School Memories
I suppose the main memory I have from my SPHS days, was singing in the Sophomore Assembly. Someone, as a joke, dared me to try out for the assembly. When I told my mother what I was going to do, she asked me what I was going to do as a tryout. When I told her that I was going to sing, she laughed.
I would not have done it had it not been for Sharon Somers (sp). Sharon was the accompanist for the school choir, and she encouraged me even to the point of offering to play for me. I went to the music store and bought the record of Robert Merrill (of the Metropolitan Opera) singing "The Whiffenpoof Song"; a favorite of mine. After learning the song and rehearsing it until I was blue in the face, the big day came and dressed in an ill-fitting tuxedo, I heard Buzz Ragatz announce my name and what I was going to do. I can remember the reactions of the audience to this announcement and it almost caused me to run from the stage in total fear; but I did not. I stepped in front of the curtain, nodded at Sharon, and began to sing. After the song, that same audience that had razzed me applauded me, and I felt like I was on top of the world. It was a turning point in my life and an experience from which I learned many of life's lessons. I will never forget it.