Few things make me happier than to hear others' stories about Eddie. A friend once told me, "Little vignettes are a peek into the soul" My hope is that by sharing these stories you might get a glimpse into the heart of your friend, Eddie Page. I welcome this chance to share his memory with you.

Love always,

Sandra (Zimmerman) Page

BHS Class of '62

EDDIE PAGE-

Eddie was a wonderful husband and a loving daddy. He was affectionate, fun, warm, happy, gentle, had a wild sense of humor, very smart and sometimes a rascal. I've never known anyone so happy and eager to wake up in the morning. He seldom broke character when under pressure. Family and friends were always central to what mattered most to Eddie.

For fun Ed like river rafting, football, square dancing, family gatherings, and of course...golf. He had a powerhouse drive off the tee and forever played with the same clubs he used in high school.

THE EARLY YEARS -

Long time friend Mike Connelley shared this memory of Ed with me: Eddie Page and I started grade school together. He lived one block to the north and over one street. So, I knew him quite well. Eddie was a great student and a talented athlete...he excelled in everything he tried.

Probably the most memorable thing was on Saturday mornings Eddie would come by at about 7:00 and wake me up! I was a late sleeper and he was an early riser. We played baseball, golf, swimming, you name it. We both had a paper route in the 4th and 5th grade and on Saturday morning after the weekly wrap up we went to the Nickel-Show to be followed by a malt at the drug store.

Borger was a great place to grow up!  -Mike Connelley

COLLEGE -

After graduating high school, Ed attended Oklahoma University at Norman, joined Army ROTC and began studies for civil engineering. He was excellent with math. Eddie and dear friend Mike Crouch were roommates prior to Ed's moving to the fraternity house.

Mike describes the following culinary aspect of their college life: Eddie was a good friend and a great guy. People liked him because he was fun and funny. He was a genuine person...what you saw was what you got. Eddie was an excellent athlete and could throw a football as far and as accurately as brother Bob.

Eddie had a fairly new Ford in which he and I and various others commuted between Borger and OU every 2 or 3 weeks. We left class on Friday afternoon and made the trip to Borger (no interstates then) in about 4-1/2 hours. The return trip departed mid afternoon on Sundays. Two of my most vivid memories of that time involve food .

The Sunday afternoon trip often departed my house and invariably my mother packed a sack full of ham sandwiches. They were usually just bread, mayo and ham, but what they lacked in features and finesse was made up in volume. She made no less than 3 sandwiches for each person. They were usually gone before we got 40 miles out of Borger, but sustained us the entire trip.

My favorite memory, however, was the meal that awaited us on Friday evenings when we drove into Borger. We cane in on tge Pampa Highway and made straight for Sophie's Cafe on West 10th St. Eddie's mom would be waiting to make each of us her famous Special Mexican Dinner. Mama Sophie sat with us and chatted while we waited for the kitchen to prepare our feast. I can remember it was clear that she doted on Eddie.

The hot platters piled with the Special Mexican Dinner did not take long to arrive.....the dinner, as I recall, was a couple of enchiladas (with maybe one taco), rice and refried beans with melted cheese sprinkled with onions, with a generous garnish of shredded lettuce and diced tomato salad occupying one end of the platter. Eddie taught me that the best taste was achieved by mixing the garnish with the rice, and cheesy refried beans. I can't remember what things we did afterward, but I can still taste Sophie's Special Mexican Dinner. I still try to recreate that taste.  Every time 
I order Mexican food, I ask for a side of shredded lettuce and diced tomato. Then I dump the whole thing on my plate and stir it up.....I love that taste!  - Mike Crouch 

POST COLLEGE -

After two years college costs became prohibitive. Eddie left college and took a job with the Federal Bureau of Reclamation working on the Lake Meredith project. His hope was to save enough to re-enter school later. Eddie never returned to OU. He did however attend night classes in San Jose, CA. In the end, the frequent job transfers and career advancements eclipsed his goal of a degree.

HOW WE MET -

Eddie and I met in Borger on a blind date, double dating with Ed's close friend Dennis Hood  and my tennis partner, Peggy Huskey. "Wow," I thought, "This is what they mean by tall, dark and handsome!" Eddie was also very quiet that evening, something I was to later learn was "false advertising". We dated from the summer of 1961 into the Fall of 1962.

Dennis Hood, who I will always affectionately remember as "Skibo", said to me recently:” I loved Eddie like a brother. You could always count on him. We shared a lot of laughs and had fun just being around each other. I never really played golf until after I retired in 2001. I think Eddie would be proud to know that since I have taken up golf, I've recorded two holes in one."

HOW HE PROPOSED -

Eddie said matter-of-factly:

    "I've been offered a job in California and I want you to come with me."

    "Well.... uh", I said doubtfully, Mama and Daddy really like you a lot, but I don't think they'll allow me to do that!"  (I had completely missed the proposal!)

     Laughing at his own words, he said "No...? Then you'll marry me?"

He always said jokingly that he never did really propose, but that he'd just sprung the trap!

Yet like the gentleman that he was, he went to my Daddy and "asked for my hand". 

We were married in October, 1962. A few weeks later we were pulling a small U-Haul trailer only half full of what it takes to be prepared for any wonderful adventure: Ed's Kingston Trio record albums and my Buddy Holly 45's, clothes, golf clubs, Melmac dishes and an ironing board. We were bound for Los Banos, California, to build the earthen dam and San Luis Reservoir.

