Winter Park High School Alums - Class of 1961








Periodically we receive an e-mail from a visitor to the web site or a classmate with a bit of trivia, or a question and sometimes just a note that contact has been made with a teacher, etc.
     If you have a 'reflection' you would like to share with us, please e-mail the webmaster. For any reason at all! We will post these for your information and response, where appropriate.
     If you have a memory you would like to share with your classmates, let us know -- don't hold it back -- no doubt others are recalling the same events as you.

Please read this!  Mary (Phillips) shared an e-mail with us that was written to her by the daughter of a classmate of ours. We feel this web site can serve yet another very positive cause. Pam Axton McCoy, daughter of classmate Kay Axton, is looking for information about her Mom during our high school years. Pam and her sister, Janice, do not remember their mother (Kay) as they were very young when Kay was murdered in 1973. Now that Pam has been introduced to our alumni web site she feels there may be classmates of her mom's who have memories they would be willing to share with her about Kay . . . classmates Ann Spaulding, Bill Ronay, Fred Hale, Julie Baldwin and Mary Phillips have written to Pam and shared some of their memories of Kay with her. If you remember Kay and interacting with her during our growing up years, won't you share your story(s) with Pam? You can read Pam's e-mail below . . . her e-mail address is included.

Subject: Kathryn Elizabeth Axton (Burgher)
Date: Sun, 7 Sep 2003 23:24:00 EDT
From: Pammajama@aol.com
To: Maryp5243@aol.com
     Hi Mary, I got your name and email address from Sally Belperche this afternoon. She lived next door to our family for the last 30 years or so and has been a great friend.
      My name is Pamela Elizabeth McCoy and I am one of Kay's daughters. I am now 35 years old, married and had my first child -Kathryn Elizabeth McCoy on March 23, 2002. I have a younger sister - Janice, who is married and lives in Bithlo.
      Sally mentioned the web site about Winter Park High School Then and Now and I was able to spend some time looking at it. You all have done a great job!! I only wish I had heard about it earlier so we could have attended the reunion earlier this year.
      I know that Sally told you about Betty's death a year ago. She was "mom" to us after mom (Kay Axton) was killed in 1973. Anyway, we are going through things at mom's house and I have come across some things you may want to look at - some pictures, yearbooks, etc.
      I would really like to talk to you and maybe get with you. I really haven't talked to anyone who knew mom. I often wonder what she was like back then. We couldn't talk to our grandmother about Mom because it hurt her too much. If you know someone who was good friends with our mother, please ask if they would mind talking to me. I am "thirsting" for any and all information about her so I can pass this on to her name sake - my beautiful daughter.
      I look forward to hearing from you and please pass on to the others responsible for the web site that you all have really done a GREAT job!!
      Pam McCoy (Axton)

Subject: Glenridge September 2, 2003
Date: Thu, 4 Sep 2003 9:7:38 -0400
From: "JD M" <br549jdm@mindspring.com>
To: <wphsalum@wphsalumni-1961.com>
      I graduated from WPHS in 1967. Hope you enjoy my photos of the 'old' Glenridge. I just loved to get down those hallways again. I didn't take "no" for an answer, finally got to the facilities man with the key after numerous calls to the Orange County School Board.
      This is a bunch of unusual photos of Glenridge with rusty pipes, hallways, lockers, and some of the media center after it was trashed by vandals. Some of the photos of the hallways will really take you back to when you were there. The open-air hallways are great. I could not get into the classrooms, but looking into them, they were starke and mostly empty. The media center was a real bother to me though because they had award plaques that were just left in boxes... Apparently they did not want at the new school, but the awards were for volunteers, media specialists, etc. The bookcases were still covered with usable things, and there were overhead projectors that were just left, the pictures will show all of this.
      By the way, does anyone remember the little diner at the corner of Fairbanks and Pennsylvania. Faced Fairbanks and was a converted train dining car. I would love to see a photo of that one.It was still there in 1967 when I graduated from WP.
      Donna (Nichols) Whicker (graduated Glenridge 1964)

FOLLOW-UP!

Subject: Glenridge September 2, 2003
Date: Thu, 4 Sep 2003 13:57:29 -0400
From: "JD M" <br549jdm@mindspring.com>
     Hi Anne: Thanks for posting the info on the train diner. Got some good news and some funny news. I mailed your CD of the September 2 photos from the Winter Park PO this morning, so hopefully you will get it on Saturday. The funny is that when I got home I got a call from the School Board stating that it is against Board policy to let anyone into a closed down school because of insurance and safety problems. Funny huh. I told her that I had already gotten in with a facilities person. She was shocked. So, I do hope you enjoy these photos. This will be the VERY LAST that anyone sees of this school, unless of course they climb a fence. I feel good and scared and a little devious all at one time. Thank heavens Mr. Hill was the one who let me in. Two others in facilities were also in on letting me in, so it is not just the key man.
      I contacted a Mr. Green at Glenridge and told him about the plaques still in the media center, he was going to see if he could get them back. He said someone just probably missed taking them. I also told the lady at the School Board about the awards/plaques, she is also going to try to get facilities to give them to the school. Oh what a funny week this has been and it is only Thursday. I am definitely retired now.
          Donna
Subject: Mr. Norman Kent (Teacher)
Date: Thu, 4 Sep 2003 09:58:03 -0500
From: "Sandy Watson" <swbms@earthlink.net>
To: <wphsalum@wphsalumni-1961.com>
      While working on the Memory Book for Glenridge, I found Mr. Kent! He taught Social Studies and was well loved because he really was interested in his students as individuals. He was also relatively young and good looking. The girls were GA-GA over him!
      He taught at Glenridge from the beginning at Signal Hill and left Glenridge in '66. He went to Edgewater and became principal. He was later principal at Colonial and Wymore and retired in '89.
      He and his wife are living in Orlando. He has 2 sons.
      Mr. Kent said that he had very good memories of Glenridge and the students. He remembered them as upbeat and well mannered - a pleasure to teach.
     Sandy Watson, swbms@earthlink.com