Alan Girdler. His dad preferred Indians and he owned up to a dozen of the bikes throughout his life.WP_003103

His collection also includes a 1940’s Ford coupe and Woody, a 1951 red Ford pick-up and a 1969 4-speed Mach I Mustang he purchased in 1979 for $150. His coupe is bedecked with a Clem Colonist logo that reflects Drake’s sentiment that: “Once a Colonist, Always a Colonist.”

Due to the distance, Drake’s cars won’t be on display at the Oct. 15 Colony Classic Car Show, but he will be attending his 60th reunion on Oct. 1, to share his cherished memories of growing up in Orange County in the 1950s.  “I grew up in the right place at the right time,” said Drake.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

WWII Alumni “Teacher of the Day” at Anaheim High

March 10, 2016 by
Robert Fischle as soilder

Robert Fischle – Class of 1941

When AHS alumni history teacher Alex Lamb from Class of 1967 learned there was an Anaheim graduate who served in WWII living just blocks from the school,  he immediately contacted the AHSAA to arrange a speaking date for his students who were studying the Battle of the Bulge.

Robert Fischle from AUHS Class of 1941 accepted the invitation to share his memories of fighting in the 40-day battle in the freezing cold. Gathered before two classes of AHS history students, the 92-year-old veteran and life-long Anaheim resident told students that  the best part of the war was making it home alive and the worst part was the weather, recalling the horror of driving over frozen corpses as a gunner in an Army M-15 Half-Track, a large truck-type vehicle with front wheels and rear tracks.

The Half Track was equipped with two 50-caliber machine guns firing 500 rounds per minute and a 37-milimeter canon that fired 120 rounds per minute. Fischle job was to sit in the truck’s “bucket” and operate the machine guns. In his Small Town Kid to Big Time War memoir, Fischle recounts how his elite 390th Special Battalion Unit of 675 soldiers crossed the European continent for 281 days of combat in the Third Army commanded by General George Patton.

On July 7, 1944, the 390th Battalion landed on Utah Beach with the mission to protect the Third Army’s supply dumps. As they began their advance across Europe, the main objective was to shut down enemy aircraft to prevent destruction of bridges. Keeping these structures intact was of vital importance to the success of U.S. Army operations.half track

“We advanced day and night, over mountains, through dense forests, across broad rivers, pressing ever onward in pursuit of victory,” Robert wrote in his memoir. His biggest worry, he told the history students, was dodging strafe coming from low-flying enemy aircraft that would appear suddenly from the clouds. Fischel recalled several near misses when the bullets whizzed around him but never made contact.

His unit’s ultimate destination was Belgium’s densely forested Ardennes region on the edge of the Western Front. As the students are learning, it was the largest and bloodiest battle Americans fought in World War II, leaving 90,000 Americans wounded and 19,000 dead. The 390th made history during the Battle of the Bulge, shooting down 13 German planes in 17 minutes. The unit received commendations from U.S. Army Generals Patton, Eisenhower, Marshall, Bradley and more.

The Class of ’41 vet also talked about his days growing up in Anaheim. With a father who owned a confectionary shop in downtown Anaheim, Fischle was literally the kid who grew up in a candy store. His family home was located at 326 S. Melrose St., aRnd he attended Broadway Elementary School, Fremont Junior High, then Anaheim, entering as a freshman in 1936 just as the new school buildings opened after being reconstructed after the 1933 Long Beach earthquake. He played football, basketball and track all four years.

Fischle’s extracurricular activities leaned toward fast cars. In school he was called Bob or his nickname “Fish” and his best buddy was Bob Spielman. The duo rode in a Willy’s roadster any time they could scrounge up some gas money. When their tank was full of 10.9-cents- a-gallon-gas, the duo headed for Huntington Beach and other favorite spots.

He left Anaheim as a 19 boy and returned home four years older, a battle-scarred man. “It took me a while to get my feelings back,” he answered when asked how he dealt with coming home with memories of the death and destruction he witnessed during the war. “When I sit on my patio and see big white clouds, I always remember the enemy aircraft coming at us. It was kill or be killed.”

