The class of 2007 is preparing to move on to bigger and better things, but there are some moments that will stay with us forever. There were tense situations: kids running on the roof, wild hallway fights, and countless suspensions. We braved violence, including three lockdowns in the span of two weeks during freshman year. We survived physical dangers, like when the Breezeway crumbled. We enjoyed the comedy of M-80’s, stink bombs, and strippers at our assemblies. Nick Kaspers tried to rinse the muddy tires of his car and ended up sinking it in Lake Washington. We’ve lost some good soldiers to rehab, but more or less, ‘07 emerges so successful.

So Sayonara
Poor 08 (and 09, and 010, and …). They’ll never experience the adrenaline rush of one of Mr. Anderson’s map tests, or appreciate how fly Dr. P. looks in his Levi’s. Most of them never even had a soothing conversation with Mr. Seth Bundy, and they won’t get to read romance novels aloud in Ms. Strentz’s senior LA class. Here’s a list of some legendary teachers who have moved on to bigger and better things (like retirement) during 07’s time at Garfield. (Note: This list is probably not exhaustive.)

Mr. Anderson (World History)
Mr. Creighton (U.S. History)
Ms. Strentz (Language Arts)
Dr. Piccioni (Physics)
Ms. Shope (Biology)
Ms. Jenni (Ecology, Outdoor Education)
Ms. McBennett (Language Arts)
Ms. Jacklet (Biology)
Ms. Mersch (Spanish)
Mr. Kelly (Spanish)
Mr. Bundy (Math)
Ms. Taboh (Photography, Mixed Media)
Ms. Mayall (Drama, History)

In addition to the multitude of teachers who’ve called it quits after 07 passed through their classrooms, we’ve also had to say good-bye to beloved security guards Michael Dixon and Fred Montgomery. And don’t forget about our first and last Dean of Students, former gospel star Brad Westering!

What memory from high school stands out most to you?
“Purple and White Day freshman year… it embodied togetherness and brotherhood that can result from being a bulldog. It felt as if I were finally accepted into the Garfield Community. I got froshed by the swim team, It was a delicious summer day. They froshed me with assorted condiments. I was forced to eat baby food, then to jump off the bridge. I was beaten with flour sacks when I got out of the water.”
 – Spencer Wangerin

“All the dances at the old Garfield, they used to crack.”
 – Tamarah Townsend

“Ms. Derse..she was tight… she let you get away with stuff.”
 – Chris Chapman

“Tangoing with Ms. Gumbs. I went in there during break, and she was dancing, and I was like hey Ms. Gumbs, and she was like “shush chico”, and then she just made me dance.”
 – Frank Zhang

“Hanging out in front of the school, living across the street from the old Garfield, not having to worry about catching my bus. And when we won the Y-E-L-L chant at the Purple and White assembly last year.”
 – Randy Weaver

“Freshman year, at the end of the year, we had a water fight on Alder. That was the best water fight ever.”
 – Andrea Wise

“Avoiding administration by being Asian.”
 – Yolanda Eng

“All the fights at the old Garfield.”
 – Phillip Pearson

So Scrumptious
Everyone says one of the few good things about Lincoln is the multitude of food options available on 45th and nearby. But let’s not forget that Old Garfield had its highlights too.

PIZZA TIME: What could be better than fresh hot pizza sold from the back of a van on Alder? It was cheap and it came from a more reliable source than the lunchroom. It was a dark time indeed when the authorities chased away the Pizza Time guy our sophomore year.

PHILLY CHEESE STEAK: The Philly Cheese Steak guy was like the Pizza Time Guy, except he came a little later, and he actually made the sandwiches in the back of his van. When the Health Department came to shut him down junior year, he tried to front like he was just a delivery man. Unfortunately, they didn’t buy it.

BATHROOM BURGER: A sweaty, lecherous middleaged man sold burgers out of a window in a public bathroom. The weird part is, people actually bought them. And ate them.

AM PM: Shady characters lurked outside, and often we were only allowed in a few at a time, due to excessive numbers of stolen hotpockets. They sold a lot of suspicious sandwiches and burrito-type items. Face it, Chevron just isn’t the same.

TANNA MARKET: Along with crispitos better than AM PM’s, Tanna carried terrorist trading cards, expired cereal, and ethnic baskets.

DUR DUR CAFE: Their one-dollar chai tea flowed all day long.

DILETTANTE: Half a block from school was a chocolate shop with crumbling bricks and no windows. Yet another example of the metrosexualization of the Central District, the “Dillettante Factory Outlet” was remodeled and reopened as the “Dilettante Mocha Cafe.”

EZELL’S: One day, Ezell’s raised their prices. Outrage ensued.

TACO DEL MAR: People talked for months about how Taco Del Mar was moving in across the street from Starbucks. The results did not disappoint.

RED APPLE: Jojos, Jarritos, Jesus candles … Red Apple had something for everyone.

SUBWAY/QUIZNOS/STARBUCKS/MAGIC DRAGON: Actually, we have all of those here too. But they tasted better in the CD.

Timeline

Freshman Year

First Semester
‘07 walks the halls of Garfield for the first time. Teachers immediately thanked us for being SO much better than ‘06, thank God.

A brand new blue Subaru WRX rounds the corner onto Jefferson from 23rd, loses control, and smashes into a tree in the middle of lunch, to the awe of all onlookers. That’ll teach you to let your friends drive your new car.

Like all freshmen before and since, we lined the skinny hallway of the third floor at lunch, staring with reverence at the locker rumored to be Jimi Hendrix’s.

Second Semester
Leah LaBelle makes it to the Top 12 on American Idol. A televised support rally occurs on the front steps.

The members of ‘07 become true Bulldogs with the help of paddles, condiments and a dip in the lake.

Sophomore Year

First Semester
Beloved principal Susan Derse hands the reins over to Theodore Howard II. The halls become alarmingly silent after the bell.

Second Semester
Hour-long lunches, seven-minute passing periods and daily 20-minute tutorials are gone forever as a new draconian schedule ushers in 2nd semester.

The girls basketball team beats Roosevelt to become state champions.

A counterfeit money scandal culminates in a massive near-riot on top of Medgar Evers Pool.

Eytan graduates.

Junior Year

First Semester
Eytan returns to Garfield.

Garfield beats Franklin for our one football win of the season.

Second Semester
‘07 beats ‘06 in Y-E-L-L at the Purple and White Day assembly.

On a day that will live in infamy, the Purple & White dance turns into a mob scene in which psychotic policemen attempt to control a swelling crowd of students shut out from the dance, while TH2 quietly sneaks groups of students in through the side door.

Old Garfield shuts its doors forever.

Senior Year

First Semester
Disoriented students find themselves in Wallingford instead of the Central District.

The lunchroom makes a dramatic comeback, becoming the new hot spot to grab a bite. Must be a result of its snazzy new title, “The Garfield Cafe.”

Second Semester
The Garfield dance team beats Franklin to win Bubblin’ Brown Sugar.

A safety shower left running in a chemistry classroom floods three floors of the school. With the power out and bathrooms out of order for a few days, it felt like Old Garfield.

‘07’s after-prom hotel party leaves one window of the hotel lobby shattered by bullets.

The class of ’07 graduates – the end of an era.