High School Memories of 1973
What Have You Been Doing? - Please send us a few sentences about you and your life for the past 50 years and any memories you may have about Grant High School to reunion@grantclassof73.com and we will post them on this page. Thanks.
Classmates:
Michael Kolber
After finishing up at Grant, I graduated from San Diego State University (BS, Zoology). I served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia (specifically North Borneo), working with WHO to map areas of malaria, cholera and filariasis. I spent months traveling and trekking throughout Asia (mostly Thailand, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Philippines) before returning to the US, and attending UCLA (MPH, Epidemiology of Infectious and Tropical Diseases), and later returned to school for an MBA. I then worked with the UN High Commissioner on Refugees on the Thai/Khmer border.
After returning to the US, I met my wife to be, Julie (a child psychologist, so that worked out especially well!). We’ve been married for 34 years and have 2 sons and 1 daughter.
I’ve worked for a series of venture capital supported medical start-up companies in the Bay Area, primarily focusing on negotiating with the FDA and planning clinical trials of cardiovascular devices and stem cells products. I mostly retired 10 years ago, but still do some occasional consulting work.
I enjoy running, indoor rock climbing, mountain biking, taking care of my bees, and walking my golden retriever.
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Gloria Van Lydegraf
I am living, healthily and happily, in a small town in Oregon. After graduation from Grant, I joined the Air Force and was based in Northern California, where I raised two daughters. I got a degree in nutrition from Chico State and worked for the WIC Program for 27 years before retiring and moving north. I recently became a master gardener, and volunteer with the American Red Cross.
*********** Debbie Hill Zahavi I’m not in the yearbook I never made it to picture day any of the years I attended Grant which was all of 10th grade t(1970) to the 1st half of 11th grade, I then transferred to Polytechnic High and graduated 1973, I have attended most of the Grant reunions and will attend this year, with many of my lifetime friends I have kept throughout the years. I always have good memories of my time at Grant. I was a travel agent for many years and after 9-11 retired and went to animal training classes I became a certified animal trainer and volunteered at shelters to help dogs get adopted. I received many rewards and honors for my services in Ventura County. Nowadays I just Foster and have 3 rescue dogs of my own at my home in Thousand Oaks CA with my husband of 32 years, Doron Zahavi. Both my sons are married and live nearby with my grandchildren. Looking forward to seeing everyone!
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Laurie Green
After graduating from Grant, I attended Los Angeles Valley College for three years. I earned my Associate of Arts degree in Secretarial Science. I then worked in various clerical and secretarial positions for the Los Angeles Community College District at the administrative offices. I retired in December 2016 after 40 years.
I've spent my retirement years traveling both domestically and internationally. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at the reunion.
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Linda (Lindy) Pritchard (Rich) Still doing hair after all these years! I am always grateful for the day I went to career day and met Mr. Barak. He guided me to a new program where I was bussed from Grant to West Valley everyday to go to beauty school. I was 16. And today, although I no longer physically live in California, I fly back to work for 5 days every 6 weeks. So semi-retired… I sold my house at Malibou Lake almost 4 years ago (3 days before the Woolsey fire ravaged the area) and set out in our RV to travel this beautiful country (with a few trips to Europe in between since my husband is from there). It’s been an incredible journey, dictated by weather, government shutdowns, the pandemic, you can’t imagine the things that can change the course of our travels! As I’m writing this, I’m in Asheville, No. Carolina. Definitely our favorite town so far. We were here 3 years ago. My clients always ask me if I settle somewhere, where would it be. Asheville definitely checks all our boxes. Great restaurants, a low key nightlife, rivers, lakes, lots of hiking and biking, fall foliage right now, an artsy, hippie vibe but also the largest house in the country so also kind of upscale. But the best part is the people. Everyone is really nice. The only bad thing is it's all the way across the country and far from my wonderful 33 year old son and my best friends.
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Gerald Miller
After college (UCLA), I spent three and a half years working as a Congressional aide on Capitol Hill, then returned to California, where I practiced law for the past 35+ years. Some highlights of my legal career have been appearing three times before the California Supreme Court, and working on cases involving Monica Lewinsky, Johnnie Cochran, and the boy that sued Michael Jackson. Divorced once, but insanely happily married to my second wife, a nurse, for 16 years, with three shared children (two boys and a girl), now in their 20s and 30s. In 2015, we moved from Thousand Oaks to Austin, Texas, where we now reside. Still practicing law, mostly criminal appeals, but hope to retire in the next few years. Spend most of my free time watching baseball (I still have Dodger season tickets) and other sports, and enjoying fine wine (including from Texas, believe it or not). High school was a seminal time in my life, as my father passed away two months before our graduation, and between that and preparing for college and beyond, I had to (and thankfully did) grow up fast. I was blessed beyond belief to have a number of close friends, many of whom remain to this day, as well as a number of outstanding teachers. I’m convinced that Grant is the center of our generation’s universe, and nothing will ever convince me otherwise. Due to events beyond my control, I haven’t been back to California for several years, but nothing short of another pandemic will keep me away from our reunion, and from continuing my perfect attendance record and completing the boxed set (10th, 20th, 30th, 40th, and 50th reunions). Look forward to seeing my classmates then.
