The "We All Must Meet Our Maker Sometime!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Sun was shining brightly and the air had a slight chill to it!  My wife and I had just arrived at the Mount Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church for the funeral service of Mr. Barry R. Walton.  I had known Barry since the early 1970s when we were both Industrial Art teachers who were in the early stages of our teaching careers at Manheim Township High School in Neffsville, Pennsylvania.  We shared the same classroom when he taught Graphic Arts and I taught Graphic Arts and Photography.  At times I taught Photography in the attached "Darkroom" when he had a class in the Graphic Arts room at the same time.  We learned pretty quickly how to share the space that was needed by both classes at the same time.  But, we never had any problems while sharing the same location. Luckily, the classes weren't huge in size with perhaps 15 to 20 (boys and girls) being the norm.  We worked together so he could use the printing presses with his class while I was using the darkroom for my class.  We both seemed to have the same personalities which made it easy to share the space that was needed for both of the classes.  Yes...there were times when one of the rooms was open, which made it easier, but the Industrial Arts curriculum was very popular at Manheim Township, so the room was shared quite a bit.  At the front of the Graphic Arts room was an open classroom which Barry would use when I needed the space at the rear of the room for allowing my students to matte and frame their photography projects.  When I knew he needed the space for his classes, I made sure my classes were working in the darkroom making prints for their projects.  In the many years we taught in the same space, I can't think of a single time that we had any problems.  Of course...we both shared the same laid-back personalities which made it so much easier for both of us as well as the students in both of our classes.  Barry also taught wood shop and metal shop which made it easier for scheduling since the wood and metal shops were separate from the Graphic Arts/Photography room.  Our school Principal and Guidance Councelors were all great at scheduling so we could use the Graphic Arts/Photography Darkroom very efficiently.  Barry and I also shared a small room next to the Graphic Arts/Photography area as our offices.  Took away from having to work at our desks while the other was teaching in the same area.  Not quite sure how we did it for all the years we taught together, but I would guess our personalities to be about the same which made it so much easier to handle.  Actually...I might fill in for Barry a few times and he would take over my class a few times when needed without any problems.  Our students realized that both of their teachers had the same personalities and worked to help us make it all happen.  Yeah...there were some times when a student or two might create a problem, but we were there to help each other when necessary.  At times I thought the Principal made the Barry/Larry schedule so we could work together in the same space and still have a great learning experience for both our Graphic Arts and Photography students.  After retirement we both kept in touch with each other and met a few times a year to share our retirement stories.  Barry recently died.  I'm certainly going to miss him!  Hard to replace a good friend whom you managed to teach with and get along with for close to 30 years!  But, life isn't always what you want it to be...and you must find the best way to carry on your life.  We both retired some time ago, but still found time to visit with each other.   I'll miss Barry and my visits with him over the past couple of years.  Life will go on...and we must cherish our memories from the past!  And....I have many great memories!   It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Retired Industrial Arts Teachers from Manheim Township H.S.
Barry is seated while I am on the far left (w/o "any" hair).