Rhea (Edgerton) Hackler:
CLASS OF 1970
Madison High SchoolClass of 1970
Madison heights, MI
Rhea (Edgerton)'s Story
My story as of July 26, 2017:"
As many of my classmates know, I married my childhood sweetheart, Joseph Hackler, during my senior year, one week after my 18th birthday on Jan 10, 1970. We have a wonderful married life, having lived in several states and finally retiring in Bowling Green, FL.
During our married life, Joe served in the Navy from 1969-1973, during which time we lived in Norfolk & Virginia Beach, VA. I earned a programming certificate from Electronic Computer Programming Institute in VA, and when Joe was done with his military time, we moved back to Michigan, where I got a job as a keypunch operator and Joe took advantage of the GI Bill, attending college. After being told that I would not be able to move my career any further without a college degree, I decided to join the Army in 1975 – mainly to get experience in my field and to earn the GI Bill. During my military service, we lived in Alabama (during training) and Aberdeen, Maryland, where I was stationed as an Instructor, teaching computer repair.
After military service, Joe & I decided to move to Southern California, where our “best man” lived, and we could take advantage of the “free” college they offered. With the cost of living being so high and the high demand for jobs in the defense business, I ended up getting a job at Hughes Aircraft as an Associate System Engineer, where I worked on programming military simulators for tanks and fire finder systems.
In 1986, I was p...Expand for more
regnant with our daughter, Geneva. GM purchased Hughes Aircraft and laid off 10% of the workforce right off the bat and I was one of the first ones to go. At the time, Joe & I were looking to move closer to grandparents, aunts, uncles & cousins for our daughter’s sake, so the layoff was a blessing in disguise. We moved to our home town, Madison Heights, MI in May of 1986, lived and worked in the area for 27 years. I finally completed my Bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems in 1997, and landed a job at Ford Motor Co, working in my field.
Joe & I retired & took up residency in a retirement park in FL, where we spend 8 months out of the year (Oct-May). For 4 months out of the year (Jun-Sep), we live on our property in Waters, MI – a very remote area in the “Forest”, as our 4-year old grandson calls it. We feel very fortunate to be able to enjoy a wonderful retirement life.
When I look back on my high school years, the most influential person in my life was Mr. Jaroske. He was my main counselor after Mr. Liike gave up on me (I missed a lot of school). He actually turned my life around by giving me a job at the school working in the office, channeling me to something productive. After two years of counseling, I remember the last words he said to me, “When you first came to me, I thought you were headed nowhere, but now when I see you, I believe you are really going to make something out of yourself. Don’t prove me wrong.” I didn’t.
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