Gleaned from School Daze pages
by Cecile

First grade - 1949-50
Miss Stratton taught the first three grades. This was her second year at Union Star Grade School. Born in Gentry County, she had taught before at mostly rural, one-room schools - Eureka, Shady Dell, Fountain Bleau, Elam, Grandview and McFall. Wayne, Junior and Linda went through all 12 grades from here.

Second grade - 1950-51
Our class expanded due to closing of rural schools and consolidation into the Union Star RII School District.  Miss Stratton was again our teacher. The only item of interest I could find was that it was Jake Bashor’s first year as custodian.  No articles concerned grade school classes.  However, the senior play was Finders Creepers, the same one we did our junior year.

Third grade - 1951-52
We had a large class:  Charles Bottorff, Scott Canady, Don Carrel, Cecile Coats, Junior Gallinger, Charlie Gordon, Frank Harris, Gary Keys, Mary Ann Laun, Max McClarey, Dick Mowrey, Frances McCullough, Patty O’Neal, Barbara Price, Linda Schnitker, Wayne Shores, Marilyn Stabe, Nancy VanGilder and Howard Walker.
Our teacher, Laura (Miller) Lindley, brought in an aquarium in which we took a great interest, and some students brought in some fish to live in it.  We planted seeds and put a sweet potato in water watching to see if they grew new plants.           

Fourth grade - 1952-53
Teacher: Mrs. June Clark
Study emphasized health.  We kept daily charts – checking each other's hands and bringing handkerchiefs each day.  I hope we were honest about brushing our teeth.  We became good rope jumpers and jacks players.  Candy Cane Lane was a favorite board game.

Seventeen class members were:  Robert Anderson, Charles Bottorff, Scott Canady, Don Carrel, Cecile Coats, Junior Gallinger, Charlie Gordon, Gary Keys, Mary Ann Laun, Max McClarey, Frances McCullough, Patty O’Neal, Linda Schnitker, Wayne Shores, Marilyn Stabe, Nancy VanGilder, and Alan Lovell. 

Fifth Grade - 1953-54
Teacher: Miss Persis Kennedy
An addition to the school was begun in August and finished in the spring adding primary classrooms, a shop area, music room, home economics and other classrooms as well as restrooms.  Some of our dads worked on it.  We seemed to have enjoyed our art classes.  Miss Kennedy tactfully suggested that we bathe and change our underclothing before standing on the floor furnace.

Twenty class members: Robert Anderson, Ronald Bashor, Charles Bottorff, Scott Canady, Don Carrel, Cecile Coats, Mary Durby, Junior Gallinger, Charlie Gordon, Gary Keys, Mary Ann Laun, Max McClarey, Frances McCullough, Patty O’Neal, Linda Schnitker, Wayne Shores, Marilyn Stabe, Nancy VanGilder  and Howard Walker.  Scott moved to Arkansas during the year.

Sixth grade 1954-55
Teacher: Mrs. Freda Campbell  Music teacher: Mrs. Hazel Waugh

Robert Anderson was chosen by Mrs. Ketchum to appear on the program, Conservation Kids, on radio station KFEQ. A column featured Small Fry news.

Taking part in March music contests in Maysville: 
Trumpet trio:  Frances McCullough, Donald Carrel, Carol Ann Baker.
Clarinet quartet:  Linda Schnitker, Lana Teenor, Vonna Morris, and Carolyn Baker.
Listed in band: Linda Schnitker, Donald Carrel, Frances McCullough

In the April “School Daze”, the reason for Cecil changing her name to Cecile was   “Cecil Coats was born in 1943 to Mr. and Mrs. Howard Coats at Union Star.  He is in the sixth grade.”

We attended the Shrine Circus in St. Joseph that spring.

Class members:  Robert Anderson, Gary Brunk, Donald Carrel, Cecil Marie Coats, Junior Gallinger, Gary Keys, Mary Ann Laun, Frances McCullough, Max McClarey, Patricia O’Neal, Linda Schnitker, Wayne Shores, Marilyn Stabe, and Neal Wilcoxson.

Seventh grade - 1955-56
Teacher: Mrs. Carolyn Hayes

A bizarre administrative decision put eight third graders - two of them virtually unteachable - in our classroom. Mrs. Hayes kept her smile despite a very trying situation.

Eighth grade 1956-57
Mrs. Ruby Foster was our teacher and Mary Ruth Hall was our music teacher. 

Mrs. Hall directed the operetta, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  Those in our class with parts were: Queen - Alice Campbell King - Junior Gallinger Frosty Fate - Cecil Coats (I remember the song I sang.) Queen Tiger Lily - Linda Schnitker White Wings - Gary Keys Woodsman - Neal Wilcoxson Courtiers - Don Carrel and Ron Young Guards - Robert Anderson and Wayne Shores More pictures

This was a busy year for us.  First, we welcomed Yvonne Wogan, Alice Campbell, Don Saunders and William Garner, Jr.  to our class.  Charlie Gordon rejoined us during the year.  Class officers were:  Don Carrel, president, Yvonne Wogan, vice-president and secretary Linda Schnitker. 

We worked all year having bake sales, paper drives, picking up corn and other ways to raise money for our Chicago trip.  We left Friday, April 26, arriving in Chicago at 8:15 Saturday morning.  We visited the Museum of Science and Industry, the Natural History Museum and went along the Lake Shore Drive and through the shopping district.  We left Chicago at 6:15 p.m. and arrived in St. Joseph at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday.  (Remember all those milk stops?)  Noted in the school paper was: “Gary Keys, were you really asleep when you sat down with those two girls on the train?”

We studied the U.S. and Missouri constitutions and had to pass a test on them to be eligible for an eighth grade diploma.  We were good spellers; Linda missed NO words all year.  We read lots of Reading Circle books.  Linda, Cecile and Marilyn S. were awarded lifetime certificates.  We made conservation posters, and Neil Wilcoxson won first at Maysville.  Boy and girl teams participated in junior high basketball tournaments in Osborn and Helena.  Don Carrel and Patty O’Neal had perfect attendance for the year.

Seventh and eighth graders had a party at Skateland in St. Joseph in December. That month we also got polio vaccines. Robert dramatically passed out.  In January, Linda invited the class to watch Dwight "Ike" Eisenhower's second presidential inauguration at her home.