James “Moe” Mulcahy – Class of 1961
October 7, 2014 by
Mr. Anaheim High – Moe MaMulcahy
James “Moe” Mulcahy — a.k.a. Mr. Anaheim – from Class of 1961 is a Colonist who bleeds Gold and Blue.
As a student, he infected others with his passion for Colonist Spirit and Pride.
While at Anaheim High, he was homecoming king, served as yearbook advertising manager, was treasurer of Future Business Leaders of America, vice president of the Pep Club and Future Homemakers of America.
When Moe saw a mediocre level of school spirit at Anaheim High, which he considered every student’s responsibility, he set out to change the Colonist energy level, according to his classmate Lydia Cano.
“He was a one-man horn for each and every game, enlisting everyone from the ground up to participate with the Pep Club, at pep rallies, assemblies and at the games. This translated loud and clear to all the players and coaches, which I am certain contributed to their self-confidence at game time.”
Moe’s time at Anaheim High was precious to him because of having to drop out of school temporarily to help support his family.
James “Moe” Mulcahy was born in Youngstown, Ohio, Feb. 27, 1940, and was the youngest of 11 children. He and his mother and brother came to Anaheim on a bus in 1954 after his father left them. They lived with an aunt and he attended Fremont Junior High.
When Moe was 14-years-old his mother became ill and needed surgery, he made a deal with the doctor to do yard work for him since the family had no money to pay the medical bills. He then found a job at night at the Anaheim Bowling Alley as a pin boy. He also became a kitchen boy at Fremont in exchange for his lunch.
It was in 1958 that he had to quit school to take on a full time day job to take care of his mother, while still working nights at the bowling alley. Moe has always said his mom was his No. 1, according to Lydia.
Anaheim’s favorite bowling alley was supporting Anaheim since it’s opening.
He stayed out of school for a while and was finally able to go back in his sophomore year at Anaheim High. He quickly became the greatest advertising salesman the school had ever known plus the greatest leader in getting the students to get on the bandwagon with school spirit.
At one point, Moe had one of the teachers drive him to meet with a vice president at Disneyland and convinced him that the Magic Kingdom should be partners with Anaheim High and advertise in the yearbook and football programs. When the meeting was over, the Disney executive was so impressed with Moe that he asked him to contact him after graduation because he wanted to hire him to work at Disneyland. Moe did just that and ended up working eight years for Disneyland.
Fifty-four years after Moe graduated from Anaheim, people still remember his smile, his energy, his generosity and his undying love for his alma mater. “You only have to spend two minutes talking with Moe until he steers the conversation to the days he spent at Anaheim High School,” said Lydia.
Moe has suffered a severe health condition the past few years and at times his friends did not know whether he would be able to be with us, but his tenacity and love for life pulled him through, according to Lydia.
“Moe is the most humble person on this earth, always thanking those friends who have contributed to his healing. He is once again enjoying life and back doing what he loves….working,” said Lydia, who has been on Moe’s team of classmates who have helped him throughout the ordeal.
Lydia asked him what his thoughts were when he learned he had become Anaheim’s Homecoming King in 1960. He quickly answered: “It was my greatest thrill. It was the greatest honor. I told my mom.” He then he went on to say, ” My thoughts were that Eddie Scheffler should have won it. He was the quarterback and he deserved it. Eddie’s my friend!”
“This is just like Moe….thinking of others before himself,” said Lydia of her beloved classmate. Along with Friday’s Pep Rallies, Moe and Lydia will also be attending the Homecoming game and the Saturday Colony Classic Car Show.
If you see Moe, be sure to welcome him back to the Colony!
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- Moe served as the yearbook advertising manager.
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- Here’s Moe and friends at Bridgeford Foods which is still in business in Anaheim.
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- Everyone from this era remembers this jewelry store.
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- Moe and friends at Knott’s Berry Farm.
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- Anaheim’s favorite bowling alley was supporting Anaheim since it’s opening.
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- Moe and escort at the famous Anaheim SQR Store.
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- Moe’s behind the wheel in this classic shot.
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- Mr. Anaheim High – Moe MaMulcahy
CHARLES JAMES (JIM) CHAPMAN – 1927 – 2014
July 25, 2014 by
Charles James (Jim) Chapman, AUHS Class of 1945, passed away July 18, 2014, of natural causes at his home in Anaheim at the age of 87. Jim was born in Sigourney, Iowa on Jan. 7, 1927. Tired of shoveling snow in Iowa, he moved with his family to Anaheim in 1941.
At age 16, he joined the US Navy where he would spend the next 30 years of his life serving in WW II, the Korean Conflict, and the Vietnam War. His chosen area of Naval service was a Boatswains Mate, one of the oldest and most distinguished rates in the Navy. This rate, however, kept Jim away from his family much of the time, as it was a shipboard deck position so he worked hard and rose to the rate of Senior Chief Boatswain’s Mate, the highest rate in the Navy without being an officer. He was also a Company Commander in San Diego at the Naval Training Center, training young sailors in boot camp and worked as Shore Patrol in Long Beach. After his Naval service and military retirement in 1972, Jim got his real estate and broker’s license and spent the rest of his life in the Orange County area listing and selling property.
