OLD ALLENSPARK SCHOOL REUNION JULY 31st - AUGUST 2nd 2009 NEWTON FAMILY Hi David, Talk about the proverbial blast from the past, this has to be it. I have enjoyed reading about everyone on the website, it helped bring back many memories I had long forgotten. We only lived in Allenspark roughly two years, 1964 to 1966. My stepfather’s parents, Don & Helen Newton, owned & operated “Ferncliff Guest Ranch”, and we lived in a cabin at the foot of their mountain. If I recall correctly, it was the same cabin the Sheppards lived in when they first moved to AP. Jimmy only attended kindergarten at the old school, Mrs. Rule was his teacher. Their class consisted of him, and Daniel & Lynn Sheppard. My experience was for 5th. & 6th. grade only. I remember Mrs. Hartford and Miss Clark, but I don’t recall which years each taught? I remember Mrs. Hartford taking us down to her place to make Christmas cookies. She was quite a character as I remember. Miss Clark was the “young cool” recent college graduate. I remember her taking us down to her little cabin for lunch sometimes, and introducing us to her cat. I remember her being an avid skier. She married one of the Donahue boys, ( a summer family) and moved to Canada. I remember roasting hot dogs and marshmallows in the school fireplace, and just once being allowed to ride one of the horses from the ranch to school. I brought a “burrito” one day for lunch, and Mrs. Hartford took it as an opportunity to teach us all a little Spanish. She was quite fluent, (I even remember that her sister married the Hispanic handyman they employed, I think to get him a green card) & told us that it meant “little donkey”. Well, I never lived that down, & got teased for what seemed like forever by you, the Walter boys, and Randy Korropp, following me around the playground making “heehaw” noises. Silly boys. I remember music lessons in a tiny cabin across the street, playing an angel in a Christmas play, (talk about arch-type casting), you, Debbie & Leslie bringing what seemed like 100’s of stuffed animals for show & tell. Many more memories have returned, but these stand out most for me. In the summer of 1966, we moved to Denver, (Thornton) where I lived until I married my highschool sweetheart in 1975. I attended UNC for my freshman year, living in Snyder Hall. You went there too, right? I finally convinced my mother that being a teacher was her dream, not mine, and moved home & began pursuing a nursing career. Took what was supposed to be a short break to work two jobs to put my ex through school, and never got to go back. He & I and our two children, Christopher, born 1977, and Shannon, born 1978, moved to Arizona in 1980, and divorced one year later. We lost Chris to cancer 6 years ago. My daughter married last summer, and is living in Syracuse NY, pursuing her law degree. After my divorce, I moved to Hawaii, where my brother Jimmy was living. I worked in an art gallery, and then handled Merchant Relations at City Bank’s charge card center. I returned to Colorado in early 1983, for what was to have been an extended visit of about 6 months. Family health issues, and meeting my current spouse, kept me here for 26 years now. We live in Arvada, and have our own business in Commerce City. It’s a commercial millwork and cabinet shop, and we are celebrating our 19th. year in business. We have two teenage boys, Jordan almost 19, and Dylan almost 17. Jordan hopes to break into the music business, he is a gifted sound technician and computer whiz. He is currently working for Rhino Productions. Dylan is diligently pursuing his goal to graduate highschool a year early. He wants to design video games. No grandbabies yet, but I’m in no hurry! We like to travel and ride our Harley through the mountains, and I am passionate about cooking and baseball. My dream would be to have a B&B or small restaurant, somewhere in Arizona. Maybe when (or if) I get to retire. About 19 years ago, when I was pregnant with Jordan, I took my older two on a day trip to Allenspark. They never believed I attended a 2 room school! We stopped at Mrs. Rule’s Glacier View and I got to visit with her for quite a while. I think that was the last year she had the stand. I also had a great visit with Cecil Sinn, she was a wealth of information on everything and everyone. She was such a lovely and gracious woman. She still had an old address book with our phone number from nearly 30 years before! I still think the highway they put in is a travesty and an eyesore! Allenspark was never quite the same. As I said before, we moved to Denver in 1966. My parents, Jim & Marilyn, divorced in 1969. Mom and Bonnie Sheppard graduated together with teaching degrees from CU in the mid seventies. My mom is semi-retired, lives in south Denver, and is still working as a substitute teacher. Jimmy’s dad remarried two more times, became a born-again pastor, and passed away a few years ago in Iowa. He was not really a part of our lives after the late seventies. Jimmy graduated from Thornton High School in 1978, and moved to Hawaii in 1979, working primarily in the vacation ownership industry. He moved to New York in 1983, and married in 1986, divorced in 1989. No children, but he loves his two dogs!! He then moved back to Denver in 1990. He works in the cabinet & millwork field, and does carpentry. My mom turned 75 this year. Jim lives with her to help her maintain her home and independence and keeps her company. I know he keeps in random contact with Daniel Sheppard. Well, this was quite the trip down memory lane. We will not be able to attend the reunion, but it sounds like you all put together a spectacular event!! Please tell Leslie & Debbie hello for me. Hope you all have a wonderful time!! reunion home