Whippet Echoes January 2023

This 196^th edition of Whippet Echoes takes readers to the skies with one young bird on its maiden flight and two SHS grads flying much bigger “birds” to word of alumni support for our alma mater.

Reactions to November 20 Whippet Echoes:

“Another great edition.” Curt Fackler ’74 

“I can\’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your newsletters! Happy holidays!!”  Cheryl Hawk McKinney ’63 

“Thank you all for another wonderful edition of Whippet Echoes! I enjoy reading them & keeping up with SHS alums. Our Class of 1969 continues to meet once a month at The Vault in Shelby for lunch. We are so thankful to classmate Gail Hogue Myers for starting this up & continued until her death this summer. ” Jocelyn Armstrong McAuley ’69 

“Please accept my sympathy on the death of your sister, Greg. Thank you for another great issue of Whippet Echoes.” Eleanor Kelly Spangler ’54   

\”I think fall is the most nostalgic of all seasons so especially glad to hear from you. I can hear our local high school band practicing. Shelby\’s band was always so great.  Remember the black light performances, Friday night football games and the dances that followed? How is it I can remember them so well and I can\’t find my damn glasses? Thanks to you.” Nancy Nicholson Yoder ’60 

“Great issue! Do you know the procedure for nominating someone for the Alumni Hall of Distinction?” Gary Jennings ’74  (Answer to Gary’s question: Any alum wanting to know how to nominate a fellow alum or retired SHS faculty member for the SHS Hall of Distinction email bleedgreen67@msn.com for details.) 

“Thanks.   Nice to hear the news.” Robert Ross ’65 

Passings

Late word on the following two passings: Charlene Johnson Hill ’57 died at 80 on Sept. 26, 2019 in Mount Vernon.  Her husband Wilbur Hill died at 82 on Nov. 9, 2020 in Mount Vernon.  Surviving are kids Steve, Marcie Wiggins, Tom, Phil.

