Len Ross:
CLASS OF 1967
Joel E. Ferris High SchoolClass of 1967
Spokane, WA
Len's Story
My given full name is; Leonard Earl Ross (mom liked the Earl of Ross thing). I went by Lenny in grade school and Len in High School. My inspiration comes from my family and friends. Seeing my 2 granddaughters having fun and watching them grow-up is cool. My wife Carol and I like traveling. Ask us where we've been. We would be glad to tell you all the neat places we've been and seen.
After graduation in '67 I attended SCC for 2 yrs. Then because of a mix up with EWSU admissions, I was called by Uncle Sam (draft number of 34) to do 4 yrs in the Navy as a Medic. After 4 yrs., the Navy offered me advanced schooling and of course more money but I still didn't want to make a career out of the military. So, I went to EWSU for 3 yrs and then I enrolled at the WSU branch campus extension in Richland while working part time. These classes here in the Tri-Cities led to my BS degree. With that I got a job as a Reactor Control Room Operator at Hanford in Richland. In the middle of all the schooling I got married in '75 to a Richland Bombers alum. After 8 yrs. at N-Reactor, the reactor was shutdown because of the Chernobyl incident. At this point I changed careers and started working for DOE (Dept. of Energy) writing Government and technical engineering documents.
We have 2 girls who have since graduated from college. Carrie graduated from Univ of Idaho and Megan from Valpariso Univ in Indiana. Carrie has given us a granddaughter Emma to spoil and have fun with and another granddaughter Hannah who is 5 yrs. and full of energy. She is very talkative and lets you know what she is thinking (very cute).
I left Hanford and the Government after 30 yrs and began working for URS Corp. headquartered here in Richland developing training for the operators who will be working at the new Vitrification Facility at Hanford. I have now retired from government work totally and I really enjoy my freedom playing in a swing band and dabbling in photography. I posted some photography that I've done. Hope you like it.
For fun I play in a swing band, "Swing Unlimited", as lead trumpet (I played trumpet in the Ferris band, '63-'67).
I also sing in a mixed voice group called the "No Half Measures" (ask me about this if ya want to). So I'm pretty busy but I still find time to enjoy a round or two of golf and to hunt and fish.
My first job of any significance was with the US Forest Service at Red Ives Ranger Station in the St Joe National Forest in Idaho. This was summertime work while going to college. I got paid mucho bucks a day including hazardous pa...Expand for more
y to fight forest fires. Needless to say, I had plenty of money for college. What I remember most about it is how dangerous it was and how really naive I was. I was almost hit by a burned out tree as it silently fell to the ground (called a widow maker). On another occasion I was fighting a fire called "Entante Creek" in the St. Joe Natl. forest. I had to dive into a rock outcropping to escape the fire that burned over the top of us. I remember the heat was intense and coupled with the choking smoke I thought I was not going to make it out alive. My life truly did flash in front of me. The dozer driver died and many other firefighters were burned in the fire. My shirt had burn marks on the back of it but not my skin.
We recently (4yrs ago) built a house that overlooks the Yakima and Columbia rivers. Real nice view! It's a keeper.
I always wanted to be a trumpet player when I grew up. My family and friends thought that was a bad idea. As it turns out, they were partially right. It doesn't pay well but is a nice avocation.
The wildest thing I did in High School was to participate in the "Marble Drop" in the auditorium during a Skip Pixley lecture in my senior year. OK, so I had a pretty boring high school experience compared to some of you.
To be truly happy, I would be where, doing what, with whom? Hmmmm, Now let me see....Oh Yes, I would do some more traveling with my wife. Whew!
1. People are very bad at predicting what will make them happy.
We overestimate how bad the bad will be, for example. We think we will be really sad if we lose a leg, but in fact, people who lose a limb are not any sadder, as a population, than people who have not lost a limb.
2. What makes me happy now is being anywhere around family and friends where we all are having fun and we all can be crazy weird if we want to (within reason of course).
Reveal your career aspirations?
The truth is, my career is over and I'm finally settling down in my rocking chair. In fact retirement is really here. I'm now in the process of preparing for the void that comes with not having that job from 7 to 3 five days a week. Just what will fill it? I haven't yet found that out completely but I know there is something that I will find. I'm looking at all possibilities. One of the things I have thought about is to travel in the USA more. This is one of the things my wife and I really would like to do. To put this in a weird perspective however, my youngest daughter Megan is 29 and has visited 29 foreign countries and 38 states already. This just blows me away.
Register for Free to view all details!
Yearbooks
Register for Free to view all yearbooks!
Reunions
Photos
Register for Free to view all photos!