Monongah
High Alumni Association president Linda Lopez Gandy, Class of 1965, is the
culprit.
She
posted:
“Merry Christmas to all
Monongah High School Alumni. From Jim and Linda.” Jim is Jim Gandy, Linda’s
husband, Class of 1964, who is on the Alumni Association Board of Directors
with Linda.
That unleashed a tsunami of
Christmas cheer responses by Lions in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio,
California and Florida!
Including mine.
So I figured I would expand
the Merry Christmas exponentially through this blog. All it took was a week of
non-stop determination and a friendly second mate in my PhotoDraw app that
loves jpeg photos.
I’ll start the Lions who
took part in the Facebook Merry Christmas thread as much as possible in reverse
alphabetical order, to reward those who had to sit in the back of the room at
Monongah High because the teachers went by A to Z alphabetical order in the
seating arrangements:
Michelle Yankie, who
prefers to be called Shelly, isn’t even a Monongah High graduate, only because
Monongah High ceased to exist after her freshman year at MHS, with Class of
1979 being the last in Monongah High history before the merger into North
Marion High, where Shelly graduated with the Class of 1982.
Shelly’s granddaughter, Tristen
Orme, was queen of the 2022 North Marion prom. Shelly has 10 other
grandchildren.
Shelly has been involved in
the PACE project, which does such good work for those in need in Marion County;
Susan Staron Sanders’ Monongah Christmas Lights Committee that brightens
streets all over Monongah with those huge lights, like the one I bought that is
next to my Church Street childhood home, the pearl in a seashell, and Shelly helped organized my July 2021
J&J&Lions get-together in the Monongah Town Hall attended by 40 Lions,
family, friends and former classmates. J&J stood for John (me) and Jackie
(my sister Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, who lives in Rivesville.
Shelly’s
siblings are Chris Toothman, David Yankie, Sylvia Barr, Franklin
Hammond, 1984 North Marion graduate Terry Yankie, 1987 North Marion
graduate Barbie Yankie and 1989 North Marion graduate Kim Yankie Hawkins and
the late Kenneth and Ronnie Yankie.
Then
there’s Frankie Vandetta, Class of 1974, the 4th of 5 Frank
Vandettas that meandered into Monongah. He’s married to Brenda Sturm Vandetta.
This
Frankie – Frank Anthony Vandetta IV, retired from Consol Energy and still living
in Monongah with wife Stephanie Kishbaugh Vandetta, who once resided
in Hazelton, Pennsylvania.
The
first Frank Vandetta was born in the early 1900s. The second was Frank Junior
Vandetta, born in 1928. The third is Frank Vandetta III, born
in 1955. The fourth is Stephanie’s Frankie, born in 1990. The fifth
is Frank Charles Vandetta V, born to IV.
Frank
IV loves camping. Stephanie studied emergency medical services at Fairmont
State and once worked at WVU Hospitals.
Then
there’s Eric Toothman,
Class of 1977, married since 1978 to Lori Munza
Toothman, a 1975 Fairmont East graduate. Erica is a physical
therapist assistant at Louis A. Johnson VA Medical Center, former Roof Bolter at Martinka mine,
worked at Federal # 2 mine,
moved from MHS to Fairmont State and lives in Monongah.
Eric and Lori live on Walnut Street, where I was born in
the house of grandparents, Martin Olesky and Mary Peremba Olesky.
Lori has been with the U.S. Postal Service for 21 years,
currently at the Mannington office. Previously, Lori was assistant to the Union
Mission director in Fairmont. Lori grew up in Montana Mines, near Pricketts
Fort, with her parents, Ava Jean Ellers Munza and the late John Munza. Eric’s
parents are Frances Arretta Boner Toothman and Danny Lee Toothman.
Next is
Valerie Vandetta Aldridge, Class of 1973,
who works at Fairmont General Hospital and lives in Monongah with
husband Jim Aldridge. Her uncle is the late Carl Eugene Vandetta, Class of
1948, in the legendary Monongah High band. Carl’s widow is Martha Vandetta.
They were married 63 years.