• Benjamin Knapp ’95 died unexpectedly of natural causes at 46 on Nov. 9 in Shelby.  Surviving are sons Harrison, Xavier, Howard.    
• Linda Howell-Royce ’68 and brother Steve Barnhart lost their dad when David Barnhart died from a heart attack at 91 on Nov. 13 in Shelby.  He was an Army vet.  Also surviving is Dorajane, his wife of 69 years.    
• Dave Leavitt ’64 died at 76 on Nov. 2 of complications from Parkinson’s Disease and dementia in Indianapolis.  He was an Army vet.  Surviving are second wife Judy and five step-kids. 
• The Rita kids – Deborah Spangler ’80, Jill Blunt ’82, both of Shelby, Amber Burkett ’88 of Ashland, Jeff Kime of Lima – lost their mom when Crystal Rita died at 82 on Nov. 18 in Shelby.  She was a Willard HS grad.   
• Doyle Minich ’63 lost Shirley, his wife of 54 years, when she died at 76 on Nov. 19 in Wadsworth.  Also surviving are kids David, Bryan and Carrie Reyes. 
• The Ritchie kids – Jim ’75 of Shelby, Dave ’82 of North Fairfield, Bill ’90 of Tiro, Michelle Winebrenner of Spartanburg, S.C. – lost their mom when Bernice Hoover, Shelby resident, died at 84 on Nov. 19 in Ashland.  Predeceasing Bernice in 2014 was husband Burton Hoover.   
• The Howard kids – Jim ’75, Tim ’76, both of Shelby, Tricia Vogrin ’81 of Cortland – lost their dad James when he died at 88 on Nov. 16 in Shelby.  Also surviving is Margaret, his wife of 66 years.   
• Karen Lykins Enderle ’71, Tiro resident, died unexpectedly at 70 on Nov. 20 in Shelby.  Surviving are daughter Erica Wiparena of New Washington and her Lykins brothers Bill ’67 of Fort Worth, TX; John ’74 of Ashland; Joe ’80 of TN; Kevin ’70.  Predeceasing Karen in 2003 was her husband Nicholas. 
• Neil McNeil ’49 died at 91 on Nov. 30. He was a Navy vet.  Surviving are Charlene, his wife of 65 years, and daughter Linda McNeil Wilson ’77. 
• The Shindeldecker kids – Dennis ’76, Brenda Simmons ’75, both of Shelby, Margaret Owens ’81 of Shiloh, Paul Adams ’83 of Ontario – lost their mom when Donna, Shelby resident, died at 87 on Nov. 24 after a brief illness in Mansfield.  She was a Crestline HS grad.  Predeceasing Donna in 1979 was husband Glenn.   
• Kellie Caporini ’84, Chris Conley ’85, Blair Baker ’02 – lost their mom when Barbara Baker, Shelby resident, died at 78 after a brief illness in Mansfield.  She was a Northwest HS ’62 grad. 
• The Ramey kids – Jeff ’73 of Tampa, FL; Jenny Murphy ’83 of Ashland; Daryn of Shelby – lost their mom Sue, Shelby resident, when she died at 89 on Nov. 29 in Ashland. 
• Jerry Barber ’61 died at 80 on Dec. 4 in Shelby.  Surviving are Rebecca Hursh Barber ’61, his wife of 59 years, daughter Dawn Burkholder ’83 of Galion and son Kurt ’87 of Colorado. 
• The Brown kids – Kristina Smith ’73 of Durango, CO; Paul ’76 of Shelby; Tim ’78 of Mansfield; step-daughter Linda Krizan of Mansfield – lost their mom when Barbara Downs died at 87 on Dec. 5 in Ashland.  Predeceasing Barbara, a 1953 Ontario HS grad, was husband Gerald.   
• The Steele kids – Doug ’73, Barb Gonzales ’75, Nancy Lewis ’80, all of Shelby, Steve ’81 of Kent, Matt ’86 of Greeneville, TN – lost their mom when Dorothy Steele died at 89 on Dec. 9 in Shelby.  Also surviving is Walter, her husband of 69 years. 
• Terri Fagan ’75, Shelby resident, died at 66 on Dec. 11 in Mansfield.  Surviving are siblings Cheryl Sykes of Bucyrus, Deb Williams ’77 of Shelby, Brenda Fields ’78 of Mansfield, Mike Fagan ’80 of Shelby.  
• Troy Argo ’83 of Shelby lost Mary ‘Cathy,’ his wife of 10 years, when she died at 58 on Dec. 12.  She was a Crestline HS grad.  Also surviving are son Hunter Finnegan and step-sons Matt Argo and Brendan Argo.    
• Connie Shepherd Alley ’71, Shelby resident, died at 69 on Dec. 15 in Columbus.  Surviving are son Jason Heydinger and brother Larry Burks ’62.  Predeceasing Connie were husband William Alley and brother Jim Burks ’67. 
• Doris Baird Berdanier ’50, Shelby resident, died at 90 on Dec. 17 in Ontario.  Surviving are kids Barry ’74 of Lafayette, CO; Bruce ’76 and Sherri Stewart ’77, both of Ontario; Brian ’80 of Spring Lake, MI; plus sister Sally Niedermeier ’53 of New Washington. 
• Ron Cooke Sr. ’67, Shelby resident, died at 73 on Dec. 18 in Mansfield.  Surviving are Aida, his wife of 27 years, kids Ron Jr. ’82 of Wooster, Lance ’92 of Shelby, Amanda of Perrysburg, plus brother Tom ’64 of Shelby.   
• Helen Hall Aubel Eyler ’53, Shelby resident, died at 88 in Columbus.  Surviving is daughter Valerie Aubel ’75. 
• Doug “Duke’ Jones ’64 died unexpectedly from a combination of flu and pre-existing heart condition at 76 on Dec. 22 in Reno, NV.  Surviving are kids Allen, Sharon, Richard, all of TX, plus siblings Connie Jones Glorioso ’66 of Columbus and John of Euliss, TX.  

New Alumni Network Members:

• Patti Precht Lauderbaugh ’77

Still Expanding the Network: When Whippet Echoes debuted in September 2001, that first edition went to just 21 SHS alumni, the only ones for whom we had email addresses.  We encouraged them to forward the edition to other alums for whom they had email addresses.  As we enter the 22^nd year of Whippet Echoes that now is going to 2,400 alumni, faculty and former faculty, if you know of an alum and you’re not sure if he he/she is receiving the newsletter, let us know at gdaniel0488@gmail.com, and we’ll check to see if he/she is in the database.  If not, we’ll send two back editions and invite them to join the database. 

