Cora Collins:  

"Far above the distant landscape stands our Ruskin High ...Dear Old Ruskin, how we love thee ... We will e'er be true ... Gold and Royal Blue." Remember that song? I have such fond memories of RHS and the friends and activities I had there. I remember cheerleading, cheerleading camp at Ole Miss, and Pep Club. Remember singing on the Pep Club bus to "away" games ... "Hello darkness my old friend. I've come to talk with you again." RGAA. I would still love to play bombardment! Karen Ortega and I were in opposing gym classes. We were animals! We had an unwritten code that we would "save" each other for last and then battle it out at the end of the game. What a blast! Girls volleyball team. I sat on the bench my whole freshman year while the upper classmen of '65 and '66 showed me how it was done. Student Council. The school dances were so much fun and the music was incredible. The bands were great, can't remember them all -- The Shaylons, The Next of Kin, Ken Watson, Gary Cardile, Donnie Sanders, Ross Pinkepank. Once we turned 18, Debbie Mosby, Linda Hall and I enjoyed dancing at One Block West. Remember the "woodsies" we had? I was not a drinker, so I became the baby sitter. I made sure that those who passed out were put into cars for safe keeping, that no one was left passed out on the ground, and that everyone had a ride home. My favorite classes were Art, Science, English, and P.E. I wish I had paid more attention in World History. At the time I could not see the importance in it. My senior year my boyfriend and I skipped school so I could shop for my prom dress at Metcalf South. As we were going down the escalator, the Golden Eagle Band was coming up the escalator. Someone ratted on me and I got 8th hours. After graduation I worked as a Legal Secretary in the offices of Gant, Moran, and Hager. What a thrill to have a real paycheck. (When I was 15 I went to work for Gambles/Community Discount World near 87th and Blue Ridge after school and on weekends.) After graduation, three of my classmates, Debbie Mosby, Bruce Norman (miss you Bruce), and Susan McLeod carpooled with me as we crawled westward on I-70 to Downtown KC. I remember all of us dancing in our seats as the Rolling Stones' Jumping Jack Flash played on the radio. I paid for parking at a multi-story garage. On my first day of work, I could hear my tires screaming as the parking attendant drove my Camaro up, up, up to park it. I had a little talk with him later. I was too young to appreciate "law" and stayed for only the summer. I had this belief that things were either right or wrong, black or white, etc. I have since learned that there is a lot of gray in this world. Then I worked as a secretary in Advertising and Sales Promotion at Seidlitz Paint Co., which later changed to Colony Paint Company, which later changed to Valspar. It's here that I learned to love advertising and honed my skills with English and proofreading/copy editing. They named a color after me -- Cora Rose. I don't know if the color is still available or not. There was a VP who was a member of Mensa and he loved his red pencil. He received a copy of all memos, letters, and press releases and circled any errors he saw and called you in to talk about it. I loved it! It didn't take long before he couldn't find any errors in my work. My boss, Chuc Barnes, was a wonderful person and mentor. The Marketing Dept. at Marion Laboratories needed a secretary. I think they hired me because I told them I lettered in volleyball in high school. At that time volleyball leagues played in an empty warehouse. Later, Mr. Kaufman bought the Baptiste Jr. High building and volleyball leagues played there. I took evening college classes at Longview, then Rockhurst and Avila. Got some good breaks and ended up in the Legal Division and then Regulatory Affairs working on New Drug Applications and approval of advertising and prescribing information for prescription drugs. I was blessed to work with some incredibl...Expand for more