In 1948, he married the love of his life Phyllis Ruth (Petey) Hill, also an Anaheim High graduate. They would have been married 66 years on July 21. Jim is survived by his wife, Phyllis; son Mark Chapman of San Clemente and his wife Diane; daughter, Tracie Keough of Yorba Linda and her husband Tom; and his grandson, Mark Keough, also of Yorba Linda. For his last and final deployment, Jim will be buried at sea with full military honors.
Anaheim High Class of ’29 Triplets a Unique Part of Colony History
July 9, 2014 by
Among Anaheim Colony pioneers were the famous Bever triplets, Orena, Reona and Ramona, the city’s first set of triplets.
Born Aug. 9, 1910 to Miles and Anna Bever, the triplets rounded off a family of four girls, including older sister Rose.
At birth, two weighed 5 pounds, 12 ounces; the third was 4 pounds, 8 ounces. A newspaper article announcing their birth stated, “They are all apparently well and sound and the mother is doing nicely.”
Their father was a rancher and architect in partnership with Leslie R. Wilson. Their construction company built many residential and commercial buildings in Anaheim, including the Kraemer Building, Anaheim City Hall (1923-1980), Angelina Hotel and the S.Q.R. Department Store.
On a side note: The six-story Kramer Building, erected on the corner of Center (now Lincoln Street) and Claudina streets at the cost of $300,000, was billed as a “skyscraper” and was, at the time, the tallest and costliest building in Orange County. The ground floor was occupied by American Savings Bank and the other stories were divided into offices occupied by local businessmen.
Records on file at the Anaheim Heritage Center show that the family owned a vineyard lot at 143 S. Ohio. They later lived in another home located at Chestnut and Lemon.
Class of 1929 Anaheim High graduates, all three girls were active in school. Orena was on the Girls’ League cabinet and on the yearbook staff. Reona was a member of the Art Club, Hi-Jinx, and the Girls’ Athletic Association, playing varsity hockey, basketball and baseball. Ramona was a member of the yearbook staff, Hi-Jinx, Art Club and served as treasurer of her sophomore class.
The triplets worked at the Henry Bros Drug Stores and were related to the store’s owner, according to documents on file at the Anaheim Heritage Center. One store was located at Palm and Center (now Harbor and Lincoln) and a second store at Lemon and Center Street (now Lincoln).
All three girls married and became Orena Daughtery, living in Long Beach and Bellflower; Ramona Jordan of Whittier and Anaheim; and Reona Bryan of Anaheim. Their older sister Rose Keller lived in Long Beach and Chino. Ramona had three daughter: Patsy, Joan (Class of ’44) and Marcella (Class of ’42).
An obit was on file only for Reona. She passed away of natural causes on Dec. 30, 1982, in Anaheim, her life-long home.
Photos of the girls and their family show a set of cherubic children always wearing matching dresses and engaging smiles. These Anaheim High graduates are certainly a unique piece of Colony history.
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- Reona Bever
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- Ramona Bever
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- Orena Bever
Raymond Gerald Baker – 1918 – 2014
July 3, 2014 by
RAYMOND GERALD BAKER
July 30, 1918 – June 18, 2014
Gerald Baker, an AUHS Class of ’36 grad, was born to James A. and MaeBelle Baker on their citrus ranch located on West Broadway near Magnolia St. in Anaheim. He attended Magnolia Elementary School (now Maxwell) where Mattie Lou Maxwell was his teacher and coach.
Gerald married Eleanor Becker in 1939 and they celebrated 55 years of marriage before Eleanor’s passing in 1994.
During World War II, Gerald served in the U.S. Navy and was deployed to the Pacific Fleet, serving on a Minesweeper. He was severely wounded when the ship was sunk near Borneo and was presented The Purple Heart.
Gerald worked for most of his adult life on Signal Hill, Long Beach, in various positions with the oil industry. He was a lifelong member of the Anaheim Christian Church where he served on the Board, taught Sunday school and sang in the choir.
A life-long resident of Anaheim, Gerald came from a family of Colonists. His father, James Baker is an Anaheim graduated who taught at Centralia Elementary in Anaheim in 1912, became the first Superintendent of Schools for the La Habra district and served as an Orange County Supervisor.
Gerald’s uncle Arthur was in Anaheim’s second graduating class (1902), and three of Gerald’s siblings graduated from Anaheim, as did his wife, Eleanor Becker (1937), and their sons, John (1958) and Bob (1959).
(Incidentally, Gerald’s mother, Mae Belle Dickenson Baker, who attended but didn’t graduate from AHS, had a sister who married John King, the writer of Anaheim ’s alma mater.)
While at Anaheim High, Gerald served was senior class vice president, ran track, played baseball, acted in school plays and sang in the Mozart Choir and Boys’ Quartet.