News

Alumni Association Leadership.  At the association’s November Board meeting, Brooke Potter Burkhalter ’92 was elected to succeed Mary Lee Hannafus Barr ’66 as secretary, and John Gies ’84 was elected to succeed Sue Robertson Winans ’60 as treasurer.  Mary Lee and Sue continue as Board members.  Tom Armstrong ’70 continues as president and Dave Winans ’60 as vice president until the end of 2023.  Here is the complete roster of Board members. 

Toni Martinez Anspach \’62, Tom Armstrong \’70, Mary Lee Hannafus Barr \’66, Brooke Potter Burkhalter \’92, Kim Burkey \’84, Greg Daniel \’71, Cathy Dodge \’65, Christina Yetzer Drain \’75, John Gies \’84, Susie Bashore Henkel \’62, Mike Johnson \’63, Janet Kehres \’64, Char Kenney Schiffer \’66, Chuck Schiffer \’64, Janet Page Whitehill \’62, Dave Winans \’60, Sue Robertson Winans \’60.

Alumni Association by-laws allow the Board to total 20 members.  At the moment there are 17 members.  If you are interested in learning more about the role of a Board member, email Tom Armstrong at tomaclass70@yahoo.com. 

Taking Flight – into the new year.  (Editor commentary from Mike Johnson ‘63) In recent decades throughout northern Europe, nations have striven to increase the population of storks – long a symbol of new life.  Residents of towns and villages have installed circular platforms – 5 or 6 feet in diameter – atop houses, barns, government buildings – and storks have then built nests with sides a couple feet high. 

When last July I was in Ribeauville in eastern France, there were 6 active nests.  One was atop a house on the village’s main street and was home to parents and two youngsters.  Each day we could see the youngsters peeking over the edge and occasionally flapping their wings.  Once a parent was standing on the nest’s edge with a youngster on the opposite edge.  Both were flapping wings as the parent demonstrated. 

A couple evenings later my French friends Christophe and Laura and I were strolling on the main street.  We looked up to that busy nest – just in time to see one of the youngsters take flight for the first time. In only a couple seconds Laura pointed her phone skyward and clicked. Below is the resulting photo.

The young bird flew only about 100 yards before alighting on the edge of a rooftop chimney.  Though its flight was brief, Christophe, Laura and I were unanimous in agreeing that witnessing that first flight was thrilling – Mother Nature at her best. Hoping this photo and the above story will give you an additional reason to smile as we usher in 2023 – the 22^nd year for Whippet Echoes!

Says Brian, “I have been flying for Delta since March of 2000.  Before that I flew for TWA out of St. Louis and Netjets in Columbus. During all that time I was flying C130 Hercules for 20 years with Ohio Air National Guard – Mansfield.  I retired from the guard about 12 years ago.  

“I fly mostly to the West Coast and Florida, but my routes vary based on the season.”  Brian’s wife is Michele Baird Glenwright ’85.  They live in Ontario. 

YOUR Alumni Association continuing to fulfill its mission.  That’s right, YOUR Alumni Association as all SHS students upon graduation automatically become members. A core purpose of the Association mission is enriching the academic environment for current and future SHS students.  Here are the two most recent Association gifts to SHS: Nikon D7500 camera with zoom lens and two camera bags for use by Scarlet S yearbook staffs – $1,400.  20 graphing calculators to be used by math students of teachers Scott Gurney and Andy Carver – $3,127.66.  Scott ’83 and Andy ’95 are SHS grads.  Those two alumni donations bring the total of Association gifts to $280,590.71. 

If you’d like to donate to the Association and in particular to the Bill Wilkins Memorial Student Achievement Fund, write a check made payable to SHS Alumni Association and send it to Treasurer, Shelby High School, One Whippet Way, Shelby, OH 44875. 

Your Faithful Foursome – Greg Daniel ’71, Susan Scharenberg, Christina Yetzer Drain ’75, Mike Johnson ’63 – continue to welcome input for the newsletter, now beginning its 22^nd year.  You can send word of births and birthdays, weddings and wedding anniversaries, passings, graduations, jobs and career changes, family and class reunions, hobbies, travels, moves, awards, honors, recognitions, community involvements and other activities to gdaniel0488@gmail.com.  All in all, such input remains the lifeblood of Whippet Echoes.