Then
there’s Monongah’s do-everything lady, Carol Thompson Spatafore, Class of 1965,
widow of John Spatafore. Carol handled the Monongah
Alumni Reunion golf scramble till there weren’t enough entrants to keep it
going so Tony Eates and the late Bob “Satch” Kasper no longer achieved the
distinction of finishing last and laughing all the way. And Carol collects and
keeps excellent track of donations to the Monongah High Alumni Association
college scholarship fund. She has attended every Reunion from 2008 through
2016. Carol lives in Fairmont.
Carol
and John’s children are Frank Spatafore, who lives in Monongah with wife
Jonna; John Spatafore, Jr. of Koons Run; and Gina Spatafore Croteaus of Hilton
Head, South Carolina. Daniel Thompson,
Carol’s brother, lives in Monongah with wife Letha.
Belinda Sheppard, Class of 1969, lives in Port Charlotte, Florida, which I enjoyed
when I visited that city on shores of the warm and friendly Gulf of Mexico.
She’s retired and has been married since 1969.
Brenda Mills,
Class of 1970, is from Four States and lives in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania.
Debbie Moore O'Dell, Class of 1969, married Robert O’Dell, a 1966 Shinnston
High graduate. They had planned to celebrate their 49th anniversary
in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina but Hurricane Dorian blew that trip away.
Debbie told me that “I am a mother, grandmother
and great- grandmother, sister and wife.” She worked at the Dairy Kone for
Amelia Shenasky Zentz and her husband Bruce Zentz when Debbie was young, also
was a department manager at CSM, Etc. at Wally World and worked at Urban’s
Grocery Store in Monongah near the UMW Union Hall.
Debbie’s sister, Janet Moore Frazier, Class of 1972, also
worked at the Dairy Kone, which provided spending money for a lot of Monongah
High students over the years.
Debbie and Rob’s children are James and Julie, who both
went to Monongah High and North Marion High.
Debbie grew up in Monongah but has lived in Kilarm for a
half-century. Her children live in Kilarm, too.
Debbie’s parents were Vera Pearl Higginbotham Moore, like
Rob a Shinnston High graduate, and Bill Moore. Vera played piano for The Marion
County Song Birds.
Ah,
there’s me, John Olesky, Class of 1950, born in my Olesky grandparents’ house
on Walnut Street, then moved into a Thomas Street rental with a 2-hole outside
toilet that was colder than a slum landlord’s heart in winter and, for the rest
of my childhood, into the Church Street home WITH INDOOR PLUMBING and bathrooms
that my parents John and Lena Olesky purchased. Every Christmas the pearl in a
seashell Christmas street light brightens up my Church Street home that’s next
to it. My sister is Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, who lives in
Rivesville. I have 3 children, 7 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren and
all are shining emeralds. Not one lump of coal in this family. Lucky, I know.
I had a
42-year newspaper career as a sportswriter and later as an editor in West
Virginia (Morgantown, Williamson and Charleston), Florida (St. Petersburg) and
Ohio (Dayton and, for the final 26 years, at the Akron Beacon Journal with its
4 Pulitzer Prizes for superior journalism). And 6 weeks with the Glendive (Montana)
Daily but that was only so that Mona Elizabeth Turkette and I elope, get
married and have our honeymoon paid for, too.
That
also financed my travels to 56 countries and 44 states and more than 30 winters
in Florida (up to 4 months each visit). I married a Cinderella (WV) girl who
gave me a half-century of non-stop love and joy and, after My Mona Lisa passed
away, 16 more years with a former co-worker till she moved permanently to The
Villages, Florida. I’m about as lucky as a coal miner’s son could ever hope to
be.
Don Pitman,
Class of 1962, is from Carolina, married, works at Joy Mining Machinery and
lives in Fairmont.
Retired
teacher Susan Kearns,
Class of 1967, studied at both Fairmont State and WVU and living in Monongah.
There’s a Bernard Kearns, Class of 1937, and a Michele Earhart Kearns,
Class of 1961.
Linda Knobel-Carr,
Class of 1967, worked at Philips (1968-89) and lives in Morgantown. She married
the late Monongah help-everybody-I-can councilman Sanford Carr in 1969. Nancy
Darden is Linda’s sister.
Linda and Sanford’s 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.
Tonia and Bill have been married 21
years. Bill is in Mobile maintenance at First Energy and Tonia works in the Monongah
Water Office. They live in Monongah.
