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In Memoriam: Don James ’67

by eagleadmin

Donald “Don” S. James CHS Class of 1967
14 December 1948 – 5 July 2022

“When he shall die, 
take him and cut him out in little stars,
 and he will make the face of heaven so fine
 that all the world will be in love with night
 and pay no worship to the garish sun.” – William Shakespeare

Donald Sidney James passed away peacefully after several years of struggling with Parkinson’s Disease. He was a kind and patient man with a wicked wit that always made people laugh. He was an accomplished runner at long and ultra-long distances. He was happiest when running on trails with his friends in his running group.

Don excelled as a math teacher and touched hundreds of students’ lives throughout more than 30 years of teaching. He treasured his family and friends and held them close to his heart.

He is deeply missed.

The Alumni Association received a generous donation of $500 from Don’s Family in his memory.

Running Accomplishments

2:53:09 – San Francisco Marathon 1984
4:27:17 – Way Too Cool 50k 1998
10:49:17 – Miwok 100k 2000
26:51:42 – Vermont 100 1991
25:26:17 – Western States 100 2001
23:24:23 – Western States 100 2002
19:14:59 – Vermont 100 2003

Pat Rosenkranz honored by CHSAA

by eagleadmin

The CHSAA honored Pat Rosenkranz ‘49 by having eight copies of her book, “Honored Dead”, bound in hardcover and distributed to close family members and friends.

The following Preface was added to the newly covered books:

Honored Dead
Honored Dead, by Pat Rosenkranz

Her book, HONORED DEAD, tells the stories of the “Cleveland boys” who died while serving in the armed forces of our country during World War II. These men are honored and memorialized at the Cleveland High School Memorial Forest, which is located in east King County near Fall City, Washington.
During the war, the students of Cleveland High School (CHS) sought a way to honor classmates and alumni who were killed in the war. The graduating
classes of 1943 and 1944 raised money by holding car washes, fundraisers like the senior play, bake sales, donating pocket change, and other odd jobs, to come up with $300.

Science teacher, Joseph Hazzard, suggested that they purchase a tract of land and make it into a memorial forest. With that thought in mind, Vice Principal Ray
Imus took the money to a county tax auction of logged-off land. He bid on 131.52 acres. When word got around of what the CHS students and staff were trying to accomplish, no one bid against him. The property was purchased in the name of Principal Kenneth Selby.

But the story of the memorial forest doesn’t end there–– it was just the beginning. Weyerhaeuser donated 10,000 seedlings of Sitka Spruce, Douglas Fir, and Western Red Cedar, and the students planted them and nursed them until they were fully established. They dug a well, installed restrooms and a sewage drainage system, built utility sheds and a lyceum measuring approximately 50×25 feet.

It was Faith Beatty who worked with CHS students to research each of our Fallen Heroes to document how they lived and how and where they died. Using their work as a starting point, Pat worked for 2 years researching and writing the book, including tracing the maps by hand and spending untold hours to have the book as accurate as possible. Her major concern was finding a publisher who would help design and title the book’s cover to add meaning and compassion to the
history documented in the book.

Patricia Sullivan Rosenkranz
Pat Rosenkranz

To honor Pat’s work in writing Honored Dead, a motion was presented to the board of the CHS Alumni Association (CHSAA) to purchase hardcovers for eight of her books and give them to close family members and friends, the CHS Library, and the Seattle Public Library. CHSAA president, Bernie Moskowitz, led the
board in unanimously approving this motion.

 

It is our hope that these hardcovered books will serve as family heirlooms to help remember Pat’s accomplishments related to our Fallen Heroes, the CHSAA, and the CHS Memorial Forest.

Ventrice Maurice Ingram

Ventris Maurice Ingram, CHS Class of 1954

by eagleadmin

Ventris Maurice Ingram was born June 24, 1937, to Mark Ingram and Josie Ella Beard in Summit, Oklahoma, a suburb of Muskogee. He moved to Seattle with his mother and step-father Clarence Dunn when he was six years old, living in the Duwamish Bend Projects that housed those working for the war effort. Ventris attended Cleveland Junior and Senior High School. He was a very industrious teen, serving as senior class secretary, vice president of the Letterman’s Club, chairman of the Boy’s Club, playing on two high school championship baseball teams (Go CHS Eagles!), taking bookkeeping courses, and selling and delivering newspapers. He graduated from Cleveland in 1954 as one of 18 students to receive a scholarship – his from Consolidated Freightways – where he worked while attending the University of Washington.

A proud member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Ventris graduated in 1963, with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration. He worked for the Post Office as a letter carrier for two years, then went to work for the federal government as an accountant and auditor for the Internal Revenue Service, totaling 40 years of public service. Ventris played an instrumental role in developing an equal opportunity program within the Seattle IRS office. He also played a role in the establishment of Volume Food Basket, the first black-owned and operated a grocery store in the area.

On June 17, 1961, Ventris married his Franklin High School sweetheart and the love of his life, Anita Louise Wilson. The couple had two daughters, Jerri Lynn and Kimberly Michelle. Ventris and Anita raised their family in South Seattle. After retiring as a Revenue Agent in 2000, he and Anita decided to settle down in their dream home in Renton. Though retired, he managed to stay busy managing rental properties, and as a volunteer tax return preparer for AARP (also known as “VITA”) for about 25 years at various locations, in particular, the Rainier Beach Library. In February 2004, he was recognized by the University of Washington Business School for “… Trailblazing Leadership in Business for other African Americans to Follow…”, and “… with much appreciation for your courage, confidence, and determination to study and enter business employment at a time when you had to open doors of opportunity for yourself and other African Americans…”.

Over the years, Ventris enjoyed entering sweepstakes, collecting Red Tails memorabilia and baseball caps, and gardening, which included his prized tomato plants. He enjoyed attending ROOTS picnics (Relatives of Old-Timers) and was a proud member of the Seattle Urban League and NAACP, in addition to actively supporting several civic, civil rights, and non-profit organizations.

Ventris passed away July 16, 2020, leaving to mourn his wife of 59 years, Anita, daughters Jerri Lynn and Kimberly Michelle (David), and a host of other family and friends, near and far.

Special Fund - In Memory of Ventris Ingram

In memory of Ventris Ingram, father of Kymi Ingram, co-workers of Kymi at King County have created a special fund to collect donations to the Cleveland High School Alumni Association. 

Make a Donation