Woodrow Wilson High School Alumni Update - August, 2016
http://www.wilsonalumni.com
edited by Linda Doyle

SCHOOL NEWS

MUSIC TEACHER, JEANNE BERG, RETIRES WITH 37-YEAR CAREER

Thank you, Jeanne and congratulations! Click on this link to read more about Jeanne and her wonderful career with students at Robert Gray Middle School.

WILSON HOUSE PARTIES, OCTOBER 15
The Wilson Foundation is again hosting "house parties" to raise funds for our current and future students. The Wilson House Parties will be held on October 15, 2016. All alumnae (or community members) interested in attending a house party (or hosting one) should please contact Valeurie Friedman (valeurie@gmail.com) or Linda Venti (Lventi@realtytrust.com) for more information. Proceeds benefit the Wilson Foundation so that we can provide more class offerings and, thus, smaller class sizes.

WILSON SCHOLARSHIP INITIATIVE REUNION CHALLENGE!
Classes of 1959, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1971, 1976, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2006
As you join together this summer to celebrate your high school years, why not make a difference for current Wilson students by including a Scholarship Donation Drive?  Challenge the other reunion classes to make the largest donation to the Scholarship Initiative.  Whip up that Trojan competitive spirit and help us realize our $50,000+ goal to establish a fund with Oregon Community Foundation that will provide scholarships in perpetuity.  Read about the Wilson Scholarship Initiative on the Wilson website:  http://www.pps.k12.or.us/schools/wilson/. Contact:  Sue Stahl  sstahl@pps.net

Put your class on the graph, donate today!

*donations in dollars already made by class year

How do I make a tax deductible contribution?
Send a check made out to Wilson Scholarship Initiative, Wilson High School, 1151 Vermont St., Portland 97219, Attn: Wilson Scholarship Fund; or call Wilson bookkeeper, Ana Curtis, at (503) 916-5280 x75374, to make a donation using a credit card.

UPCOMING EVENTS

ANNUAL MEL KRAUSE TOURNAMENT ... SEPTEMBER 12
The PIL HOF Annual Mel Krause Tournament will be held September 12, 2016 at Broadmoor. Follow this link for the most up-to-date information on the event:2016_PIL.HOF.Golf.Brochure_FINAL



WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

WILSON GRADUATE 2013 ... HARVARD GRADUATE 2016

Congratulations to Henry Li '13 for being awarded an undergraduate joint degree in History and Literature and East Asian Studies from Harvard in June 2016. Congratulations to his parents, Hongzeng Li and Wei Jiang. While at Harvard, Henry received the Borden Beck Scholarship, established in memory of the leading recruiter of Harvard applicants from Oregon for thirty years, was established by donations from local donors.  The scholarship is presented annually to a first-year student, who will speak at the luncheon about the experiences of first-year students from the Northwest at Harvard.  He was also presented with the Joseph L. Barrett Award by the Bureau of Study Counsel. The award commemorates Joseph L. Barrett ’73, by honoring exceptional students who generously give their time to support their peers in developing more meaningful college experiences. Well done, Henry!

2015 ROWING TO SUCCESS

2015 Wilson Alum Alicia Evans was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year in Rowing. Alicia is a freshman at the University of Wisconsin and her major is pharmaceutical science/nutrition. Read more here. Her parents are Sally and Steve Evans and her older brother and Wilson grad Michael Evans '11 rowed at the University of Washington for four years. Well done, Alicia!


1965 GRADS COMPETE AGAINST WILSON STUDENTS IN DRAGON BOAT RACES
Carol Stowell '65 posted on Facebook on June 12, 2016, "I just finished the Rose Festival Dragon Boat Races and my team the Golden Dragons (average 65) had to race against the Wilson High team. There are 4 people on my team that graduated from Wilson. ('64, '65, and 2 in '66) we told them that and they could not believe that we were racing them."

DAVID GILKEY 1985 KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN
David Gilkey, an award-winning American photojournalist for National Public Radio, died June 5, 2016 along with his Afghan translator after the Taliban ambushed them in southern Afghanistan, according to multiple news sources, including NPR. He was 50. “We lost our friend and colleague David Gilkey, along with NPR’s Afghan interpreter and fellow journalist Zabihullah Tamanna, in Afghanistan on Sunday,” NPR wrote Monday in a post on Facebook. “David’s moving images went beyond the news to capture the struggles and perseverance of the people who lived it.” In a news statement, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry offered his condolences. Gilkey “was more than a gifted photographer,” Kerry said. “He was a gifted storyteller, who understood the power of imagery to enhancing the power of understanding. He will be sorely missed.” Gilkey, of Portland, Oregon, studied journalism at Oregon State University. He began his career working for newspapers, including overseas assignments for Knight Ridder, according to his NPR biography. He also worked for the Detroit Free Press until 2007, the year he joined NPR as a staff photographer and video editor. He covered national as well as international news for the organization. He received a number of awards throughout his journalism career. In 2004, he was named Michigan Photographer of the Year by the Michigan Press Photographers Association. Three years later, he won a national Emmy for the video series “Band of Brothers,” which focused on a group of Marines from Michigan in Iraq. And he worked on NPR’s investigation titled “Brain Wars: How the Military is Failing the Wounded,” which received a George Polk Award in 2010. Read more at: http://www.npr.org/2016/06/06/480866035/remembering-photojournalist-david-gilkey. http://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2011/03/01/134141475/whnpa.http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/06/world/asia/david-gilkey-zabihullah-tamanna-npr-afghanistan-taliban.html.

