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In Memoriam

To our classmates who have preceded us in death, we remember
and honor you here.
Bobby McCool

I believe I remember Bobby playing the trumpet in the band, although my brain may be hitting a sour note on that. I seem to remember one incident in which the bus we were riding stopped quickly as Bobby was playing, sending him into the seat in front of him and splitting his lip. As I recall, Bobby insisted on playing for whatever event was scheduled, even though he had to fake most of it. He wouldn't just leave it up to someone else.

                                                         —Alan Johnston

Beside his ’61 Résumé photo showing his big friendly grin are these thoughts: “Boy with a beat. . . jovial and jolly . . . ‘The Pig Stand.’ ” He was a member of Jackson’s junior symphony and the Murrah Band. In 1972, he wrote the reunion Hoofbeat from Metairie, LA, to say he was employed by Upjohn Company in hospital sales.
Roddy Parman   1944 - 1961

Roddy Parman was my good friend, and he was the friend of almost all who knew him. His life on this earth was short, but he enjoyed every minute God gave him here. I'm sure he rests comfortably in His hands as we begin to celebrate our 40th Murrah class reunion.

I remember Roddy’s great smile and his almost constant laughter. He loved shooting pool, kidding around with his friends, and Linda Farrington. The last night Roddy spent here, he and Gary Taylor kidded each other unmercifully over at Patti Pippin's. Gary and Roddy are probably together again and could be kidding each other right now!

Roddy's sudden passing was the first tragic experience most of us had. We all grew up a little too fast that day. His memory, however, is refreshing.
                                                       —Robert Johnson

I really liked Roddy Parman. He had such a great sense of humor and was such a sincere and loving friend, even at the age of 16.
                                                           —Kermit Davis

Roddy was a true boyhood friend and pal. His house was the one I gravitated toward when I, as a second grader from McComb, moved into my neighborhood on Meadow Heights Drive. Memories of afternoon football games in various front and back yards are still with me, and I can visualize Roddy's house as the center of neighborhood activity. I most remember him for being the one that took me into that inner circle of neighborhood guys, without asking for anything in return.
                                                         —Alan Johnston

Not for publication!!! Do you remember that Roddy was my fifth grade boyfriend?
                                                 —Mary Lydick Rogers

EDITOR’S NOTE: We had to betray this confidence in light of the next two e-mails.

Roddy Parman was my sixth grade boyfriend at Boyd Elementary. He was a special guy. I went with his family to see him play football at the field by Provine. It was the longest ride of my 12-year-old life!!!!
                                               —Randa Ferrell Baddley

Mary Lydick Rogers spoke for many of us when she said, “I will always remember his funeral at St. James Episcopal Church. It was the first funeral I ever Attended. The church was full. The music was beautiful.  And I was so sad. We all missed him.”

Every time I attend services at St. James I remember that our class bought a Processional Cross in memory of Roddy. I still see his parents at church or at the mall walking, and they always ask about various classmates.

                                                         —Jody Monsour
Leonard Posey  1944 - 1986

Leonard Posey died in September, 1986, in an accident. At the time of his death he was a board-certified cardiovascular surgeon in private practice in Conroe, TX. In addition to being devoted to his family, Leonard enjoyed books, scuba diving, horses, and flying. He was extensively involved with his church in providing medical care for those in need. He was always working on a project and accomplished much for one whose life was cut short.

He was most proud of his children. His older daughter, Kimberly, graduated from UCLA and received her master’s degree from Northwestern University’s McDill School of Journalism. She is an anchor for Fox News in Denver and will be married in September. His younger daughter, Lawton, graduated first in her class from Tulane. A Truman scholar, she attended law school at Georgetown and is now an attorney with Davis, Polk, in New York City. Her husband, Craig, a West Point graduate and also a Truman scholar, is completing his doctorate in foreign relations at Columbia and has accepted a teaching position at West Point. They are expecting their first child in November. His son, Douglas, is a sophomore in college and next year will attend the University of Colorado.

All three of Leonard’s children have maintained extremely close ties with Jackson and visit their grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins regularly and frequently.
                                               —Elta Posey Johnston
 
Jim Seyler   1944 - 1986

Jim was always going somewhere in a hurry. A big hurry! However, he never was in too much of a hurry to give me a ride to and from MSU in Starkville, and for that, I'm grateful to him. Outside of our rocket-like rides up and down the Natchez Trace, I didn't really know much about Jim, but I count those experiences with him as part of my collegiate background. (I most appreciate the advent of seat belts at that time. . . .)
                                                       —Alan Johnston

Jim’s mother Mrs. Samuel F. Seyler of Madison, MS said that Jim died in 1986. He made furniture reproductions in San Francisco, CA. He never married. What she remembered most about him at Murrah was that he worked on Murrah productions and did the poster for the production of Our Town.

By his photo the 1961 Résumé said, “Polite and pleasant. . . always a helping hand. . . witty rover.”
 
Larry Sloan

I remember drag racing with Larry Sloan in his old Buick sedan. He didn't like me one bit. And one night a Buick convertible passed me at high speed on the way towards town from Bobby Pennington's house. It swerved and turned over in the ditch. It was Larry's mother. She was OK. Scared the hell out of me and Bobby.
                                                         —David Pickett

I still use Larry Sloan's baked beans recipe. Can't remember exactly how I got it—maybe from Maridel and Cile when we all worked in Atlanta. He may have been some fabulous cook. That recipe does bring him to mind from time to time.
                                                 —Mary Lydick Rogers

A friend of mine after we got out of high school. We went to Mississippi State and roomed together our Freshman year. Larry was one of the few smokers in high school. I seem to recall that we had this special smoking rest room and he was a perpetual visitor. He really blossomed in college and was president of our fraternity and of the inter-fraternity council. He was a guy who like to have fun and was good at it.
                                                       —Frank Thames

Said the '61 Résumé of Larry: “Good looks and good times. . . pranks and parties. . . go, man.”
Ned Spangler

Ned transferred to Murrah in our senior year. We were priviledged to enjoy his unique personality and sense of humor for too brief a time.

 
Kathy Sulya Bunch

Said the ’61 Résumé of Kathy: “Quiet and congenial. . . nice to know. . . unforgettably agreeable.” Kathy was a member of Mu Alpha Theta and the National Honor Society and was secretary of the Medico-Eds.

After graduation from college, she taught at the School of Math and Science in Columbus, MS. She also taught in Oxford. Kathy and her husband,  Austin Bunch, had two sons; Austin was Assistant to the President at the “W” under Clyda Rent.

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