 

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight, Colonist Wall of Valor Tagged With: , ,

No Inductees

March 8, 2016 by

No inductees this class year.

Filed Under: Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame 2015

Celebration of Anaheim Authors Highlighted by Hall of Fame Inductions of Two Long-Time Educators

March 5, 2016 by

Two long-time educators, Louise (Hitt) Booth and Minard Duncan were inducted into the Anaheim High Hall of Fame during a reception held Friday, March 4, at the AHS Library as part of a Read Across America “Celebration of Anaheim High Authors & Colony Inspired Literacy.”

4q Jerry, Barbara and Booths

Barbara Mahaffie ’58 with AHS President Gerald Woodward ’59 and the Booth Family, husband Donald and son David.

Booth, a English, drama and speech teacher at Anaheim High for two decades, was a noted author who left behind a literary legacy upon her passing at age 95 in 2012. Her husband of 68 years, Donald Booth, and son David attended the event, along with her close friends Barbara Mahaffie from Class of ’58, a long-time English teacher at AHS, and Marion (Caracasa) Thompkins from Class of 1953, who taught drama at AHS for several years and is still working as a drama teacher in Pasadena. Many of Booth’s former students were in the audience, including AHSAA President Gerald Woodward from Class of ’59, who had the honor of inducting Mrs. Booth in the Hall of Fame. Click here to see more photos from her induction.

Many family members, friends and classmates were on hand for the induction of Minard Duncan into the

Minard and his classmates and life-long friends.

Minard and his classmates and life-long friends.

AHS Hall of Fame. Duncan has been highly involved in the North Orange County community for more than 58 years serving children in the Fullerton School District, as well as his country and his 1950 classmates. Click here to see a collection of his induction photos. 

Prior to the reception, an Authors’ Forum was held in Cook Auditorum from 2 to 5 p.m. featuring Anaheim authors Sheila Lowe ‘67, Dennis Bateman ’89, Gustavo Arellano ‘97, and Tom Zaradich.

Monica Ortez was also on hand to share her co-authored book on the Mexican American Baseball Leagues featuring her father Ray Ortez from Anaheim High Class of 1937.

As part of the celebration, the AHS Alumni Association identified 20 graduates who have published books, three books written about Anaheim High alumni and a batch of books that include references to Anaheim High. To read more about Anaheim High’s rich literary legacy, click here.

Enjoy these additional photos from the event:

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Hall of Fame

Minard Duncan Hall of Fame Induction

March 5, 2016 by
Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Louise Hitt Booth Hall of Fame Induction

March 5, 2016 by
Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Class of 1967 Sheila Lowe’s Inkslingers Ball

March 2, 2016 by

Thanks to the cooperation of Suspense Pubishing, Class of 1967 graduate Sheila Low has been able to share her book Inkslingers Ball to be shared as part of Anaheim High’s Read Across America celebration, Feb. 29-March 4, 2016. Please enjoy and share throughout the Colony Community:

Inkslingers Ball_Sheila Lowe
6books

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Minard Duncan – Class of 1950

February 29, 2016 by

Minard DuncanLong-time educator Minard Duncan will join 60 other outstanding Colonists in the Anaheim High Hall of Fame when he is inducted March 4 at a reception in the school’s library. Duncan was selected for his decades of work as an educator and for his role as an activist who has made a significant impact in his community.

Duncan has been highly involved in the North Orange County community for more than 58 years, serving children in the Fullerton School District. An educator who never left a child behind even before it was a national mandate, Duncan created programs that increased test scores and parent involvement and also founded a free children’s dental clinic with the help of Anaheim dentist Dr. Harris Done.

A home-town boy who attended Lincoln Elementary and Fremont Junior High before attending 1949-Duncan, M.Anaheim, Duncan went on to Santa Ana College where he earned an A.A. degree in 1952. His education was interrupted when he joined the U.S. Army in 1952 to serve in Korea through 1954. As soon as he returned home he enrolled in CSU Long Beach and earned his B.A. in elementary education in 1957. Shortly thereafter, he began his 41-year career with the Fullerton School District, where he taught elementary school for eight years and served as a principal for 33 years.

