From the Lakewood Library, to the Tacoma Speedway; from the Colonial Center, to the Lakewood Playhouse—it seems as though there’s always some Milestone event being celebrated.
Well, here’s one more to add to the list—Lakes High School marks its 50th anniversary in 2014, and one of LHS’s board members has a special connection to that event.
LHS Secretary Sue Scott was one of 300 students who graduated in 1964—so Big Plans for that event are in the works for that 2014 Fall gathering.
A copy of Legends, Lakes’ Yearbook from that year, is available in the Museum to browse through the next time you’re visiting. And, if you ask her, she might sing the school’s song, “Lakes High we salute you.”
Sue (Washburn) Scott was an Army “Brat.” Because of her parents’ peripatetic military lifestyle—she attended more than 10 different schools—from Massachusetts to Washington; even in Europe (Zweibrucken) it comes as no surprise that her favorite subject, is History; Once the Washburn’s arrived at Ft. Lewis, (where they lived at the Red Shield Inn—temporarily while awaiting assignment to on-post quarters, where they eventually lived for three years) Sue. Her sisters and brother first attended classes in the DuPont School District.
She began high school in 1961 at Laughbon; then completed the rest of her schooling at Lakes.
Architect Donald Burr designed the modern high school (the second high school in the Clover Park School District) that cost approximately two million to build. Burr, she added, used a “main street” design for the building—with a central corridor through the middle, and four “grade” wings opening off from that.
Today, though, there’s nothing left of old Lakes. The newly renovated/remodeled school opened a few years ago—complete with its state-of-the-art Performing Arts Building.
Classes at Lakes, she remembers, began at 8 and ended at 3 p.m. She worked as a cafeteria cashier at lunchtime. Besides her Secretarial Course studies—outstanding skills for future work—she can still “read” shorthand hieroglyphics—Sue also was a member of Spanish club.
In 1964, she adds, “The Lakes basketball team had an 8-0 record.”
Mr. Patterson, who’s active in Lakewood’s Rotary Club, was one of her teachers. Other teachers she remembers were Mr. Masera (who also coached football) and Mr. Green (Driver’s Ed).
During the years Sue has attended three of the four milestone reunions, and she plans to attend the upcoming 50th.
More of her classmates, she continues, attended the 40th because of Social Media contact. The Lakes Pep Band, she adds, attended that celebration.
Although she has lost track of many classmates; many served in the Military; she was able to recall those who had married, as well as their professions. Many of her former classmates still live in this area. In fact, Leona Jensen, a former classmate, is in her aerobics class.
All of her siblings attended Lakes. Sue’s sister became an LPN, her brother served in the Navy, and her youngest sister works in the housing industry. Like many women of that era, who were guided to a career either in teaching, nursing, or office work, Sue chose the latter field.
After graduation, Sue continued her education by attending CPTC and later worked for Washington Life Assurance on Bridgeport. Then she worked on Ft. Lewis, eventually retiring a few years ago.
Plans for this year’s Reunion are not yet finalized. Sue only knows at this point that something special will be held in September.
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