Paul McClish:
CLASS OF 1962
Paramount High SchoolClass of 1962
Paramount, CA
Paul's Story
After PHS I attended Long Beach State College earning a B.A. in Mathematics. While there I was a diver on the swim team and active in intra-murals.
On Feb. 16, 1968, I was commissioned a 2lt in the USAF. I first went to undergraduate pilot training in Laredo, Texas, until Dec. '68. The greatest thrill there was flying the supersonic T-38 "Talon" jet trainer.
I was then transferred to ICBM missile training-- first at Sheppard A.F.B. in Wichita Falls, Texas, and then Vandenberg A.F.B. in Santa Maria, California. Vandenberg A.F.B. is on the coast only two hours by car north of Oxnard where my good friend, Ruth Mietz (PHS '62 Valedictorian), was teaching English at Channel Islands High School. I had known Ruth since we met in Miss Salcido's 7th grade math at PJHS. It was during these 60 days that the friendship blossomed into a serious relationship!
I was assigned after that to Little Rock A.F.B., Arkansas, where I was the commander of a four person missile combat crew for a multimillion dollar Titan II ICBM missile complex. (yes, I was one of the guys who would have launched a Titan II intercontinental nuclear warhead missile if given a valid, authenticated "launch" message.) To keep busy in my spare time at Little Rock A.F.B I played on the squadron and base level basketball and volleyball teams. I also kept in touch with Ruth Mietz by letter and phone. On May 21 of 1971 we were married in Long Beach, California.
The USAF then sent us to Columbia, Missouri, for 18 months while I earned an M.S. in Mathematics at the University of Missouri.
For the rest of my military service (17 more years) I worked as a scientific analyst/scientific manager at the following three places: From 1973 to 1978 we were in Dayton, Ohio, at Wright-Patterson A.F.B. Then we were stationed at Hickam A.F.B. for four wonderful years in Hawaii (where I was born and still have relatives). Our last seven years were in Utah (Hill A.F.B.) north of Salt Lake City.
In 1989 I retired, and we moved to Sacramento, California, where Ruth worked as a GS -12 Civil Servant at McClellan A.F.B. (See Ruth McClish's profile in "Classmates" for more on her life.)
Life was very good fo...Expand for more
r the next three years. We both were active at church. Ruth was the Christian Education chairman and one of the main adult Sunday School teachers. I was the church financial secretary, chairman of the Ministry and Counsel (elders) and the other main adult S.S. teacher.
On September 22, 1993, life made one of those drastic changes. While Ruth was traveling on official Air Force orders she and I were driving home from a training class she attended in San Diego. About three hours from Sacramento on I-5 we were in a roll-over accident. I was barely hurt, but Ruth had a severe head injury that took her life. The next several years were tough as you can imagine!
In 1999 I married Judy Hanson (originally from Minnesota) who I met where we both played volleyball twice a week. Judy was an Instructional Assistant (IA) working with multiple severely handicapped students in the local school district. I loved watching her work with those students--very loving, compassionate and dedicated! Often I would meet her for lunch at her school. Judy retired two years ago.
Judy brought to our marriage two wonderful teenage daughters so I became a "dad." The oldest, Jessie, is now 29 years old. She teaches at a Mong charter school in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This summer she is volunteering at a medical clinic/orphanage near Lima, Peru. She also previously taught school for a year in Honduras. Our other daughter, Annie, lives with her husband in Florence, Oregon, (on the coast). She is now 25 years old and works in a senior living complex. So you can see we are now "empty nesters."
Life is especially great right now in this stage of our life. Judy and I are active at church. Judy volunteers at least once a week at a thrift store run by Women Escaping a Violent Environment (W.E.A.V.E.) Judy and I are madly in love with each other just as Ruth and I were! I have been wonderfully "twice blessed" to have had such great loving, caring, giving women share my life with me!!!
Stay tuned over the years as I now start adding more and more about Judy and me . The future looks really bright! We truly hope yours is also!!!
-----Paul (and Judy) McClish PHS '62
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