My family moved to McFarland in the summer of 1962. Initially, we lived across the tracks, but a couple of years later we moved to the West side of town, living at first on Harlow Street and later on Davis Avenue. I volunteered at the library (now known as the Clara Jackson library.) I was fascinated by World War 2..Ms Jackson eventually made me read a classic book for every War book that I read. My uncle, Walter Smith, owned a gas station on the east side, and during my high school summers I worked there. 1967 was the height of the Vietnam war...and as a soon to be graduating senior, everyone had 3 choices...go to college, go to work in Agriculture, or go into the Military. I was the first person to ever graduate high school. I wanted to enlist...mom and dad did not want me to go...and I got a $50.00 book scholarship to attend Bakersfield College. I told dad I needed a job...the next day, he came home and told me I had a job..at Gibsons concrete pipe in Delano...making $1.25 per hour. It was not until after Dad died that I found out he went to Mr Gibson and took a $1.25 per hour cut in pay in order to pay for my job. I attended Bakersfield College for 3 semesters...but I finally got tired of it, and enlisted in the Army. I was a Military Policeman for 8 years, and a Special Agent for Army CID for 14 years, retiring at the rank of First Sergeant (E-8.) I then worked as a California Peace officer for the Solano County Health and Social Services Department, Fairfield, CA conducting welfare fraud investigations. I retired from that job in April 2010 and moved to Fairborn, OH for 7 years. I worked as a Background Investigator conducting background investigations for persons needing security clearances. I left that job in October 2015. In August 2017 I moved to Copperas Cove, TX (outside of Ft Hood) where I currently live. I met my wife in 1971 while I was stationed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as an MP. She was a Hospital Recreation worker for the Red Cross..we celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary in April 2018. I am ambivalent about my time at McFarland High. I went to school with a lot of good people. However, I must say that a lot of the people who excelled at sports somehow managed to get out of the Draft...maybe by visiting good ole Dr Carlson. I did not learn of Noel Witmer's death in combat in Vietnam until a couple of years after the fact. I really enjoyed the movie "McFarland" starring Kevin Costner. I was interesting to see the places that it was filmed in. As a personal aside, ,my mom babysat Coach White's daughters. I have not been back to McFarland since Dad and mom passed away in 2001 and 2005. The last I saw of the downtown area there were few businesses there.