“LOOKING BACK 50 YEARS”
-Presentation by Tony Loya, WHS Class of 1966-

Washington High School
Kennedy High School
Classes of 1966
50 Year Reunion
October 22, 2016
DoubleTree Hotel, Newark CA

Introduction by Sandy Meadows
Tony grew up in Centerville and is one of our Washington High School Class of 1966 Graduates who subsequently attended Chabot College in Hayward and San Jose State.
Following San Jose State graduation Tony spent 27 years with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and retired from the DEA in 1998.
Since then he has spent 18 years with the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and is currently the Director of their National Emerging Drug Trends Initiative.
Please welcome fellow classmate Tony Loya…

“Good evening. Well, we have made it 50 years! 50 years since we graduated that June in 1966 when we were turned loose on the world with a life expectancy of over 70 years. Washington High graduated approximately 270 and Kennedy a little over 200 students. I wanted to speak to you because there are things I remember and things I have come to realize. It was truly a wonderful special time to grow up. We didn’t know it then but realize it now. It was a special era.”

“We had it good. Just think, we had The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys! We had the muscle cars and drove those cars that today are worth thousands of dollars more with entire industries established to restore them. We had the Mustang that has become an American Icon. (All the Mustangs were built just down the street at the Ford plant in Milpitas.) And from the Mustang grew the Shelby Mustangs in 1965-66. We also had the Camaro and the Firebird, the GTO and the Dodge Charger, and the other Mopars.”

“We had color TV. In fact 1966 was the first all color line-up by NBC. CBS for the first time aired, Dr. Seuss – How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Star Trek was born with the first episode shown by NBC. The Top shows on TV were The Jackie Gleason Show, Green Acres, and who could forget Golly…. Gomer Pyle, USMC.”

“And near and dear to most of us…. Pampers introduced the first disposable diaper.”

“What about the tools we had when we were turned loose? What did things cost in 1966?
- The average income was $6,900 a year.
- A new house cost $14,000.
- The average rent was $120 a month.
- College tuition, even at Harvard was $1,700 per year.
- A movie ticket was $1.25.
- A postage stamp cost a nickel.
- A gallon of milk cost $1.11.
- A dozen eggs cost .36 cents.
- Fresh baked bread cost .22 cents a loaf.
- And finally, gasoline cost .32 cents per gallon!”

“The top songs in 1966 were:
- “I’m A Believer” and “Last Train to Clarksville”- The Monkees
- “Cherish”- The Association
- “Good Loving”- The Rascals
- “Good Vibrations”- The Beach Boys
- “Hanky Panky”- Tommy James and the Shondells
- “Lightning Strikes”- Lou Christie
- “Summer in the City”- Loving Spoonful
- “Wild Thing”- The Troggs”

“And let’s not forget that Ronald Reagan received the nomination for Governor in our State that year. He would in fact become our Governor and would go on to become the President of the United States. Yes, we had it good and people from our area affected the entire world.”

“So what happened to our Class? Where is our Class today? I did a study from what we know and for this purpose combined both Washington and Kennedy alumni lists. Here is what I found. 23% of our class have passed. A total of 80. 43 from Washington and 37 from Kennedy. Of the survivors:
- 50% have remained or are currently in the Bay Area and the Central Valley of CA, equally split.
- 14% are in far Northern California and in Southern California.
- The remaining 36% are located outside of CA and spread out over 31 states.
- The largest group is in Oregon, followed by Nevada, and then the State of Washington. (West Coast)”

“Let’s go back to what I remember and what I have come to realize. I came here as a baby in 1948 and grew up here. I grew up in Centerville, Niles, Irvington, Mission San Jose, Warm Springs, along with the surrounding towns of Alvarado, Decoto, and Newark. This was my world. Your world. My Father came here having left the Army after WWII. He came here, like your parents, to fulfill his dream of raising a family in a wonderful place. He was just a milker who could barely write his name and came here to work at a Swiss dairy just up the road. Dairies were plentiful in this area back then and that is why we have a Swiss Park which is still standing not far from here. My Dad went on to work at Leslie Salt which is still operating and is now Morton Salt. And finally he worked at PCA (Pacific Cement & Aggregates) at the east end of Thornton Avenue where he helped dig all those gravel pits that are now filled with water and have turned into recreational areas.”

“We must realize this was a special place and a special time. Our parents found a beautiful area rich in agriculture. The Padres had it right when then founded their Mission San Jose here, in the shadow of Mission Peak. But it was growing and changing fast when we graduated. We were The Baby Boomers with much cultural diversity. And never forget there was one particular place where we all came together to grow up and form the future. That was our high schools.”

“I remember growing up:
- Allen G. Norris Elementary school on Thornton Avenue where I went to kindergarten.
- Alviso School, built during the Civil War, where I attended 5th through 8th grades.
- Cloverdale Creamery where my Mother would take me for ice cream.
- The Center Theater where we would go after ice cream.
- George Silva’s Shell gas station on Main St. (now Fremont Blvd.) where my Father would always take his truck for service.
- Turner Ford where I would go look at beautiful new Mustangs.
- Centerville Square, the first shopping center in southern Alameda County and the original home of Dale Hardware. As a child, I was there when it opened and got to ride the big rocket as they were setting up for opening day.
- Niles Canyon where we went for creek side picnics.
- Joes’ Corner in Niles where I spent many hours outside sitting in my Dad’s truck waiting for him while he drank beer with his friends. It’s still there where inside hangs a big picture of all the Old Timers, including my Dad.
- WhiteFront where I bought my first stereo.
- The new tract homes of Glenmoor Gardens and Cabrillo Park.
- Fremont Drive-In Theater across from Alviso School.
- And, Edgren Motors directly across the street from Washington High.”

“I must comment on Edgren Motors that generously supplied new Plymouth cars for our Drivers Education classes. Owner Lloyd Edgren also came here to raise his family and establish his business. As most of you know, his daughter, Jayne Edgren, was in our graduating class. Most people don’t know that Mr. Edgren started a small mechanic’s shop a few doors down from Cloverdale Creamery and worked it into his own dealership. Also, most people don’t know that if it wasn’t for him sponsoring our schools participation in a national Plymouth automotive contest, I wouldn’t be standing here. He never forgot where he came from and gave back to the community. The trophy I won is over on the memorial table and the scholarship I received allowed me to go to Chabot College and then on to San Jose State, all because of Mr. Edgren.”

“These memories molded my life. They helped me through the last 50 years. You know, I spent 27 of those years working with the DEA. One time I found myself in Latin America in a place none of us would want to be. I had to try and sleep with my gun on my chest wondering if I was going to make it through the night. I wondered if this was the place where I had come to die and why I had come to put myself in this situation. Why did I do this? I actually thought of my high school days. I thought of you all and the wonderful time and place we grew up in. It helped me through the night to know that it was worth defending and preserving our way of life. Even later in meetings in Washington DC, I was quick to say that it was shameful if we couldn’t come up with a solution to a particular problem because there was nobody else, and the American people were depending on us. That thinking was molded during my high school days and realizing how important it was for our children to have the same wonderful experiences.”

“So there you have it, what I remember and what I have come to realize in the last 50 years since we graduated. Never forget who we are and where we came from, this wonderful place where our parents brought us with their dreams. Never forget that we are great examples of the American Dream our parents gave us, and in-turn we have been able to pass it on to our children who have also changed the world. Just a few miles from here their generation has created Google, Facebook, Ebay, and other American icons. Never forget we have made a difference.”

“Finally, we should never forget the saying that goes like this:
The richness of life lies in the memories we have forgotten.
Let us enjoy our life tonight reliving some of those memories.”

Thank You.