NEWEST NOVEL BY 1960 GRAD
Brian Ratty's newest novel, Vogage of Atonement, inspired by actual events "is a fresh as today's headlines and as true as yesterday's sins." According to Sunset Lake Publishing's Press Release, regional author Brian Ratty announced today the release of his fifth book in his series of adventure stories. Voyage of Atonement is a historical fiction story with strong tie-ins to Northwest and Astoria Oregon. ‘In turbulent 1963, two war buddies turn their sailboat from the Columbia River to the Pacific, and start an assignment of photographing war relics for a documentary. Both men are survivors of Japanese prison camps and suffer many unseen scars of WWII. Rich in atmosphere and characters, Voyage of Atonement, sails across the Pacific with the fury of a typhoon. On the remote islands of Tahiti, these sea scavengers stumble across a mysterious entombed U-boat with a cargo of Nazi gold. When that tainted treasure is exposed, it triggers vicious reactions from a secret group of former Nazi SS members (ODESSA) and the country of Israel. These clashing interests quickly turn their discovery into an international tug-of-war with deadly consequences. Will the scavengers do the right thing, or are they destined to pay a fatal price for their lost treasure?’ “The author takes you on an unforgettable voyage of reconciliation... Voyage of Atonement is truly a captivating piece of historical fiction... brilliantly written and an impressive read.”5-stars: Readers' Favorite. Brian Ratty is a retired media executive and graduate of Brooks Institute of Photography. He and his wife, Tess, live on the north Oregon Coast, where he writes and photographs that rugged and majestic region. Other novels by Brian Ratty include: The Early Years, The War Years, Destination Astoria and Tillamook Passage. For more information on Brian’s books: www.Dutchclarke.com Voyage of Atonement (ISBN: 978-0-692-45428-2) 390 pages, paperback and e-book. This new book can be found at many fine bookstores, libraries and at: www.Amazon.com. For more information on this press release: Sunset Lake Publishing 89637 Lakeside Ct. Warrenton, OR 97146 Phone: 503.717.1125 Brian@Dutchclarke.com.

SHARE YOUR STORY
Send us the details on where/what you have been doing since graduating from Wilson, and we'll post in an upcoming WWHS Alumni Update e-newsletter.  Send details to Linda Doyle.


IN MEMORY OF

KNOWN CLASSMATES/TEACHERS NO LONGER WITH US
Please send an email with details to Linda Doyle if you have an obituary that should be posted here.  Below is a list of classmates who have just been added to the list:

Carol Ewing Miller ‘61
Robbie Beasley Class of 97 (unconfirmed)
David Gilkey '85
Linda Louise Richards (Lonero) '65
Judy Ann Nelson '65


Click on this link to read more about classmates, teachers, community members who have passed away...  Once on the page, scroll down to find the class year.

UPCOMING REUNIONS 2016
CLASS OF 1965 ... 51st reunion, August 13 2016
CLASS OF 1966 ... 50th reunion, September 24, 2016
CLASS OF 1971 ... 45th reunion, September 24, 5 - 9 p.m
CLASS OF 2006 ... 10th reunion, September 24, 2016

...ALREADY HELD THIS SUMMER 2016
CLASS OF 1959 ... July 23, 2016
CLASS OF 1961 ... July 15, 2016. Check out their: http://s50.photobucket.com/user/DougPetersWilsonHS/library/
CLASS OF 1976 ... August 6, 2016
CLASS OF 1991 ... July 30, 2016
CLASS OF 1996 ... August 5-6, 2016

2017 REUNION
CLASS OF 1967 ... 50th reunion in 2017 ... August 4, 2017

GET ALL THE DETAILS about upcoming reunions at: http://www.wilsonalumni.com/reunions.htm



MILITARY SERVICE

WILSON GRADUATES WHO HAVE SERVED OR ARE SERVING IN THE MILITARY

Please check out the WWHS Military Alumni page and read all about our amazing military graduates. To add your name and information to the WWHS Military page, Send your information to Linda Doyle at LSDOYLE@EARTHLINK.NET.

Name:
Year graduated from Wilson:
Military branch:
Years of service:
Service description:
Photo (optional):
Do you give permission to post this information on our website (required):

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION UPDATE

NEW WWHS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
Alumni and community members are continuing to move forward to establish the WWHS Alumni Association.  Application process for tax-exempt status of association is progressing (with special thanks to Jack Bertell '58).  If you would like to join them, contact Jack Bertell '58.

STAY IN TOUCH

WWHS ALUMNI - WEBSITE
Check out the WWHS Alumni website and don't forget to complete the simple online form to join the WWHS Alumni database. To help us reach as many graduates as possible, please consider adding the link to our website (http://www.wilsonalumni.com/) from your website. Pass the word along to your Wilson High School classmates about the Wilson High School Alumni website and the opportunity to register. Tell your friends.

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