Gerald was preceded in death by his wife, Eleanor and son, John Edward. He is survived by son, Robert Paul; daughter-in-law, Charlene; seven grandchildren and sixteen great grandchildren.
Gerald was a kind gentleman, faithful to God, his family and country; he will be greatly missed by all who love him!
Dr. Les Holve ’44 Inducted in AHS Hall of Fame
June 22, 2014 by
From his humble roots as a farm boy living and working on his parent’s small ranch midway between Garden Grove and Anaheim, Dr. Les Holve advanced to become a doctor who transformed children’s lives as a pediatrician and cleft palate specialist.
His childhood was complicated by significant allergies, infantile eczema and asthma, worsened when he contracted whooping cough at age 3. Maybe because of his childhood ailments, Holve became a pediatrician, eventually serving as chief of pediatrics at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica and president of the Los Angeles Pediatric Society. [Read more…]
Class of ’44 Shares Graduation Date with D-Day
June 6, 2014 by
It’s been 80 years since nearly 200 Anaheim High students graduated on the same day that 16,000 U.S. Troops landed on the beaches of Nazi-occupied Normandy, France.
Unbeknownst to these students in the small town of Anaheim, while this massive land, sea and air battle that changed the course of WWII was being fought on June 6, 1944, they were collecting their diplomas on the stage of Pearson Park Amphitheater and preparing to say good bye to classmates who would soon leave to join the fighting.
Donald R. Betzsold – Oct. 28,1925 – May 6, 2014
May 31, 2014 by
Donald Roy Betzsold from AUHS Class of 1943 passed away peacefully at age 88 on May 6, 2014, in Anaheim, where he was born Oct. 28, 1925. Donald lived in Anaheim most of his life except for a brief period in 1938, when he lived in Tacoma, Washington.
While at Anaheim High, Donald was a scholar-athlete, playing baseball and football. In recent years he enjoyed attending the varsity football games with his daughter Robyne Betzsold, a teacher at Anaheim High School.
He met his wife, Ruby Strange, to whom he was married for nearly 70 years, when he was serving in the U.S. Navy in WWII. She died in 2008.
Donald attended Fullerton College and later the University of Southern California, where he received his architectural degree. He worked for Frank Homolka and Associates in Long Beach, designing many Home Savings, as well as buildings at CSU Long Beach and the Belmont Plaza swimming pool for the 1984 Olympics. He also designed several private homes in Orange County.
On a community level, Donald served as president of the Anaheim Historical Society and organized their display at the 100th Anniversary of the Orange County Fair in Costa Mesa.
Donald was especially proud of his 65 years in the Elks. He joined the Anaheim Elks with his father and brother. When that Elks closed, Donald moved to the Buena Park Elks Lodge 2046, the “Lodge with a Heart.” He held many positions with the Elks and served as Exalted Ruler from 1995 to 1996.
One of his most rewarding accomplishments was raising funds for Buena Park Junior High’s American Heritage Scholarship Program to send students to visit Washington, D.C. One year he traveled with them. In his last years, Donald kept active with the Elks and visited Walnut Village to help patients enjoy Bingo. He was living at Walnut Village at the time of his death.
Don Betzsold’s parents, George and Mary, were owners of Betzsold Studios, a long-time Anaheim business.
Donald is survived by his daughter, Robyne Betzsold; granddaughter, Jennifer Balsiger; and grandson, Austin Lawrence. He was interned at Anaheim Cemetery.
Wilhelmina G. Van Hunnick – July 27, 1936 – April 29, 2009
May 21, 2014 by
One of Anaheim High’s exemplary graduates was Wilhelmina Grace Van Hunnick from Class of 1954.
After graduating 15th in her class at Anaheim High, Willi (as she was known by her friends and family), she attended USC, where she was a business major and member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. She also served as a USC Associate and on the Humanities Committee for Letters, Arts, and Science.
Anaheim was to continue benefitting from this pioneer daughter who returned to her hometown to teach for 32 years in the Anaheim Union High School District. She became a renowned business teacher at John F. Kennedy High School, earning Teacher of the Year three times and Orange County Teacher of the Year.
She served as chairman of Kennedy High Business Department and as an advisor for Future Business Leaders of America, a program with 
which she was involved throughout her high school years. Her service as a student adviser, as well as a member of the organization’s Board of Directors at the state and national level, earned her a place in the FBLA Wall of Fame and the title of California Business Person of the Year.
Along with her passion for teaching, Ms. Van Hunnick loved the performing arts and chaired the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Foundation, helping establish a state-of-the-art auditorium at high school.
Her sister, Elizabeth Van Hunnick from Class of 1956, taught at Fremont Junior High School and is a Lifetime Member of the Anaheim High School Alumni Association and has donated many of her and her sister’s AUHS memorabilia items to the Alumni Association’s for preservation.
More about Wilhelmina’s life can be read at:
http://www.kpacfoundation.org/wilhelmina_vanhunnick.html
