Douglas High Alumni News Letter
Fffff
Publisher Ed Grensky Volume No. I
Dienna Parret Gervasi
This is a reminder for those that are
able; Dienna will be at the Sutherlin
Blackberry Festival Saturday &
Sunday the 15th & 16th of Aug. She
has a booth selling jewelry.
Newsletter Information
If anyone would like to write a column for
this newsletter or submit a periodic post to
this newsletter, contact Ed at
ed_tonya@msn.com
The only restriction is it must be rated as
suitable for family reading.
Web Page Information
On the main page of the web site, there are
three areas you can go to, to check your
classmates. I find the best place to go is
“View Class Directory” under the world
glob on the right. Why? Its easy to find, and
it give you at a glance who is missing and
the city they live in right off the bat.
Our web site has had 1,537 hits so far,
approximately 100 since our reunion last
Saturday. The classes for Douglas High start
in 1950 on this site and go through 2009,
there is no site but ours that has more than
83 hits, and the only DHS web site with a
BEST SITE AWARD.
Issue No. 8 Date 8/15/09
Paula Meredith Bennet Aug. 17
Just For Laughs
A man feared his wife wasn't hearing as well
as she used to and he thought
she might need a hearing aid.. Not quite sure
how to approach her, he called
the family Doctor to discuss the problem.
The Doctor told him there is a simple
informal test the husband could perform
to give the Doctor a better idea about her
hearing loss.
Here's what you do," said the Doctor, "stand
about 40 feet away from her,
and in a normal conversation speaking tone
see if she hears you.
If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on
until you get a response."
That evening, the wife is in the kitchen
cooking dinner, and he was in the den.
He says to himself, "I'm about 40 feet away,
let's see what happens." Then in
a normal tone he asks, 'Honey, what's for
dinner?"
No response.
So the husband moves closer to the kitchen,
about 30 feet from his wife and repeats,
"Honey, what's for dinner?"
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Still no response.
Next he moves into the dining room where
he is about 20 feet from his wife and
asks, "Honey, what's for dinner?"
Again he gets no response.
So, he walks up to the kitchen door, about
10 feet away. "Honey, what's for dinner?"
Again there is no response.
So he walks right up behind her. "Honey,
what's for dinner?"
(I just love this)
"Ralph, for the FIFTH time, CHICKEN!"
Reunion Photo’s
Fifty of the many photo’s taken at
the reunion are now posted on the
web site. Go to the following link to
view.
http://www.classreport.org/usa/or/
winston/dhs/1969/
For those of you that may not know,
you can save the web site link above
in your favorites. This way you won’t
forget it nor do you have to type it in
each time you want to go to the site.
There are a lot of photos out there
not being shared with your
classmates, please send them to me
via email, and I will post them for
everyone to see. ed_tonya@msn.com
Reunion Committee
Reported by Ed Grensky
Many thank you emails are still coming
in for the job well done by the reunion
committee, also emails asking for
reunion photos to be posted for those
that were not able to attend, I’m sure we
all appreciated those classmates that
came such a distance to be with us. I
hope everybody will use the email
addresses in the reunion booklet to stay
in touch, and also use the web site’s
Class Message Board, like Kathy
Wagner (Story) did; check it out.
By the emails I have received, there is
an interest in having our next reunion in
5 years, and a picnic during each
summer in between. As I said I would
get together with members of the
reunion committee between the last
newsletter and this one, and report on
what the plans were for the future. It
was decided to add a poll to the web
site to find out how much interest there
was for the different plans. To place
your vote go to the web site’s main
page, scroll down and on the right side
you will find the pole titled Next
Reunion Interest Pole, make your
choice known. Also be sure to keep your
web page up to date as to your contact
information, the reunion committee will
need this to inform you of upcoming
events or notices. We are still looking for
missing classmates, which you can find
a list of in your current reunion booklet.
As reported in the last newsletter, Buddy
Sullivan is diseased. Be sure to change
the code from “M” to “D” in your reunion
booklet on the email address page.
Future Reunion
Suggestions
The reunion committee members that were
contacted, agreed there should be a pole
taken as to the interest of classmates for the
proposed reunion suggestions below.
1. A picnic held on Aug. 1st every year
for the next 9 years, with a big 50th
reunion in 10 years.
OR
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 2. A picnic on Aug. 1st for the next 4
years, a jet boat dinner cruse from
Grants Pass in 5 years, picnics on
years 6-9 and a big 50th.
Please go to the web site and place your
vote, I will run the poll for 2 weeks and give
the results in the Aug. 29th newsletter.
Newsletter Name Change
Note the name change of this newsletter
from “Douglas High School News Letter”
Too “Douglas High Alumni News Letter”.
After all, this newsletter does not represent
Douglas High School, only the 69 alumni.
If your not interested in reading the
Christian information below, I hope you
will at least go to the next segment, and
read A lesson of Life, a great story.
If you have put on the whole armor of God
or read the last newsletter, you will
understand this statement: "...there are few
who find it." - Mt 7:14
Just when it seemed to have cooled off,
the topic of hell is back on the front
burner—at least for pastors learning to
preach about a topic most Americans
would rather not talk about.
Only 59 percent of Americans believe in
hell, compared with 74 percent who
believe in heaven, according to the recent
surveys from the Pew Forum on Religion
and Public Life.
“I think it’s such a difficult and important
biblical topic,” said Kurt Selles, director of
the Global Center at Samford University’s
Beeson Divinity School. “There’s a big
change that’s taken place as far as
evangelicals not wanting to be as
exclusive.”
At the recent annual Beeson Pastors
School, Selles led two workshops to
discuss “Whatever happened to hell?” He
asked how many of the pastors had ever
preached a sermon on hell. Nobody had,
he said.
“I think it’s something people want to
avoid,” he said. “I understand why. It’s a
difficult topic.”
The Rev. Fred Johns, pastor of Brookview
Wesleyan Church in Irondale, Ala., said
after a workshop discussion of hell that
pastors do shy away from the topic of
everlasting damnation.
“It’s out of fear we’ll not appear relevant,”
he said. “It’s pressure from the culture to
not speak anything negative. I think we’ve
begun to deny hell. There’s an assumption
that everybody’s going to make it to
heaven somehow.”
The soft sell on hell reflects an
increasingly market-conscious approach,
Selles said.
“When you’re trying to market Jesus,
sometimes there’s a tendency to mute
traditional Christian symbols,” he said.
“Difficult doctrines are left by the wayside.
Hell is a morally repugnant doctrine.
People wonder why God would send
