Phil Duck:
CLASS OF 1972
Spring Valley High SchoolClass of 1972
Columbia, SC
Phil's Story
I guess I could easily be described as someone with more than one passion. Even while growing up I collected so many tools that my Dad was once quoted as saying of me that if ever any one of my tools ever broke, I'd have another tool to fix it. Yes, I am a fix-it man. I get motivated very easily when something needs fixing, I'm on it.I am a Handyman.
My other passion is I like to travel the world. I am a travel agent and I have my own .ytbtravel(dot)com/duckhandy.
From that same web address I offer a lot of .commie's with ytbflowers, ytbweddings, ytbfruitbaskets, ytbcars,(New and Used), Ticket master with ytbticketsnow, ytboutdoors and the list goes on and on. YTBTravel which includes cruises, airplanes, trains, automobiles, buses, tours, excursions, white water rafting, canoe trips, safari's, trips as far away as the great Wall of China. We cater to Churches, major sporting events(both college and professional).
I got of the shoe business years ago. I was the last one of my family members to leave consumer shoe retail market. I was actually pretty good at it.
I've become a pretty good photographer over the years. Even got inducted into the International Library of Photography.
About ten years ago I entered a book contest to see who would be selected as the number one handyman in America. I felt pretty confident even before submitting my stuff. They actually made me the National Magazine Model for the Handyman Club Of America. And put out 43,000,000 copies. I never thought I would ever do any thing like that that would scare myself. But it did change my life.
Just bought a house here in Columbia, SC up near Blythewood. I like it a lot. As I was moving in I went over with my brother Mike to meet my next door neighbors. To my surprize my good buddy Steve Patterson from Spring Valley owns the house right next door!!! We go out shopping together a lot mostly for tools and electronics and can't forget dinners.
I might be best remembered from the naming the newspaper, I'm the one that came up with the name the "Viking Shield". What I actually did after that was get a transfer stencil from what was then "Peidmont Printmakers". It was barely two and a half inches long. Too small for the header of our newspaper. So what I did was I went over next door to the " Wilson Vocational Center". And I simply blew it up to full size. It Worked!!!
About two years ago the" Viking Shield" was named the number one newspaper in America. I can't take credit for that. The kids did it all.
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When I got out of school, the first thing I wanted to do was go back. When I was gratuated, I felt like I was being expelled because I couldn't go back any more. I thought I wanted to go to a welding vocational school and become a welder. What I did was design ladies fashion footwear. I traveled a pretty big territory. I had 14 States. It was 10 Years before I went back to school. After three years of that at USC, I had enough. I studied mostly computer programming. Then I went on to Orangeburg-Calhoun Tech for more Computer hands on studies.
I really like working for myself. I'm very independent by my nature. And I'm known as a perfectionist in most all that I do. I come from a very hard working and sucessful family. i have two brothers and one sister.And you know to this day you still cannot pick your relatives. Only your friends.
One of my favorite things is I like to go swimming. I recently joined another health club. "New Life Fitness World". They have an indoor heated swimming pool for all year round.
What I missed most about leaving Spring Valley High was the Art Room. Spring Valley first opened it's doors to the students on October 10Th, 1970. My favorite teacher was my Art Teacher Lucy Geiger. Later she became Lucy Irvin, Currently, Lucy Stackpole. she lives down in Charleston,SC. She has an interesting Web-Site that all you guys should know about it's .abcsbylucy(dot)com. She markets childrens poster art on the World Wide Web. And she is very good at it!!!
My big Secret Crush from school was I fell head over heals in love with Susan Pool. Why, If that girl came within 40 feet of me my heart would be racing at 95 miles an hour!!! She was the only one.When I finally got up enough courage to ask her out for dinner. I must have been a little bit nervous because when I made the big mistake of asking her a stupid "lead in" question, I said "Susan, Guess What?" That's when I heard the "dial tone". We didn't have cell phones back then. I knew that I knew that I was going to screw up. We were never taught in school what should have been the very most important thing. "How To Talk To Girls". Strangely as it seemed it somehow put a warm twisted smile of relief on my face for that all important moment that even I could not understand.
I never gave her a second chance. I was a basket case after that. I never really wanted to go out with any one else after that.
I never married.
Sad.
She was born June 3RD four days ahead of me.
Back Then That Mattered.
Don't Know Why, But It Did.
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