Marjie Burden Gray
February 2014

Personal Narrative:  Since the 40th reunion, I retired after 32 years of teaching including 23 years at Buena Vista high school teaching American history, AP Am. Government and other social studies classes.  I loved teaching and was honored in my career as 1989 Colorado Teacher of the Year and a 1995 James Madison Fellow. I guess once a civic teacher, always a civics teacher, so I helped to get the League of Women Voters going in our county and continue to be active in it and other volunteer activities.  

Bob Gray (class of ’61) and I started dating after he graduated from CSU. We’ll be married 45 years in October. Our daughter and her husband currently live in London, so we must travel there. We are thankful for our life and we enjoy our friends, family and Buena Vista. We also like traveling, skiing, camping, hiking and fly-fishing. We’ve kept our 1985 pop-up pick-up camper in good shape and travel in it most of the summer to many western streams and high lakes to fly-fish. Luckily, I found a photo to send that does not have me holding a trout in my hands. Ha. 

I’m really looking forward to the reunion in September to see old friends and classmates. 

LHS Memories:

I liked my four years at LHS and had fun with friends at slumber parties, kidnapped breakfasts, Rag Days skits, having french fries at Workman’s, root beer floats at the A & W and pineapple shakes at the Loveland Creamery. I remember walking to and from school and meeting friends along the way. There was no bussing for town kids. According to Google Maps it is 1.5 miles each way and takes 30 minutes. 

I remember being in band while Mr. Yarberry was chewing-out one of the sections (maybe the baritones?) and Gwen kept trying to interrupt him to tell us President Kennedy had been shot. I remember watching the whole 3-4 days surrounding JFK’s funeral and the shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald. 

I remember Mr. Yarberry and enjoyed playing in the concert and marching bands and being in the pit-bands for the musicals. I loved the debates in Mr Cheyne’s classes over the Civil War and discussions in Mr. Bruha’s American Government classes. Both sparked my desire to study history and become a high school teacher.  I also remember Mr. Smith, who challenged me to do more that I thought I could. As I reflect, I feel it was a safe place to grow-up and the Class of ’64 was/is a very special class.