Wow...that was a lonely story. Hope something comes out of these abandoned places.
I am sure something will be built.....the whole area is going to be transformed. If we can keep the basic flavor of the area, but have some progress it would be great :)
Kathy, things keep changing don't they? And you hate to see abandoned structures. In parts of West Texas around Midland, much looked like this for so long after an oil bust.
Gary- Yes there are many of these structures out here in some of the Desert areas. I do hate to see them abandoned, but actually when I look at them I try to visualize what they will be :)
It's rather fun to do as you say Kathy - visualize what could be there, what will probably be there in the future.
That is one positive I have about "not being from here" - I don't have a point of reference of how some of these buildings used to be. I can focus on the *will be* a lot easier than some.
Debbie- You are so right....when you're from an area you have a harder time, on average, of visualizing what could be. People see with their "yesterday eyes" most of the time :) :)
Kathy - I may have to borrow that: "Yesterday Eyes" love it! It really sums up a lot of the emotion people feel about buildings, businesses and homes.
Debbie- :) :) Have a good evening, and feel free to use it if you want :)
Wow, I didn't realize they were shuting down the boy's home. Sad to see it go. It helped a lot of kids through the years.
Mark- Remember when it was Saint Johns? Well, it's been Trinity for years now, and they finally got signs and everything :) I am curious what they will put there now...maybe another boys home :)
Wendy- I am sort of laughing at your story...only laughing as I heard it many times. My old friend that has since passed away used to live on Joshua, and he and I coached little league together. He used to take my son snake hunting (which I hated) but my son loved it. Also all the kids would swim in the Whitewater River during the summers.
Whitewater is not for everyone, and many of the original residents have old mobiles...did you know that Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Liberanci, and other well known people bought land in Whitewater? Because the developers went bankrupt the place never became what it could have been. And now, the old boys school has been rented out....but not as some of us had hoped for. And along with the "crap" as you call it, there is a lot of beauty.
Where can you watch quail running through your yard, or watch the yellow rod as it begins to bloom. How about the fantastic views of the San Jacinto Mountains to the south or the San Gorgonio to the North? I find a lot of beauty mixed in with all the junk out there :)
Thanks for sharing your story :)
my name is mark i was a juvenile resident at st johns school for boys 2/1971 to 6/1972 then Harry "rock" rocklin was director,i must say that was the best part of my life with so many memories with me today. as for that gas station across the street it closed down news years day 1972 when i was there!
I was a resident at St. Johns in the early 90's. Lots of troubled kids. I was on the football team and the boxing team. Still have the award they gave me and a few pictures:) Driving back to San Diego from Palm Springs I decided to take a trip down memory lane and take a quick drive by only to discover that it is now closed. Lots of memories in that abandoned building.
I was a troubled teen back in 1981 and was sent to St. Johns I stayed until 1982 July. Alot of memories. Going off grounds to an amusement park bowling in banning..swimming in Whitewater...it was jail but it gave me a lot of Frist time stuff in life. I would definitely work there if given the chance.
I was wrong! Andre Tarkington was the guy I pulled off the bottom of the pool. He was drowning. I pulled him to the surface, Wendell the 49’s counselor gave him CPR. Larry Ardoin was the broken nose. He jumped me on the Vikings walkway. St Johns gave me the beginnng foundation of a good life. The Marine Corps gave me the rest of it.
Hmmm that looks like one heck of a 'localism' spree that you're on.........:-)