Welcome to the Bisonalities, Again, a newsletter dedicated to the alumni (students, teachers, and administrators) of Waterford and Fort LeBoeuf High Schools. This newsletter will be issued quarterly. New issues will be posted for viewing on the Web site on, or about January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1.

The Bisonalities, Again Web site may be viewed by going to:

www.bisonalitiesagain.com

The success of this newsletter will depend on you. I need contributors. Do you have an interesting article, a nostalgia item, a real life story, or a picture you would like to share with other alumni? Do you have a snail-mail or an e-mail address of one of your former classmates? If you do, please send it to me at the following e-mail address: candoercat@gmail.com
or at my snail-mail address:
Robert J. Catlin, Sr.
2670 Dakota Street
Bryans Road, MD 20616-3062
Tel: (301) 535-9263
Fax: (301) 375-9250

Please, NO hand written submissions.

The Bisonalities, Again Newsletter is available to any and all alumni, teachers, and administrators of Waterford or Fort LeBoeuf High Schools on the Web site, free.

If you know an alumnus, teacher, or administrator who would be interested, tell them about the Web site. None of the material in this newsletter has a copyright unless otherwise noted. If you wish to make copies of this newsletter and distribute it to other Alumni or friends, please feel free to do so.

If you are reading this newsletter on-line and would like a printable version of it, a PDF version is available on the web site. That is, a file that can be read and displayed by the FREE Adobe File Reader. This will allow you to print the newsletter exactly as if you had received it by snail-mail. If you would like a PDF copy of the newsletter, it is located on the Main Menu under "Past Issues Bisonalities Again."

Ah, summer has finally arrived. We had a really rough winter than went right on into spring. I realize that some of you had it a LOT worse than we did with record snow falls and record cold, but we had it as bad as I ever want to see it.

Don't forget to check the Announcements of the www.bisonalitiesagain.com web site for class reunion information.

This issue includes an article sent to me by Angie Tarr, Fort LeBoeuf High School Library Media Specialist, about Grants awarded by the Fort LeBoeuf School District Foundation.

I hope to see you at Waterford Days and Alumni night at the Fire Hall! Information about Waterford Days may be found at: www.waterforddays.com

The witticisms used in this issue were furnished by Elizabeth Faulhaber Demmery-Potter, WHS '55.

This is a short (3 pages) issue because no one sent me any stories to publish! PLEASE help me to keep this Newsletter going, send me a story of your experiences in school, or since!

The deaths shown below were published in the Erie Times and on the www.bisonalitiesagain.com web site.

The Fort LeBoeuf Foundation awarded several grants to teachers in all five buildings of the district. At Robison Elementary Ms. Paula McGinnis and Mrs. Brenda McGowan were awarded ten tablets for their second and third grade classrooms for a program called TABLET: Teaching All by Lessons Enhanced with Technology.

For working with fourth graders at Waterford Elementary, Mrs. Friedman and Mrs. Sullivan were given money towards a Walking Classroom. Students listen to podcasts of both fiction and nonfiction topics to learn while they walk; each student uses a player to listen to individually.

For students at Mill Village Elementary the Foundation will help fund Fuel Up to Play 60, a program that encourages young people to eat right and exercise at least 60 minutes each day.

At the middle school, the Foundation will once again help assure that students who need scholarships to attend the 8th grade Washington D.C. trip will get to go with the rest of the class.

At the high school the Foundation will contribute to Business Week, a week long program that helps students learn how the economy works and discover their individual skills in various careers. Ms. Jennifer Peters was also awarded a grant for enhancing the Performing Arts Gallery outside of the high school auditorium. New equipment will transform the area into a professional exhibit space for student artwork.

For any questions on the Fort LeBoeuf Foundation, go to wwww.flbfoundation.com.

Those of you who regularly read this Newsletter know I love to fish. It is a hobby that started long before I retired.

It started in the early 80's when I had a heart attack. My cardiologist suggested I find a hobby to help me relax from the pressures of my job.

At that time my boss was going to Canada fishing every year and asked me if I wanted to join him and his group. I had not been fishing since I was a child so thought, why not! I went to K-Mart and bought $30 worth of fishing gear and off I went for a week of fishing.

This trip hooked me on fishing!

My fishing season got off to a slow start this spring. Bad weather and then a problem with the boat were to blame. During last years fishing season I had to change the name of the boat from "The Girl Next Door" to the "Titanic" because it developed "leaky boat syndrome."

My boat is a 14 foot riveted, aluminum Jon boat. The rivets, after 19 years of a lot of use, were all coming loose. To say this caused the boat to leak would be an understatement. It was more like, it became a sieve! I undoubtedly had the only Jon boat on the local waterways that had to have a bilge pump in it to keep it afloat.

This spring I took two weeks to remove all the paint from the bottom of the boat. Seal all 184 rivets with J&B Weld and then painted it forest green with two heavy coats of marine paint.

The bilge pump is no longer needed. It stays as dry now as it did when it was new.

The boat name has been changed back to "The Girl Next Door."