I went to pick David up from school yesterday and was told by the teachers that if David didn't pay for his cap and gown he would not be allowed to graduate from high school, and the money had to be paid that day, in cash, no checks. Well, that just didn't set right with me. I politely informed them that the last I knew it was not illegal to be poor, and that David had earned his graduation through 4 years of school work (he's on the honor roll) and he was going to graduate or the supreme court would be asking why. I didn't have the cash that day. I could have written them a check, but they wouldn't take that. It would be nice if David could have bought the graduation packet, had a real good prom, etc., but I was barely able to buy his graduation pictures and ring, let alone anything else. They finally decided that they would donate his cap and gown to him. I have had so much trouble with this school. No wonder kids want to drop out. Jack Childers in OKC

My grandson, the jock, is graduating from high school. First there is the letterman jacket that all the football players have to have, al least he got to wear it for four years. He made varsity his Freshman year. Then to graduate you have the following costs that I know of: pictures, ring, prom, senior day, senior trip, cap and gown. It is just to costly. What happened to the days when you just rented the cap and gown and bought the tassel? It is a rip off. I am glad and I know his parents are, that he didn't want to do all of the above, he just wanted to play football and graduate, he did want a ring, which he bought. His mother wanted the pictures, and I don't blame her. I like pictures, they stay around for a long while. Just the other day I was looking at some pictures of my grandfather when he was a young man. I only remember him as being old (remember I was very young) anyone over the age of 18 was old to me then. But I regress, they just can't afford all the stuff that goes with graduating and they have three more children to go. They would rather help with college. The kids have a fund for college so their tuition and books are paid for but where they live doesn't have a college so they have to go somewhere else. So you have living expenses and that is not cheep. But what happens when the kids just don't have the money for a cap and gown? Poor is not bad, it isn't a crime, they should not be punished. My two cents. Sorry for rambling, thanks for listening. Whitewolf ----- Original Message ----- From: "JACK CHILDERS" <jaxone1234@msn.com> To: <BLACKSHEEP-CHAT-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, May 02, 2002 5:36 AM Subject: [BSChat] GRADUATING > I went to pick David up from school yesterday and was told by the teachers that if David didn't pay for his cap and gown he would not be allowed to graduate from high school, and the money had to be paid that day, in cash, no checks. > > Well, that just didn't set right with me. I politely informed them that the last I knew it was not illegal to be poor, and that David had earned his graduation through 4 years of school work (he's on the honor roll) and he was going to graduate or the supreme court would be asking why. > > I didn't have the cash that day. I could have written them a check, but they wouldn't take that. It would be nice if David could have bought the graduation packet, had a real good prom, etc., but I was barely able to buy his graduation pictures and ring, let alone anything else. > > They finally decided that they would donate his cap and gown to him. > > I have had so much trouble with this school. No wonder kids want to drop out. > > Jack Childers in OKC > > > ==== BLACKSHEEP-CHAT Mailing List ==== > Unsubscribe from the list: > Mailto:Blacksheep-Chat-L-request@rootsweb.com?subject=unsubscribe&body=unsub scribe > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 >