The loud, crowded choir room was abuzz with activity as students chatted amongst themselves and prepared for class. Teacher Ethan Chessin instructed them to gather in a circle and the classmates proceeded to share interesting tidbits of information about themselves.
Some students in Washougal were welcomed back to brand new buildings when the school year began last week.
The year was 1957. U.S. Surgeon General Leroy Burney linked smoking with lung cancer. Russia launched Sputnik I, and Leif Svendsen, Camas High School’s first exchange student, spent the year as a Papermaker. Flash-forward six decades and Svendsen is heading back to Camas to attend his 60th class reunion. This Saturday, Svendsen will serve as co-master of ceremonies for the reunion, along with his former classmate, Linda Freeman-Westfall.
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I — I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
It’s not uncommon to change career paths as a millennial, but this trend isn’t limited to those from younger generations.
Tom West was so talented at coloring contests in elementary school that teachers moved him into more challenging competitions so other students had the opportunity to win.
Although it seems like school just let out for the summer, local educators are already shifting their focus to the first day in September.
When Josh and Wendy Smith use the phrase, “Everyone needs a forever home,” it’s not something they say lightly.
With the long, cold winter just a distant memory, outdoor concerts will soon return to Crown Park.
