From our readers…
In our last issue, we invited alumni to share experiences, in any form or length, addressing the questions: what was your experience of Franklin’s diversity? Did it matter to you? If so, how? If not, why? How has your education at Franklin informed you, your decisions, your choices since leaving high school?
We invite alumni to share memories of their Franklin experiences and encourage thoughts on the effects of its diversity on their lives after high school -- how it may have informed life choices and decisions. Send comments and suggestions to: quakertimes@franklinalumni.net.
Responses to "We Want to Hear from You!" (Volume 28 Quaker Times):
I feel blessed to have grown up in the Franklin-assigned region. Mostly I was oblivious that high school students in other areas were being bussed to high schools outside their neighborhood. We went to school in the same multicultural climate that most of us had known throughout our lives which I accepted as not only natural but interesting. Many of my friends’ cultural traditions rubbed off on me, and at the time, it seemed normal to me that their families accepted me into their homes and were happy to teach me about the cultural histories of their families’ cultural histories. From Japanese picnics in the park, to Jewish holiday celebrations, Reform to Orthodox, to Chinese New Year’s, to learning to make tortillas from scratch. It all seemed so natural.
Until I went away to college in Pullman. From the day I arrived, I felt something was amiss, but it took me a few days to pinpoint it. What was wrong? Finally, it hit me. Everyone looked alike. I found WSU had 11,000 students and only seventeen were Black (all on sports scholarships); a handful were Asian (most on exchange programs); and two were Jewish (one, my good friend from Franklin). That seemed just wrong! In response, I joined the student government (Board of Control) and spent two years badgering the administration to add a Black Studies Department. It was a start. I understand WSU has evolved a great deal since then.
Another aspect of my multicultural experience at Franklin was a later revelation of how it factored into my relationship with my mother. My first serious relationship with a boy in high school was with a Chinese boy. My mom seemed to be as taken with him as I was. Later I learned that she took flak from the mothers of my friends, who were outspoken about her “allowing” me to go out with a boy of another race. My mother was born and raised in the deep South, however her parents were relatively broad-minded about racial issues at the time. She had lived in the Northwest long enough to know that whatever deep-seated prejudices she might still harbor were wrong, so she never let on that there might be any conflict for her in my relationship with this boy. She seemed to adore him as much as I did. Years later I found out that she had sought weekly counseling to resolve any remaining conflict she harbored from her childhood, even though I never saw her act out of prejudice toward anyone of another race or culture.
Imagine if we all acted consistently as if we had no remaining prejudice.
Nancy (Turnbull) Morgan Class of ‘67
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Growing up in a family of four kids on the hill between Columbia and Hillman Cities, I witnessed divisions of the population along lines of economics, race, religion, and family structure. Being raised in a lower economic setting, I learned that while equality was a goal, it was not a reality. However, with several playfields nearby, sports kept me busy (after my homework was done). Goodwill was my shopping center for sporting goods.
This competitive nature was carried into the classroom. A teacher, Mr. Malnotti, informed me that such a work ethic would be beneficial in college. I had never known anyone in my neighborhood who had attended college, and because of family economics it wasn't on my list. But because a teacher informed me that I should go to college, it was an assignment! Fortunately, because of a year at Boeing, where hiring was growing because of the 707, and living at home, I was able to save enough money to pay for enrollment at the UW. Part-time work in many summer jobs led to graduation in 1965.
Growing up in an area of multiculturalism led to seeing that our population differs in many ways, and that it is based on much more than economics. We don't all start out on the same rung of life's ladder, but that doesn't mean we should stop climbing. In my own career as a teacher of teenagers (I completed Mr. Malnotti's assignment), I knew that education involves more than academics; it widens the student's future road of life. My time at Franklin High was an enlightenment to my future.
Yours truly,
Dale L. Schultz (class of 1960)
P.S.: We have a childhood neighborhood group that continues to meet yearly for remembrances of our younger years. We also attend the yearly Franklin luncheons in Renton.
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I just got my Quaker Times and it is terrific!!
However, I have the same frustration that I’d previously mentioned to you: not all the pictures of alumni have captions so therefore we don’t know who the people are!! Surely, I’m not the only reader left wondering!
Otherwise, a terrific publication! Thanks so much…
Linda Goldstone. San Francisco
Class of 1959
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And, finally, this from the Coach Moody Scholarship team:
Great experiences learned from Year One of the Coach Moody Scholarship:
What compelled four Queen Anne classmates to organize a scholarship to honor the life of a longtime Franklin High School Coach? That’s easy. Coach Tim Moody and his wife, Sherry Moody, spent their lives together in service to others. They have done so much for so many it was time to recognize their good works. Coaching at Franklin High was Tim and Sherry’s greatest joy because of the people they worked with and lifelong friendships that they made.
The first stop for the Queen Anne Friends was the Franklin Alumni Association and Foundation. The FAA&F stepped up to provide guidance and wisdom of how to organize our efforts to help. At Franklin it’s “all about the kids,” for everything the FAA&F does. There were questions that we needed answers to: where can our donors send money? what happens when the money arrives? will there be a separate account for Coach Moody or will it go into one big pot? what’s the process for the applicants to apply for the scholarship? and, how does the selection process work? - plus many more.
The Franklin Alumni Association and Foundation opened its arms wide and welcomed The Coach Moody Scholarship Team to the Franklin Quaker Family. Patiently, alumni answered every question, provided lots of encouragement, and invited us to participate fully in activities from the Getting to Know You Meetings; the regular phone calls gathering information; the wonderful “Rising Up” Week; meeting the applicants for the scholarship; the Hall of Fame Banquet; and best of all, Senior Celebration Night where the first Coach Moody Scholarship winners were honored as part of a night to recognize the highest achievers in the Franklin High Class of 2023.
This has been one of the greatest years of the Coach Moody Scholarship Team’s lives! The Coach Moody Team is all in for the long haul and proud to become a part of the Franklin Alumni Association and Foundation Scholarship Family.
We are looking forward to honoring many more Coach Moody Scholarship winners for many years to come. Special thanks to these tremendous leaders of the Franklin Alumni Association and Foundation who have generously helped us with the Coach Moody Scholarship.
Submitted by Malcolm Boyles, Queen Anne alum
Editor’s note: Queen Anne High school was closed permanently in 1981. Coach Moody’s friends from high school honor his memory through this scholarship at Franklin, where Coach Moody taught and was well-loved. Recipients of Moody Scholarship 2023 ($2000): Jonathan Cruz, Ngan Thanh Huang.
Left to right: Art Newman; Malcom Boyd; Loren Hostek; Herman Houston (Scholarship Committee Chair) Moody team members not pictured: Steve Shelton, John Glancy, Al Mauer.