people to eternal punishment.”
Speakers said the seriousness of Jesus
dying for man’s sins relates to the gravity
of salvation vs. damnation, according to
Johns. “If you don’t mention God’s
judgment, you are missing a big part of
the Christian gospel,” Selles said.
“Without wrath, there’s no grace.”
Pope John Paul II stirred up a debate in
1999 by describing hell as “the state of
those who freely and definitely separate
themselves from God, the source of all life
and joy.”
Although the pope was reflecting official
Roman Catholic teaching, some U.S.
evangelicals expressed misgivings about
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the implication that hell is an abstract
separation from God rather than a literal
lake of fire as described in the Book of
Revelation.
The pope’s comments on hell stirred up
the ancient debate about whether hell is a
real place of burning fire or a state of
mind reflecting a dark, cold emptiness and
distance from God.
Evangelical Christians have traditionally
offered a sterner view of salvation and
damnation. A Southern Baptist Home
Mission Board study in 1993 estimated
that 70 percent of all Americans are going
to hell, based on projected numbers of
those who have not had a born-again
experience.
In translating the Bible from Hebrew to
Greek, the Greeks used the terms
Tartarus, Hades and Gehenna. In Greek
thought, Hades is not a place of
punishment; it’s where the dead are
separated from the living.
The term Gehenna referred to a ravine
outside Jerusalem that was used as a
garbage dump. It had once been a place
of child sacrifice and became a symbol of
pain and suffering, Selles said. As a
garbage dump, it was probably often a
place of fire as trash was burned,
emphasizing the symbolism of the flames
of eternal damnation, he said.
Jesus never soft-pedaled the concept of
hell, Selles said. “It’s not metaphorical in
Jesus’ mind; it’s a real place,” he said.
In 410 A.D., St. Augustine defined four
states of afterlife: those so good they go
to heaven; those so bad they go to hell;
those who deserve some relief in their
eternal torment; and those who deserve
to be lifted out of torment after repenting
for their sins. That set the stage for the
doctrine of purgatory in 1237 A.D.
The Bible contains a litany of colorful
images of hell as both fire and darkness,
as in the Gospel of Matthew, which refers
to “the eternal fire prepared for the devil
and his angels” and “the outer darkness”
where “men will weep and gnash their
teeth.”
Either way, Selles said, pretending that
hell doesn’t exist, or trying to preach
around it, short-circuits the Bible.
“This is a doctrine, a teaching, that’s being
neglected in churches,” Selles said. “It
needs to be preached. It’s part of the
Gospel.”
I’m going to tell you a personal true
story about my Dad’s death.
I could barely tell this story at my dad’s
funeral service. In the last few weeks of
my dad’s life I spent up to 12 hours a day
by his side, it was during the last couple
of days he was laying in bed, eyes closed,
and out of nowhere he said “Jesus can I
walk with you” as clear as a bell, you just
knew he was looking at Jesus when he
asked the question. On Feb 12, 2009 at
about 10 am I leaned over and told my
dad not to be afraid, that he could go. My
dad opened his eyes for the first time that
morning; he smiled, closed his eyes and
passed on.
You might ask why I shared this story
with you? I consider all my classmates
family, and therefore I’m motivated to see
that you understand time is short; its
possible you may not live through the
day. The decision or choice you make in
accepting Jesus as your personal savior is
sealed at your death; your decision
making is over, you will find yourself in
Heaven or hell, its as simple as that.
You say but I’ve been a good person all
my life, in some ways, yes, but we are all
sinners. Revelation 3:14-22
19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.
So be earnest, and repent. 20 Here I am! I
stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears
my voice and opens the door, I will come in
and eat with him, and he with me. 21 To him
who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with
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me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat
down with my Father on his throne.
The Bible might seem like a bunch of stories that
are disjointed, but I assure you they are all tied
together. The New Testament is in the Old
Testament concealed, and the Old Testament is
in the New Testament revealed.
Don’t wait any longer; you have a
decision to make.
A lesson of life
Friends,
Take the time and effort to read to
the end.
Read the following and have a GREAT day!
I was at the corner grocery store buying
some early potatoes. I noticed a small
boy, delicate of bone and feature, ragged
but clean, hungrily apprising a basket of
freshly picked green peas.
I paid for my potatoes but was also drawn
to the display of fresh green peas.. I am a
pushover for creamed peas and new
potatoes.
Pondering the peas, I couldn't help
overhearing the conversation between Mr.
Miller (the store owner) and the ragged
boy next to me.
'Hello Barry, how are you today?'
'H'lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus'
admirin' them peas. They sure look
good.'
'They are good, Barry. How's your Ma?'
'Fine.. Gittin' stronger alla' time.'
'Good. Anything I can help you with?'
'No, Sir. Jus' admirin' th em peas.'
'Would you like to take some
home?' asked Mr. Miller.
'No, Sir. Got nuthin' to pay for 'em with.'
'Well, what have you to trade me for some
of those peas?'
'All I got's my prize marble here.'
'Is that right? Let me see it' said Miller.
'Here 'tis.. She's a dandy.'
'I can see that. Hmm mmm, only thing is
this one is blue and I sort of go for red.
Do you have a red one like this at home?'
the store owner asked.
'Not zackley but almost.'
'Tell you what. Take this sack of peas
home with you and next trip this way let
me look at that red marble'. Mr. Miller told
the boy.
'Sure will. Thanks Mr. Miller.'
Mrs. Miller, who had been standing
nearby, came over to help me.
With a smile she said, 'There are two
other boys like him in our community, all
three are in very poor circumstances. Jim
just loves to bargain with them for peas,
apples, tomatoes, or whatever.
When they come back with their red
marbles, and they always do, he decides
he doesn't like red after all and he sends
them home with a bag of produce for a
green marble or an orange one, when
they come on their next trip to the store.'
I left the store smiling to myself,
impressed with this man. A short time
later I moved to Colorado , but I never
forgot the story of this man, the boys, and
their bartering for marbles.
Several years went by, each more rapid
than the previous one. Just recently I had
occasion to visit some old friends in that
Idaho community and while I was there
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 learned that Mr. Miller had died. They measured by the breaths we take, but by
were having his visitation that evening the moments that take our breath.
and knowing my friends wanted to go, I
agreed to accompany them. Upon arrival
at the mortuary we fell into line to meet
the relatives of the deceased and to offer
whatever words of comfort we could.