Your Update Here - send your update to reunion@grantclassof73.com and we will post it here
Check out the Valley Relics website for a great nostalgic trip to the San Fernando Valley of our youth and the Wikipedia page about Grant High School. |
Cost of Living 1973
Yearly Inflation Rate - 6.16%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average- 850 Average
Cost of new house - $32,500
Average Income per year - $12,900
Minimum Wage - $1.60 per hour
Average Monthly Rent - $175
Cost of a Gallon of Gas - 36 cents
New Ford Automobile - $4,157
A Dozen Eggs - 45 cents
Milk - $1.42 a Gallon
First Class Postage Stamp - $.08
Technology
* Skylab, the United States' first space station, is launched
* Concorde cuts flying time across the Atlantic in half flying at average speed of 954 mph
* The Sears Tower opens in Chicago
New Inventions
* Genetic Engineering
* Barcode
* Optical Fiber
* Space Station
* Jet ski or Personal Watercraft
Popular Culture
Elvis Presley's Aloha From Hawaii television special is seen around the world by more than 1 billion viewers
Popular Movies
* The Exorcist
* Deliverance
* Live and Let Die
* Paper Moon
* Dark Side Of The Moon
* Last Tango in Paris
* Jesus Christ Superstar
* American Graffiti
* Lady Sings the Blues
* The Sting
* The Way We Were
* The Paper Chase
Popular TV Programs
* The Odd Couple
* The Partridge Family
* Columbo
* McMillan and Wife
* M*A*S*H
* Sanford and Son
* The Bob Newhart Show
* The Price Is Right
* The Waltons
* Good Times
* Happy Days
* Kojak
* The Six Million Dollar Man
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Top News Stories of the Year
* Arab members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), announce they will restrict flow of crude oil to countries supporting Israel on October 17th causing price of oil to increase by 200%
* Alaska Oil Pipeline bill is passed to allow construction of a pipeline to access oil from the North Slope of Alaska
* Roe v. Wade makes abortion a US constitutional right
* Chrysler and other US car makers close a number of plants affecting 100,000 workers
* US Troops withdrawn from Vietnam and U.S. involvement in Vietnam War ends with the signing of peace
* World Trade Center in New York becomes the tallest building in the world
* Watergate Hearings begin in the United States Senate and President Richard Nixon tells the nation , “I am not a crook.”
* Armed members of the American Indian Movement and their supporters seize the old town of Wounded Knee in South Dakota
* In a Tennis Match billed as the battle of the sexes Mrs Billy Jean King defeats Bobby Riggs
* Secretariat Wins Triple Crown first winner for 25 years
* The wide ranging Endangered Species Act of 1973 is signed into law to "protect species and the ecosystems upon which they depend."
* The Mississippi River reaches its peak level in St. Louis during a record 77-day flood.
Sports Headlines
World Series - Oakland A's over NY Mets
Rose Bowl - USC 42, Ohio State 17
Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7
Heavyweight Boxing - George Foreman
US Open Golf Title - Hale Irwin
Popular Musicians and songs
* Stevie Wonder
* ABBA
* The Eagles
* John Lennon
* Paul Simon
* Pink Floyd - " Dark Side Of The Moon "
* Rod Stewart
* Michael Jackson
* Elton John - " Crocodile Rock "
* Rolling Stones - " Angie "
* The Moody Blues
* David Bowie
* Led Zeppelin
* Electric Light Orchestra
* Paul McCartney and Wings - " My Love "
* Bob Marley and the Wailers
* Diana Ross
* Roberta Flack - "Killing Me Softly with his Song"
* Jim Croce - "Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown"
* Carpenters - "Top of the World"
* Gladys Knight and the Pips - "Midnight Train to Georgia"
* Carly Simon - "You're So Vain"
* Marvin Gaye - "Let's Get It On"
* Eddie Kendricks - "Keep on Truckin'"
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