| Johnny W's Page |
Nov. 14, 2007: Had a really fine talk with Johnny today; it was good to hear his warm
Texas accent over the phone. He's just as nice as he always was.
Johnny was born in Sparta, present site of Fort Hood, on March 31, 1941. He
attended Tarver Elementary until it closed, then got to break in Southwest
Elementary, a brand new building. He says that's where he met Janean, whom he's
known longer than any other BHS student. He sees Judy PS every once in a while,
as they live fairly close to each other. He says, "A couple of my contacts with her
have been on the phone trying to get information on previous BHS students. It's
amazing how much she remembers."
Mr. Franklin was one of his favorite teachers at BHS. He says, "I appreciated his
patience and understanding of my shortcomings in golf and softball. I also want to
thank Mrs. Harvey for passing me in spite of Dale turning around and spinning the
carriage on my typewriter in the middle of speed tests. Coach Pirtle also gave me a
lot of encouragement which I still use to this day."
After graduation, Johnny attended Temple Junior College, then got his business
degree at Sam Houston State in accounting.
He met his wife Gretchen while he was working in Dallas, and they've been married
since 1966---41 years. Their only daughter, Kim, was killed in a car accident in 1994
at age 24. Of course, this was a major tragedy for Johnny and Gretchen. He says
they keep her alive by continuing to talk about her.
His military service was in the Army Reserve at Fort Sill and Fort Polk.
His first job was with McLane Wholesale Groceries as an accountant. He figures one
of the biggest missteps of his life was not staying with them, as they have grown to
be hugely successful. One of the founders is now the owner of the Houston Astros,
and back then, he was just a "good ole boy."
Johnny worked for the Texas Farm Bureau as an accountant for 8 years, then moved
on to be Assistant Comptroller and Comproller for a couple of resort companies on
Lake LBJ and Lake Travis for another 8 years.
He discovered that getting things done his own way is easier when he's the boss.
For a while, he had a landscaping/maintenance company, then he and Gretchen
opened an antique shop in Fredericksburg. He says, "We had about 8 years of
travel and fun and enjoyed it while we had the opportunity. We made semiannual
buying trips to Belgium, France, Holland, and Germany. We did antique shows
across the southern US for about a year after we closed our store about 5 years
ago. After the September 11, 2001, disaster in NY, it became almost impossible to
import antiques from Europe and we had to close."
Besides that travel, they've also enjoyed trips to Lake Tahoe and around Colorado.
In fact, they're toying with the idea of relocating to Colorado, or maybe returning to
Belton to live on the lake.
They are semi-retired, and can't imagine ever really stopping working. They like to
keep active. They have their own business, Wesson Field Services, in which they
do property inspections for insurance companies.
For the first 50 or 60 years of Johnny's life, his passion was hunting and fishing.
Now he and Gretchen have 11 acres at Dripping Springs, west of Austin, and enjoy
sitting in rocking chairs and watching the animals come to their feeders. He figures
that's his pay-back for all the pleasure animals have given him in his life. About six
to twelve deer frequent his corn feeder, and he feeds about ten raccoons on his
porch every day. A couple of squirrels are tame enough to eat pecans from his hand.
On TV, he watches the Longhorns, the San Antonio Spurs, and, since Vince Young
migrated to Tennessee, he's become a great fan of the Titans. He also watches a
series called "24," which he says will return to TV in January, and Fox News.
It will be such fun to see Johnny again at the 2010 reunion, and to meet Gretchen.
Texas accent over the phone. He's just as nice as he always was.
Johnny was born in Sparta, present site of Fort Hood, on March 31, 1941. He
attended Tarver Elementary until it closed, then got to break in Southwest
Elementary, a brand new building. He says that's where he met Janean, whom he's
known longer than any other BHS student. He sees Judy PS every once in a while,
as they live fairly close to each other. He says, "A couple of my contacts with her
have been on the phone trying to get information on previous BHS students. It's
amazing how much she remembers."
Mr. Franklin was one of his favorite teachers at BHS. He says, "I appreciated his
patience and understanding of my shortcomings in golf and softball. I also want to
thank Mrs. Harvey for passing me in spite of Dale turning around and spinning the
carriage on my typewriter in the middle of speed tests. Coach Pirtle also gave me a
lot of encouragement which I still use to this day."
After graduation, Johnny attended Temple Junior College, then got his business
degree at Sam Houston State in accounting.
He met his wife Gretchen while he was working in Dallas, and they've been married
since 1966---41 years. Their only daughter, Kim, was killed in a car accident in 1994
at age 24. Of course, this was a major tragedy for Johnny and Gretchen. He says
they keep her alive by continuing to talk about her.
His military service was in the Army Reserve at Fort Sill and Fort Polk.
His first job was with McLane Wholesale Groceries as an accountant. He figures one
of the biggest missteps of his life was not staying with them, as they have grown to
be hugely successful. One of the founders is now the owner of the Houston Astros,
and back then, he was just a "good ole boy."
Johnny worked for the Texas Farm Bureau as an accountant for 8 years, then moved
on to be Assistant Comptroller and Comproller for a couple of resort companies on
Lake LBJ and Lake Travis for another 8 years.
He discovered that getting things done his own way is easier when he's the boss.
For a while, he had a landscaping/maintenance company, then he and Gretchen
opened an antique shop in Fredericksburg. He says, "We had about 8 years of
travel and fun and enjoyed it while we had the opportunity. We made semiannual
buying trips to Belgium, France, Holland, and Germany. We did antique shows
across the southern US for about a year after we closed our store about 5 years
ago. After the September 11, 2001, disaster in NY, it became almost impossible to
import antiques from Europe and we had to close."
Besides that travel, they've also enjoyed trips to Lake Tahoe and around Colorado.
In fact, they're toying with the idea of relocating to Colorado, or maybe returning to
Belton to live on the lake.
They are semi-retired, and can't imagine ever really stopping working. They like to
keep active. They have their own business, Wesson Field Services, in which they
do property inspections for insurance companies.
For the first 50 or 60 years of Johnny's life, his passion was hunting and fishing.
Now he and Gretchen have 11 acres at Dripping Springs, west of Austin, and enjoy
sitting in rocking chairs and watching the animals come to their feeders. He figures
that's his pay-back for all the pleasure animals have given him in his life. About six
to twelve deer frequent his corn feeder, and he feeds about ten raccoons on his
porch every day. A couple of squirrels are tame enough to eat pecans from his hand.
On TV, he watches the Longhorns, the San Antonio Spurs, and, since Vince Young
migrated to Tennessee, he's become a great fan of the Titans. He also watches a
series called "24," which he says will return to TV in January, and Fox News.
It will be such fun to see Johnny again at the 2010 reunion, and to meet Gretchen.
| 2003: Johnny with his wife of 41 years, Gretchen |
| 1994: Daughter Kim |
