Generations of alumni backing restoration efforts of Ogden High

OGDEN -- George B. Handy remembers the "big controversy" surrounding the construction of a million-dollar high school during the 1930s like it was yesterday.

"Why spend a million dollars on high school kids? They aren't worth it. That was the concept," said Handy, a 1939 grad of OHS who has practiced law in Ogden for 60 years. "Then they tried to argue, let's make two $500,000 schools, one at each end of town. That ($1 million) was a lot of money in those days."

Now more than 70 years later, a fundraising campaign is under way to earn the funds necessary to restore the school, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Since going public Sept. 18, the campaign has raised more than $130,000 as of this week, with donations coming in daily, said Sally McFarland, the school's foundation financial secretary. The grand total stands at $6,930,350.21.

"We are keeping busy. We're working hard to meet the goal," McFarland said. "We encourage everyone to keep donating."

The Ogden School Foundation had already raised $6.8 million in private donations before Sept. 18. At least $2.2 million more is needed. Voters passed a bond in 2006 to fund about $79 million in construction costs. The $9 million currently being raised by the foundation will primarily go to restore the auditorium and the windows to their 1930s splendor.

"Why is this school worth saving? Because it's such a magnificent institution. There is nothing like it in the county," Handy said.

"It must be maintained. It will be the talk of the state when it's finished."

Handy took a tour of the school on Friday and was amazed at the changes. Nearly every corner and classroom sparked a story from the good old days. Handy recalled wearing his ROTC uniform, the 1924 Model T Ford he and his brother drove to school, and missing out on many sports and dances so he could have a part-time job as a janitor.

His family depended on his minimal income to put food on the table.

Handy left Ogden to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the Northwestern States in 1941.

His stories of marble halls, walnut panels, clocks in every classroom and a real cafeteria at Ogden High School were simply too much for people to believe at that time.

"I would tell them about his magnificent high school and they wouldn't believe a word I was saying. I lost all my credibility," Handy said. "It was such an overwhelmingly, fantastic building. ... It was a phenomenon."

Handy's drive to support the restoration of the school stems from his memory of the wonderful people and teachers he knew there, including many classmates who died in World War II.

"I can see their faces. They were bright young men who would have made wonderful contributors," Handy said. "But they had a rendezvous with death."

Handy also lit up when principal Sondra Jolovich-Motes showed him a series of new trophy cases, one of which displayed the 1979 state champion girls basketball team. A big smile crossed his face when he located No. 23.

"Look at that cute girl. She was a sweetheart," said Handy, pointing to a picture of his daughter Anne, recently inducted into the school's athletic hall of fame. "I had red hair too once."

E. LaMar Buckner graduated in 1940. Many of his children attended OHS through the years and went on to successful careers, which he partly attributes to Ogden High. The Buckners are planning to make a donation as a family.

"The school was a major investment for the community then and has been a hallmark ever since -- a real crystal in Ogden's tree of accomplishments," Buckner said. "We are in the process of making a decision of how much to contribute. A lot of people should consider contributing."

To donate to Ogden High's capital campaign, visit www.restoreogdenhigh.org or call the Ogden School Foundation at (801) 737-7305.