It is with profound sadness that I am notifying the Quaker Times of the loss of a sister and a special Franklin alum with the passing of Margaret (Midge) (Duncan) Patten, class of 1960. Midge passed away last April, after battling cancer for well over a year, and inspired many friends as well as her extended family, with how to be graceful under difficult circumstances.
Read MoreAs a third grader, Herman Houston’s (’67) teacher called his artwork “doodling” but he decided it wasn't doodling if it was his work, he was going to love it and call it art. “I didn’t care what anybody else thought about my work. I didn’t know it at the time, but that attitude has allowed me to relax and enjoy my work without the anxiety of a critical voice. Of course, I have my personal standard, but once I reach that bar I am always pleased with what I’ve painted. When I paint, I only need my own voice to give me validation”.
Read MoreOn an unusually warm May evening, 135 Quakers and supporters gathered in community to celebrate Quaker excellence, both past and present. At this Franklin Hall of Fame event, a theme ran through speeches from the podium and conversations after the celebration – we all have a deep pride in our alma mater and in the community-shifting changes our fellow alums have effected.
Read MoreWhen he was ten, in 1942, Herb and his family, along with 120,000 other Americans of Japanese ancestry, were forcibly removed from their homes and the Tsuchiya family was sent to the Minidoka War Relocation prison camp in Hunt, Idaho, where they stayed until their release in 1945.
Read MoreI am happy to announce that our third annual Rising Tide Scholarship & Vocational Fair will be from Tuesday, October 23rd through Thursday, October 26th.
Read MoreThe Franklin Alumni Association & Foundation is pleased to announce the 2023 Hall of Fame inductees, Garry Owens (1965), Robert Nellams (1974), and Betty Lau (1965).
Read MoreDensho is a digital archive and repository with photographs, documents, newspapers, letters, and perhaps most movingly, recorded and transcribed oral histories of Japanese Americans’ experience of incarceration during World War II. Densho (https://densho.org) is a multi-faceted resource offering educational resources for both learners and teachers; it includes a registry of names with data about dates, ages, camps sent to, etc., and recordings and transcriptions of more than 900 individuals.
Read MoreIt’s true! Absolutely true. A “Rising Tide” lifts every student! That is what happened at the second annual “Rising Tide Scholarship/Career Fair” sponsored by the Franklin Alumni Association and Foundation (FAA&F).
Read MoreWe would like to offer a platform for alumni to share experiences. We invite your stories in any form and any length – an essay, a paragraph, a poem, a video.
Read MoreFranklin High School has a long track record of helping to shape exceptional students who go on to make our communities better. Alumni make significant contributions in politics, music, sports, advocacy, business, medicine, human services, and every sector you can imagine.
Read MoreOften when we think about social justice leadership, the people we celebrate are the firebrands, the orators, the ones in front of the microphone.
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The past few years Covid has loomed large over clubs and activities at Franklin. The pandemic forced every group to adapt. This year they are not only getting back to normal, but they are also even better. Two reemerging clubs include Mock Trial and the Theater Department. I talked to students in these programs about how they adapted to the pandemic, and what is new this year in the return to normalcy.
James Rasmussen stood on the steps that descended below street level at the corner of 1st and Jackson for over a decade -- a head above the sidewalk. On those steps he watched the world go by, first as an employee and later as the owner of Bud’s Jazz Records in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square.
Read MoreJean was raised in Seattle's Rainier Valley and graduated from Franklin High School in 1948. She attended the University of Washington for a little more than a year and began her career in the insurance industry. In 1962, Jean opened the doors at Jean VelDyke Realty Inc. on Rainier Avenue, where she could remain close to and serve the community she loved and cared for very much.
Read MoreReflections from: Jeff Abolofia (’67); Geri Alhadeff (’67); Steve Ticeson (’67); Mary Duryee, (’67)
At the age of 70, Ron Mamiya died on May 26, 2019, surrounded by his family. He stayed strong, hopeful, and positive throughout his battle with prostate cancer, even up until the last days.Born in 1949 to Yoshi and George Mamiya, Ron was the eldest of 3 sons. He was born and raised in Seattle. Ron grew up on Beacon Hill, attended Franklin High School, University of Washington, and Gonzaga University, where he earned his law degree in 1976. Ron went into private practice in Seattle and was appointed as a Municipal Court Judge in 1980. He served as a judge until his retirement in 2010. He also served on several appointed commissions for 20+ years in Seattle.
At Franklin he was Senior class President, and a member of the Bel Canto choir, touring Europe with the choir in 1966.
Read MorePro golf was still segregated when he won
Wright was a standout golfer and basketball player when he attended high school in Seattle, as well as at Western Washington University. He was in his senior year of college when he entered the USGA Amateur Public Links Championship. After his groundbreaking victory there, Wright had a dream of playing golf professionally, but it wasn’t an easy road for a Black man at a time when the PGA’s bylaw still included a “Caucasians only” clause. He played in PGA Tour events beginning in 1960, but he was unable to gain any sponsors, and full-time professional play was an unsustainable path in this segregated era. Wright played in a handful of other PGA Tour events over the years while working as a teacher and a car salesman, and he later became a teaching pro at the California golf course the Lakes at El Segundo.
Read MoreOnly 20% of Scott VanderWey’s students request enrollment his in Wood Shop class but his focus on community and family in the shop becomes contagious and by the end of the semester almost 100% report that they loved the class.
Read MoreEach year, the FAA&F awards five $2,000 Scholarships established from an endowment. However, with over forty (40) outstanding applications to consider, awarding just five scholarships seemed like an impossible task. Fortunately, with contributions from Alumni Board, Committee Members, and caring Quaker alumni, we are able to announce thirteen $2,000 Scholarship Awardees. I cannot help but parody the saying, “A rising endowment raises all scholarships.” The additional eight allocations will help change a life.
Read MoreCharles Parker comes from a multi-generation Franklin family with deep roots in South Seattle, though he graduated from Ingraham High School in north Seattle, the result of a period of busing in Seattle (1972 – 1999). He says, “I grew up in the Seattle system and it failed me.
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