I couldn’t dredge up much information on Catherine Markley,
Class of 1966, although I did find her in a photo with what looked like a lot
of grandchildren.
Colette Stanley Melton,
Class of 1970, is an office manager at United Dairy living in Worthington,
niece of Almira Stanley Murphy, Class of 1945, and Doris Stanley
Urich, Class of 1947. Her father attended Monongah High and received his diploma after
he entered the Army in 1951.
Collette’s
cousin, David Stanley, is Class of 1965. Her sister, JoEllen Stanley, is Class
of 1972 and lives in Harrison County. Another cousin is Keith “Legs” Beckner,
Class of 1942. She once told me: “I enjoy keeping up with your blog about
Monongah alumni.”
Which
is exactly when I spend hour after hour working on the blog, to keep Lions
informed about Lions.
Sherry VanMeter Nicholson,
Class of 1965, is a widow living in Youngstown, Ohio.
Debbie Moore O'Dell,
Class of 1969, married 1966 Shinnston High graduate Robert O’Dell. Their children
are James and O’Dell. Both went to Monongah and North Marion. Debbie and Bob
have lived in Kilarm for a half-century. The children live there, too.
Linda Minnear Lane,
Class of 1970, is from Hutchinson and lives in Winchester, Virginia.
Ernest C. Hayes, Class of 1965,
who prefers to be called Earnie, went from Monongah High to San Bern Valley College,
lives in Colton, California and is into fishing big time. I saw one Earnie
photo with THREE fishing boats attached to and trailing the larger boat they
were swishing through the water!
David Higinbotham
went from Monongah High to studying engineering at Fairmont State and lives in
Greensburg, Pennsylvania. He’s from Carolina and is married. David worked at
Allegheny Energy from 1963 to 2003. He hangs out with Edward Gillis and Terry
Gillis, particularly around their barbeque grill.
Back
to Linda Lopez Gandy, who inspired me to spend days working on this article. Linda was
a sales clerk at Leeds Candy Store and a
beautician at May's Beauty Shop
after studying at Morgantown Beauty College.
Husband Jim Gandy, Class of 1964, is a son of the late Rose Marra
Gandy.
Bernie Fullen,
who in 2016 married Donna McGinnis Suppa-Fullen, widow of Bernie’s best friend,
lives in Shinnston. Bernie is from Carolina.
Pauletta Ellison,
Class of 1969, still lives in Four States as she did while attending Monongah
High. Her friends include Collette Stanley Melton, Cindy Chism, Donna
Ellison Miller and Norma Elaine Ellison.
Patti DeMary Evans,
Class of 1972, who retired as a registered nurse at University Hospital in 2006
(started in 1987), is a 1974 Fairmont State graduate who lives in Fairmont.
She’s been married since 1974 to Brian Evans. Their daughter is Brianna Evans
Wimbish. She’s friends with Patti Steele McCombs and Goldie Huffman.
Janice Dalton Bayne,
Class of 1965, a Publix cashier living in Perry, Georgia. Her children include
Ryan Bayne and Sonya Faber Lawson and there’s a grandson or son named Tyler.
Nancy Riley Basnett,
Class of 1960, a former seal beam employee at Westinghouse,
whose phone number is (304) 677-9092, in case you want to call and wish her a
Merry Lions Christmas.
Last,
but certainly far from least, is Sandra Thompson Barton,
Class of 1967, who is an author, speaker and Bible teacher. Sandy tackled
elementary education, psychology and biblical studies at Northeastern Bible
College, where she was a 1991 graduate. She lives in Beaver Falls,
Pennsylvania, made famous as the birthplace and childhood home of National
Football League and Alabama superstar quarterback Joe Namath.
So,
it’s time for me to say “Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.” As in
“Good night, sure happy I finally finished this article,” although as usual it
was a labor of love and a way to keep my brain from rusting or rotting. Win-win
situation.
So,
ho-ho-ho it up with family and friends which I will be doing at my daughter’s
home in Brunswick, Ohio for about my 80th year of reading “The Night
Before Christmas” to a crowd of children who behave so that, when I finish,
they can attack their presents under the Christmas tree.
It
makes me feel richer than billionaires every year.
Photo montage proof of our 2022 joyful Christmas gathering:
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