The Saga of 74
Druid Hills High School
Class of 1974
The SAGA of 74
30th Reunion
June 26,2004
Cary Ulman
In the year of our Lord ’69
200 subfreshmen stood in line.
From Medlock, Briar Vista & Fernbank they came.
In hindsight their lives would never be the same.
The magic of Druid Hills touched them for all time.
Oh Class of 74
It is you that I adore.
Though our chiseled bodies may have changed
May I take you down memory lane
To stunt nights and homecoming floats once more.
So what if you gained an extra pound or two
Or your hairline’s receded into the blue.
Come sit with me and tell us stories
Of the Class of 74’s amazing glories
We’re all here to share our lives with you.
Five years of high school, are you kidding me?
Could anyone foresee where this would lead.
The girls were so tall.
The boys just talked football.
Across the catwalk we did proceed.
8th grade would take getting used to.
I certainly hadn’t a clue
Summer football practice did start.
Did I really have the heart?
Despite the heat, we all made it through.
Classes would start in September.
Or was it August, I don’t remember.
Mr. Turner taught Georgia History
But oh what a mystery
Girls were to me in December.
Woodstock was done
Kent State was to come.
Four dead in Ohio.
How many bombs were hidden in silos
With Vietnam we were never one.
Were you a long haired hippy freak?
Or a precursor to a computer geek?
Were you with the “in” group?
Or totally out of the loop.
What friends did you seek?
I remember chasing Tanner’s car
Glenn and I wouldn’t travel very far.
Just 90 miles an hour down Willivee we’d go.
Not a care for our lives would we show
Careening toward Cutting’s star.
Ninth grade was a blur
Did we present Saloonella? Can you concur?
I remember penny loafers with no socks
We were just a bunch of jocks
20 more laps to run. Yessir!
Do you remember the day that Costa died?
How did it make you feel inside?
To know that one of us was lost so young.
Heaven can’t wait when all is done.
Right there on the spot I cried and cried.
Doug stays forever etched upon my mind
As an 18 year old Narrator for all time.
I still see Linda as Emily in Our Town
Kissing Steve tippytoe in her beautiful gown.
Do we realize how fragile life is? Sometimes we need a sign.
Were you a Morgan or a Hampton fan?
Perhaps with Mary Eyles you had a plan.
Regardless where your loyalties lay
I think most everyone might say
Doyle Oran, you NOT da man.
9 and 1 our senior year.
How loudly did you stand and cheer?
Our football team was 8th in State.
11,15,22,23,25,32,33,35,42,51,55,60,66,67,76,80,85 and 88 were great
Tough on the field, you played with no fear.
The Hunt by Big Red Left Seven Dead
In 9th grade we went Full Speed Ahead
We Burned the Indians in 8th Grade
In 11th, The General’s Last Stand was Made
I loved Homecoming Floats, she said.
Of the top 40 Hits of ’74
“Hooked on a Feeling” was such a bore.
ARS’s “ Doraville” was a little country in the city
“Free Bird” was quite a ditty.
Or maybe “ Kung Fu Fighting” you did adore.
On Stunt Night our talents we did share
Our acting genius did we bare.
Life was a Cabaret for some
One Enchanted Evening was fun
Nancy was Miss Druid Hills, O, fair!
How much pot did you partake?
Perhaps you were much too straight.
The 70s were much simpler times
Or do I forget my mind
30 years removed from my soul mates.
Do you remember The Way We Were?
The Exorcist created quite a stir.
We loved Newman and Redford in The Sting.
Or maybe Mel Brooks in Blazing Saddles was the king.
The Great Gatsby did Live and Let Die, that’s for sure.
David brought new meaning to Baby Light My Fire.
John was said to bring you higher and higher.
Tommy sure could run and Debbie could certainly cheer.
Lisa and Connie were not second rate; the drill team they did steer.
Tell me, Kate, on that date, who did you admire?
Cancer and AIDS have touched our lives
We’ve buried loved ones before our eyes.
Would you trade it all to be 18 again?
We seemed so invincible then.
Welcome home, you’ve all survived.
We grew up in the time of Watergate.
Stuart, do you remember Nixon’s fate?
What did you know and when
Became the mantra of All the President’s Men.
Woodward and Bernstein remind us of that fateful date.
The Rake could part rain clouds, with the wave of a hand.
Manwering was one mountain of a man
Townsly and Farmer were new on board.
What was that poem about Why Me Lord?
I’d do it all again, thank you ma’am.
Try to remember way back in September, when we were freshmen at Druid Hills High.
Do you remember deep in December being sophomores, just catching our stride?
As juniors we were Fantastic
No class more enthusiastic.
But our senior year, it still remains clear, was our best year, I say with pride.
The Drill Team wasn’t second best
Even now, Randy must confess.
Whatever routine Lisa displayed
The Red Devils were not dismayed
Still, Myra and the cheerleaders did their most to impress.
Margaret, did you get caught in Candler Park?
Drinking with Diane on Fridays after dark.
Perhaps Everybodys Pizza was your style.
Remember going there Ronnie, once and a while.
Or did you streak at Emory on a lark.
Well this is it, it’s the dance of dances
I can’t remember the words except we all had a ball.
Here we are, one and all.
We’re going to all start dancing when the band starts playing.
We’re going to dance until we all.
Have heart attacks and fall.
Cause here we are at the great Lone Ranger’s Ball.
The Senior Trip to the Bahamas mopeds across my mind.
Or perhaps you remember going to Ft. Walton that one last time.
Maybe it was you who sped through Stone Mountain Park
Or camped out in the North Georgia Mountains after dark..
All those memories I still can find.
Richardson led our basketball team in the tradition of Blomberg and Kinard.
I remember Chuck Davis running cross country very hard
Mary Lou, was that you, shooting the ball for two?
Excellence in soccer did Bucky pursue.
And Richard’s lead in band was very avant guard.
Darlene and Donna as majorettes constantly set the pace.
John. tried in track to always win the race.
Hershel’s mettle was tested on the volleyball team.
And in wresting, Al could be counted on to make his opponent scream.
All the while, Fred May, presided over the troops in our paper chase
Rusty was the original Tiger on the golf course.
Bill and Earl were superb making music their source.
In tennis, Cecy and Hartford had topspin galore
While Dolly was the one and only flag corps
And Terry you really were a tour de force.
So come this weekend, with us please spend
A chance to be young again.
Dress as you like, but don’t be late.
My goodness, we’re all 48.
It’s a good time to find your old best friends.
Cary Ulman
May 18, 2004
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