Dick and I got married November 6^th 1954 and moved to Homestead, Florida the next month. We are still in Homestead as of now, but that will soon change, as I will explain later. Dick got a job building the "indestructible" homes in Leisure City, where we lived and I worked as a receptionist in the office.

I have also worked as a bookkeeper for local packing-houses and even worked as a waitress and barmaid in the 1960’s.

For the most part, I stayed home to raise our only child, son Rick, who was born April 7^th 1956. We are so proud of Rick. He never gave us any trouble. His teacher in 3^rd grade said he was reading college level. He was always an honor student. In seventh grade he took up the saxophone and went on to win the only Louie Armstrong Jazz Award in Florida and made All State on the sax. Later on when he was in his teens, he played in Big Bands with men who played in bands like Glen Miller, Artie Shaw and the Dorseys. He was compared to Herbie Mann on the flute.

Rick attended the University of Florida for two years and on a summer break, he took a Real Estate course. He ended up owning his own Real Estate business at age 21 and had it for 20 years in Homestead. He now owns Elite Properties on Marco Island. Rick married Leslie Petterson, who happens to be from Chicago. She is a Dental Hygienist. They have been married 16 years and have one son, Ricky who will be eight years old in this year. Ricky is following in his father’s footsteps and is extremely bright, with an IQ of 159.

Ricky and his family moved to Naples two years ago. We miss them so much that we have decided to build a home on the Isles of Capri, a small island in Naples. I learned about the island through Donna Casey-Cushing. Donna, Barbara Baker Hill and I went to lunch on the island at a place called Pelican Bend. It was on the water and we had fun reliving our past school days. I fell in love with the area. Our home should be ready to move into sometime in September, so we will not be attending the reunion. I’m in the antique business and also am a collector. Needless to say, I have a lot of packing to do.

My husband Dick was in the welding business for 20 years, but after Hurricane Andrew hit, his shop was demolished and he retired.

Hurricane Andrew was the most horrible experience of our lives. Our home survived other than broken windows and water damage, but the month of August in Florida without water and electricity was unbearable. We had to rely on the Army and the Red Cross for food and supplies. Also, there was no way to secure your home, so there was a lot of looting and crime.

We are now looking forward to living on a beautiful island. Our home will be a 2-story Key West style with top and bottom porches. We think we’ll have fantastic views of the whole island and the Gulf of Mexico.

My likes are antiquing, gardening, and everything to do with the water. Can’t wait to move to our new home, and put all these likes to work!

I really would love to see all of you, but will have to be with you in spirit.