Nancy Caton by Cameron Sollinger
Nancy Caton (1962 to June 1965)
I graduated from Cascade in 1965. Cascade during my years was a unique time as I was only the third class to graduate from the “new school”. Prior to 1960 there was only one high school for all of Everett. When I was at Evergreen Junior High school in the 8th grade we also had the 10th graders at our school as Cascade was not yet finished. So, when I entered Cascade my class was the first class to have sophomores, juniors and seniors all together for the year. Being a new school there were no traditions in place and so we were the ones who built traditions as the years passed. We had a school song and of course the crimson and grey colors and the bruin bear as our mascot. In the middle of the courtyard there was a big bruin cement sculpture.
We had a great deal of school spirit and did many things together with all three classes. In those days high school only had three classes and there were no freshmen as they were in junior high and did not enter high school until their sophomore year. Everett High was our biggest rival and those games were always full of tremendous anticipation and great spirit. We traveled to most of the away games and when we played Wenatchee there was a booster train that took us there and brought us back after the games. Those train rides were lots of fun! I was the majorette with the band and remember how excited we all were to perform the half time shows at the football games. Homecoming games were the best as we knew everyone who was alumni as we all started out together back at Evergreen.
We did not have a dress code per se but it was understood that the girls only wore dresses and no pants and the boys wore slacks and no jeans. It was a lot more formal then and all the teachers dressed up with ties and suits for the men and dresses or suits for the women with high heels the norm. I remember Cascade as a very calm school with no drugs or violence of any kind. There were some kids who smoked and they would go out to the parking lot and stand by their cars and smoke. Alcohol was not a big issue but there were always the “bad” kids that would drink beer on the weekends in the summer at the beach.
Politically this was a unique time. John Kennedy was elected president in 1961 and he was the youngest president ever elected and gave us and the country a new fresh outlook for the world. He was very much into physical fitness and so we did testing in gym class and all tried to be fit. His famous challenge of “50 miles with great vigor” made us all want to be physically fit. He also started the Peace Corps and this gave us all a feeling of wanting to do good things in the world for those less fortunate than ourselves. In this country he started the war on poverty for those less fortunate than us. I remember being at Cascade when the Cuban missile crisis erupted and his standoff with Khrushchev and that was a scary time. I also remember the day he was assassinated. I was in my geometry class when they made the announcement and we all sat stunned and we cried.
After his death the civil rights movement really heated up and I also remember Dr. King’s I have a dream speech and the march on Washington. We only had two African American students at Cascade and they were both very well liked and accepted. My guess is this all made an impression on me as when I graduated from college I taught in an intercity school in California for twelve years and am still very active in social causes.
The Beatles were just becoming known in the United States and in 1964 appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. We thought they were very cool and we liked their style and hair. Other musical groups that were popular during those years at Cascade were: The Supremes, Beach Boys, Rolling Stones, Byrds, Temptations, and Peter Paul and Mary, just to name a few.
The big favorite TV show was Peyton Place and it was very risqué for its time. My Fair Lady, Dr. Zhivago and Sound of Music were big box office draws for the movies.
After graduation from Cascade in 1965 I went to Everett Community College and received my AA degree. I then transferred to Western in Bellingham and received my BA and teaching credential. I moved to San Francisco in 1969 and began teaching in Richmond California until 1981 when I left teaching and began a new career in the financial services industry. I now own a financial services company, Caton Financial Inc. and we currently manage close to $200,000,000 in client assets. Today I have a great business and am married to a very special man. I live in Sonoma, California and am able to travel extensively as well as enjoy a great life style.
I feel very fortunate to have had the high school experiences at Cascade as it left me very grounded and ready to make a difference in the world. I had many wonderful teachers as well as many wonderful friends. I will always remember those years at Cascade.
I graduated from Cascade in 1965. Cascade during my years was a unique time as I was only the third class to graduate from the “new school”. Prior to 1960 there was only one high school for all of Everett. When I was at Evergreen Junior High school in the 8th grade we also had the 10th graders at our school as Cascade was not yet finished. So, when I entered Cascade my class was the first class to have sophomores, juniors and seniors all together for the year. Being a new school there were no traditions in place and so we were the ones who built traditions as the years passed. We had a school song and of course the crimson and grey colors and the bruin bear as our mascot. In the middle of the courtyard there was a big bruin cement sculpture.
We had a great deal of school spirit and did many things together with all three classes. In those days high school only had three classes and there were no freshmen as they were in junior high and did not enter high school until their sophomore year. Everett High was our biggest rival and those games were always full of tremendous anticipation and great spirit. We traveled to most of the away games and when we played Wenatchee there was a booster train that took us there and brought us back after the games. Those train rides were lots of fun! I was the majorette with the band and remember how excited we all were to perform the half time shows at the football games. Homecoming games were the best as we knew everyone who was alumni as we all started out together back at Evergreen.
We did not have a dress code per se but it was understood that the girls only wore dresses and no pants and the boys wore slacks and no jeans. It was a lot more formal then and all the teachers dressed up with ties and suits for the men and dresses or suits for the women with high heels the norm. I remember Cascade as a very calm school with no drugs or violence of any kind. There were some kids who smoked and they would go out to the parking lot and stand by their cars and smoke. Alcohol was not a big issue but there were always the “bad” kids that would drink beer on the weekends in the summer at the beach.
Politically this was a unique time. John Kennedy was elected president in 1961 and he was the youngest president ever elected and gave us and the country a new fresh outlook for the world. He was very much into physical fitness and so we did testing in gym class and all tried to be fit. His famous challenge of “50 miles with great vigor” made us all want to be physically fit. He also started the Peace Corps and this gave us all a feeling of wanting to do good things in the world for those less fortunate than ourselves. In this country he started the war on poverty for those less fortunate than us. I remember being at Cascade when the Cuban missile crisis erupted and his standoff with Khrushchev and that was a scary time. I also remember the day he was assassinated. I was in my geometry class when they made the announcement and we all sat stunned and we cried.
After his death the civil rights movement really heated up and I also remember Dr. King’s I have a dream speech and the march on Washington. We only had two African American students at Cascade and they were both very well liked and accepted. My guess is this all made an impression on me as when I graduated from college I taught in an intercity school in California for twelve years and am still very active in social causes.
The Beatles were just becoming known in the United States and in 1964 appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. We thought they were very cool and we liked their style and hair. Other musical groups that were popular during those years at Cascade were: The Supremes, Beach Boys, Rolling Stones, Byrds, Temptations, and Peter Paul and Mary, just to name a few.
The big favorite TV show was Peyton Place and it was very risqué for its time. My Fair Lady, Dr. Zhivago and Sound of Music were big box office draws for the movies.
After graduation from Cascade in 1965 I went to Everett Community College and received my AA degree. I then transferred to Western in Bellingham and received my BA and teaching credential. I moved to San Francisco in 1969 and began teaching in Richmond California until 1981 when I left teaching and began a new career in the financial services industry. I now own a financial services company, Caton Financial Inc. and we currently manage close to $200,000,000 in client assets. Today I have a great business and am married to a very special man. I live in Sonoma, California and am able to travel extensively as well as enjoy a great life style.
I feel very fortunate to have had the high school experiences at Cascade as it left me very grounded and ready to make a difference in the world. I had many wonderful teachers as well as many wonderful friends. I will always remember those years at Cascade.