Four photos:
Kindergarten – Some of us graduated from Mrs. Whitmire’s private kindergarten class at First United
Methodist Church in spring of 1968. Back row: Jeri Lou Hulsey Calcote, Beverly Cypert, Pam Matthews
Hamilton, Starla Snow Fussell, Marvin Sheward; front row: Deborah Jameson Mathews, Richard Hobbs,
Steven Nelson and Jeanenne Smith Downing.
Composite - Officers were Starla Snow, President; Melissa Price, Vice President; Sarah Givens,
Secretary/Treasurer and Scott Tate, Historian. Others pictured are Mark Anderson, David Beck, Brenda
Billings, Terry Blauser, Barbara Bowman, Brenda Burcham, Glenda Burcham, Jerry Burcham, Mike
Collier, Mark Cook, Beverly Cypert, Robert Davenport, Linda Davis, Robert Elliott, Rhonda Ellis, Johnny
Garcia, Junior Gelnar, Kathy Gifford, Vickie Gordon, Perry Hamilton, Betty Haynes, Doug Hendricks, Ricky
Hobbs, Donna Howard, Jeri Hulsey, Dwayne Hundley, Lori Hunter, Deborah Jameson, David Johnston,
Kerry Kendall, Terry Lane, Paula Lara, Martin Leckie, Russ Leckie, Lisa Lovett, Mike McAlexander, Lynda
McElroy, Kathy McHam, Pam Matthews, Elaine Mills, Steven Nelson, Michelle Nippert, Jeff Norton,
Freddy Pena, Rose Mary Pineda, Shelly Pryor, Debbie Reed, Teresa Ritter, Dion Rodriguez, Barry
Rodgers, Laura Rogers, Jeanenne Smith, Robert Solis, Greg Stehr, Danny Stoll, Brad Stover, Kay
Thompson, Carmen Underhill, Lisa Warlick, Terry Warner, Mark Williamson, Darcia Wilson, Lisa Wyrick.
Senior Trip - Kay Thompson, Jeanenne Smith and Lynda McElroy
From sophomore year - Teacher Zula Mae Krause and Julie Ellis
The Class of 1980 graduated with 67 members, one of the largest at the time. Officers were Starla Snow,
President; Melissa Price, Vice President; Sarah Givens, Secretary/Treasurer and Scott Tate, Historian.
Others pictured are Mark Anderson, David Beck, Brenda Billings, Terry Blauser, Barbara Bowman,
Brenda Burcham, Glenda Burcham, Jerry Burcham, Mike Collier, Mark Cook, Beverly Cypert, Robert
Davenport, Linda Davis, Robert Elliott, Rhonda Ellis, Johnny Garcia, Junior Gelnar, Kathy Gifford, Vickie
Gordon, Perry Hamilton, Betty Haynes, Doug Hendricks, Ricky Hobbs, Donna Howard, Jeri Hulsey,
Dwayne Hundley, Lori Hunter, Deborah Jameson, David Johnston, Kerry Kendall, Terry Lane, Paula Lara,
Martin Leckie, Russ Leckie, Lisa Lovett, Mike McAlexander, Lynda McElroy, Kathy McHam, Pam
Matthews, Elaine Mills, Steven Nelson, Michelle Nippert, Jeff Norton, Freddy Pena, Rose Mary Pineda,
Shelly Pryor, Debbie Reed, Teresa Ritter, Dion Rodriguez, Barry Rodgers, Laura Rogers, Jeanenne Smith,
Robert Solis, Greg Stehr, Danny Stoll, Brad Stover, Kay Thompson, Carmen Underhill, Lisa Warlick, Terry
Warner, Mark Williamson, Darcia Wilson, and Lisa Wyrick.
We started first grade in 1968 in the current Edison building. Our teachers were Miss Foster, Mrs. Askins
and Mrs. McBride. Mr. Patterson was our principal and he let us go to the candy store one day a week,
but some of us would get in trouble for eating it during class. Sherrie Sheppard Kendall remembers Mrs.
Askins made her take off a bracelet because its tinkling bugged her. Mrs. McBride once stapled papers
to a classmate’s shirt to make sure they got home. Miss Foster would tie some of us to our seats with a
belt. She also swatted students with a yardstick in front of the class for minor infractions. We were
marched over to the park for recess. Miss Falk, the vocal music teacher, started this year with us and
directed us in many elementary Christmas programs and high school All School Musicals like Guys and
Dolls and Oklahoma!
Our second grade teachers were Mrs. Doolen, Mrs. Warner and Mrs. Cox. Our new principal was Mr.
Ingle. Several students remember a terrifying fight between Mrs. Doolen and a student. She preferred a
flyswatter instead of a yardstick. Some of the boys started Cub Scouts this year. They were so handsome
in their uniforms! Girls became Brownie Scouts with ugly brown uniforms.
In third grade, we had Mrs. Masoner, Mrs. Stephens and Miss Haught, who became Mrs. Davis over
Christmas break. Our fourth grade teachers were Mrs. Sherrill, Mrs. Norman and Miss Mathis (later Mrs.
Leamon). David Stover joined the class. Dodgeball was a favorite PE activity, but it caused a lot of
injuries. Lynda McElroy Daugherty rejoined the class after leaving in first grade.
