I was intrigued by the Class of 1967’s
50-year anniversary photo at the Monongah High Alumni Banquet in 2017. And a
Thoburn School photo when many of them were in the same grade there.
So, using my 42 years in newspapers, as
a reporter and sportswriter but mostly as an editor, I investigated the people
in the photo.
Joetta Martino Bowie, 3rd
from the right in the 3rd row, was Queen of the Letterman’s Club
Christmas Dance at Monongah High. She was escorted by John Larry (front row,
far left) and crowned by Roman Prezioso, just to the left of Joetta.
Mary Chris Fazio, my cousin because her
father, Renzy Fazio, married my father’s sister, Frances Olesky Fazio, was
first runnerup, Trudy Damico 2nd runnerup, Debbie Basagic 3rd
runnerup, Donna Westfall 4th runnerup.
Joetta studied at Maryland Medical Secretarial School in Hagerstown, Maryland and lives in Houston, Texas with veteran Ron Bowie, her husband since 1976. So do her sisters, Karen Jo and Suzanne, who was matron of honor at wedding of Sharon Hawkins, Suzanne's friend during their Worthington days.
Brenda Shumate Edmonds, 3rd
row, 2nd from right, was Homecoming queen. Linda Bonasso was senior
princess, Debby DeFazio was junior princess, Pam Yanero was sophomore princess
and Nancy Manzo was freshman princess.
Judy Henderson was prom queen. Her
court was Dotty Woody, Linda Shipco, Gela Cameon, Joyce Viney and Brenda
Knoble.
Valentine Dance queen was Linda
Samuels, escorted by Butch Beans and crossed by Philip Hayes.
Sharon Garrett was first runnerup,
escorted by Roman Prezioso. 2nd runnerup was Donna Westfall,
escorted by Rod Glover.
Sandra Lee Thompson Barton, second row,
far left in photo, a 1991 Northeastern Bible College graduate, is a Bible
teacher, author and speaker living in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. She was at the 2018 annual Monongah High Alumni Banquet when the
largest crowd in 7 years (210!) showed up. Also at 2005, 2012 and 2014
Reunions.
Sandy is in dialysis and waiting for a kidney transplant.
Her sister is Carole Thompson
Spatafore, Class of 1965, widow of John Spatafore. Carole handles the Monongah
High Alumni Association scholarship fund. She once handled the Monongah High
Alumni reunion golf outings at Green Hills till interest grew so small that
they quit doing it.
Daniel
Thompson, Carol’s brother, lives in Monongah with wife Letha.
Phyllis Wilson Ellison, second row, 2nd
from left, once lived in Four States and today resides in Elizabethtown,
Kentucky.
Linda Knoble-Carr, second row, 4th
from left, worked at Philips and lives in Morgantown. She married Sanford Carr,
former Monongah Councilman and a guy who helped out everyone he could to fix up
their property, in 1969. Sanford passed away in 2020 after suffering eight
heart attacks.
Their children and spouses are 1989
North Marion grad Tonia Carr Posten & Bill Posten, also a North Marion grad, and Bryan Carr & Amie Carr, all
living in Monongah. Their grandchildren are Tyler Carr, Teala Jesseman and her husband David, Patrick
Carr, Gabriel Carr, Peyton Taylor and Raquel Taylor.
Bill
is in Mobile
maintenance at First Energy and Tonia works in the Monongah
Water Office. They live in Monongah.
Linda and Gloria Sypult are close
friends.
Susan Blocker, 3rd row, 5th
from left, retired after 43 years at Fairmont Supply and was a part-timer at
Ace Hardware. She lives in Fairmont.
Roman Prezioso, 3rd row, 6th
from left, was in the West Virginia State Legislature for more than three
decades. He was in the House of Delegates from 1988 to 1996, then the State
Senate from 1996 to 2020.
Roman and wife Deborah live in Fairmont. Roman’s
sister, Marie Prezioso, lives in Charleston.
Roman’s parents were Amelia Ann Yerace Prezioso and Roman
Prezioso, Sr., who ran Prezioso Grocery at the top of Jackson Street. Amelia
was famous for her canned peppers, which she grew, canned and sold for decades.
Monongah’s Preziosos include Lavania Serge Prezioso,
Josephine Prezioso Westfall, Bea Prezioso Mangino, Brulina Prezioso Sweeney,
Barbara Prezioso Vozniak (who married Mitch Vozniak), Eugene Prezioso and wife
Pat and Dr. Ronald Pearse and wife Julia of Fairmont (his branch changed the
name from Prezioso to Pearse).
Mickey Salai Satterfield, 3rd
row, far right, is a Fairmont State graduate in accounting/CPA who lives in
Morgantown. She’s married.
Judith Henderson Betonte, Patsy
Paszuale and Vernon Beans, not in photo, have passed away.
1967 yearbook was dedicated to teacher
Geneva Brumage, who taught me typing that I used throughout my 42-year
newspaper career.
Teachers in 1967 that I had in 1950 are
Mary Turkovich, my favorite math/algebra/geomedtry teacher at MHS, and Eleanor
McElroy, who taught English and later became a minister.