Wagner High School - First Visit

After the Gomez Family Reunion on Sunday, 16 July 2000, we visited the old Wagner High School located off of Mitchell Highway at the foot of FM Hill.  Wagner Middle School is located adjacent to the high school.

As we drove west over the final hill into the valley where Wagner is located, both VJ and I started to feel very strange.  It was though I was back on one of the blue Air Force school buses after being picked up in Balibago 35 years ago.

At this point in the bus ride, I would have been busy organizing my books or refolding my PE clothes and towel.  My pack of Winston cigarettes would be stuffed in my sock.

Before we reached the bottom of the hill, I saw it.  For a brief moment, I had a very strong urge to look for Jill or Becky's bus to see if they had already arrived!  As a Junior/Senior in 1964, I would have been with Jill Hessey '66, until the homeroom bell/buzzer rang.

We turned into the parking lot to find the main gates closed and locked.  Our driver Steve was still parking the van when VJ and I both jumped out and walked through the wide open pedestrian gate at the east end of the 100 wing.  

My first impression was surprise.  The school grounds and building structures all looked good!  The surrounding areas also looked excellent.  Many nice homes were located across from the school parking lot, including the area we were told was the Park.  The hill area across Mitchell Highway was park like, compared to uncleared jungle in the early '60s.

In the Wagner "compound" I began to notice that things weren't quite so rosy.  Weeds and wild plant growth became visible as we walked towards the 100 Wing.  I also noticed that tin roofing had been installed (maybe recently) which didn't exist in the '60s either.  Most of the windows had been removed or broken.

I turned to the right to look for the old snackbar/cafeteria past the 500 Wing.  It was gone!  I noticed much more plant growth.  All the trees looked to be in great shape.

We entered Room 101.  It was trashed.  One by one we checked each room as we walked towards the admin and Principal's office.

I won't go into many more details in this report.  I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

General Observations:

-  the area surrounding Wagner is well developed.  
-  The golf course runs between FM Hill and the school.  
-  the middle school looked occupied and in great shape.  Holy Angel University had a neon sign out front.  I was told later by the outgoing CDC Chief that HAU was losing it's lease on the entire property due to non-use.  I was also told that the lease would be available at a very reasonable cost.
-  the other sides were surrounded by new or refurbished homes.  The homes in the old "Park" area are occupied by employees of the Clark Airport Authority.  Advanced note - 3 bedroom, 2 bath homes in the area are available on a 10 year lease for 1.6 million PHP (approximately $297 USD/month!).  Utilities extra.
-  my opinion is that the school grounds could be cleared and cleaned up in less than a week.
-  several rooms in the 400-500 Wings were occupied. Utilities were in use.
-  very little water or moisture was found in any of the buildings in spite of the fact that they are wide open.
-  the grounds between the high school and middle school were well kept (old nature trail area for the early '60s folks)
-  FM Hill is accessible via the old road on the west side of the hill.
-  both gyms were in good shape, but empty.
-  all of the basic structures were standing and in generally good shape.
-  lots of graffiti and trash

This was our first visit.  During my second visit I spent more time looking for remnants of our past and taking better photos.  I have a piece of Wagner for everyone!

Coming next - More Clark and Angeles, lunch with the ambassador, speaking at the Rotary Clubs, an orphanage in Angeles, the Mayor of Angeles, the President of Mimosa Resorts, the President of the Clark Development Corporation (CDC), donations to the Clark Museum, Holiday Inn, Fontana Resort, duty-free shops, and much more!

John '65 and VJ '70