CISCO, Texas (KTAB) – As you watch this newscast, thousands of former high school students and their classmates are packing up and heading out on their final journey together, their senior trip.
Seventy Three Years ago, the Luders, Texas senior class set out to do the same, but faced a bit of an obstacle in getting there.
“Nineteen forty eight i think. Right around forty eight? No, five. Nineteen forty five.”
Harry Truman has just been elected president, world war II is nearing its monumental end, and you are about to set out on your senior class trip.
In the small town of Luders just half an hour north of Abilene, this was the reality for Belva Yeager as she planned her valedictorian speech.
The only problem was, there was no one to drive a group that big.
“Well we did kinda hire someone but it was in a cattle truck.”
And as you can imagine.
“A cattle truck is not very comfortable.”
This trailer full of almost 30 students set out on a four hour trip
From Lueders Texas to Carlsbad New Mexico
“We just went along singing and trying to have fun.”
Baking in the heat of Texas sun for eight hours round trip isn’t what most high school seniors would consider comfortable. But this class was determined and ready to sacrifice.
“Back in those days that’s the way things were, We said, do we really want this? Yeah we do, we wanna take our trip.”
Following in her footsteps Belvas granddaughter, Tabitha McKinney graduated valedictorian from Cisco High school and is anticipating her class trip,Though the trip is a bit more exotic than a trailer to New Mexico
“Were going on a Carnival Cruise-liner that’ll be making stops in Cozumel and Progresso.”
But she says that if it came down to it, re-living her grandmother’s journey wouldn’t be out of the question
“I would still probably go, I can’t say the same for everyone and I know that definitely we would all complain but everybody wants to have some last final fun thing with all of your classmates.”
If you’re determined enough well I guess you’d do anything to try to fulfill a dream.