FAMILY -

I count inheriting Eddie's family -Mama Sophie, Daddy Nelson ,brothers and sisters among the many blessings of our marriage. Ed was the youngest of eight children and they and their spouses and children are all wonderful and were so welcoming and I love them still.

Here's a reflection from Eddie's older brothers, Jim Page:

"I left home in July of 1944 to join the U.S. Navy and Eddie was only 4 years old. By the time I got to know him he was a young man, married and an expectant father. Our families visited, and we always wished it to have been more often.

Where I came to know what Ed was really like was on the golf course. What I got to know about Ed made me proud to be his brother. As some of you who have played the game of golf know, it is where you can learn the values a person possesses such as does he have a bad temper, does he lie or cheat or do does that person have the qualities you admire.

What I learned about Ed was that he was one of the nicest people I have ever known. He was a kind and gentle person...someone you enjoyed spending time with.

Ed was my brother and my friend. Tragically, he left us much too soon. He missed out on seeing his beautiful daughter,Lisa, grow to be the wonderful person she is. He missed out on the birth of his grandson, Robert Edward. Even now after all these years he is still remembered by all who knew him. I know there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about Ed. We never forget beautiful human beings. That was my brother. -Jim Page

THANKSGIVING DANCE,
It must have been love, as Eddie surely didn't marry me for my cooking.
He would often come into the kitchen to taste and season whatever was on the stove.
Never the less, I decided one year that I wanted to host Thanksgiving dinner
for our family of eighteen. I spent weeks planning every detail from table
decorations to the turkey and all the trimmings. I had lists upon lists of

what I was supposed to do. I had never cooked a turkey, but I had recipes.
How hard could it be?", I asked myself.

The day came, the house was full and everyone was having a good time. As I
 began the kitchen marathon, I soon found it remarkable how many things were
 required to be done at the last minute.
 Where was my gravy recipe?...and how was I supposed to cook six things in
 one oven at the same time, each requiring a different cooking temperature?
 Then there was the packet I'd taken from the
 turkey cavity earlier in the day. It contained some strange looking things!
 Which things were the giblets for the gravy? My heart pounded, stomach sank
 and tears were close.

 Ed had been watching me and he came dancing into the kitchen doing this
 wacky head bobbing, prancing, twist and shuffle dance. He grabbed me up and
 danced me out of the kitchen! The dance was so comical that we all got
 tickled as the kids mimicked our gyrations. My sisters in law and Mama Sophie and my Mama filtered into the kitchen and we finally got dinner on the table.

 I remember this story every Thanksgiving. It always reminds me of Eddie's
 general kindness and how he was unwilling to let anyone feel uncomfortable
 or distressed.

OUR DAUGHTER -

Our daughter Lisa is my pleasure and my treasure. Her Daddy adored her and I still recall how Ed would look at me and grin every time Lisa did something cute, clever, funny, sweet...which to him was all the time. He was a great Dad. Here is one of Lisa's memory snapshots:

  Dad was warm and funny. He was always quick with a joke, up for
  wearing silly costumes, and seemed to have a nickname for just about
  everyone. (I was "Pootsie"!) He was very supportive of my school and
  sports activities, and was a regular in the stands at my basketball
  games and track meets.

  In California, 4th graders in public school are required to write an
  essay about a California Mission and build a small model of their
  Mission of choice. I chose Mission Santa Barbara. Please take a look
  at my  Mission replica in the attached photo. It was to scale, very
  detailed, and had more square footage than my first apartment.

  I'll remind you that I was 9 years old. Dad was an engineer.

 Think I had any help here?

  Our son Bob is 2 years old and already has many Ed-like qualities.  He
  was born on Cinco de Mayo - which we believe is a nod from my dad. Bob
  is very exact and precise with things and enjoys lining his cars and
  crayons in little rows. (So very  my dad.) He's very specific about
  his appearance and his clothing choices. He is an easy-going guy,
  laughs a lot, and loves to dance. Little Bob is a lucky guy to be so
  like his grandpa Ed. - Lisa Page

WORK -

After the job at Los Banos, Ed passed the State of California Bridge Department exam (now part of Caltrans). Through his position we were transferred from job to job throughout California. Although this meant that we moved every two years, we lived in some wonderful places such as Sacramento, San Jose, Santa Barbara and back again to San Jose. It was at that time that Ed applied for an opening with Granite Construction. He was told that he didn't have enough experience for them. Then he took a position with a minority contractor and it so happened that one of his first jobs was that of sub-contractor to a Granite Construction project. By the time the project was completed, Granite came to Ed with a job offer. To be nearer Granite's office we left San Jose and moved 40 miles away to Aptos - a small beach side town near Santa Cruz. His years spent with Granite were exciting, challenging and fulfilling for him. He was referred to as Granite's "golden boy" and was on the management track. He was moved from the field to the main office and was receiving training in job estimating/bidding at the time of his death in 1979. He lost his life in a truck accident on a two lane, rain slick road with a nasty curve.

AFTERGLOW -

Some people leave an afterglow when life is done. Ed has surely done that through his daughter and grandson. I catch glimpses of him through them. If you feel a little nudge at your shoulder while you're at your 50th BHS reunion, it might be Eddie there with you in spirit.

He always liked a good party.