In fifth grade, Miss Graham would fall asleep at her desk and some people would throw spitballs at her.
We had spelling bees and Mrs. Leamon taught us to spell Pacific by saying, “Pa see if I see.” Mrs. Clark
taught us math.
Mrs. Underwood taught social studies in sixth grade. She taught us to spell geography by saying this
sentence: “George eats old gray rats at Phil’s house yesterday.” Our English teacher Mrs. Wooldridge
probably wouldn’t have approved the grammar on that one. Mrs. Lovett taught us science and we all
entered projects in the science fair. Beverly Cypert rejoined the class. We remember Indian City in
Anadarko as a destination for one of our end-of-school trips.
Jim Ed Bull was our junior high principal. Melissa Price Mabry remembers getting licks from him after
Barbara Bowman Bouska talked her into skipping school one day. We had Mr. Shaufle for math and he
would entertain us with rhymes like, “If you kiss your honey and her nose is runny, you may think it’s
funny, but it’s snot!” He is also remembered for his exemplary paddling skills. Dwayne Hundley joined us
in 8th grade and remembers having to get his long hair cut. Mrs. Penn taught English, but Martin Leckie
remembers her knocking his glasses off when she gave him licks. They went sliding down the hall.
Melissa Price Mabry remembers Mrs. Penn putting a needle and a spool of thread on her desk,
threatening to sew her mouth shut. Of course, we believed it.
In 9th Grade, Mrs. Lester Snow taught us how to diagram sentences and all the grammar rules had to be
carefully written in marbleized notebooks. Not only did we diagram sentences on paper, but she
required us to verbally diagram a sentence in 60 seconds and used a stopwatch to time us! We had
Kenneth Martin for Algebra and if we answered, “Huh?” to a question. He would say, “Pigs say ‘huh’,
pull their tail and they say ‘uh huh.’ He would also tell us, “Pie are round and cobbler are square.” Mike
Collier joined the class. Martin and Russ Leckie re-joined us, too. They first came to Mangum in 6th
grade, left for junior high and came back to finish high school.
Sophomore year, Mr. Gilbert was our principal and Mr. Sparks, vice principal. Miss Becky McDaniel was
our home economics teacher. She brought in a guy from Max Factor to teach us how to apply makeup.
When we went to OKC for FHA conferences, she would take us to nice restaurants to reinforce good
table manners and expose us to some “culture.” Those who took art remember Mr. Jones playing Led
Zepplin to get the inspiration flowing. We had Mrs. Zula Mae Krause for English (nickname GodZula) and
gave her fits. We were allowed to recite a poem of our choosing and some selections performed were
just not suitable for the classroom! Coach Russ taught geometry and we were clueless. We had to
memorize all the theorems for one exam.
Mrs. Norma Edwards (Yoder) was our sophomore English teacher. We remember Frito pies in the bag
and hot Dr. Pepper at football games. Mr. Hooper was our new band director and we did a half-time
show in the dark. Some students built a UFO out of a riding lawn mower, Jeri Hulsey twirled a fire baton
and the band played Close Encounters of the Third Kind. We also played Rocky and Star Wars themes
that year.
We lost classmate Lonzo Cody in an accident the summer before our senior year. That year, Mrs. Austin
taught Spanish, instructing calisthenics in that language and assigning students Hispanic names to use in
class while playing Billy Joel records. Mrs. Yoder taught speech and always kept us under control. Our
class chant was, “Sexy guys and foxy ladies, we’re the class of 1980!” Mike Collier entertained at the
prom with a comedy routine based on Saturday Night Live, one of our favorite TV shows.
Other favorite TV shows included Sonny & Cher,Wonderful World of Disney, Brady Bunch, Partridge
Family, Happy Days, Mork & Mindy, Donny & Marie, Bonanza, The Waltons and our senior year, the
show Dallas, ended with the Who shot JR? episode.
Our taste In music was all over the place -- Billy Joel, Led Zeppelin, Bee Gees, Eagles, Rod Stewart,
Aerosmith, Lynard Skinner, Steve Miller Band, Fleetwood Mac and Foreigner, Rolling Stones, Heart
Queen, AC/DC, The Who and Village People.
Star Wars opened at the Linn Theater during high school and stayed for 6 weeks. We went to see it
every week. Other favorite movies we remember are Grease, Smokey and the Bandit, Saturday Night
Fever and Amityville Horror.
When we were in high school, the drag was up and down North Louis Tittle. Starting from Lincoln Street,
we would drive all the way down to the Tastee Freeze to loop around and go back, turning around on
the east side of the armory. Tastee Freeze root beer floats were the best! Before sophomore year, the
drag was extended when the Pizza Hut and Sonic were built. The Pizza Hut parking lot became both a
new hangout and a turnaround spot. A loop around Sonic to see who was there was a must.
At Alumni Initiation, girls remember being doused with sour milk and raw eggs. We had to be hosed off!
Guys remember the infamous paddle line. Our class parents were Steve and Donna York. We went to
South Padre Island and Six Flags over Texas on our senior trip. We started fundraising with a fireworks
stand out by the brick plant. Another fundraiser was painting the stockyards fence with a bright orange
toxic paint that ate right through our clothes and shoes.
The Class of 1980 will get together Saturday, May 23rd, in the city park beginning about 11 am for a
hamburger cookout.