During that time he earned his master’s degree from CSU Long Beach in elementary education with an administrative emphasis, as well as a master’s in governance from the California School Board Association. He retired from the District in 1998, but continued working in education for CSU Fullerton until 2002, when he was elected to the Fullerton School District Board of Trustees, a position he held for eight years.

Duncan made a major impact in the lives of the children he served by recruiting the help of local business owners. When he took on the principalship of a low performing school, he recruited 50 small businesses to provide incentives to increase parent participation which, in turn, helped increase test scores from a 22 to 80 percent pass rate.

Another example of his town-and-gown efforts included starting the first free dental clinic in the City of Fullerton for children without dental insurance. He still is involved by securing funding for the clinic.1950-Minard Duncan Basketball 001

Duncan has received numerous awards for his work in education and the community, including the PTA Golden Oak Award, the highest PTA award presented; the Orange County Department of Education Outstanding Contribution to Education Award; the CSU Fullerton Honored Educator Award; and the Spirit of Volunteerism Award from the Volunteer Center of Orange County and the Orange County Register and the Leon Owens Foundation Making a Difference Together Award for Education Services.

Still an active community member, Duncan continues to participate in numerous organizations, including serving on the board of Pathways of Hope (formerly known as the Fullerton Interfaith Emergency Service); the Rotary Club of Fullerton; and on the board of the Museum of Teaching and Learning (MOTAL), an organization whose purpose is to educate people about education with traveling exhibits on subjects including the Mendez vs. Westminster School District court case that consequently desegregated schools in the United States

28-Mindard-Duncan-Class-of-1950In his spare time, Duncan enjoys golf, reading, water volleyball, camping and travel and, of course, spending time with his family, including son Phillip Duncan, daughter and son-in-law Denise and Richard Godhardt, three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

A founding member of the Anaheim High School Alumni Association, Duncan is also busy supporting his alma mater by participating in alumni events and serving as one of his class leaders who have helped plan reunions for several decades.

Click here to view photos from his March 4, 2016 AHS Hall of Fame Induction.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight, Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame 2016

James Burns – Class of 1971

February 23, 2016 by

Burns, James-Class of 1971 001Jim Burns, Ph.D., is a renowned youth and family expert, an acclaimed author, and the founder of HomeWord, a radio program that reaches more than a million people across the country each day.

In partnership with Azusa Pacific University, where he is an adjunct professor, he established and now provides leadership for the HomeWord Center for Youth and Family, a research and training institute offering biblically based resources for parents and youth. Under Burns, the center has become the largest provider of Christian parenting and youth seminars in the United States.

His passion is communicating to adults and young people practical truths to help them live out their Christian lives. Burns is a three-time Gold Medallion Award-winning author and has written books for parents, youth workers, and students. He also speaks in person to thousands of people each year around the world. His recent books include Teaching Your Children Healthy Sexuality, Confident Parenting, and Creating an Intimate Marriage.

Burns and his wife, Cathy, and their daughters, Christy, Rebecca, and Heidi, live in Dana Point. For more information about Burns, visit homeword.com.

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight

Jerry Feil – Class of 1956

February 23, 2016 by

Feil, Jerry - Class of 1956 001Jerry Feil was a leader and top athlete in high school, and his life-long love of sports and the outdoors led to a his passion for hunting and fly fishing.Feil, Jerry-Class of 1956 001

After retiring as a manager with Pacific Bell in 1985, Jerry and his wife, Sally (Newlin), both AUHS Class of 1956 graduates, retired to a ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, a sportsman paradise

Feil began working part time in a sporting goods store, and the moment he bought his first fly fishing equipment he was hooked. For the next 25 years, beside chasing cows, he learned how to fly fish. He became an expert fly fisherman and people began asking him for advice, so he began instructing beginners and leading fly fishing trips.

His undying enthusiasm for the sport led to the publication of Fly Fishing Magic, an easy-to-understand guide to fly fishing. The videos on his website, www.flyfishingmagic.com, are a plus to the book instructions.

In 2009, the Feils sold their ranch and moved to Reno, where Jerry continued to fish, now in the Truckee River, and found the time to write his book.

flyfishingmagic

Filed Under: Alumni Spotlight
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