Ahead of us in line were three young men.

In Closing
I would like to say how much it meant to
One was in an army uniform and the other
me to see a few of my old friends from
two wore nice haircuts, dark suits and
High School, it’s a time and feeling we will
white shirts...all very professional looking.
They approached Mrs. Miller, standing never recapture.
composed and smiling by her husband's
The reunion was far too short in my
casket.
opinion; I look forward to our annual
picnics.
Each of the young men hugged her, kissed
her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her
Please help me keep this newsletter alive
and moved on to the casket. Her misty
and interesting; you can do this by
light blue eyes followed them as, one by
submitting stories about yourself or others
one, each young man stopped briefly and
during our high school years, favorite
placed his own warm hand over the cold
poems, books, etc.
pale hand in the casket. Each left the
mortuary awkwardly, wiping his eyes.
So until next weekend may God bless you
and your family.
Our turn came to meet Mrs. Miller. I told
her who I was and reminded her of the
Ed
story from those many years ago and
what she had told me about her husband's
bartering for marbles. With her eyes
glistening, she took my hand
and led me to the casket.

'Those three young men who just left

were the boys I told you about.

They just told me how they appreciated

the things Jim 'traded' them. Now, at last,
when Jim could not change his mind about
color or size....they came to pay their
debt.'

'We've never had a great deal of the

wealth of this world,' she confided, 'but
right now, Jim would consider himself the
richest man in Idaho ..'

With loving gentleness she lifted the

lifeless fingers of her deceased husband.
Resting underneath were three exquisitely
shined red marbles.

The Moral :
We will not be remembered by our words,
but by our kind deeds. Life is not